This Expat Life: Month 12

After moving to Southeast Asia I started compiling monthly roundup posts about life as an expat and all the nitty gritty that goes on behind the scenes here at Travel Lush.  Head here to read Month 10 & Month 11.

The end of July marked the anniversary of my first full year living in Southeast Asia!  So it goes without saying that this was a big month for me.  Beyond that milestone, July was a really, really busy month.  Not only did I move on from Jakarta, but I’m now officially living in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. To say July was a whirlwind would be a complete understatement.

I bid farewell to Jakarta on the first of the month and since then I literally haven’t looked back…I haven’t had the chance!  Since leaving Jakarta, I’ve been able to do a ton of traveling, including a return to the US, where I caught up with family and friends for the first time in a year.  In California I was even able to attend the wedding of Aaron’s little brother, which was the cherry on top of what was a sweet trip back to the States.  It has been a wonderful month.  In fact, it’s the best month I’ve had in a long time!

Here’s what I got up to in July…

Travel

July was a pretty great month for travel.  After leaving Jakarta on July 1st, I spent a week in the Philippines.  Even though the weather didn’t quite cooperate, it was still amazing to be back in the island paradise I fell in love with during my first visit to Boracay in 2013.

From Boracay I spent a fleeting 24 hours in Manila.  Despite only having a day’s time there, I managed to find an “anti-mall” called The Collective which is home to an amazing vegetarian ramen joint called Wabi Sabi, and some pretty awesome street art to boot!

I finally realized that Manila is a city that I have sadly completely overlooked during my Southeast Asia travels.  Next time I’m in the Philippines I plan to make a point of getting to know Manila, because from what I saw this time around this city kinda rocks.

From the Philippines I flew back to my home state of California and spent a lovely few days back home in San Diego, where I finally got some quality time alone with my mom and my little cat, both of whom I’d missed dearly during my year abroad in Jakarta.

I was also able to eat at most of my favorite Mexican food joints in San Diego.  My burrito consumption level was so high my mom was slightly appalled, but I enjoyed every bite.  And yes, I’ll be writing a whole post about San Diego Mexican food in the near future.

I also managed to squeeze in a trip to Orange County to see my sisters, niece and nephews for some homemade Italian food, and Diamond Bar to visit my aunt and cousins for some homemade Mexican food.  I love coming from a diverse family that has such amazing cooks!

From there I spent five days visiting my other sister in Boulder, Colorado (yes, I have lots of siblings), a trip which my dad accompanied me on.  The three of us spent days upon days meandering around Boulder, exploring cute mountain towns, and pretty much eating everything in sight.

It had been far too long since my last visit to Boulder and I had completely forgotten how much delicious food that city has to offer.  I will have a whole post on Boulder’s restaurant scene coming up soon.  (I swear this isn’t turning into a food blog.  I was just really gluttonous during my trip back to the US!).

Food aside, being back there reminded me of why I’ve always dreamed of calling Boulder home.  Who knows, maybe someday I will!

To cap off July, I traveled to the little town of Ojai, California, to attend Aaron’s brother’s wedding, which also doubled as a family reunion.  It seriously could not have been a more fun-filled weekend full of amazing moments — surrounded by family and new friends — that I’ll remember forever.  And congrats to the happy couple John and Lauren!

Work

Although I had to leave my gig at The Jakarta Post when I left Jakarta, I actually made a connection that enabled me to continue doing some freelance writing for a Jakarta-based magazine.  I hadn’t expected to work so much during the month of July, but work I did.

This is the first time I found it difficult to balance life, travel and a job.  It was much more work than I’d anticipated but I can’t express how grateful I was to actually have some income during the month of July.  I had not expected to have any.  Because I’m hoping to depend on freelance writing while living in Phnom Penh this unexpected gig  was a blessing for me, and it makes me a lot more confident that I can make this whole freelancing thing work for me.

Blogging

Between working, traveling and catching up with family and friends I found it really difficult to keep up with blogging.  I did manage to eek out a few posts this past month, but I promise once I get settled in Phnom Penh I’ll be writing more than one post per week.

I did, however, purchase my first iPhone back in California.  This magical contraption has made it possible for me to actually post real time Instagrams and Facebook updates, something I literally couldn’t do with my decrepit old Motorola.  Watch out social media…here I come!

Most Popular Posts in July:

9 Fun & Weird Things to do in Jakarta

My Picks – The 5 Best Beaches in Southeast Asia

What I wrote in July:

This Expat Life: Month 11

6 Reasons I’m So Excited to Return to the US

The Truth about Traveling to Boracay during the Low Season

On Liking and Leaving Jakarta

A Glutton’s Guide to Eating Your Way through Boracay

Instagram

Most popular Instagram

New Post: The Truth About Traveling to Boracay in the Low Season – I knew Boracay would be hot and stormy in July. But what I didn’t know is that Boracay bears the brunt of some brutal winds during the low season. Whoops!

A photo posted by Justine (@thetravellush) on Jul 16, 2015 at 12:21pm PDT

I also hit a tiny milestone on Instagram…1000 followers!  It might seem small but it’s big for me.  Thanks to all of you who are following me and if you’re not on the bandwagon already what are you waiting for?!  You can find me @thetravellush!

How did your July shape up?