Returning to Australia, quarantine detention is unavoidable and was something we were dreading. But is was something we could never complain about as we had chosen to go overseas against Government advice and were choosing to return knowing there would be complications - likely cancellations, passport issues and the one you didn't think of. (It's always the one you didn't think of!)
Steve had joined a Facebook group* called Melbourne Hotel Quarantine and knew the difficulties (horror stories!) of other returnees.
From the time we booked our tickets in April I had been expecting to be 'bumped' or cancelled. It was a narrative that fitted well with my ambivalence about leaving early. I was telling anyone lamenting our leaving that it probably wouldn't happen. I was saying 50-50 even as we climbed into Abraham's taxi. And I'd paid Abraham extra to hang around in the airport carpark until we were safely through immigration.
We knew of people with onwards flights from Doha who were rerouted or postponed and had ended up with layovers there of 36hours+ so we'd packed an extra change of undies in the backpack and were resolutely prepared for anything! And every time nothing went wrong we breathed a sigh of relief and approached the next milestone.
The flight from Kilimanjaro to Doha is an overnight flight but was fairly full so we were sleeping in our seats. We had to entertain ourselves at Doho airport from 5:00 am until boarding at 7:30 pm. It's when you ignore currency exchange rates and just buy the croissant and juice (breakfast) and Burger King meal (lunch) without thinking about what that number of Qatari Riyals means!
The flight from Doha to Melbourne seemed ridiculous - fewer than 40 passengers in a plane designed for 400. So although we were all in one section of the plane we could all stretch out over a bank of seats to sleep. I don't think I've ever been so excited to see the Western District and suburban Melbourne from the air.Arriving at Tullamarine was a totally different experience to the usual. We spend a long time waiting to disembark but there were no crowded aisles and waiting while others fetched down their carry-on luggage from crowded overhead lockers. We were very orderly and kept the required 2 metres distance from every other human. We were sanitised frequently and had several changes of disposable mask. In the bureaucratic process of getting through immigration and customs we were asked at least four times if we'd been in India, Pakistan or Bangladesh in the previous 14 days (no we hadn't) but not if we might have been with people who had (probably yes as there is constant traffic between Tz and India for health, education and trade). We ticked the Yes box for bringing in wooden objects and plant based materials and having been in rural areas but for a change no-one was interested in looking at my curios or shoes and AQIS just waved us through. It's lucky I know by now what I can and can't bring in so I probably haven't imported any pests or diseases.
The longest wait was sitting on the Skybus waiting to be taken to our detention hotel - close to an hour - when I was again thankful not to be travelling with children.
Again, we were very lucky. We had seen photos from families of three, four or even five people in one standard hotel room with barely space to walk around for luggage. We had seen unappetising food delivered cold in plastic containers and heard of detainees spending fortunes on Uber Eats and Deliveroo to get food they wanted to eat. We heard stories of people having a view of a brick wall and being unable to even get UberEats or Deliveroo because they were stranded out at Tullamarine.
We have a corner suite right on the Yarra River at South Wharf. There is plenty of space and though no windows open the air quality is fine. Food is delivered three times a day (There's a knock on the door, we sing out "Thank you" then wait 30 seconds. One of us dons a mask, opens the door a very little and fetches the paper bag in) and though the food is in plastic take away containers it has been hot, varied and appetising. The amount of plastic waste is disheartening but probably unavoidable. The precautions being taken to make sure there is no transmission of virus are stringent.
We have a bird's eye view from the 11th floor up and down the Yarra and around to the Bay. There is always something to look at. There are helicopters buzzing through at eye level and all manner of boats on the river. Yesterday we watched an old steam train hauling red rattler carriages go through Spencer Street Station. Of course having binoculars helps! When the Traffic report on 774 says there are delays on the Bolte Bridge we can check that he's correct. Steve is of course doing a bird list and has found a new species most days - he has 18 but still no magpie.
Steve has spent his time continuing his review of senior secondary mathematics. I have done a bit more family history research. Trove - the digitised collection of newspapers and other documents kept by the National Library - has been a wonderful source of information and entertainment. The news articles of the time show how language has changed! We don't read of "little street arabs" or "nymphs of the pave" these days. The family notices have been a good source of information too that is not in the official registers.
We still have two more days to survive but I'm hoping our luck holds. On Monday morning we will be released from detention and drive home to Hamilton. (Thanks Jeremy for delivering the car!). My new passport is somewhere between Nairobi and the Melbourne passport office. No rush on that but I will start thinking about our next adventure.
* Yes Steve is on Facebook, it's the only way he can get the birding information he needs and is in 13 groups, but he has resolutely refused to have any 'Friends'.
