My Australian Journey (Part 17)

DAY 17 July 4, 2010
§ Back to Where We Belong to §

The most important thing a man can know is that, as he approaches his own door, someone on the other side is listening for the sound of his footsteps.
(Clark Gable; 1901-1960)

Wooaahhh….. I woke up lazily at 4.30. It’s so cold that I wanted to pull back the blanket. But….when I know that I must not be late to get to Hawthorn this morning, I went directly to the bathroom and took a shower.
The next thing I did was waking Yudi up and asked him to take a bath immediately. I went to the kitchen and made a plate of Indomie Goreng rasa sate and a glass of hot tea.
In short, We were ready and Annie was ready, too. This foggy morning was the sign of my last stay in Melbourne…at Annie’s house more specifically. Annie revved the engine and turned on the car heater. She drove like an F-1 driver…so fast… yes this morning the roads were still too quiet. She needed only 15 minutes to drive us from her house to Hawthorn which usually took for about 30 minutes…it meant that she doubled the speed.
We arrived safely…and it seemed we were the first. Couple minutes later some students arrived, the cars from TOGOTO that would take us to the airport were there, too. While loading the luggage, I kept on contacting those who haven’t showed up as the clock was ticking yet the flight wouldn’t wait for us. I also had a chance to meet and greet the host families (remember that I didn’t see them once we arrived two weeks ago). I just said thank and apologized for any inconvenience the students might make during their stay. Those families were nice, they kept on praising the students for being well-behaved and expect them to come again next year (God willing, Amin)
Well, the farewell was over, and it’s time for us to go to the airport. After unloading the luggage, I immediately contacted mBak Olga, Garuda Indonesia officer as recommended by Bu Ernayani, Wira’s mother. mBak Olga would give us any assistance as needed. And yes….we finally got special check in process through special counter…and as expected it took us less than 1.5 hour. As the group leader, I was the last to call with 4 other students…the rest… they have gone inside. We still had a chance to buy some duty-free goods. I bought a perfume with only $45, while some students bought Kangaroo meat and chocolate. In short, the process of customs and immigration was okay and we are at the waiting lounge. Unlike when we first time arrived with scary things here and there, the waiting room was quite cozy with the smell of coffee and bread from some cafes there. 20 minutes later, we were called to enter the gate as the flight was about to depart. And here we come……back to mother nature….some students said: Mama…..I am home!!!! Then I just called mBak Olga again expressing how grateful we were to get such help.
Everything was set, the flight was okay…and we hoped to taste the blow of tropical wind. We did enjoy the flight…with some plans in Bali…but that was only a plan…it could change, right? Finally, we arrived at Ngurah Rai International airport. The funny thing was…we forgot to change our cloth on the plane. We should put on some light T-shirt or shorts, but we still put on our winter outfit. Can you imagine that??? With hot wind, we still wore jacket, scarf…OMG?? Some people were looking at us. They might think…they’re so funny… I don’t care and I don’t give a d@%$!!
But…the nightmare came…do you know what??? As always…time management…we had to wait for about one or two hours just for the customs and immigration….Bu Emy, Almaz’ mother, was waiting for us outside the arrival gate. Some students said it’s longer that the flight itself…..yup…you’re right…
Finally, after some folded face and grumble…we’re done with the airport and stuff…..I met Bu Emy, and surprisingly, I also met Bu Mira, Aya’s mother…. (I thought, she must have missed her daughter soooo much that she willingly went to Bali just to “see” and pick her daughter up.) CMIIW – Correct Me If I am Wrong.
The plan was: The Jakartans would have a half-day trip to Bali as the flight was in the evening, while the Surabayans and Jogjakartans would go immediately to the domestic departure gates. Unfortunately, some Jakartan boys had already gone with the wind…but I told them: Once we arrived in Bali, it’s going to be your own responsibilities…we have provided some help..use it or you take your own risk…fair enough, right? Bu Emy had provided us with 5 cars but only some were used….(To Bu Emy, I am so sorry for this…). Then we separated and we, the Surabayan and Jogjakartan had to prepare for our next flight. We (Syuhudi, Danang, Dea, and I) had lunch at KFC…the real KFC. Then, we prayed and started to the process of check in. All was done and we waited for the flight.
In short, I arrived at Adisucipto airport, said good bye to the students and grabbed a cab to take me to Magelang. I wanted to sleep…but these eyes couldn’t be closed…so I just enjoyed my Jogja – Magelang journey. Entering TN gate, I said to myself….Home Sweet Home. Thank God, the journey was over, the adventure was recorded and the memories were kept.