Last month in Sydney

My last month in Sydney was quite eventful. I'm the type of person who doesn't realize they're going, before it actually happens. So naturally, the day before my 6 AM flight to Tokyo, I was at work. My friends did try telling me, and luckily convinced me to do a lot and see everything I was hoping to see before my departure. Another reason for the hectic weeks was my birthday, that was exact 4 weeks before my flight. As you might know, to me birthday is the biggest day of the year.

So let's start with that.
This year I had the whole day planned with a friend. We were supposed to go to the taronga zoo, sculptures by the sea, dinner and then movies.

After the sculptures walk, we ended up going to Flamingo lounge at Kings cross with my agency. It was a beautiful lounge and a perfect location for a fancy party and a little birthday bash. For the first time since February I had a bit to drink. It was a great night with a candy buffet, cookie buffet and great cocktails. I missed my last train and it sure was an adventure to get back home. Where my friends from Melbourne were already, asleep.

The next morning I had races to go to. First you need to know, that races are a big thing in Australia. People dress to impress and then get crazy drunk while betting on horses. I had to experience this.
Originally I was supposed to go with four friends, but ended up going with one. Regardless, we had so much fun. And no, we did not get crazy drunk, actually I didn't drink at all. I even got to pat one of the horses! Never seen horses so fit in my life. I've never gambled and with my luck I would end up owning people money instead of winning, so we just watched.

The week after I finally went back to work, from my forever sick leave. And worked as much as I could.

And before you know it, it was Halloween. The best holiday there is.
I'm a big fan of horror movies and zombies specifically. I could watch 'em all week.
And lucky for me, our agency boss invited me to a Halloween party in the city. Everything I could ask for. Costumes, food, drinks and photo booths.

So naturally, I wen't all in.

The following week I finally got back to my training and decided to do the feared 4 hr hike to the 8- figure pools. It's located at the royal national park, like many other great hikes. The hike was amazingly beautiful and way easier than I thought. I saw a bunch of lizards, blue bottles and more. I actually saw a lizard that was at least a meter tall. Unfortunately, despite the website saying it's a perfect weather to go, It was high tide and we couldn't get to the actual rock pools. Oh well, still worth doing. Only thing I didn't get out of it were the Instagram worthy pictures. I highly recommend this walk.

And last but not least, the reunion party for the modeling competitors. It was hosted at the Flamingo lounge. It was a fashion show for latest Australian designers and a party. This time I did not model the latest designs. I guess it was like a farewell party for me, cause almost all my good friends were there.

Bye Australia, for now!

Once upon a time in a Modeling competition

Like some of you already know, I recently took part in a modeling competition. I didn't really talk about it much on Facebook so I wanted to write about it a little bit. The competition was called ''search for the next international model''. It was a pageant type of competition, which I didn't know when I signed up for it. I've never done pageants, never really cared to. Don't have any experience about them either. However, the competition really interested me and had no choice but to to try it out.

We had multiple meetings and catwalk training before the finale. It was a great way to get to know the other girls. I soon found out that almost everyone there had the same reason for participating, exposure.  When I applied, I thought it's going to be so much fun. Good exposure while having a good time. What's better than that? Honestly the competition felt like a challenge for various reasons. I guess for me, it was just really bad timing. I admit I thought about dropping out few times. The finale was only 10 days after my surgery. I felt bloated and soft, since I haven't been able to workout for weeks. We also had rehearsals and gatherings only 3 and 8 days after the procedure. Especially at the one that was 3 days after, I felt like dying.  My painkillers made me super dizzy and my stomach would hurt every time I moved. Walking up the stairs felt like a workout. Another thing I found challenging was the fact that I am a traveler. I came to Australia with 30 kg of stuff. There's not much room for formal dresses or any other amazing outfit combos and all the beauticians and hairdressers I know are in Finland. I provided everything by myself. After all I'm grateful and happy that I got a change to take part in this competition. I met some amazing new people and got a great new experience added to my list.

Here's some photos along the way.

When you find a job that you love doing, it doesn't matter if it's challenging, you do enjoy every bit of it. I'd do it all over again. 

Healing in progress

It's been 3 weeks today since the operation, and I'm feeling pretty good. All the bloating is finally gone. I'm slowly getting back to my workout routine and have been running since last week. This week I've gone to the gym everyday. It feels good to be back to normal, even though I feel really weak and can't do the same weights I could before the operation.

Me yesterday!

Let's talk about Endometriosis. Ladies, pay attention cause this is a condition that about 25% of women have. Most of them, don't even know they have it.

Symptoms?
In my case, random passing outs, those nights when i'm throwing up in pain for hours cause it's all I can do and the pain that feels like If there was glass sliding through my intestines. Sometimes it would hurt to sit down quickly. I'd feel ill all the time and would have to take painkillers daily just to get through work. My stomach would bloat so bad, I looked like I was 6 months pregnant. My fever would spike. It's been 4 years since an ambulance took me to the hospital for the first time cause of my pain. It took 4 years for anyone to take me seriously.

