So with my wonderful taxi driver dropping me at the apartment block where I’d be calling home… there was to be someone meeting me here with the keys. By this time I was simply exhausted. It was just me and my five cases, in the middle of the street, with a lot of strange looks being thrown my way. I ran over and hit the buzzer of my apartment number. No answer. I knew I was late but I assumed they would have waited. I rang it again. No answer. And again. And again. I had the number of the place who manage the apartments but it was after 8pm on a Saturday night. I also had no mobile phone. It was dark. I had no idea where a phone would be and I couldn’t just leave my stuff on the footpath. I was positively stuck.
The idea entered my head that I should just try and get a cab (they are few and far between down my street) and get to the nearest hotel and deal with this when I had some semblance of sanity and after I had a shower. Which was all I wanted. The air was thick and heavy and made me feel absolutely disgusting. I was totally drained and really couldn’t handle any crazy stuff right now!
After 20 minutes of standing on the footpath, thinking some miracle apartment person would drop out of the sky with some keys, I saw a guy and girl on the next stoop and realised I had no other choice. I ran over and offered the girl $5 to use her mobile (which she repeatedly refused!) to try and call the management company. As I dialled, I was silently praying for someone to answer that phone, or else I had no idea what else I was going to do… and with that I heard the roll of thunder and saw some fork lightning. I actually really had to find some shelter as for the past 20 minutes I was actually homeless! With that the phone was answered and I was told they would chase up what happened and send someone there ASAP. I expressed my eternal gratefulness to the lovely girl (now my lovely neighbour!) for helping me out. I calmed down, sat on the stoop with my belongings and listened to the thunder. The girl next door then ran back out towards me saying “Phone for you!” The company had rang back to let me know to just ring one of the buzzers to have the door opened and go up to the apartment – it had been left open for me and the keys left inside. YAY! Success!!! With that, massive raindrops started falling and I had 5 cases to get up a flight of stairs and could barely lift my legs let alone a 32kg case!
Just as I was about to ring a buzzer to get me into the building, one of my new neighbours was about to open the door – I explained my situation and he introduced himself and let me in. I quickly ran up the stairs to see the apartment. I opened the door and the first thing I noticed… HOT… HEAT… STIFLING!!! Argghhh. It was an absolute OVEN! So I quickly turned the air con on… I could feel the sweat already dripping down my back from the humidity outside. The air was sticky and hot and I was half asleep… and I had to get these cases up the steep flight of stairs. I figured for the 1 minute of hell per case, I could do this. So one by one, one step at a time they came up and made it into the apartment.
I dumped them on the floor.
I closed the door.
I was HOME!