Day 14 (technically 13) - Friday, June 11th 2021
It's the final countdown, assuming the exit team brand me this afternoon/evening to say you can go. I awake early when the clicking hits my door, I hear it this time around. Breakfast is exactly the same as the breakfast I had on my arrival. It's almost to suggest that I have officially gone full-circle now.
After breakfast, I continue to pack and one of travel's greatest mysteries arises:
How do you pack everything back into your bag now, because everything fit previously?
I am certainly convinced that it is nothing more than the fact that your clothes are no longer neatly folded and cleaned. Nothing to do with souvenirs. Trust me the last two weeks I have done no sightseeing, besides the tradies on the roof of the apartment block across the way. Therefore, nothing was needing to be added to my bags besides what I arrived with. Therefore I have figured out why you can't pack your bag again after a trip, it's about your laundry, so as the Mythbusters would say "CONFIRMED"
Lunch shows up it's Fish and Chips, the same lunch I had on Day 1. The meal also comes with details from the hotel on how I am to exit the hotel tomorrow morning and thanking me for contributing to being part of the solution in stopping COVID. Well, it's not like we have a choice. I must admit I miss Fish and Chips, you can't get good Fish and Chips in the US. Or it could be that self-proclaimed English girl in me or the fact that I was so lazy and just needed junk food it really hit the spot for an afternoon lunch on a Friday. For the record, my friends at the footy still call me 'Dutchess' long story but they dub my parents Lord and Lady and when they were figuring out what to call me it was 'The Dutchess of Surrey' as I was dating an English guy at the time who hailed from Guildford, Surrey.
One thing did occur to me over the last fortnight. I'm surprised that not once was there a Parmy for a meal. I definitely have to get one in the coming days. As well as a proper coffee. I've had enough of Nescafe with UHT Milk. Brings back a lot of memories of being a flight attendant that taste. Maybe I'll grab one when I get to Tullamarine tomorrow. Assuming the places are still open. I wonder if my usual spot at Wartermark's will also give me a staff discount if I flash my US Airline ID?
After 2:30 PM I decide to finish the last session of my Yoga workout plan I started all those days ago. As I get down into thunderbolt position and take my first breath there's a knock on the door. It's the exit team. I get the questions, my paperwork, temperature checked, branded with a wristband and see the ADF team and police, I guess checking me out maybe? But the ADF asks what time I want out. I say 7 am. What struck me though was the health team were kitted out in full PPE and N95 masks and the Police and ADF simply had a mask on only. Kinda doesn't make much sense there considering we are all seen as a threat and hotels are being deemed dangerous when the room doors open. You'd at least figure they'd be in the N95 masks. Then again no COVID policy, the world over has made any sense.
Branded and clear for release tomorrow I book my flight to Melbourne and submit the border permit for Victoria. What a joke!
On a positive note, as I read the latest from NSW Health (to ensure that where I am is a Green Zone), I see that my folks would actually be permitted to fly up to Sydney right now. I haven't told them if I was flying down or not so I resist telling them when to expect me in Melbourne. But more importantly, I could go home and fly back to Sydney to see the game on Monday. I resist the urge to message the folks and say either "hey come up to Sydney right now" or "hey I'll fly down tomorrow and we can fly back on Monday for a game" patience is a virtue. I still want to surprise them on my arrival. It won't be the same surprise that I was hoping for two and a half weeks ago but an unexpected time of arrival would certainly help. So to send a message right now would kinda disturb that plan. This plan also includes responding to a message from my mother about the status of when I get out of the Quarantine, I opt to say Sunday.
Gotta keep the facade going but at this rate, the important thing is I can be back in Sydney on Monday to see a live AFL game and will be going to Melbourne to see my family and friends. It's probably the best I could've hoped for in the circumstances. I'll consider it a win in this COVID mad country.
My final meal for the quarantine is a dry Roast Chicken, about the only highlight to the meal was the Garlic roast potatoes.
I can't complain about the food in the programme. I have said it before and I will say it again, I might not have got lucky with the hotel but I certainly got lucky when it came to the catering here. I really only had three bad meals in two weeks and that was more of a taste thing aka made with items that make me gag, even just by looking at it. So I would consider that a major win, wouldn't you?
Before I call it a night I log in and check the flight loads from Sydney to Melbourne for my flight tomorrow. When you use your Airline Staff privileges you need a heap of empty seats. Considering I see that QF is still selling Freaky Flyer seats on the flight, with less than 10 hours prior to departure I can definitely say:
Comentários