For as long as I can remember, my aunt, who lives in Australia, has always been inviting me to visit her and at the same time to take a nice long vacation in Sydney. But due to conflicting schedules, other commitments, and money matters, I always seem to find a reason to say no.
But last 2012, I decided to finally take her offer to come and visit the land down under. Besides, I figured it was high time to reward myself for all those years of studying very hard, surviving such a busy year at work, passing the level I of CFA and getting promoted.
It would actually be my second time to visit Australia. The first time I had the chance to go there was way back in year 2000, with my parents. I think I was just about to start grade 7 and my mom decided for us to have a family vacation in Sydney. Back then, I had my mom to do all the preparations for our trip: applying for our visa, booking the tickets, scheduling our trip, and so on. All I had to before was to just help in the packing of my clothes. My mom was always prepared for anything and she was such a good planner that I no longer had to worry about a single thing. But this time, I'm all on my own... So let me share with you the things I've had to do so that I could actualize my plans of going back to Sydney:
