Ok, are you ready for more nostalgia … and questionable fashion, chubbiness and bad hair?

In 1993 I ventured out into the big wide world and moved to Canada for a year.  It was an amazing experience and one that I will always remember. My trip was the perfect combination of new experiences, new travel destinations, a new career direction and most importantly, new friends.

I landed a job in Vancouver as a Tour Guide on the Grouse Mountain Sky Ride.  An engineering feat, the cable car carries 100 people and ferries the skiing/touring public from the base of the mountain to the summit.  My role included operating this beast, plus giving a commentary of the views over Vancouver and in winter, the current ski report.  I absolutely loved this job and felt so blessed to be working in such beautiful surrounds.

The other perks of the job included a free ski pass for the season where I learnt to snowboard, and of course meeting an amazing bunch of young Canadians and other travellers.  We worked hard, skied hard and partied hard!

One day at work I was introduced to a fellow Australian lass called Jana Bayliss (who was Troy Bayliss‘ sister) and with her bubbly persona and infectious smile, I just knew we would be fine friends …  and we still are, twenty years on.

Jana and I had many adventures whilst in Canada which included road trips away in my old VW Golf.  On one trip we drove north to Whistler and Pemberton and naively decided to sleep in the car as we didn’t have any money to pay for a youth hostel.  Unfortunately we neglected to take into consideration the plummeting temperature gauge to a chilly -15C.  I have never been so cold and so uncomfortable.  I distinctly remember a thick layer of ice inside the car.  We even lit our gas lantern in the hope of procuring some heat.  To top it off, the Golf didn’t start the next morning and we relied on some friendly locals to help two ‘Australian damsels in distress’.  The locals did help us, but only after they gave us a dressing down for being so foolish and sleeping in a car in those conditions!

Our adventures continued to South East Asia, where we travelled through Malaysia and Thailand on our way home to Australia.  We warded off curious local gangs in rat infested alleyways, ventured to idyllic islands and soaked up the South-East Asian sun, culture and food.

On return to Australia, I moved to Sydney to work for a couple of years where Jana was also living, and our adventures continued.  She now lives in Noosa and has two beautiful boys.  We haven’t seen each other for quite a few years but when we do, I know that we will pick up from where we left off.  We will relive our travels and hopefully make new memories with more adventures … as Mums!