Goodbye to Australia and journey back home

We both don't like leaving Australia, it's so beautiful here. Before our taxi arrives and we sadly have to leave, we have some time to dive into the hustle and bustle of the market. At 2:00 PM local time, we will be at the international airport in Melbourne. We have already checked in online and chosen our seats. For the first time, we have to weigh our own suitcases, put them on the conveyor belt, wrap them with straps, and off they go. No staff anymore! The passport control is almost always automated too, insert passport into the reader, go through, photo is taken, and that's it. Liquids only up to 100 ml, everything goes through the X-ray machine.... That is still the same everywhere. The airport is so huge, we walk for ages to get to Gate 16.

9-hour flight to Hong Kong, we have a row of three seats to ourselves, that's nice. 3-hour layover, with immigration control, etc., we still have two hours to wait. Here we see our first Christmas tree. It is now 12:35 AM local time, 3 hours time difference. The airport is also very big, we walk along many, many conveyor belts until we reach the right gate. Check-in, it is a 12.5-hour flight duration. When the cruising altitude is reached, around 10,000/11,000 m, there is a strong wind and it rocks and shakes so much that no drinks and food can be served. Luckily, it calms down after half an hour. Since we haven't slept since leaving the hotel until now, we try to sleep after eating. The plane is fully booked and the legroom is even tighter than before. We manage to get a few hours of sleep, then breakfast, and we land in Frankfurt at 6:10 AM local time. Finally, at 11:15 AM, after over 34 hours on our feet, we are back home. At least physically!

It was an unforgettable, beautiful, colorful, nature-filled, and adventurous 5-week trip to the other side of the world.