In any case, it's starting to chill down here in Sydney, as one of the nicest times of the year approaches. Autumn is a soothing relief from the damp heat of the Australian summer, but thankfully, it never gets cold enough for a parka. This season will be a benchmark for me, as I have just started a job at a corporate travel agency in the CBD (Central Business District). I'll be booking regional travel for members of the New South Wales government, whilst madly trying to learn the airport codes of obscure Australian cities (e.g. WGA = Wagga Wagga). I was working as a temp in the recruitment department of this company for about 3 weeks, and I somehow managed to land myself a job as a corporate travel consultant by week 3. Needless to say, I'm really excited for this career opportunity, as well as for meeting a few more Ozzies to make my stay here a bit more...authentic.
Although I'll be doing relatively similar work to that which I was doing at my last job, I don't anticipate that the same issues and complaints will arise with this new company. First of all, I'm going to have the luxury of a decent base salary plus monthly incentives, as opposed to the pressures of a nearly impossible to reach commission-based structure. The targets are much more realistic, and I won't have to cower in shame every time I pick up the phone, as I will not be planning any "exciting river cruises" for my clients. Secondly, I, like many of the other employees with whom I've spoken, will hold a positive attitude towards my manager, work environment and company. I cannot even begin to tell you how refreshing it was to hear from one of my co-workers, "This is the best company I've ever worked for." And as a result, I cannot help but approach the job with a very positive attitude. Finally, the oh-so-central location of the office is awesome. If I pack my lunch and the weather allows for it, I can enjoy an hour-long refuge from the office building at Sydney's Hyde Park. It's only a five-minute walk from the office, and it boasts plenty of benches for one's sitting pleasure. If I don't pack my lunch, I have a diverse melting pot of meal options to choose from--Thai, Malaysian, Japanese (both sushi and ramen), sandwiches and wraps, salads, kebabs, Chinese, Vietnamese, Italian and traditional Ozzie pub food are all within a 500 metre radius of our cosmopolitan office building. To be honest with you, it's extremely tempting to never pack my lunch...but what was that we said before about remembering to eat well?
Now I know I already sound way too enthusiastic about work, but actually, there's more. I start training next week to learn the essential GDS booking system with a handful of other consultants who will be doing the same job in several of our offices throughout Australia. Although the head office for Australia and New Zealand is in Sydney, next week's training will be held in the second biggest office in Melbourne. So that's right, I'll be travelling for work! They're going to fly me down to Melbourne on Virgin Blue (our supplier of the month), and put me up in a lovely 5 star hotel smack in the centre of the city. I suppose I was lucky this time, in regards to the location of the training, but I'm still totally chuffed about it! Unfortunately, I'll be too busy during these jam-packed 3 days to properly explore Melbourne, but at least I'll get a taste for the city to prepare me for my next visit. Not so bad, eh?
I might be glorifying this whole situation, since we are, of course, talking about the ever-dreaded fact of life that is work. But all in all, I feel quite happy to have finally found myself falling into place in Sydney, my new home. The three-month anniversary of my arrival was a few days ago, and half of me feels like I just got here, whereas the other half feels like I've been here for years. For those of you who have ever moved to another country, you probably know what I'm talking about. And for those of you who never have, I'll try to do my best to describe this odd feeling. It's a mixture of thrill and excitement every time you step out your front door, combined with the nostalgic longing for your comfort zone back home. Every day, you learn something new and you grow as a person. Bit by bit, you become a citizen of the world.
But hey, that's just this little globetrotter's take on it all...
