By the numbers
1 plane
1 train
17 kilo main bag
Today was going to be hopefully a very easy day in returning home from Cairns to the Gold Coast with borders being uncertain, and a whole time of uncertainty with crossing borders. It was a nice Saturday morning and I was already packed and ready to head to the Cairns airport. I headed to the shopping centre for breakfast with the really chipper and energetic server. I needed something filling and a coffee. I had sorted my room out for leaving as it’s a hostel that wants you to strip the bedsheets before leaving, not that it was really that bad.
The YHA said I could checkout remotely without any contact at all, which would be great if they were closed, but they were open. I had a shuttle bus booked for 10 am and I was outside waiting around 10 mins before it arrived. Standing out by the steps to the entrance to the hostel, I wondered if they would turn up as the time ticked by. I really did not want to be late for my flight. I had checked in with the app and had a boarding pass, but I needed a bag tag. 20 mins later after waiting, I was getting a little annoyed and angry that the bus had not arrived, so I rang the company to ask where it was. I was polite as they checked, and as it always happens the bus turns up while I am on the phone. We did pick up some people along the way to the airport, but it did seem like I was the only person who got off the bus at the airport.
The Cairns airport was surrounded by mangroves and there was no footpath, but a shared on road path with bikes, not that I would really like to walk what with the crocodile issue up that way. I was happy to be in the airport and soon found there were no touch screens to print off a physical boarding pass, or a bag tag. I literally had to wait in line before getting to the front, where I showed the boarding pass on my phone. No ID checks or asking where I had been, though I did get asked about my powerbank and I did say its in my backpack. Off I go with a piece of paper that gave the gate and boarding time. I was using the app boarding pass for the airline to get onto the plane. Security this time around was no problem and I was wondering where I was meant to check in on the Qld check in app into the airport as there was only QR codes for the individual shops past security. I snagged a drink and sandwich for the plane and there wasn’t much to see just like in the Gold Coast airport. I was flying to Brisbane, so there was that. There were several other flights heading to Brisbane around the same time and when boarding for certain rows were called, I just wandered into line without really listening.
Once on board, I was the backseat rebel as I was in the very back of the plane in the aisle seat, which I had booked for myself. The row next to me was actually vacant, and I had two elderly people looking at me as I stashed my sandwich in the seat pocket. Music on, I was happy. I heard a flight attendant talking about asking the man if he wanted to move, and they asked me if I wanted to have a row to myself. I jumped at the chance to get a whole three seats to myself. A book and music, I was happier still with my sandwich transferred over. My corned beef sandwich, I was going to happily eat. It did take around 2 hours for the plane to land at Brisbane and it did mean a walk from one part of the airport to the baggage collection. I am glad to be wearing a mask as I was laughing at several kids, one little girl pulling a face at her mum after being told to take her foot off the bag conveyor. She was not happy with mum, and her dad had chased after one of the sisters who went wandering behind a roped off area. I was looking at the board behind me that was ticking off the minutes before the airport train left and I could see it from where I was standing. My bag arrived and I walked towards the train with less that 5 mins remaining. At the station I had 1 minute remaining and the driver seen me trying to run towards him. I think I made the train less than a minute left as the doors did close. It would mean I would be on the train until around 430pm as I had just made it at 230pm. Not the best of plans in getting to the airport when I live closer to the Gold Coast Airport.
I did enjoy myself on the trip and the train to Varsity was the last part of my journey and I was a little confused over the wearing of the masks, but I kept it on until I got off the train and picked up. I had border passes for NSW and Queensland, although no one asked when I was up north where I was from apart from museums asking for postcodes that I was worried about giving out. I do like using the apps to get a boarding pass for flights and think I should use them more next time as it is pretty convenient. Another trip well done, although the last blog always takes several days to write out as there are other things to get done like
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