Entry and 14 Day Quarantine
Well, we are finally in Sydney and some of us are more rested than others - Jack had a HUGE sleep, I was up at 4am !! Oh well, it can only get better, right ?
As a summary, (more for our memory than anything else) I will go through what the final experience was like. After the excitement of seeing the Qantas plane at the gate, we realised that it actually wasn't our plane - it was the Perth/Melbourne plane !! Ours was out in the back blocks - we couldn't understand that, as there were only 2 international flights leaving on the day but we had to take a bus to our plane ??? For those that have been to India, you will understand the whole 'bus to the plane' thing and how much it drives you crazy when you travel within India. Nearly all flights involve a bus ride of some description, usually squished in like sardines. After bussing over we boarded the plane and then had to wait for way too long, as some people were late…. no surprise and I seriously question where they were, as we all came to the airport on Consulate buses from the same mandatory hotel, then it was the only flight checking in and then there were no shops or 'anything' to do, so we were all just waiting near the gate…….. who knows but we were 25 minutes late leaving due to them being missing in action !!
However, we were surprised at the lack of people requiring wheelchairs on to the plane - I only saw one and usually there are at least 3 for every Indian flight. Even after all of the prior discussions about social distancing on the plane, there was none and every seat was occupied - apart from Business Class, not sure why that was. They didn't sell any Business Class seats. There was no entertainment, snack food only, no drinks except water, and the token grumpy Qantas staff member - there's always one ! The staff were all in compulsory masks (as were all the passengers), bio hazard bags were provided for old masks, food etc, no blankets or pillows and many requests to stay in your seat unless you really needed to use the toilet.
I think we counted 8 westerners on the plane (including us) and then the majority of the other passengers were women with young children and babies. This wasn't unexpected from us, as most of these people were visiting family in India, usually while their husband was still in Australia working, when India went in to 'lockdown'. The biggest issue was that they had loads of luggage that they couldn't handle on their own, leading to chaos boarding, exiting and then when we got to Sydney, as there were no trolleys in the airport, so it was a huge issue for them there. We had little to no sleep with lots of crying babies, but on the positive side, it was a quick flight direct from Chennai to Sydney - no stopover !!
Please don't think that this is in any way a complaint. We are very happy to have joined this flight and go through ALL the requirements to get home and all the people involved were patient and only had everyone's safety in mind. However, it was a long and tedious process with us landing at 10am and then the Border Force and Police requirements that were needed before we checked in at the hotel at 4pm. When we landed, we had to stay on the plane for half an hour so as to read the paperwork provided about what we were agreeing to before we could disembark. Then there were temperature checks, medical discussions, no auto immigration, social distancing everywhere and then no trolleys. The usual exit path in the airport was completely closed and you were required to use the back alleys of the airport winding your way through multiple checks to get out. Customs was easy but more stringent because everyone had to go through the declare line and then you entered a back area behind the normal exit of Sydney airport where we waited to be checked off another list and be handed to the NSW Police. Singles and couples were able to leave fairly quickly, but families were made to wait while they sorted out groups before loading us on to a bus and headed to the city.
We have been lucky to get a 2 bedroom apartment rather than interconnecting hotel rooms - which means we have a kitchenette and laundry. Also a bit more space to move around and even a balcony, although we are finding it a bit chilly after leaving 45 degrees in India. The daily food deliveries seem ok, but we are only on Day 1. There have been a lot of complaints online about the food and service provided to travellers returning, but I really don't have any complaints. I have placed a Woolies order which will arrive tomorrow with some basics and some beer and wine for Mike and I. We are exhausted and jet lagged but have 14 days to get over it all.
Both of us have work to keep us busy in the next 2 weeks and the boys have a couple of exams to complete before they finish their schooling with Stonehill. Otherwise lots of downtime and online shopping for appliances for our house. As I have previously mentioned, the complete loss of control in this situation is the hardest part of this entire experience. We are definitely looking forward to being responsible for our decisions after quarantine ends.
