Big Sky to Big Surf - A Bondi Rescue Story

Here we go

Two months later

It's finally March, which means it is time for me to head to Australia! I'm leaving a few months before classes start because I want to get acclimated, and also have a chance to work with Marvel once his 5 week quarantine is over. It's going to be weird not having my boy around for a few weeks but it will also give me a chance to get Cap and Bucky settled in at our new house. Did you really think I would take Marvel and not my other two boys? Not a chance!

Even though I live in landlocked Montana, I have always wanted to live by the beach. This move gives me the opportunity to do just that. After years of training horses and giving riding lessons, I had more than enough money to rent a house at Bronte Beach that allowed me to have my 2 dogs.

I had also been able to secure a job for when I got to Sydney. I found a stable in Bronte that would allow me to continue training horses and giving lessons. The owners understood that I would be going to school in May, but they said that they would be able to work with my class schedule. Tim and Carol, the owners of Bronte Equestrian Centre (BTC), also allowed me to board Marvel at their facility for a reduced rate. I was over the moon at this news.

"Tori have you finished packing yet?" mom called from down the hall. "Almost." I only had my toiletries left to pack. The house that I was moving into was a fully furnished one, which meant I only needed to bring my clothes, riding gear, and my horse/dog supplies. I was shipping my car over but it would be a few weeks before it arrived. It's a good thing that BTC was only a short distance from my house.

I was leaving for Australia later today. It was a bittersweet moment when I had to say goodbye to the ranch. I have lived here my entire life, but I am excited to start a new life in Australia. "Call us every weekend." My mom told me while trying to hold back her tears. "I will." "Study hard, be safe, and try not to fall for one of those Australian men." "Mom!" "I'm kidding. I love you. Text us when you land in LA and in Sydney." "You know I will."

Dad dropped me off at the airport. He is not one for emotions but after saying goodbye, even he had a tear in his eye. I started to cry a bit when I realized I wouldn't be back in the states until Christmas at the earliest. We dropped Marvel and the dogs off first, as they had a different check in area. Once they were squared away, I gave my dad a giant hug and went into the terminal. I checked in and went through security without a problem. As I was waiting for my flight I logged onto Facebook and saw a lot of my friends wishing me good luck and telling me to have a great time. I posted:

Thank you for all the well wishes. I am so excited to start this new chapter of my life. It will be difficult but it will all be worth it in the end. I have my 3 boys with me and can't wait to live on the beach and immerse myself into Australian culture. I promise to post lots of pictures and updates. Love you all!

Once I finished this, my flight was called to board. I was flying from Montana to LA and then from LA to Sydney. I boarded the plane and found my seat. When the safety instructions were over, I plugged in my headphones and fell asleep. Next thing I knew, the plane had landed in LA. I had 3 hours to kill in LA, so once I found the gate where I would board my next flight, I turned on my computer to watch a movie. I was watching my favorite movie: Captain America, when I got the feeling that someone was watching me. I took out one headphone and looked around only to see a guy sitting behind me with his eyes fixed on my computer screen. I paused the movie and the guy finally looked up. "Enjoying the movie?" I jokingly asked him. "Oh, yea. Sorry for watching over your shoulder. Captain America is one of my favorites." His accent was definitely not American. "Are you waiting for the flight to Sydney?" I asked him. "Yea, I'm going back home." "Cool, I'm going there for school in May." "Why are you going so early?" As he asked this I looked out the window to see the cargo truck with Marvel's transport stall on it. "See that truck? My horse is in that container. He's coming with me and I wanted to get there a few months early to acclimate him to Australia as well as myself." "That's cool. Why are you bringing him to Oz?" "This is going to sound corny, but Marvel is my best friend. I could not leave him behind." "That makes sense. His name is Marvel? Epic!" I laughed at his response to my horse's name. "I'm just a bit of a nerd, my dogs names are Cap and Bucky." He chuckled a bit after I told him about my dogs. "So I know your pets' names, what's yours?" I can't believe I haven't actually introduced myself. "Wow, that's typical me. I talk about my pets more than myself. I'm Tori. And you are?" "Chris, but all my friends call me Chappo." "That's an odd nickname." "Well my last name is Chapman, so I guess that's where my mates got it from." "Ah ok, my nickname is Tori. My real name is Victoria, but no one ever calls me that." "Well it's nice to officially meet you Tori." "It's nice to meet you too Chappo." I smiled while shaking his outstretched hand. After talking for a while, we ended up watching the rest of the movie together until our flight was called to board. "It doesn't look like we are sitting near each other. Meet me in the terminal after the flight lands?" "Sure, see you after the flight Chappo." It was a long flight but it was going by extremely fast. I think it was just excitement. Here we go, there is no turning back now.