One of the last...

Hello all.

Well, I'm home. I have been for almost 4 days, but to me it's seemed like 4 weeks. Upon arrival into Calgary, I hit the ground running and literally have had very full days of errands, appointments and dealing with other issues. Such is life, I guess.

So, what are my first impressions of being back? Not good. I had a rough "welcome" back to Canada (some of you know the stories much better than others) and my house is a wreck full of renovations, and an ant infestation. My dog also has a massive lump on his back, and being 9 years old that's not a good sign. To make matters worse, 2 of our 4 cars are not working and I can't drive standard (meaning Dad's BMW is a no-go) and so Cass and I fight over the last available one. I'm hoping, by next week, all the above will be attended to and I will feel slightly better.

But what are my real first impressions? Still not good. I miss Australia. I miss the culture, the weather and most of all, the people. My mates. Already, I'm finding it hard to keep in touch with missed skype dates due to time zone issues, being really busy....and school hasn't even begun! When Tuesday rolled around, I wondered what Marc, Abbey and Kirstie were getting up to in the night french class. On Wednesday, I thought about Matt and Mel finding a new anatomy prac partner. On Thursday, I thought about Dave and Derek, my housemates, and how they would be walking together to pick up our weekly pizza for pizza night. Maybe it's just hard without good mates in Calgary, but I also think that it may also just be homesickness.

How is that possible you ask? Spend 8 months in another country, and it will become your home. Back in Canada, I feel like a foreigner. I talk funny, with weird sayings that no one here understands. Phrases like, "sweet as, we just rocked up, windscreens, capsicums, how're ya going".....all of them leave fellow Calgarians with a confused look on their face, and myself having to repeat what I said in "Canadian."

It's not just the language that has me hooped. It's also the driving! I've driven about 5 times since being home, and on 4 of the occasions, I've been on the wrong side of the road at some point in my trip. It usually happens when I am turning left and there is no oncoming traffic, so I naturally turn into the left-hand lane until I see headlights and realize my error. Luckily, I've not had any accidents yet, but I can tell you that when my sis and I are together, she insists on driving. I wonder why?

Other than that, I haven't really had time to sit down and get too sad. I cried enough the first couple days to last me all semester, so I think the hardest part will be the little reminders. Like tonight, I'll be going out with my sister for drinks and when I ask for rum and coke, I won't have to specify Bacardi. Since Bundy doesn't exist over here. And even though I'm not one to enjoy Bundy rum, I'll miss it. Because Bundy rum means I'm in Australia.

I'm going to leave this post on a semi-high note with the fact that this weekend, Cass and I are making a roadie to Edmonton to visit Andrea and family. It will be an excellent weekend of retail therapy, alcohol-induced happiness (I'm NOT an alcoholic, I swear) and some football events and bars in between. We'll make it back on time to pick up my Dad and brother from the airport on Monday, and then it's all about Queen's and getting ready for next year! (insert fake smile here)

I think this will be the second to last post, with the last one reflecting on my entire time away. Look for that sometime next week, and then this link will probably no longer need to stay on your favourites' list. I'll be returning to email updates when I start school!

xoxo Danielle