DAY THREE IN AUSTRALIA - PERTH, CLAREMONT

Central

Today was by far one of the most difficult and emotional days of the next 6 months. We left the hostel and took the train from Central Station to the Domestic Airport. The first problem arose at the airport during check-in. I placed my suitcase on the scale and it weighed 25.6kg (only 23kg is allowed for domestic flights). How could this be when I already packed 4kg in an extra bag? I already looked like a loaded donkey with my 2 x 7kg hand luggage bags and a pillow under my arm. Ultimately, all the panic was for nothing because the scale was broken. So my suitcase should have no problems traveling to Perth, right? Unfortunately, the second problem came right away. The flight was supposed to depart at 10:25 a.m., but the plane was delayed due to maintenance work, so we could only board the plane at 11:15 a.m.

In the air, I had a nice older lady sitting next to me who probably sensed my nervousness. She kindly approached me and asked if I came from Europe. I confirmed this and with that moment, her eyes lit up and she smiled. Out of nowhere, the lady started telling me one story after another about Perth and her daughters who are also around my age. At the end of the flight, she unexpectedly wrote her phone number for me and said, 'I know exactly how you feel right now, in a new city, far away from your real home. But if you ever need anything, something happens, or you just want to talk, you can call me anytime.' In that moment, my nervousness was eased a bit. I suddenly had no more fear regarding 'Will the kids like me? How do I live there? What if I don't understand them? What if I do something wrong?' because I realized that Australians are very warmhearted in many ways and always welcome you. Upon arriving at the airport in Perth, my host family was already waiting for me with a self-painted welcome sign. On the way to their house, I started to miss my own family because I only realized now that I will be away for nearly 7 months. But then I thought that I should be happy and enjoy the time. Because if I feel bad, my family at home will not be okay either.