G’day Mate

Last night, we checked out of the hotel and got into the cab (well, the hotel’s car) to go to the airport. While I am not pro on how to get to the airport, I quickly noticed the man was NOT going the way I have always gone. We were hitting all the red lights and there was a lot of traffic so eventually he ended up pulling a u-turn. We then ended up in the slums of Vietnam on a VERY rundown road with a LOT of traffic. We had left early enough, but it did take about an hour (I have gotten there in 20 minutes before) so I am not sure what the problem was!

We checked in for our flight (and knew our bags were overweight..like person like luggage? Hmmm..) but were VERY confused when the woman started explaining we had to pay a LARGE fee. She was saying the limit was 20kg (which we knew) and one of our bags was 23kg and one was 24kg. She said she would give us 25 kg each, but she was saying how we were 22kg over! We were very confused until we realized that when she asked how many bags we were checking we said 2 and she thought 2 each instead of 2 total! You are only allowed 20kg regardless of how many bags you check, so once we got that situated we were ready to go! We had no problems getting through passport control (unlike last year). Vietnam use to work off a paper system and last year when trying to leave the country I didn’t have this paper they supposedly gave me. I was really nervous because I heard from another volunteer (an American born in Saigon) that even when she has her right papers they give her a hard time and don’t let her through until she gives them money. Luckily the guy eventually let me go after I was scared out of my mind. SO this year they have it all on the computer..YAY! We were able to get some dinner (roast beef sandwiches, yum) before boarding our plan to Singapore. As I was walking down the jet way to get on the plane I heard someone say, “Excuse me miss, excuse me!” I somehow thought that maybe if I pretended I didn’t hear and walked a bit faster she would give up on me, but she didn’t! She said it was a very full flight and since I had a carry on and backpack I would need to check one. At first I was NOT a happy camper. Just because they booked a full flight doesn’t mean I should have to check my bag. But THEN I quickly realized this was a blessing in disguise. Now I wouldn’t have to lug this baby around, fighting others that are 20 rows back for my overhead bin space! I would have checked it if I could, but since I was only allowed 20kg, blah blah blah! And this way they check it for free! Wahooooo!! I was probably the last one on the plane and mom and I were in the same row but she had an aisle and I had a window (just the way we like it). There was a Vietnamese woman in between us (living in Texas) who was all upset because she was told she had an aisle but didn’t. When we finally got going, she was able to sit Indian style in her seat and fall asleep!! We were amazed!

The flight was short and sweet and we had about 1 hour and 20 minutes to connect in Singapore. Turns out, we needed every second! The airport is huge..and BEAUTIFUL! There were so many times I wanted to stop (at the movie theater, the showers, the spa) but we kept trudging along! There was a beautiful mall area in the middle, but once we got to our gate (I am not kidding when I say we were power walking for 45 minutes) there was nothing around!!! It was so boring! It was also very weird because each gate has their own security!!

This was our longer flight (8 hours) but once we had boarded we realized the flight was not full. We asked the flight attendant and she said it was not a full flight so we quickly moved ourselves to the middle rows with four..yes FOUR seats! It was heeeeaaaavvvveeeen!!!! We were on a night flight (12am to 10am with the time change) so I really should have slept, but I was so excited that they had about 6 episodes of *Modern Family* (one of my new favorite TV shows) that I stayed up WAY too long watching them! I was able to fall asleep for a bit (and was actually pretty comfy) before arriving in Brisbane.

After collecting our luggage we headed to customs where mom and I were in separate lines. I picked up my bags, but saw the man starting to go through hers. Turns out she was getting nabbed for bringing bags of popcorn into the country. Apparently they are considered “nuts” which is a big no-no here! Somehow I managed to get through with popcorn AND bags of almonds..guess I am a sneaky packer! The guy let her go with a “warning” but this was a written warning and will go on her “file”. Little did I know my mom was such a rebel!

After making it on to Australian grounds without a trip to the jail, we headed over to pick up our car. Strangely, they did not have any maps available, so after a trip to the info desk and to get some snacks we got our car and hit the road..in..RAIN! boooo!! Luckily it was really just spitting. We were on our way to our hotel on the Gold Coast (about an hour away from Brisbane). I think I spent the entire ride saying, “STAY LEFT STAY LEFT!” but mom did a GREAT job as we made it to the hotel in one piece!

Our hotel is beautiful with the SOFTEST beds and GREAT bathroom and I realized, I was born to be a princess! After well needed showers and a little unpacking, we headed to Bond University which is where Erin, Scott’s girlfriend, is spending the semester abroad. It only took us about 20 minutes to get there and we were off to find food. Our first stop was a place about 15 minutes away from her, but we quickly learned that pretty much EVERYTHING in Australia closes at 5pm!!! Weird! It was a big mall with restaurants and it still closed at 5pm! We ended up back by her school at a pizza place and food never tasted so good..I was STARVING!

After stealing the wifi at her school (its $30 a day at this hotel..booo) we headed back to our hotel for the night as we were exhausted. The last couple of days in Vietnam were SO busy during the day and were only sleeping about 5 hours a night and we spent the night on the plane so needless to say we were tired! When we were in the car trying to find dinner I got really car sick (which I do a lot) but felt better after I ate. However, driving back from Erin’s I was not feeling good again! To spare the details, I threw up everything when we got back to the hotel! Not ok! How did I make it 2 weeks in Vietnam without getting sick and in Australia get sick!? I was actually surprised when I was in Vietnam I hadn’t gotten sick so I thought I was a seasoned traveler, but I guess not! I decided to go right to sleep and woke up about 12 hours later! Now we are off for our first REAL day in Australia!

Hugs and kisses from “G’day Mate!”