Seriously, these pictures could be taken on the same day. And I'm NOT pushing my stomach out.

I'm excited that I had the surgery done. I'm excited to be rid of constantly feeling unwell and weak.
I'm excited to see the results with my training when I can finally give it my everything.

I will not miss those days when my arms are covered in bruises cause I've been biting my arms trying to survive through the pain. Or going to work after a sleepless night and a visit to the hospital to get the pain shot since nothing else helps.

I'm sick and tired of people belittling my disease. I'm sick of explaining why I'm constantly taking pain killers, my stomach is always bloated and in pain and I'm always exhausted. Why one day I can be completely fine and the next day, feel like I just got hit by a car.

I'm nervous and excited to see if the operation helped with this.

Not much to say about the operation itself. I guess it was pretty simple. I had a laparoscopic surgery done. They cut 4 holes through my stomach. My stomach was pumped with gas. They removed the cysts they found. I think there were 6 all together. One of the cysts was stuck under my pelvis and most likely the one causing most of the pain. They removed it and put a mirena in my uterus. It releases hormones locally and should prevent endometriosis from spreading. Fingers crossed.

Last thing I want to say is, I've been angry with my body. How could it do this to me? I've never smoked, I drink maybe twice a year and I eat good. I've always been into sports and barely eat any red meat. How could my body turn against me like this?

But I've come to realize, all this negativity will not help me heal and be stronger and better. First I have to love myself.


#endometriosis

Hawaii for the traveller

Hey guys! I know I've been back for over a week now, but good things take time right?
In this post I'll be telling you all about my trip to Hawaii. Waikiki to be exact.

I arrived to HI 2 days after the hurricane. I guess you could tell, since it was quiet. I've never been to HI before so I really don't have anything to compare it with but I assume it's always busy there. At least that's what the locals kept telling me. I liked it. Kind of like Bali after the volcano erupted, it was nice and peaceful.

First thing I noticed coming out of the plane was the humidity. Oh my god it was hot!
It get's really hot in summer here as well, but 30 degrees in HI feels totally different to Sydney's dry 30 degrees.

SHOPPING
I'm ashamed to say, but the first 3 days I spent pretty much shopping. Used all my money. I went to the Waikele outlet's and all the Macy's and Ross stores I could find. Great deals. But I guess that's why at the end I felt like 9 days wasn't enough cause I  kind of wasted 3 days. After that I really got into exploring the island and it was amazing. Couldn't get enough of it and I really did feel like I ran out of time.

BEING A TOURIST
I did few super touristy thing too, like the Luau party and a bus tour around the island. I personally think the bus tour was great, you get an idea of the island so you can plan where to go and what to see more. It took 8 hours, so if your planning a short trip, you can just google the best places to go and avoid wasting a day in the bus. We saw a temple, a pineapple farm, multiple beaches and snorkeling destinations and the place where Jurassic park and Jumanji was filmed. Cool. Like I said touristy.

HIKING
The first hike I did was the TOM TOM trial, also called the Makapu'u lookout trail. It was on a private property and you actually need to read about it to find it. The view from the top was amazing.
You can see multiple beaches, islands and even the sea life park from up there. I climbed all the way to the top and back. It was around 4 miles, which would be 6 km. The walk is really steep and rocky. I'd say the first 10-15 minutes are the hardest, then it gets a bit easier. I picked a terribly windy day, so at the top it was hard to stand. So I do not recommend a windy day for this hike. Also I do most of my running and hiking in Five finger shoes, which are the most amazing shoes, but I do not recommend those shoes for this hike. The rocks where sharp and slippery and you need all the support you can get. My feet were hurting like crazy, especially coming down hill. Here's few tips for this hike.

1. Wear good hiking shoes.
2. Pick a cool and less windy day.
3. If you wanna do the hike when it's dark, take a flashlight. You WILL fall on your face without it.
3. If possible, wear long pants. Plants along the way where spiky and sharp. I was all scratched after.
4. Plenty of water and sunscreen.

Oh yeah, almost forgot to mention the most important part. How to get there?
I recommend a car, but I did take a bus, there was no bus stop close by, so I had to bus all the way to the sealife park and then walk back for almost 10 minutes.. It would've been fine, but most of the walking was on the busy road with cars swinging by.
Go to the Makapu'u lookout, it's opposite of the lookout on the other side of the road. There's few PRIVATE PROPERTY- signs and a rusty fence. Just follow the fence up and you'll quickly find the trail. After about 5 to 10 minutes there's a gap in the fence, you need to go to the other side to get further. I can highly recommend this hike, it was so worth it!

