One of my best friends from high school now lives in Australia. We just happened to be in the same time zone and a short distance apart this month! This is a gal I go way back with. We have so many inside jokes and war stories and travel history that our friendship is the kind that can pick up at any time. It took a while for us to piece together the last time we saw each other, disbelieving that it was during our trip to Colorado in ’96. No, it was more recently than that, and definitely post 9/11 as I remember her breaking the news to me that one of our former classmates died in the attacks.

We met for lunch at the Boston Pizza in Saint-Bruno simply because the mall is about equi-distance for both of us and BP is the only sit down restaurant there.  We spent the afternoon together, trying to cram into four hours all those years apart. Needless to say, we failed.

Of all my friends from high school, she is the one I relate to the most. We’re both single gals in our early 30s who are dedicated travelers. We’re far from our families and are trying to reconcile the dreams we have for our lives with the expectations society has for us.

Her schedule is really tight for this trip, but we hope to squeeze in a coffee date next week. Otherwise, I just may have to go visit her in Australia myself!