A few days after my last exam and after going to bed at seven in the evening, I woke up at two a.m. to catch the bus to the airport.
Here's a bit I journaled in the airport:
It's 3:45 a.m. and I'm at the airport; I'm waiting to be checked in. I would be line, but I'm sitting in front of the check-in area. My ticket said to get there 90 minutes ahead of time, but the airport's website said three hours. I settled for 2.5. Guess it was too many. Better than missing my flight, I suppose.
Once the ticket counter finally opened, I went to check in. The woman behind the counter says to me: "Do you have a visa to go to Australia?" I didn't know I needed a visa and told her so. With my heart beating extremely fast (I had spent a lot of money on these tickets and didn't know what I would do if I couldn't go) she called someone to make sure I didn't have one and then told me what to do next. Luckily, the U.S. is one of the half dozen countries or so that you can apply and get a visa instantly online. She had me go to a computer, apply for the visa and pay for it online. Thank goodness for credit cards. Once that was completed, I came back, finished checking in, did some duty free shopping and eventually boarded the airplane. Three and a half hours later I arrived.
Once I cleared customs and picked up my baggage, I boarded the "air train" and took the train into Brisbane Central. I was given a free yogurt sample (my breakfast) and found the hostel, which was across the street from the station. I tried to check in, but it was only 9:30 in the morning so I couldn't. I dropped off my bags in the luggage room and decided I would be bold and explore Brisbane. After a while, I ended up in the shopping area, where I found myself in Witchery, Fossil, Nine West and similar stores. I thought my mother would be proud. I must come equipped with shop-dar. Eventually I was able to check in. I brought my stuff up to my room and was reunited with Claire and Amy, my two friends from Dublin, Ireland that I spent the week with. Eventually, we ended up making our way down to an area known as South Bank.
The day I arrived in Australia, was the day Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows (Part One) opened in theaters. Being the fans that we were, we thought it was only proper for us to see the movie on opening day... in Australia! Amy declared that sentences sounds better when "in Australia" comes at the end (I know, very reminiscent of the 'in bed' that most of us place at the end of fortune cookie fortunes). So, we purchased our tickets ahead of time and ended up at a wonderful chocolate restaurant to kill time. It was called Max Brennen: Chocolate by the Bald Guy. I ordered the chocolate brownie sundae. Here is a picture of me and my little treat:
And here is a picture of Amy and Claire (from right to left) excited to see Harry Potter:
We came back to the hostel, surprisingly exhausted (they had a long night drinking the night before and I had gotten up extremely early) for a nap and burgers and reading and bed. We would need our rest. The next day we were going to Surfer's Paradise.