As a summary, (more for our memory than anything else) I will go through what the final experience was like. After the excitement of seeing the Qantas plane at the gate, we realised that it actually wasn't our plane - it was the Perth/Melbourne plane !! Ours was out in the back blocks - we couldn't understand that, as there were only 2 international flights leaving on the day but we had to take a bus to our plane ??? For those that have been to India, you will understand the whole 'bus to the plane' thing and how much it drives you crazy when you travel within India. Nearly all flights involve a bus ride of some description, usually squished in like sardines. After bussing over we boarded the plane and then had to wait for way too long, as some people were late…. no surprise and I seriously question where they were, as we all came to the airport on Consulate buses from the same mandatory hotel, then it was the only flight checking in and then there were no shops or 'anything' to do, so we were all just waiting near the gate…….. who knows but we were 25 minutes late leaving due to them being missing in action !!
However, we were surprised at the lack of people requiring wheelchairs on to the plane - I only saw one and usually there are at least 3 for every Indian flight. Even after all of the prior discussions about social distancing on the plane, there was none and every seat was occupied - apart from Business Class, not sure why that was. They didn't sell any Business Class seats. There was no entertainment, snack food only, no drinks except water, and the token grumpy Qantas staff member - there's always one ! The staff were all in compulsory masks (as were all the passengers), bio hazard bags were provided for old masks, food etc, no blankets or pillows and many requests to stay in your seat unless you really needed to use the toilet.
I think we counted 8 westerners on the plane (including us) and then the majority of the other passengers were women with young children and babies. This wasn't unexpected from us, as most of these people were visiting family in India, usually while their husband was still in Australia working, when India went in to 'lockdown'. The biggest issue was that they had loads of luggage that they couldn't handle on their own, leading to chaos boarding, exiting and then when we got to Sydney, as there were no trolleys in the airport, so it was a huge issue for them there. We had little to no sleep with lots of crying babies, but on the positive side, it was a quick flight direct from Chennai to Sydney - no stopover !!
Please don't think that this is in any way a complaint. We are very happy to have joined this flight and go through ALL the requirements to get home and all the people involved were patient and only had everyone's safety in mind. However, it was a long and tedious process with us landing at 10am and then the Border Force and Police requirements that were needed before we checked in at the hotel at 4pm. When we landed, we had to stay on the plane for half an hour so as to read the paperwork provided about what we were agreeing to before we could disembark. Then there were temperature checks, medical discussions, no auto immigration, social distancing everywhere and then no trolleys. The usual exit path in the airport was completely closed and you were required to use the back alleys of the airport winding your way through multiple checks to get out. Customs was easy but more stringent because everyone had to go through the declare line and then you entered a back area behind the normal exit of Sydney airport where we waited to be checked off another list and be handed to the NSW Police. Singles and couples were able to leave fairly quickly, but families were made to wait while they sorted out groups before loading us on to a bus and headed to the city.
We have been lucky to get a 2 bedroom apartment rather than interconnecting hotel rooms - which means we have a kitchenette and laundry. Also a bit more space to move around and even a balcony, although we are finding it a bit chilly after leaving 45 degrees in India. The daily food deliveries seem ok, but we are only on Day 1. There have been a lot of complaints online about the food and service provided to travellers returning, but I really don't have any complaints. I have placed a Woolies order which will arrive tomorrow with some basics and some beer and wine for Mike and I. We are exhausted and jet lagged but have 14 days to get over it all.
Both of us have work to keep us busy in the next 2 weeks and the boys have a couple of exams to complete before they finish their schooling with Stonehill. Otherwise lots of downtime and online shopping for appliances for our house. As I have previously mentioned, the complete loss of control in this situation is the hardest part of this entire experience. We are definitely looking forward to being responsible for our decisions after quarantine ends.
Well done! The most exciting thing about that post is that you could order alcohol! I had heard that there was no alcohol allowed in quarantine and it was one of the things I was worried about LOL!
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