Making Me Smile // Friendship and Goodbyes

Working on my new online store - So many pretty necklaces, check it out - BHEARTB.com

'Do It Myself' insta-prints for my noticeboard.

Nail Mail! You know this would always make me smile!
Left to Right - OPI Taupe-less Beach, Rose Of Light and Don't Bossa Nova Me Around. 
Swatches (inevitbly) coming soon!

Mini macarons and tea on a rainy afternoon. And yes, the ombre made them taste even better!

Friendship.

This last week has been a busy one, mainly spent at my desk. I'm in the process of setting up a new online store combining lots of gorgeous statement jewels and little treasures with my own handmade stuff I've been selling on Etsy. I'm so excited to get it open, hopefully next week!

I took a small break mid-week with the Mr to go to PAUL - l'incroyable boulangerie et pâtisserie de la France! It's SO good! I discovered on the last trip there with my girlfriends that their mini macarons were melt in the mouth deliciousness. Seemingly, when I find a place I like, I can't visit anywhere else for a while.

Last weekend my friends and I said goodbye to one dear friend from our group. She's been in Indonesia for a couple of years, but the time had come for her to head on to her next adventure. She's returning home for a short while and then has some epic travel plans. 

It's always hard to say goodbye to friends in any situation, but as an expat it's a (far too) common experience and for me, quite sombre. I'm always grateful to have had the opportunity to meet that friend; thankful for having their friendship; excited for them and their next big adventure; but invariably sad to lose them in my daily life.

Friendship as an expat is an awkward thing; the usual rules of friendship are defunct, and it feels both easier and more difficult to make friends, all at the same time. Of course, until you learn the local language fairly fluently, there are far less people you interact with on a daily basis, so you're less likely to meet someone who you really connect with. However, at the same time, alone in a new environment you can feel desperate for the companionship of a friend who can share in your experiences and the challenges of life in a foreign country. Given that feeling, I've found (generalising here) expats are more open to making new friendships. It's not weird to contact a fellow expat via a Facebook group and say 'hey, do you fancy going for coffee?' or to swap numbers with a person you meet in a store. Like at home, not every expat you meet is someone you feel you really connect with, but on the occasions that you do, you bond quickly. In a sense, your expat friends are your family in whichever country you happen to be calling home. Even if you spend only a couple of years together before moving on, you establish far deeper ties than that. 

I'm lucky to have made a handful of friends like that back in Korea and (I think) here in Indonesia, also. Lisa is one of those kind of friends. Although she'll be sorely missed here, I know it's not a real goodbye. We'll keep in touch, she'll likely stop by on her travels, and in years to come we'll probably meet to reminisce about life in Jakarta back in 2013/2014. Good luck Lisa, I'll see you soon!

x x x