The other hike I did was the Diamond head hike. Super popular, easy walk.
Okay to be entirely honest, I was sure I was going to die at one point and cursed the people who said it was easy. But seriously, there was few steep bits which were really challenging especially in the heat, but once you reach the top you feel like you can easily do it again.
Also the entry is CASH ONLY. Prepare for that. 5$ per car I think it was.

SNORKELING
I only did snorkeling at Hanauma Bay this time, but it was great. You need to go there early, around 7 AM, cause they close the parking lot and won't let people in once it's full. I have a bit of a problem with water and took me and my pool noodle a while to actually go out there. To me it was a huge plus that the water wasn't too deep and the waves were soft. I saw a seal really quickly and a lot of different kind of fish. I reckon I spent easy 5-6 hours there that day. I have to admit, I did want to kick all the tourists standing on the coral. Do not be that person!! It's a beautiful place and it would be a shame if people would destroy it.

Also as a tip I wanna say, the buses at Hawaii are good, but they take a long time to get around. If your on a tight schedule, just rent a smart car. Car renting is also half cheaper to rent from the airport than from Waikiki. Many places do charge extra if you want to return the car to Waikiki. Ask multiple companies tho!! The first company I asked wanted to charge 150$, the next one 100$ and the third only 50$. Also Uber from the airport is only around 30$, so if you just want to return the car to the airport and Uber back it's also a good option.

We got a car and did some amazing adventures on the quiet side of the island. Best times!

I would definietly go back, but perhaps to another island.

Next post about my upcoming surgery.

Daydreaming

Hey guys! I was thinking it's about time to write something and tell you an explanation for my absence. 

Like usually, nothing here goes as planned.

I'm no longer working with the elderly lady with Alzheimer's. I was supposed to stay there till the beginning of November. I actually did finish working there 3 months ago, but been so busy with work, I barely had time to write about the search. I've done few fashion shows, which were really amazing, started a new program at the gym and booked some new photo shoots.

I had a bridal shoot with BERTA- gowns in Sydney few months back, and a Chinese fashion week show last Sunday! I do love that type of work and it's crazy how time flies when having fun. I've finally realized that this is what I want to do.

Again, so sorry for the massive delay. I had to take my laptop back to the shop for repairing and it was there for 3 weeks. Got it back a month ago, but it still didn't work and took it back again. It finally works now. Got it back few weeks ago. 

I've also had health issues and I've been dealing with them too. I'm having a surgery done next month and will be writing about the whole thing later.

I also have good news!
I'm going to Hawaii at the end of this month. I've been to America 5 times already, but only Washington DC and Florida, it's about time to explore a new state. I'm going to be staying for 8 days. I'll promise to write about that too and publish all the great pictures I'm going to get. Also I've booked tickets to Tokyo, Japan on November and from there I'm flying to Finland on December. I'm planning on fitting NZ somewhere there to, but we'll see. All I have is time.

I was so right when I said last months will go by flying. I've got less than 4 months left and still got so much things to do. But I promise to write more often!

there's a downside on everything

Lately I've been feeling exhausted. I'm tired of constantly moving and not building my life. Sometimes I feel like I'm just wasting time. When all your plans get cancelled and you think it would be so much easier back home. When you can just go without planning and always find someone who has time for you. I miss having my own apartment, my own home. I'm in control of everything there and no one is there if I don't want them to be. I've got my beautiful furniture and comfy bed and everything is clean. I don't have to worry about coldness inside or bugs crawling around.

Might sound superficial or materialistic, but I miss my stuff! I miss my mermaid blanket, my waffle iron, my fluffy cushions and my alarm clock that wakes me up with light instead a noise. I miss peace and quiet. I miss certain foods, foods I never thought I'd miss. Then I think again and I understand, I have the rest of my life to build a home. To feel safe, cozy and warm. I will appreciate all these daily things so much more when I finally go back. But hey, surely I'll get sick of all that pretty quickly again. Then I have time to think all the things I miss in Australia. A perfect weather 90% of the time, beautiful nature, bikinis, BBQ's, beaches and the SUN. I'll always miss the sun. 

Despite working constantly I've managed to do some cool stuff too. Yesterday I did a bushwalk and the other week I went to see the 7- mile beach. It's autumn here in Australia so no more swimming for me. I had this summer's last bikini shoot last Tuesday as well. It sure was cold!

I was supposed to have my 3- week holiday in NZ from 3th of May but cause of my work I couldn't go. Next time I'm able to go, it's going to be October but that's fine too. As long as I know it's coming.

Before I left Finland, I felt stuck. Everyday seemed the same and it felt like my life is going nowhere and I had no idea what to do. When I visited Finland, all those feelings were gone. I felt free and I loved it.

The truth is, routine is routine in every country and we all need a holiday every now and then.
Some of us have 2 weeks in Spain and some of us 2 years in Australia.