Apr 20 2010
In Anticipation of Sydney
As a grad student and bookstore employee, I have pestered co-workers since December: “what should I do with the rest of my life?” Well, I’m sad to report that it’s April, and I still have no clear answers (honestly, I’m not surprised). But what I do have is an unpaid internship that I took on a whim… in Sydney.
I just bought my Lonely Planet and my plane ticket so it’s official - for the month of May, I will be writing science news articles for the Australian magazine COSMOS. Honestly, I couldn’t be more excited – it’s pretty close to exactly what I want to do for the rest of my life – I think. And, I’ve always been curious about living and working in another country (when I lived abroad, I was always in some form of school), and I wonder how the 9-5 life will stack up to the adventure of generic tourism. I can imagine taking my lunch break strolls near the opera house in warm weather, being greeted by surfer dudes as I head back to the office. In all honesty, I’ll probably be downtown, far from the opera house and, since it will be the fall, in a jacket. At any rate, I’ll keep you posted.
Meanwhile, I’m taking the opportunity of my remaining time in Boston to become a tourist here – after all, I’ve only lived here since September. I think on Sunday I may even take one of those ridiculous duck tours: the half boat, half truck that drives you around the city and then plunges you in the Charles River – just to say I’ve done it. I may even get some Japanese food in Quincy market before walking the Freedom Trail. Sometimes it’s great to be a tourist in your own city. I’ve always wondered how people who move to Boston never end up doing these things that tourists flock here to do – myself included. I think it’s important to see and do the touristy things. You never know the fun that you are missing right in your own backyard!
Although I’ll only be gone a month, I’m sure I’ll miss Boston. But you better bet I’m doing the skywalk, seeing the opera house and waving to some surfer dudes in Sydney.
Read more: Australia, Sydney, Travel, Working AbroadMeghan went around the world in 2006, and is dying to do it again. Meghan loves all things ocean and enjoys scuba diving in exotic locales.
