Ok here we go – ready to start the Jenelle blogging journey?
HELLO FROM NEW YORK!!!
Everyone – I made it. Well you would like to think so seeing as I have been here for three sleeps already! I was ‘borrowing’ wireless from someone nearby for a couple of days so have just been able to get to the blogging/pics stuff happening now.
I’ve decided to start my blogging back in Melbourne on Friday night/Saturday morning and work forward from there.
The Friday was busy – getting my hair cut and coloured, visiting people and just trying to get things done. I wanted to leave for the airport at about 7am and wanted to try and get a good sleep that night.
At approximately 11.30pm, with just little things left to pack in my carry-on I went to pick up one of my cases. I just knew it was too heavy. So I threw a massive hissy fit in the only way I know how and tipped everything out of ALL my cases. (Do you realise how much ‘stuff’ fits into 5 x 32kg cases?!) I resigned to the fact that I will just forget about taking any belongings and decided to take one stupid case with a few stupid things in it and even started thinking studpidly and saying to myself, “I’m NOT going! Forget it!”
After a few minutes I looked at all my clothes. I didn’t need all of them. So I started culling and with that rolling and rolling and rolling – all of my tops, jumpers, skirts and rolling them (here is the backpacker in me) of course, fits more and they were snug and by about 12.15am I had one case done. With another four to go. My sanity had returned after huffing and puffing and throwing stuff around the room. I actually think I was just maybe looking for an excuse NOT to have to go to the airport.
By 2am I was done and fell asleep without even thinking about the fact that was the last night in my bed! Before I knew it, my alarm was going off and I was listening to the 3AW 6am news for the last time. I was packed, my clothes were ready and all we had to do was just GET to the airport and get those ridiculous suitcases out of my sight.
Matthew drove and it was a strange trip. I was exhausted and going along the Western Ring Road I wasn’t even taking it in – I just kept thinking how I wanted to get rid of those darn suitcases!
The Qantas check in was long. Long. And Long again. And this is where we all let out a collective sigh for having Qantas Club membership. There were three people in front of me. Bliss. Before long, I recognized one of those as Victor Perton – a little blast of Parliament before I departed! I hadn’t caught up with him for a long time so it was good to hear what he was up to and also took the mind of everyone off the impending departure for all of say… five minutes! We all struggled up to the counter with all my bags. This was the most pressure filled time – waiting to see if any had gone over 32kgs. I am just going to divert for a moment to answer the question “How did you managed to get five suitcases on board, in these horrific times for people who like to pack a little more than usual when they travel?
For travel to the USA with Qantas (I am not sure about other carriers), you are allocated 2 x 32kgs bags. None of this 1 x 20kg bag allocation that one gets for Europe. As a member of the Qantas Club I get another piece of 32kg luggage. So now, we are up to three bags. Then, for travel to/from the USA, any excess baggage is charged per piece. At $144 per piece, this is a BARGAIN compared to shipping belongings by sea that take three months! So all up for all my cases, I had to pay $288 – best money I have spent whilst traveling!
So back at the check-in counter I held by breath as Case 1 got weighed. 29kgs. Case 2. 27 kgs. Case 3. 30 kgs. Case 4. 26 kgs, Case 5. 30 kgs. Now – can this woman pack or can this woman pack?! They were gone. Hurrah! I didn’t have to even think of those ridiculous monstrosities until I landed in LA.
I was directed to the Qantas sales counter to pay for my excess and the guy working there wanted a quick lesson in New York Accommodation Recommendations 101 – I was hardly in the right frame of mind to answer a travel related reference question…but helped him out as best I could. (He hadn’t booked anything, was coming over in September (PEAK!), there was five of them… yes the total accommodation nightmare scenario!)
With that we all settled down for a quick bite before heading to those doors. Yes those doors of pain, suffering, crying and awful goodbyes – the metal doors to enter the customs area. The tears flowed and flowed and flowed. When I got through those terrible, awful, mean, cruel and downright rude doors the crying didn’t stop. I was in such a state, when I got to the customs counter even those usually surly people in the high chairs were nice! I was too busy thinking about how I will get my spare hankie out of the bottom of my backpack to hear what she was saying until she said “Wow! A Librarian! You know you are the seventh librarian that has been through my counter today?!” Say what? It was only 9.30am! Is there a Melbourne Librarian exodus that was happening that I did not read about on any ALIA e-list?! That stopped me crying for all of.. 10 seconds and then when I saw the x-ray machines it started again.
I walked through the duty free and caught a glimpse of my swollen eyes, red blotchy face and snotty nose in the Clinique mirror and was horrified. I could not go into the Qantas club in that state so sat outside in the povvo lounge just bawling into my backpack. I moved over to the gate before boarding and think I saw Pat, old Deputy Parl Librarian… maybe he was one of those seven librarians or it was a lookalike?! Time for boarding and yes, I got my favourite seat in the whole wide world, seat 70K. I sat down, chucked the air on full force on my face and cried and cried looking at the ‘TULLAMARINE’ signage. I realised this would be the last time in a long time I would see Melbourne. So I was greeted with this view for 30 minutes while we waited to depart. So instead of thinking of the MCG, Degraves Street, the Top-of-Collins, The Esplanade or trams, this is my last view of Melbourne that I remember –
As we left the gate and circled the Tullamarine runways for a scenic view of the dirt and weeds, I couldn’t believe it was all really happening now. I love take off but I kept crying and crying as I saw Melbourne get smaller and smaller. Then, when we were in the clouds, it stopped. I couldn’t see Melbourne, so I couldn’t cry. Such a strange feeling. Either that or my tear ducts were empty. I am positive that the guy beside me thought I was some kind of loony so I did not turn my head away from looking out the window until at least the blotchiness had left my face! It was horrendous! I couldn’t even get excited about the in-flight meals. 🙁 I flicked on the video-on-demand and this is where we all love love love Qantas for their entertainment offerings. Two uncensored episodes of Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares! Perfect in-flight viewing and just the thing to stop feeling so sad.
With more antics and in-flight craziness… stay tuned.
PS – If you are one of those non-Collingwood people feeling that now is the perfect time to send around those way-too-old jokes and criminal-esque pics of Alan Didak/Eddie McGuire/Heath Shaw or Collingwood in general- be warned! Remember the Soup Nazi? I can become the Blog Nazi. No Blog For You!