(A Little More Than) Halfway to Colombia

Days 1-2: New Years Eve... Twice, the Adaptor Saga and Crying Babies

Here I am, halfway to Colombia! After three flights and and 22 hours, I arrived in LA with a couple of days to pick up last minute supplies, gorge on American food and American-sized portions and to try and get my body to realise what day and time it actually is after crossing seven time zones.

The Journey So Far.

My New Years Eve in Melbourne was a quiet one this year. Rather than bringing in the 2012 dancing and being merry with friends, I was at home trying to pack my life into a suitcase in a mere few hours (there's nothing quite like a last minute packing session.) Just before midnight, I had a packing freak-out of epic proportions. I could hardly shut my bag and definitely couldn't carry it more than 3m, It was time to cull some items and logistically work out how I was going to be able to talk my way onto a plane with 40kg of luggage without having to sell a kidney. After repacking I realised that at least half of my luggage was made up of boring yet essential items such as contact lenses, first aid items, towels, sheets, mosquito nets, rain jackets and so on, and that the cull wasn't going to be hugely successful. Dad, A.K.A. the most efficient packer on the planet, told me that I was going away for a year and that I had packed well. So with that, after taking out a few items and packing into two bags, I headed to bed at 2AM for a refreshing two hours sleep before the long journey ahead.

As Mum and Dad drove me to the airport, we passed revellers enjoying the last hours of the night on St Kilda Beach and I wondered if my friends were still out partying somewhere, or perhaps devouring a kebab/pizza/McDonalds. Since I had been working so hard and my preparations had been so last minute, I hadn't really had the chance to think about much else than sleeping, organising copious details for the year ahead and worrying if my visa would arrive. In these early hours of 2012, it was finally sinking in that I wouldn't be eating real Vegemite (the travel tube just isn't the same), playing with my dog or seeing my friends or family for a long time.

Check in at the airport was quick and painless. I struck up a conversation with the lady behind the desk and exclaimed how lucky she was to cop the early New Years Day shift and she was quick to tell me that she had come straight from a party in the city. When she sent me on my way, I was relieved that my bags had been successfully checked and, for the time being, I hadn't been charged excess baggage. My friendly conversation skills? No, I think Emirates just has a generous baggage policy, but I guess it still pays to be nice.

While I waited for my flight I hunted for an adaptor, something that had proven difficult to find in the days prior to my departure. In one of the 15 stores I had visited, the shop assistant advised me that I needed a special 'earthed' adaptor and would find one at the airport. After checking in I went to the luggage shop, then the duty free shop, then another store selling travel goods. No luck. It turns out that you can't get an adaptor to plug a three-pronged Australian device into a two pronged Colombian electrical outlet any more. Why? I don't know. At this point, fatigue and frustration caught up with me as well as the emotion of the adventure I was about to embark on so when it was time to say goodbye to Mum and Dad, I couldn't stop myself from shedding a a few tears.

The flight to New Zealand was short and relatively painless. I managed to pick up an adaptor in the duty free on the plane which claimed to convert two or three pinned devices. Unfortunately it did the same as the other two adaptors I had bought at the airport. Great. You can imagine my relief when I found what I thought was what I was looking for in the pharmacy at the airport. There was an adaptor that claimed to work with the three/two pronged issue. I also asked if it converted voltage. The last thing I wanted was to blow up my electronic goods. Boris, my friendly sales assistant assured me that, yes, it did and if not he would refund my money. Sitting down to a nutritious Burger King cheeseburger, I re-read the instructions. I think you can guess what comes next. That's right, it didn't convert voltage. After many attempts of convincing from Boris, I finally demanded a refund, which, was given to me in New Zealand dollars. It was 'store policy' that they do cash refunds. Thanks, Boris, just what I wanted- $40 New Zealand dollars cash just 15 minutes before boarding. I wasn't going to convert the currency as I would lose half of it in conversion and although I needed plenty of things sold at the pharmacy, I certainly wasn't giving it back to Boris out of principle. I hurried down to the surf shop and picked up a pair of Havianas. Problem solved!


My next two flights were with Air Tahiti Nui, first to Papeete, Tahiti, then finally to LAX. On my flight to Tahiti, I crossed the International Date Line taking me back to December 31st, 2011 so when I boarded my flight to LAX at 11.55, I welcomed in 2012 with my fellow air-travellers, for the second time. The flights weren't the longest I have ever taken, however I managed to be seated a few rows back from the bulkhead seats. For those of you don't know, this is where the airlines seat parents with small children. The first flight had two babies who took it in turns crying for the entire flight. Yes, the entire flight. You can imagine my excitement when I sat down on the next flight and heard the screams of a baby coming from the same section. This was not like a regular baby cry- the kid had lungs and wasn't afraid to use them. Luckily after the first hour, the little angel stopped crying and I managed to get a few hours sleep.

Once I arrived in LA, I checked in to my hotel and watched some trashy TV in an attempt to stay awake and try and avoid jetlag. I managed to stay awake and go to bed at LA bedtime rather than Melbourne bedtime. After a decent nights sleep, I spent the day with my dear American friend Sam who I studied with in Mexico and then travelled with in 2009. It was great to see her after more than two years. She took me to the mall to collect a few last minute items like Crayola pencils and markers, khaki pants and flashcards, just more stuff to fit into my bags! I'm nervous about check in tomorrow at ultra-budget Spirit Airlines where you pretty much have to pay for the air you breath on the plane. Let's just hope there are no crying babies on my next two flights. Next stop, Colombia (via Fort Lauderdale).

 Sam and I at the Culver City Mall.