First few weeks

July - August 2011

I'll never forget my first day in Australialand. It was the 4th of July 2011, the real independence day as far as I'm concerned.

I  caught the overnight flight from Kuala Lumpur to Perth. Why I chose  Perth as my first port of call is simple; It was the cheapest flight to  Australia. Before arriving I was worried about my passport, it had gone  through the washing machine some months back and had come out worse for  wear. The cover page had detached and I was concerned that they wouldn't  let me in. They did indeed pull me aside for further questioning and  luckily I had another passport to verify my identity. I was allowed in  after being told to get a new passport as soon as possible (I didn't).

The  first thing that got to me was the cold. Coming from the northern  hemisphere and having just spent what seemed like an eternity  backpacking around tropical locations I wasn't at all accustomed to cold  weather or the concept of winter in July. I arrived wearing shorts,  t-shirt and thongs but as soon as I got to the baggage claim area I felt  a gust of arctic wind blowing through and rushed to put on warm  clothes. The only problem was that I didn't have any warm clothes so I  put my jeans on, 2 t-shirts a light sweater and hoped for the best. It  wasn't enough.

I decided to wait in the airport until  it warmed up outside and get some sleep. Air Asia seats are notoriously  small and their stewardesses are notoriously beautiful. This dangerous  combination has robbed many passengers of a much deserved rest. I'm sure  they employ beautiful stewardesses to make you not notice the rest of  their shoddy operation. Either way, I was hanging out at Perth's  airport.

They had free internet and I made a list of  numbers to call later asking for work. I picked up a sim card and got my  first taste of Australian prices just browsing through the airport  shops. I saw Australian money for the first time, found a place to stay  in town as I had arrived without making any bookings and managed to get  some shut-eye.

Got to the hostel and saw my new home; a 12 bed mosh pit. It was  uncomfortable, there were bed bugs, everyone was loud & immature.  The place in general was filthy. I left after 4 days as I found a much  better and cheaper place to stay.

I took a walk around  the block and I was awestruck. Never had I been somewhere as clean and  wide open as Perth. It was even cleaner than Singapore, I didn't expect  there to be skyscrapers, let alone stay within 10 minutes of them, that  is just Perth for you. It takes like 10 minutes to walk around the  central business district. One you're in the city, the skyscrapers are  ubiquitous. You either live in/around the city or in a suburb somewhere.  From most suburbs you can see the city's skyline.

Yes I  am rambling and sounding like a cookie-cut tourist. Here's something I  just came across. I wrote it when I first moved here:

I finally made it to Australia, yes, finally indeed. It was a bit of a  shaky start that I recorded somewhere in my notebook. Oh, here it is:

So  here I am in the land of the Austral people. The land down under, new  world or whatever you wanna call it. It's here that I've come in search  of a better life, well paid jobs and to secure my future. It's quite a  change from the nice weather and cheap prices in Asia! Little did I know  that it would be winter time down here. I thought that was just a myth.  I actually arrived on one of the coldest days in Perth's history,  nursing a bit of fever and with practically no winter clothes. The first  day here I spent the equivalent of a good week in Asia (excl. Malaysia  & Singapore) and I really did nothing special. In fact, in the 3  days I've been here I've just been eating basic food that I prepare  myself. Quite a change no? Australian women don't look so fantastic, so  far at least but some will come. It's not really what I have on my mind  at the moment. I just wanna secure employment in the mines and build my  life from there. Man, this is all a bit daunting. It's like the first  time in my life where I feel truly independent and in control, as out of  control as I may be these days. All I've done in my life and over the  last year or two in particular has amounted to this moment. Oh the  lessons in money management I've learned in 3 days! It's an experience  and I'm here to stay no matter what happens. I must move up. Living in  dorms is so unappealing, my body is getting used to being in 'action'  again as is my mind. I'll make it, there is no other choice. This is  really making me a man and this necessary phase is only temporary. It  serves to make me stronger. Look, I made it down here despite all my  inner reservations. Things are going smoothly so far and they'll get  better one way or one way only, through my own effort. It;s the only  way. It's not pleasant right now but if that's what it takes then so be  it. I'll endure it with a smile until I get my way.

