The Big Day

On the 14th May 2020, I moved to America.

I woke at 5am on the 14th May, to find a box of homemade cookies outside my bedroom door, along with a note. It was the day I was moving to the US, and my housemate had made me cookies for the plane in the middle of the night.

I had woken up almost every hour. Twice because I had received text messages from United Airlines, and my heart jumped every time, as each message had me thinking the worst. But luckily, my flight was still going ahead as planned. The first message was regarding a new rule coming into affect on my flight, mandating that masks be worn at all times on the plane. The next was a notification that the City of Los Angeles had also bought in a rule about wearing masks in public

Waking up I felt like I had never gone to sleep. I had a few last minute jobs to do, before I left my comfy home on Cardigan St. Due to covid-19, I was unable to tie up a lot of loose ends in Sydney - my room was sub-letted, furnished, my personal belongings were split between a few friends, whilst the majority of my belongings were under a tarp in the alley beside our house. I drove to my Aunt and Uncles house to say my final goodbyes, and my cousin drove me in my own car to the airport. It was a very emotional and surreal drive. On my way to their house I called my parents who live in Queensland. I cried most of the way, questioning what I was doing with my life. Why am I doing this? What am I actually doing? I was terrified. Both of moving in general, as well as the risks of moving during the height of an international pandemic. They consoled me, and encouraged me, and reinforced that I was following my dream, and had to go. They were my rocks.

The airport itself was eerie. When I arrived, I have to show proof of my itinerary before I could even enter the airport. If your flight wasn't departing in the next three hours, you couldn't enter. No family or friends were allowed in either. The first thing I had to do, was talk to the Australian Border Force about my exemption. I had been granted one two weeks earlier, but they needed to double check my application status (apparently people have been sharing the approval letter to allow people to leave who have been denied). Once approved, I went through the usual departure protocol. Security. bag drop, and international departures to check my visa.

The airport was empty. I was hoping to get a coffee, but the only place open was the kebab shop, and I will never buy a coffee from somewhere other than a cafe. As a barista I am also a coffee snob. I worked at the airport for a few months in December/January, and used to dream about the day I was back there to start my new life. I never imagined it would be during a pandemic.

Nothing else was open. Nothing. Not the news agency, not even Maccas. I got a water bottle from a vending machine, and went to find my gate. I called my parents about 7 or 8 times while waiting to board. I was emotionally exhausted by the last few months. I honestly doubted if I would ever get to the point I was currently at. I had not publicised my move, as I had experienced a lot of negativity. I still had not publicised anything, and didn't plan on it until I was officially on the ground having officially activated my PR. I was overwhelmed by the number of people who contacted me at the airport, and shared pictures of me on Instagram wishing me luck. It made me very emotional. I felt so very loved and supported.

The plane was almost empty. I would estimate around 30 people onboard. Everyone had a row to themselves. and was given sanitising wipes upon boarding. I did some research on the safety precautions United was taking, and was quite impressed. At the time I was obsessed with Tones and I's 'Bad Child', and took off to the lyrics 'and to every single person here that doubts me'. Those lyrics had become a bit of an anthem to me in the weeks prior.

The only issue I had with the flight was the food. Due to covid, United was only offering limited menus, and was not accomodating ANY dietary requirements. As a celiac, this was a bit of an issue. I brought myself a GF sandwich, the cookies my housemate made me, some lollies and (of course) some chocolate for the flight. I accepted one of the meals offered on the flight, but after opening it up realised that there was no way I could even eat the veggies. Pretty disappointing. It would not be hard to make the one meal served suitable for multiple diets. But I definitely did not go hungry with everything I brought on board!

We were supposed to land in San Fran at 7am. Originally I had booked a direct flight, but about 3 weeks before departure it was changed to stop in San Fran. I had been given a 3hr window to clear customs and immigration, and make my way to the domestic terminal for my next flight. It didn't seem like enough time, especially considering I needed to activate a green card, which could require interviews, and extended time. I called United, and the only option was a 5pm flight to LA. It was going to be a long day, but I figured it was better than risking missing the first one. In the end, we landed at 5am. Within 20 mins of touching down, I had cleared immigration and customs, and was officially an American Permanent Resident! I didn't have to answer any questions, or provide anything other than my passport and my big yellow immigrants envelope to the officer. He opened it up, stamped my passport, and that was that!

Because we landed so early, I was now looking at an almost 12 hr lay over. Generally I would have just accepted that, waited and complained. However, this time, I thought it was worth asking if I could be moved to an earlier flight. I explained the situation, and the flight attendant put me on a standby list for the 10am flight (my original flight). I couldn't believe how easy it was! I didn't even need to pay any fees to change. I dropped my bags off again, and went off to San Fran Domestic. I was surprised by how many shops were open! I was also very excited to get a coffee - even if it was from a chain. I set myself up with some wifi, and did some work replying to emails for the Acting School I work for.

I had been told that I might not get onto the plane, because it was a fairly 'full' flight (social distancing rules still applied). I watched the screen intently to see if I was going to get through, and I did! I touched down in LA a little before midday, on Thursday the 14th May, 2020.

My friend who I am living with was so excited to see me - she had been isolated in her apartment for three months, and having another person to live with was huge. She kept saying "I can't believe you did it!". Honestly, neither could I. But I did. I moved in a pandemic. All my fears of making the wrong decision were proven wrong. I truely believe I was meant to do it, and the ease with which everything fell into place to get me here (in spite of everything) just reinforces that.