La Maison Australienne

Anyone who has ever lived in a foreign country or lived in a house/apartment with lots of people who aren't related should see the movie L'auberge Espagnol. It's great and really hits home for me at least, living with 5 other people who are more or less strangers, some from different countries. Until I watched it, however, I hadn't fully appreciated the uniqueness of my current situation or the sadness of it. I always knew it was unusual to move to a strange city, get a job I am totally overqualified for, and move into a house with strangers. But I don't think I realized that the city would become home, the job would yield some experience, and those people would become a surrogate family. Maybe it's a bit early to say these feelings will occur, because I'm not saying I completely feel this way just now. I'm not in love with Sydney just yet, just as I didn't feel attached to London until the semester was nearly over. I'm not exactly learning anything groundbreaking at work, but I am seeing how the hospitality industry works in another country and comparing it to my experience at home. And my housemates are wonderful, but after only a month living there, it would be presumptuous to consider them family. However, I can see all these factors coming together in the end, making it impossibly sad to leave what will become my life. The end of the movie was so hard to watch because while I have many months ahead of me in Australia, I can still see the end. What's comforting me, of course, is having things to look forward to when I return home: the week in Vermont with my family, seeing my friends, visiting Alli and Ed's new NYC apartment, driving from Florida to New York with Marissa. However, what do you do with all those memories? How do you go back to a normal life? These are questions that I try not to think about, mostly because it seems too soon to ask them at all and I'm too busy enjoying myself to worry anyway. However, the movie really hit me with these questions.

In any case, watch the film. It's a great story even if you haven't been in a similar circumstance. If you've seen it already, the sequel is out now. It's called Russian Dolls.