Skip to main content

The boomerang series – How it came back straight at me - Sydney Airport




 

Kingsford smith airport was crowded that afternoon. There were people dressed in all colors, but all I could see is a time lapse effect of people moving. I shook myself deliberately to come back to reality.


Source - Google Images

                                                 

The harsh reality sunk in, I was in a different country... in a different continent and I saw a long (must have been a kilometer long) queue. I checked out my luggage and joined the queue as the 1000th person. I was exhausted, I couldn’t feel my feet, my mouth was all dry and I was starving. I saw people running here and there with a bunch of papers in hand. I too carried my passport, tickets, and my immigration form. When my turn came, after the far-reaching –never-ending queue faded, I was facing a Chinese customs officer. I was relieved as I wouldn’t have a hard time figuring out what’s been told. I was wrong.

That very moment, time came to a screeching halt. He was speaking a different language. I didn’t know Mandarin or Korean, not even Assamese. I started to panic. But then I realized that’s of no use as the officer was looking straight in my eyes. I cooled down a bit, looking around for some comfort. He said it again, “Can I see your Qua-Ran-Tine please?’ and this time a bit slow. “Sure”, I said and hurriedly started digging my handbag. I saw the officer clearly was upset with me. I looked at him with a bland – blank – pale expression. It was kind of the officer to point out something and say “Over there lady, get the form, fill it up and come back”.

I heaved a big sigh of relief and walked back half a kilometer to fill up the quarantine.
Sometimes life throws such tantrums at you.
Coming back to the queue to another officer, he sealed it and my entry inside Sydney was confirmed, so I thought.

The next queue neared the security check. I was confident this time around. I walked briskly to one of the officers and produced my documents. He asked me what kind of food items I have in my luggage. “Chocolates and biscuits”, I said. He waved asking me to take the exit. I pulled my trolley cases and walked near the exit when a tall Australian officer stopped me short. His height scared me. He quizzed who asked me to exit without approval. !!!!!!!!!!!!!! I pointed to a counter and said “that officer …” He looked around and called the officer, the angel waved his hands and this tall angel let me go.
"Thanks Mate", I murmured!!!
 
I stepped out and got a taxi.



Picture taken by me at the Vivid Sydney festival 2010
 
 

Tips for those travelling to Sydney:

 
  • Fill up the quarantine form and keep it ready
  • Luggage checks could happen to anyone and anytime so don't lie in the quarantine
  • Be awake when you enter the airport
  • Don't panic, it only leads to trouble
  • Don't carry old shoes and soiled items
  • Choose your taxi wisely

 

 
How I figured out the way to the QueenVictoriaBuilding will be covered in the next post in this series.


So long,
Ever Yours
 

Comments

  1. Some scary moments! Glad you were able to handle them. One more thing for people traveling from India. Don't carry any food items like pickles, etc. Plenty of them are available in almost all the countries.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks SG!! Yes, pickles and stuff are a big NO!! thanks for that :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Make Up and Me (Not Me)

They say people who don't know to dance have two left feet. Although, I might have two left feet myself, what is more interesting is I might actually have two left hands. Okay, I understand that's funny but here is why: If you are a girl or a boy or a boy who looks like a girl, you would probably know that it is a thing now to have a makeup blog or vlog or youtube channel in your name. I bumped into this world of cosmetics, beauty blogs and tutorials only a few months ago. For those who don't know about it, let me tell you, it is a crazy, ruthless and unbelievable world. Picture sourced from Google Heard of these? Snail slime masks, Placenta hair masks, Seaweed bathing creams, Microblading.... and endless other such insane stuff. These are insane but quite popular among beauty enthusiasts and they even swear by the benefits of such products. These are otherwise cringe-worthy products in my world. I use gramflour+tumeric face mask, Coconut oil hair mask and  a

Ever Yours, Vincent.

Never in a thousand years did I think I would be obsessed with a late, delusional psycho who was also an exceptional artist and a noteworthy character with a peculiar interest for romance. My affair started around 8 years back; a time when I had started writing and blogging for the first time. I visited this pop-up museum of contemporary art which showcased Vincent Van Gogh’s choicest documentaries. Many of his famous paintings were also on display. That was the day I fell in love, with his art, with the way he loved, with the way he expressed himself before he fell into life’s inevitable trap. The beautiful yellowish hues that dominated his paintings, the sunflowers, the potato eaters and the starry night which comes alive in my dreams every night. Those letters he wrote his brother Theo with care, love and a pinch of attitude. That unconditional brotherly love, that aimless love he showed his friend and mentor Gauguin, that love he showed the random women he saw and paint

Pro Bono

Team Writers' Den Previous Chapter -   Res ipsa loquitur Want to read the story so far? - Game Of Blogs - Writers' Den He could see her directly ahead through the shimmering blue glass window of Cafe Hafooda in Saket. The afternoon sun streamed along from the western side, casting long shadows across the table. Cyrus glanced up at Jennifer and then down at his mobile.  JJ liked Cyrus but she had a lot of questions in her mind. What was he doing? Secretly texting someone? Investigating without her help? Trying to solve something before someone else is on it? She was on this case with him. She wanted to do this for herself and for that little child and may be something more than she could comprehend. Whatever was his rationale, JJ decided to confront him. She spun herself around, sat down and found herself face-to-face with Cyrus. There was a sparkle in JJ’s eyes and Cyrus’s were menacing with thirst. Her tattoo seized Cyrus’s attention most. He was transfi