Our STA ExplorerAlice in down-underland was fortunate enough to benefit from a previous STA Travel offer – she was £10 Pom 2009. Thinking travelling to Aus for a tenner was a pretty amazing deal, she believes that the chance to become STA Travel’s World Traveller Intern might be even better,
“I wasn’t sure that STA could do it… sending 150 people to Australia for only 10 pounds was pretty incredible (especially as I managed to grab myself a ticket) but they’ve outdone themselves with this new opportunity.”
Her rallying cry is stirring, even breaking down the process of applying into six very basic steps with the final one being the clincher – ‘go and experience the world’.
She’s right; it isn’t often that the chance to travel for free and see the world comes around. It’d be shame to waste it. If you’re applying let us know and tell us how it’s going. Either leave a comment below, drop us an email or @statravelbuzz. We’d love to hear how it’s going.
We’re back, and normal service is about to resume, but before it does a run through our friendfeed - the place to keep up with us and our tribe of STA Explorers and their travelling experiences - has spilled the details on all that they’ve been up to over the festive break.
Alex welcomed in the New Year with 12 grapes, taking part in a Spanish tradition of eating one on each stroke of midnight to bring you good fortune for the coming year.
“The atmosphere, the 20,000 people at your side, everything. Makes me grin like an idiot just thinking about it again. Yesterday will be with me for the rest of my life. When that bridge lights up it truly is a magical moment. I hope one day that you’ll get to see it for yourself.”
I think we’re just about up to date. It’s 2010 and we’re looking to expand our community as always, so if you had a superb Christmas break while travelling, or are about to head off to far flung lands let us known via email or Twitter.
STA Explorer Alice has sent a hearty “G’day mate” from down-under updating everyone on what she’s been up to since making it to Oz.
It turns out that since witnessing her first Australian sunrise (and getting her RSA) she has managed to get two jobs. One is at a restaurant in Dee Why and the other is at Liquorland, which to me sounds like an alcohol based theme park… I pretty sure it isn’t though. When Alice isn’t working she’s making the most of her new surroundings by chilling on the beach and attempting to tan; although the bronzed look isn’t arriving as quickly as she’d like :(.
She has also got to meet her boyfriend’s, handsome Geoff, cricket pals who turned out to be a lovely bunch of guys. She’s also hooked up with fellow STA Explorer and £10 PomMarianne on Manly beach and is looking forward to meeting up with Chris, Hang 10 and Party next weekend. It’s like we have our own branch of travelbuzz in Oz.
She’s also sent out some STA Travel love focusing on the £10 Pom promotion, the queuing experience and the team that helped her sort the trip,
“The queue brought together people from all walks of life but who shared one common goal; the desire to travel. Everyone was extremely dedicated and we had a whole heap of fun. The queue was more like a festival and when I made it in the staff were extremely helpful and really could not do enough for us.”
It sounds like Alice in down-underland is settling in just fine to life in Oz and we can’t wait to hear more about it. Be sure to check back for further updates or just go straight to her site Alice Goes Walkabout.
We’ve heard quite a bit about our STA ExplorerAlice in down-underland. Most notably the heart-wrenching separation she had to endure from boyfriend handsome Geoff, who embarked on their shared antipodean adventure a full two months before Alice. However she has arrived, her new dawn has begun and she has witnessed her first Australian sunrise.
“I had some pretty serious jet lag when I first arrived, waking up at 4 am for the first few days. Although this might sound horrendous, I loved it, because it meant I was able to watch the sun rise on the beach. Which was breath taking. And if anyone saw me standing on Dee Why beach, yes I was that strange Pommie girl dancing around in excitement!”
Yup, that sounds like Alice!
Her most recent post is an insight into how to get an RSA certificate, that’s the Responsible Service of Alcohol – a legal requirement if you want to serve alcohol in Australia. From what Alice has described it isn’t the most exciting process you’ll ever be part of, but a necessity for certain types of work.
Although not posting on his farewell until now, George (that’s his real name), had been fortunate enough to be able to say all the goodbyes he needed in the flesh,
“In the week before leaving I should have done some kind of final English blog. About saying goodbye to friends and family. And the reason I didn’t is that I was too busy having a great time saying goodbye. […] I was able to see all my friends and family before leaving, and I had had a great time, in a fairly intoxicated state.”
That sounds like the best way to do it to me. As he typed his latest entry, 30,000 odd feet up, he bemoans the ‘want to sleep, can’t sleep’ conflict of long distance air travel. He’s not the only one, Alice in down-underland, another £10 Pom, gets a mention as she was also struggling with getting some shut-eye. Anyone got any tips on catching Zzzz’s while in a winged tin can? If so let us know.
The post is titled ‘reminiscing’ and contemplates how we fall out of contact with people when we change direction in our lives. Alice is about to make the switch from the rainy England we all know and (ahem) love to the sun of Aus and there have been quite a few goodbyes in the last few weeks, something she relates to how travel has changed in the last 30 years.
She dicusses how utilising the ‘magic’ of social media means her goodbyes, although teary and heartfelt, are by no means finite. Thanks to email, Facebook and Skype everyone she wants to be in touch with is only a net connection away.
All said though, despite the goodbyes being a little gloomy, Alice is ready for her Australian adventure,
“I’m just looking forward to saying G’day to a new chapter in my life.”
Continuing from yesterday morning’s photo call with the iconic ways of getting from A-to-B (and a little further) outside London’s Museum of Transport, STA Travelbuzz took four of our Explorers on a bit of trip. The tour for STA Travel’s 30th birthday took in the countries of India, England, America and Ireland all in one evening without ever leaving London. Our transport? A Routemaster bus of course! What more iconic method of getting about is there?
“And the transport for the evening… a Routemaster bus!! Proper old school! It was even kitted out in birthday signs and balloons. So out comes the champers and here come the toasts, ‘Happy Birthday STA!’[…] What a night! Epic!”
After India and a jaunt across London on the bus we were stateside with Allstar Lanes. 10 frames and a cocktail later the boys had demonstrated an (almost) natural gift for the classic American past time of 10 pin bowling. The girls, not deflated by the defeat, decided to excel at ‘strike’-ing a pose.
We swiftly stopped at England with the national dish of fish and chips en route to Ireland. Our final destination of the Emerald Isle found us not drinking Guinness in a pub (well not straight away) as presumed by all in attendance, but arriving at the The London Irish Centre and meeting Aidan – an expert in the art of Irish dancing.
Now, there are video’s currently unedited on the STA Travelbuzz YouTube channel and very amusing they are too as I’m sure you can imagine. However, post production is happening frantically to condense and streamline the action, so come back early next week when River Dance is brought centre stage once again, this time by STA Travelbuzz!
All the photographs of the STA Travelbuzz celebration of STA Travel’s 30th birthday can be seen on our Flickr account and, if this isn’t enough, Chris just happens to be a photographer extraordinaire! During all the action of the evening he was also snapping away and you can see the superb results here.
Alice has posted on the opportunity to travel for free that is STA Travel’s World Traveller Internship.
