On the Way to Australia: Travel Diary #1

Menu Home Instagram Pinterest-p Facebook-f Twitter Tripadvisor Lingue Travel Diary On the way to Australia: travel diary #1 Travel Diary One of the first pictures I took in Sydney Welcome to my “Australia Travel Diary”! While I was living this crazy adventure, I decided to take notes, memories, pictures and everything that could help me remember this experience the best. Now I want to share it with you. So have a nice trip! Australia. I could not believe it. I really did it. I got my visa, prepared my passport, filled my backpack (me, with a backpack: almost unbelievable!) and left heading the unknown, with nothing in my hand but the desire to challenge myself, find my path and explore this wild and wonderful country. Dreaming about Australia? This is the ultimate checklist to get ready safely and easily for your adventure. A 3 Days – Long Trip 20/06/2022 When the departure day came, it seemed to me that time was standing still. I felt so strange, on the one hand happy and eager to start this journey, I had been cultivating the idea of ​​doing such a madness for years. All of a sudden came that moment when I needed some shock treatment, to change my life and give myself a jolt to get things flowing again. On the other hand, I felt tense and a bit empty. In the end it was the whole day I had only been seeing people crying around me for hours, and as happy as I am to know that I have family and friends who love me, it didn’t help. And then my dog’s eyes reminded me how much I will miss him and I felt deeply sad: was I sure of my choice? By the time this thoughts expanded in my mind, I was already sat on a Flixbus ready to leave my city. In the following moments, agitation took over from sadness: will I be able and enough to manage it? I can’t say exactly how many doubts suddenly arose in my mind in the moments before the departure. A whirlwind of thoughts and fears overwhelmed me until the bus I was sitting on left, heading to the first stop of the journey: France. I couldn’t go back anymore: the only way was forward. First Stop: Lyon In Lyon,  another bus was ment to take us to Paris airport. The coincidence included almost an hour of rest, everything was going well. Just the time for a nice brunch before the next transfer. At least this was my idea until we discovered that the second bus had left earlier: we had lost it. Loaded with my backpacks, without a place to sleep, hungry and uncertain. This was the beginning of my journey to Australia. My Favourite Travel Companion Not exactly my plan. “A journey is not a journey if it is not at least a bit of a journey of hope” Arianna, a dear friend of mine from high school, told me one day. I still remember the laughter. Then, thinking about it, in its simplicity and naivety this words hid a deep truth that every traveler knows. And now I know it too. After a short moment of panic and general nervousness, we managed to find a train that would take us to the airport the next day. And luckily we were able to quickly book a hotel near the station. Ok, the basics were in place, I could rest and recharge the batteries. 21/06/2022 After a refreshing night, I was ready to leave again, destination airport. No more unforeseen events: we left well in advance, we arrived at the airport when the flight was hours away, but at least I was calm and sure not to miss it! somewhere in the sky Departed. In the middle of the clouds, I still hadn’t realized I was on a plane heading literally to the other side of the world. For a period of time that seemed felt forever, I only saw clouds, the blue of the sky and the sun’s rays penetrating the airplane window. From time to time the dawn, of a blinding beauty. My mind was hosting a mix of conflicting emotions: happiness, excitement, nostalgia, fear and above all impatience. That flight was really taking forever! After more than 9 hours on the plane, I had completely lost all sense of time: day and night began to get confused. Fortunately, some hostesses would show up with a nice big meal, to remind me that it was probably time for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Then back to nothing to do. I read a few pages of the new book, jotted down a few moments in my Australia travel diary. But the land was still a mirage. Plus with the air conditioning and the uncomfortable position, my ankles were looking like two balloons: I couldn’t take it anymore. Eco tip #2: on every flight bring your travel cup to avoid tons of unnecessary plastic glasses to be used and thrown At one point the wonderful news: the plane was preparing to land. Finally! And it is in that very moment that I discovered the existence of the so called “landing migraine”. As we lost altitude, I began to feel excruciating pain in my temples, which quickly spread throughout my head. I do not hide that I was genuinely worried, it seemed to me that my head was about to burst. Then I notice that a similar thing had happened to me already, during my first dives: perhaps the cause was the same, pressure change. So I put into practice what I had learned underwater and started to compensate, exactly as I had learned during the diving course, to protect the eardrums and sinuses from the pressure change. It took a while but it worked! While I was busy fighting headaches, I didn’t realize we were landed in Thailand. Backpacker on the Road. Time for a Snack! When I was still