And another entry about a week later:

Yeah  it's still no walk in the park and I start to feel a little desperate  but then I stop, rationalize and put myself in a better mood. It's all  part of the process. Each day I find out something new that can help me  on my quest. Each day I see something from a new perspective. Yes I've  been quite rusty for a while and once I'm back into it making upwards of  750 dollars per week at least to start with I'll be able to save and  behave accordingly you see? I do laugh quite a but here and it's where I  wanted to be. First level on the video game of life and I'm gonna be  really good at this one and ace it. Learn the field and keep it real.  Change your perspective in more way than one and have some fun. Sisu.

Yeah,  that was last week. I've also noticed that I start a lot of my  sentences with yeah, as if posing a question. Hmmm, but that's unrelated  or is it? Yeah... Hehehe. So I've found some work and things are  starting to click in Australialand. That's all it takes, even though it  seemed bleak at first I wasn't always aware of the concealed order.  There is so much to look out for and I'm getting used to my new  settings. I'm much quieter and reserved than I normally am. Not good, I  can make it anywhere with my good qualities and must always show my best  qualities without fearing what others think. I must show that I am the  valuable one through my actions alone and not being pretentious. Has  that been a crime I've been committing? Probably to some extent. Yeah,  all things I learn from my new surroundings. I learn not to moan, that  we are all equal here, not to think negatively and to speak my mind, and  the truth no matter how 'uncomfortable' I may think it is at first.  This is all part of the process. Part of the experience. You see, in  addition to making mega bucks over here, I am also growing up day by day  and doing things the right way.

Now I see that there are much  more prospects on the horizon, I take charge and am flexible. I know  what I must do and am prepared to do whatever it takes, always go the  extra mile, change my bad habits for good ones. I like this environment  because there is no laziness, doubt, anxiety. Just people getting on  with the job and when I see that it can be done (long shifts, many days  in a row, isolation, hard work) then I also catch on. Also people here  can not only do it but do it with a smile and good humor. It's gonna be a  great country. I'll work here flat out until just before X mas and then  re-evaluate my position. If I can get my 3 months of farming or fruit  picking out of the way before X mas even better! The going is good here  in Perth right now and this is just the beginning. There will be many  tests along the way and I'll stay strong until I reach my goal of  getting into the mines and then I'll up my game. Nice, and there will  also be a lot of money in my bank accounting. Nice, some time before the  mines? For sure, all that I wanna do is just work and lift myself up.  Yes, it shall come to pass. 

----

So I mentioned that I moved out of that first shitty hostel  pretty quickly along with someone that had the same opinion of the  place. The next one I went to was great we shared a spacious 3 person  dorm with this other old weirdo that pretty much kept to himself.

There was a cooler vibe at the new backpackers because a lot of  the people stay there long term. I met a veteran that had been there for  over 2 years already. I had great fun there, apart from the lack of  cooking utensils or plate. I usually resorted to eating with my hands,  much to the dismay of everyone else. Hey, to each their own.

This one night, I was semi awake and heard the sound of trickling  fluids. I looked over and the old weirdo was pissing in a bottle in the  room. The toilet was only 20 metres away. I went ballistic on him. I  probably used every curse word in the English language to describe what a  filthy old pervert he is. I went up to reception and complained. They  gave me and my friend a room to ourselves. Sweet. The only reason they  didn't kick the old weirdo out was probably because it was low season  and they needed the extra bucks. The person I was sharing the room with  ended up leaving to go work after 2 days. I managed to get the room to  myself for the rest of the week, I tried to get it for another week when  payment was due but they weren't keen on letting me have a free ride  this time and I was back to the dorms, a 6 person dorm this time.

3 weeks of working in removals during the day and as a waiter at  night transpired. I can honestly say that it took me all of my energy  and willpower to make it. Just as soon as I was starting to get into a  rhythm that I was called up to go out and do what I came to Australia to  do; mining.