◎王軒
Traveling is always refreshing and enables us to reflect on ourselves over the paths to take for the future. I perfectly understand why people chose to work in a total different place for exploring themselves through adapting to a whole new environment. Not long after the video clip released on YouTube, Taiwanese applicants became the wild card for receiving the greatest popularity among all, Claire Wang made it to the final phase and impressed all participants for the curious eyes attempting to capture all novel ideas and things beyond her scopes.

In 2009, Tourism Queensland promoted the Great Barrier Reef as a global tourism destination with a website encouraging people worldwide to apply for The Best Job In The World, to be a "Caretaker of the Islands" to "house-sit" the islands of the Great Barrier Reef for half a year, based on Hamilton Island. Job benefits included a large salary, free lodging in a multi-million dollar villa, and transportation there and around the islands. The application process required a web video to be submitted, available publicly for consideration for the position. The job duties listed were primarily publicity-related with web videos, blogging, and photo diaries. The submission web site crashed two days following the launch of the campaign, from excessive visits and application video uploading. Over 35,000 applications were received from over 200 countries, and whittled down to 16 finalists (including one chosen by an on-line vote). Finalists came from Australia (two), United States (two), United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany, New Zealand, Taiwan, India, China, Japan, France and South Korea. Ten were male and their ages ranged from 20 to 39. The candidates were interviewed on the island starting 3 May 2009. The United Kingdom finalist Ben Southall, 34, a charity fundraiser and ostrich-rider from Petersfield, Hampshire, UK, was appointed as the new caretaker of the island on 6 May 2009

Are you ready to plunge into a world full of exotic cultures and strange languages？ If you've got a positive answer, you are on the go. Remember, WORKING HOLIDAY IS NOT AN ESCAPE FROM THE REAL WORLD.Your one-to-two-year plan should require deliberation and self-awareness about what the person you determine to be and any values it might bring to you during this amazing trip. Wish you the best luck.

Today's we'll go deeper with the budget plan and a very interesting skill of paining from India: Henna along with the picture of Linda Huang's Work. ( It might not be the best select among them, but it's truly original and innovative thing to you all.)
(A)How do we apply for it?
On previously mentioned article, we've been introducing the official procedures of form-filling and certain regulations issued by Australian Government and Australian Tourism Bureau. And you've got to be noticing the difference weather condition in an opposite hemisphere. Today's we'll go through some details you should know before applying for this program.
Employer obligations
People working in Australia on a Working Holiday visa are entitled to the same pay and work conditions as Australian residents and citizens. There are a number of obligations that employers in Australia must be willing and able to meet.
Employers must:
●Ensure that the employee is paid the salary specified for the nominated position
●Deduct and make tax payments for the employee while employed by the business
●Make superannuation contributions for the employee while employed by the business
●Comply with all relevant workplace relations laws and any employee workplace agreements
●Ensure that the employee holds any license, registration or membership that is mandatory for the performance of their work
●Comply with responsibilities under Australian immigration laws
●Not employ a person who would be breaking Australian immigration laws by being employed.
Note: The employer must be lawfully operating a business that is actually and actively engaged in business activities.
Example: A business that exists on paper only (for example, a shelf company) is not acceptable.

Working conditions
Australian law sets pay rates and conditions of employment which cannot be undercut through informal agreements or unregistered contracts. If you have concerns about your pay and conditions, you can contact Fair Work Online or the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR).

Brian: B Linda: L
B: This time, we'll carefully start the "Money Talk" part. How much did you spend on the air fare and the hotel there?
L: Honestly speaking, it's quite complicated to elaborate my expenses for this program. Let me just begin with the fare of economical flights may range from NT$ 45, 000 to NT$ 65,000. The earlier you book, the more reasonable price you may receive. Here's a soft reminder: booking the cheaper ticket may take you plenty of time fooling around the terminals for stopover before heading to the designated destination. It shall be a double-edged sword. The rent can be varied from one city to another. Here's the list of individual rent in accordance with different regions for your reference. There are three forms of accommodation: Share House/ Suite/ Home Stay.
The Home Stay Family charged one most and the landlord usually knocks your door every week. Don't be surprised, they charge you by WEEK instead of MONTH.
(P.S. Rent in this chart stands for the WEEKLY CHARGE based on the experience of the locals and Taiwanese backpackers.)

B:Wow…your sharing of life expense is really organized and detailed, which reminds me, staying at hostel will be a great bargain for those newcomers seeking rooms in a low price. When recalling my 9-day trip in London, I only spent NT$ 2500 on accommodation. Really get past of the burden. And do you self-cater a lot? Just purchase some take-outs often?
L: You nailed it, Brian. Having meals at the local shop will shrink your balance and is unlikely to be healthy, so to speak. Even though I am not a master chef, I've been learning how to cook for my boyfriend, Berlin, and I. We've reached a consensus to save up more money by cutting back on our entertainment costs and bring lunchboxes to workplaces.
Taught by my family, I've learned to deal with some complicated techniques of boning the ducks, making the poached egg, grilled the drumsticks, and also mix some veggies as tasty salad. Remember？ You told me to pour coke over the chicken drumsticks which will be caramelized and softened. And it tasted really AWESOME. You must have been a gourmet when studying in Canada, mustn't you? Taking a stroll to the nearest supermarket, I found pleasure in going window shopping and purchasing some groceries, part of me thinking of it as the great chance to reward myself with some delicious ingredients. Because we don't get any vehicles, public transportation has become more accessible and affordable. Sometimes getting lost is fun, you can dig out some unknown excitement by the warm-hearted locals. My old neighbor, Tina, loved singing and sitting on the rocking chair on the porch in the afternoon and always greeted me when jogging by her place. Sometimes she even brought her home-made pie to my place and had a great chat about the life full of ups and downs, for which I appreciate with such a lovely friend in Australia. Never had I known such plain but beautiful people and things just walked into my life.

(B) How to land a part-time job there?
After talking to Linda Huang, I did admire her persistence and perseverance toward arts. She acquired this unique technique and also developed into her own characteristic signature presentation of each customer's traits and his or her state of mind channeling emotions at the very special moment at her stand. People walking by her stand are sometimes hooked up by those intricate painting on various parts of human body; moreover, some others even asked her to paint Henna on their face or finger as the certain token or souvenir for this trip, from which she derived great encouragement and inspiration. To Linda, Henna is more than just a tradition rooted in Indian wedding culture but a gesture of giving blessings to people who come to her. Visitors from all walks of life and all ages are overwhelmed by this mysterious approach to arts, unlike any other performances.

『本專刊內容由王軒老師提供，並與本社編輯部共同策畫製作』