‘Tis the season. High school graduates are preparing for the next phase in their lives with bright eyes and high hopes. Big decisions are being made and big changes are happening. It’s an exciting and terrifying time.

Naturally, these big changes bring a lot of questioning (second-guessing and anxiety always pair themselves well with big choices). Of course, no-one wants to make the wrong decision. And I’ve been receiving a lot of e-mails from yungins looking for advice.

It’s the quintessential battle: Continuing Education versus The Unknown Wonders of Life. Is college really worth it? Do I wish I would have started traveling sooner knowing how my degree sitch worked out?

I suddenly have a say in validating their wanderlust and molding their futures. You know, no pressure.

So in an effort to do my part to help these recent graduates, I’m breaking down my answers to the most asked questions. And after almost two years of trying to avoid the daily grind, here’s what I have to say…

Well, it’s finally happened; Tourism Australia’s ‘Best Jobs in the World Contest‘ finalists have been announced!

They have whittled the top twenty-five in each category down to three. After 14 days, 3,000 new Facebook fans, 998 miles, 350 new Twitter followers, 200 blog comments, 13 endorsements, 8 parks, 8 interviews, and 1 academy award winner…

G’Day, adventurers!

As an enthusiastic Park Ranger in Training, I’ve been busy learning as much as I can about working with wildlife from local Las Vegas habitats.

And as suggested by previous Best Jobs in the World winner, Ben Southall, I’ve been doing as much research as possible about Australian animals.

G’Day, adventurers! Hilary here, your Park Ranger in Training!

Holy cow, has this been an adventurous two weeks.

I’ve traveled almost a thousand miles gathering endorsements, visiting parks, conducting “Park Ranger in Training” interviews, meeting experts, and immersing myself in all things Aussie.

G’Day, fellow adventurers! Hilary, your favorite “Park Ranger in Training”, here…

In my quest to become a knowledgeable and prepared Park Ranger, I’ve been doing A LOT research. On my mission to learn how to best ‘blend in’ with the locals, I received a little help from a very cool group of guys. They happen to have a headlining show here in Las Vegas. It’s no big deal. ;)

We interrupt your regularly scheduled broadcast to bring you a special Nomad Grad update (insert your own beepy noises and dramatic news anchor voice here.) And boy, is it a kangaroo of a ‘tale’…

After waiting for hours in a hammock, staring intently in the direction of Napoleon’s village, I  successfully willed him back to The Beachouse.

Okay, so he really just woke up from his nap and decided to wander back. But I’d LIKE to pretend that it was my sheer concentration and my focus alone that swayed him to teach me how to make jewelry out of coconuts.

Fun. blared over the restaurant stereo. Motivated surfers paddled out to the reef break to catch morning waves. Other backpackers yawned over their morning coffee, hiding their hangovers behind their sunglasses.

As for me, I was on a mission.

I’d finally said goodbye to my Fijian family and made my way down the Coral Coast. I set up camp at a beachfront hostel appropriately (but none too creatively) called The Beachouse.

The boat engine revved, pushing us with great difficulty over the waves and choppy current. D’Tui sat in Ro Mereani’s lap. Sala and I squealed, huddled together on the floor as we hit each wave with a loud thwack. Water poured over the metal siding, filling the bottom of the boat with a thin layer of water.

Mereani wouldn’t let us sit on the bench and gave us a tarp to share. “You’ll bounce right out of the boat if you sit up there,” she cautioned.

Sala offered to take me down to the village pig pens. I happily obliged, loving any chance to play with animals.

“Each family has a pen,” she explained as we greeted the oinkers. “The pens are on stilts so they don’t get wet at high-tide.”