CAIT AROUND THE WORLD

January 29, 2023 — My day started bright and early at 3:30am after several hours of restless sleep. I’d packed my bags and organized my things the night before so that I could sneak out of my 10-bed dorm as quietly and quickly as possible. I stripped my bed, changed into my flight outfit, took my bag out of my locker, and, shoes in hand, tiptoed out of the room.

It was a huge relief to find that my running shoes had dried overnight and I wouldn’t need to try to stuff them in my bag for the plane. That certainly would have been a problem, because I knew my bag was already over Jetstar’s weight restrictions!

I waited for my shuttle bus to the airport down by the lobby. I’d arranged a pickup time of 4:30am, so it was a major relief to see it show up at 4:50am. Luckily, the airport is relatively close when driving and we made it in plenty of time; the gate for my flight hadn’t even opened yet when I arrived in the queue.

A very different experience from most other airports I’ve been in: we had to go through check in with the airline and they weighed both our carry-ons and our personal items at the desk. I can’t say whether every airline at this airport also completes check-in by hand, but I would be surprised if they all weighed baggage this closely.

Jetstar has a 7kg limit for both your carry-on and personal item, both of which you carry on the plane with you. I packed my main backpack with most of my stuff, excluding my laptop, toiletries, and a few other things I wanted close-to-hand on the plane. I’d put those things in my day pack. First, that makes it easier to separate your items at airport security because I’m always concerned with holding up the line. Second, I was hoping that the associates at the check-in counter would only be looking at my bag and not actually weighing it. Going by looks, it probably didn’t seem very heavy. I’d actually go so far as to say that my day pack weighed more than my 40L backpack. Of course, they weighed everything. I was at 8kg and thankfully, the lady at the counter let me by with a warning (which is exactly the reaction I was hoping for).

Jetstar does give the option to book an extra 7kg of carry-on luggage when you purchase your ticket, or at some point before you fly, but when I checked it was an additional $70 and I also knew that I probably wouldn’t need that much. I put heavy things in my coat pockets (power bar, universal travel adapter, cell phone, etc.) instead of in my bags. At most, I would have used an extra 2kg out of 7kg. It was not worth it. I’m interested to see what flying Jetstar on my next few journeys is like, though, because these are certainly the strictest restrictions I’ve ever come across.

Through check-in and security, I made my way to my gate. I love walking through Daniel K. Inouye International Airport because it’s open-air. No stuffy air conditioning until you get inside your gate. Breathe in as much fresh air as you can before you get on an 11-hour flight, because after that, it’s all filtered.

I waited at the gate for about an hour before we were called to board. I was seated in 50D, so I was one of the first rows to board, which was really cool. I’m not usually sitting that far back in the plane.

When I first sat down, I had the two seats in the middle row next to me all to myself, which is what I’d been hoping for when I booked. No dice, though, as some people moved seats around and I wound up with neighbours. Who were a bit smelly. But that’s just luck-of-the-draw when you fly.

An 11-hour flight is an absolute odyssey. There were a few kids on the plane, and I have to say that for the most part they did so well. I’m 22 and it was a struggle. I read for most of the flight, finishing one book and then starting — and finishing — another. I watched a couple movies, transferred my Hawaii photos on to one of my flash drives, had a little bit of a nap. Watched the flight tracker on other people’s screens. Time inched by. Creeped by. Seemed to slow right down.

If I hadn’t been on so many long road trips in my life up until this point, I think I might have gone insane. The best advice I can give for this kind of plane ride is to download tons of movies, books, music, games, and just remember that time will pass. Stop looking at the clock.

One really cool thing, though, was watching on the flight tracker as we crossed the International Date Line and the Equator. Although I believe I may have crossed the Equator before, I had never crossed the International Date Line before. I remember reading a book once where the character crossed the International Date Line on a flight. I never really thought that that was something I would do, but here I am. Crossing the International Date Line also means that I took off on January 29, 2023, but landed on January 30, 2023.

Finally, we started our descent into Melbourne. After flying for 11 hours at 35,000 feet, the pressure change is real. I had to plug my nose and blow several times to get my ears to pop, even though I was still chewing gum and swallowing like crazy. (I learned that trick on my first flight to Europe, which was 7 hours. When I stepped off the plane, I felt like I was listening to everything from underwater. One of the girls in my group did that, and it worked like magic.)

When we landed, I texted out to everyone that I was still alive. The time difference really set in at this point. I landed at 4:35pm Australia time, when it was after midnight at home. I made it through customs (which is very thorough in Australia, wow!) and to the main part of the airport, where I stopped at a Myki station to buy a card for use on public transport. I also stopped by Optus and purchased my Australia SIM card (!!!). By buying at the airport, I got to take advantage of a deal they had on where I would get 60GB of data for the first month, with 30GB each month thereafter, plus unlimited talk and text nationally and unlimited calling to 15 select countries (one of which is Canada!). Data also rolls over if unused (up to 200GB) and all of this is only $30/month! I had to hand over my passport to set the plan up, and the guy at the counter commented on horror stories he’d heard from people he knew in Canada.

It was so nice to have data again and not have to worry about taking screenshots of Google Maps directions. I got a ticket to ride the Skybus into the city of Melbourne and journeyed to my hostel.

After checking in and getting settled, I decided to take a walk around the city. I found myself in a laneway that was well-lit, with little outdoor dining patios set up all down the lane. I wandered for awhile and spent some time reading menus. I found a place that sounded good and ventured inside, where I asked for a table for one and chose to eat outdoors (which actually turned out a bit chilly!). I had the pasta puttanesca, which was one of the cheapest things on the menu at $18.00. But one of the best things about Australia? What it costs is what it costs, meaning that our dollar is basically on-par or stronger than theirs. No worrying about the exchange rate when it hits my credit card!

I headed back to my hostel after dinner, hustling a bit since it was getting pretty chilly out and I wanted to be back before it got too dark. Of course, that’s not too hard to do since the sun doesn’t set until 8:30pm right now. Thanks, summer!

I got back to the hostel, showered, and curled up for the night. Travel days can take a lot out of you, and I love having some quiet time at the end of the day to watch a movie and chill.