New Beginnings...

The beginning of my journey has finally started! Its easy to come up with these amazing and inspiring ideas, but to put them into motion and make them a reality is a different story.

I came up with this amazing idea to get my life together and make my life long dream come true by moving to New York but its not at easy as I thought. Its super expensive and trying to find a job all the way from South Africa is definitely not a walk in the park.

Au pairing is extremely popular in the states and I had a lightbulb moment! Au pairing in the states is no joke! You would have to live with the family and look after the children during the day. Its not like au pairing in South Africa where you do a few odd lifts from school and spend one or two hours doing homework and then you done. Au pairing in the states is a full time job!

My lightbulb moment included au pairing in the states for a year...specifically in New York, where I can become familiar with the city as well as look at the media industry to see if there are any potential jobs for me there. While doing this, I don't have to worry about living expenses or food because it is all taken care of by the host family...plus you earn money in the process.

So now it was time to make this idea a reality! I decided to contact an old friend of mine on Facebook, who now lives in America because she did au pairing. She gave me two websites which I had a look at and I filled in an online application. I was told that a consultant would be in touch tomorrow...which is super exciting!

My family and I are actually going to America in 7 weeks for my mother's 50th birthday so I will be able to experience my favorite city once again! We have organized with a rabbi in the city to spend a shabbos with them while we are there and I sent an email to him to see if he knew of any Jewish families in Manhattan who are looking for an au pair. If i moved there, I would love to be involved in the Jewish community there!

I have been posting my blogs posts on Facebook and the other day, another Facebook friend sent me a message asking if I was living in New York and I told her that I was looking to hopefully get there soon. Now this friend moved to New York 3 years ago and she said that she was more than happy to help me out with any questions I may have! This is so incredible to me as one of the scariest things about moving to New York was the fact that I would be going by myself and would know no one! Its nice to know I will have a friendly face there when I get there! Im planning to meet her for coffee when I go there in June :)

Things are slowly moving forward and I feel like its a start and Im actually contacting the right people and not just sitting and waiting for things to happen....exciting times ahead!!!

South Africa is not so far away from New York

Even though I have an intense desire to pack up my life and move to New York...South Africa will always have a special place in my heart. I am a proud South African! Since the 2010 soccer world cup, it seems that interest in South Africa has grown around the world. People got a glimpse into the world of South Africans and people finally started to see the beauty of this country as well as the fact that South Africans do not live in huts or have animals roaming in the streets.

Apart from the world cup, South Africa can boast the upbringing of a truly inspirational man...Nelson Mandela. Nelson Mandela has made an impact in countries all over the world and New York has decided to put that inspiration on display!

A film instillation, which celebrates Nelson Mandela, is taking over the electronic billboards in Times Square this month. The short presentation will be played every night this month just before midnight and will include inspirational quotes used by Mandela.

This is really an amazing concept and I feel like a proud parent! South Africa has had its fair share of hardships and negative attention, but once in a while we produce something truly spectacular and I am honored to say that I come from a country who produced a man like Nelson Mandela!

Lyrics

Since the lyrics of this song inspired my blog, I thought it would be appropriate to share the magic with the readers of my blog :)

So here are the lyrics to Billy Joel's New York State of Mind... 

Some folks like to get away
Take a holiday from the neighbourhood
Hop a flight to Miami Beach
Or to Hollywood
But I'm taking a Greyhound
On the Hudson River Line
I'm in a New York state of mind

I've seen all the movie stars
In their fancy cars and their limousines
Been high in the Rockies under the evergreens
But I know what I'm needing
And I don't want to waste more time
I'm in a New York state of mind

It was so easy living day by day
Out of touch with the rhythm and blues
But now I need a little give and take
The New York Times, The Daily News

It comes down to reality
And it's fine with me 'cause I've let it slide
Don't care if it's Chinatown or on Riverside
I don't have any reasons
I've left them all behind
I'm in a New York state of mind

It was so easy living day by day
Out of touch with the rhythm and blues
But now I need a little give and take
The New York Times, The Daily News

It comes down to reality
And it's fine with me 'cause I've let it slide
Don't care if it's Chinatown or on Riverside
I don't have any reasons
I've left them all behind
I'm in a New York state of mind

I'm just taking a Greyhound on the Hudson River Line
'Cause I'm in a New York state of mind 

A Tribute to the 4 ladies who fueled my obsession: Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte

One day I came home to find that my mother had decided to buy all six seasons of the infamous Sex and the City, with nothing on tv to watch, I decided to start season one of this sexy show...and the rest is history! I understand that it is just a show and that it is not real life but this show contains many aspects of life that I one day hope to have in my life! Examples of these different aspects are true friends, friends that I can rely on no matter what. Successful relationships that will hopefully turn into marriage and children some day. A successful job in any aspect of Journalism. A cute apartment in the city that I can one day call home and who could forget the night life that New York has to offer...the desire to be able to catch a cab at anytime and no matter what day of the week it is...there is always something to do! This show and these characters have given me certain ideas that I would like to one day make into a reality...so this post is a tribute to the four women that I have spent many hours of my life with!

My Favorite Quotes:

Samantha: I never leave underwear at a guy's place because I never see it again

Carrie: we are so over, we need a new word for over

Charlotte: I have been dating since I was fifteen. Im exhausted! where is he?

"New York City, no matter how well you think you know it, there's always somewhere or someone new to discover"

Welcome!! :)

Welcome to the city that never sleeps...New York City!! I have for some reason always been obsessed with this city, even before I had been there. I have a feeling my obsession with Sex and the City might have contributed to this obsession but when I did visit 'the big apple' it was exactly the way I imagined it...a busy city, full of life and people who are always on the move. I instantly fell in love with the place all over again but getting up and moving there just did not seem like a reality at the time. Now I am finished my Journalism degree and I do not have anything here in South Africa that is keeping me here so it seems like the perfect time to make a plan! what the plan is, I don't know yet but I am determined to finally take that leap of faith!