Attitude of Gratitude

"Your attention please, in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19, please remember to..."

The day we travelled to Cape Reigna was a hard one and subsequently so were the days that followed. Up until this point, we had not really been phased by the impending "Coronavirus", as we were confident we could just wait it out in NZ as we had planned to be there for around four months. However, once we learned that our health insurance had been reneged and that hospitals were refusing to treat foreign nationals, (with Corona symptoms or otherwise), we knew it was time to book a flight home.

Trying to get an airline ticket was not an easy task, however we thankfully managed to secure a spot on a flight in three days time. Grateful to have purchased the flight, we dropped Jenny off to catch her original flight home and headed to Coromandel to try and take our minds off the stressful situation. However with each new day came additional worries.

When we finally made it back to Auckland, we were just simply hoping that our plane would leave. However when we got to the hotel and tried to book a shuttle for the following morning, our flight was not listed. Hoping it was a minor error, we quickly drove to the airport to check things out.

The scene at the airport was like one from the Hunger Games. There were crowds of people gathered together, some crying, some angry, all clearly frustrated. Every half an hour an announcement "from the powers that be" about protecting yourself from the virus, could be heard throughout the terminal. When we finally found our airline and explained our situation, they told us that although our flight was still scheduled to depart, we could not get on the plane. You see, we had a 3 hour layover in Australia and apparently just 4 hours earlier the Australian government had announced a travel ban. In order to confirm this, the agent called Australian immigration, who revealed that no foreign nationals were permitted to enter their country, transiting or not. So we had no choice but to go and try to book another flight.

Although only three additional days had passed, finding another flight this late in the game was near impossible. This time we weren't messing around. We needed a direct flight to Vancouver. Yet, Air Canada was pulling all of their flights from NZ or charging travellers $18,000 a ticket!! No, that's not a mistake. They were selling economy seats for $18,000 to Vancouver, never mind the additional cost of getting to the other side of the country! People were so frantic to get home, they were actually buying them!! (So much for "bringing Canadians home"). Flights to Germany topped $25,000!! In my mind, that's criminal. Thankfully, we were able to purchase a flight out 8 days later on Air New Zealand, for much less than these prices, but still double what we paid to get there in the first place.

Then the waiting began. We decided to try and make the best of the remaining time we had and travelled back up north to isolate. As we made our way to Coromandel, we stopped at another farm along the way, as well as spent the night at an Airbnb in Tauranga. While in Tauranga, Jacinda Ardern (the Prime Minister of NZ), announced that in two days the country would be in a level four lockdown. This meant we had 48 hours to get to Coromandel in order to wait out the lockdown there. At this point, we were still unsure if that meant our flight would be cancelled.

As the lockdown began, checkpoints along the highway were installed and police patrolled the streets as citizens were only allowed outside for one hour of exercise a day. Erin and I felt so lucky to be staying with a wonderful couple on their farm. Their hospitality was second to none and they really went above and beyond for us during this stressful time. Helping out on the farm was great and we shared many laughs together. At times I even forgot that we were actually in a lockdown! But sadly, it soon came time for us to say goodbye and make the journey back to Auckland.

Driving to Auckland that second time, I was trying to put on a brave face, but I was very anxious. I knew that if our flight didn't leave we would probably end up stuck in a hotel room in the city for the remainder of the lockdown. What is more, they had just announced that international travel would be suspended from March 30th - June 30th, so we would likely be stranded in NZ until July as March 30th was only two days away.

Yet, we tried our best to remain positive and to keep laughing through the hardship. We even created the "Grateful Game", during which we had to each list things that we were grateful for. We played this from the time our first flight was cancelled until we made it home 8 days and roughly 55 hours of transit later. Erin even celebrated her birthday in two different airports and smiled through it all.

Now safely home in NL, I think it's only fitting to end this post with five things that I'm grateful for.

  • I'm grateful for my family.
  • I'm grateful for heartfelt messages of love and concern.
  • I'm grateful for FaceTime, that allows us to connect with friends near and far.
  • I'm grateful for the courage of all front-line workers who face this virus head on each day. 
  • I'm grateful for the time I was able to spend in NZ and the people I met there.
  • I'm grateful for my health.
  • I'm grateful for online yoga classes.
  • I'm grateful for cabin fires.
  • I'm grateful for audiobooks and good music.
  • I'm grateful for more time.
  • I'm grateful for fresh air and the ability to walk freely (once I'm out of quarantine).
  • I'm grateful to you for reading this blog. 

Okay, I know I only said five. But, I guess once you begin to acknowledge what you are grateful for, you realize just how much you actually have to be thankful for.

Obviously I'll be staying put for awhile, so it's unclear where my next adventure will take me. Until then, stay safe, healthy and in the words of a friend of mine, "keep your heart up".

~Ms. C <3

Ps. I'll be in quarantine for another week, so if any of you would like to chat, send me a message! :)



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Nordic Wanderings

Image
Some people spend copious amounts of time searching the internet for the best places to travel. This trip was not like that. Erin and I booked it on a whim. We had been chatting about meeting up in July and briefly looked at flights. Then one evening I found a deal I couldn’t pass up. A return trip to Europe, first class, for $182! I would have to use all of my points, but honestly, I was planning on ditching the credit card anyways. “I booked it!” I told Erin excitedly, and that was that, we were going. Our first travel day was filled with long layovers, sickness, flight delays, train station closures and cell phone issues. But when we finally reunited in the wee hours of the morning in Copenhagen, the relief and excitement was palpable. We quickly jumped in an Uber and headed to our hostel, eager to get some shut eye.  The next day we slept in and had a lovely breakfast by the water. The rest of the day was spent exploring Copenhagen, wandering the streets, eating pastries and he...
Read more

Southern Thailand

Image
Khao Sok National Park was our first stop heading towards the south of Thailand. Once we got settled away, we quickly made plans to go tubing down the river. It was such a great time! Lots of laughs and some bumps and scrapes. Reminded me a lot of tubing down the Humber River, just with different scenery - there were snakes and monkeys in the trees. After tubing, we decided to go on a night safari through the woods by foot. It wasn’t what I expected. There were a lot of geckos and some other insects. We did see what looked like a big weasel though, which was neat. The next day we went on a hike through the park then hopped on a bamboo boat to go to a hidden lunch spot. To cool off, we spent the afternoon swimming and learned the “real way” to wear a life jacket, according to the Thais.  The following morning we went to visit the elephants again. After my first experience, I’m not going to lie, I was a little scared. These creatures are just so massive!! But they truly are gentle g...
Read more

The Trek to Machu Picchu

Image
The Inca Trail is probably the most well-known hike that leads to Machu Picchu. However in actual fact, there are many different treks that also take you to these famous ruins. It all depends on what you're interested in. Some treks are culture focused, some incorporate excursions such as zip-lining and thermal baths, and others are more physically demanding. After doing some research, Erin and I decided to do the four day Salkantey Trek. This hike covers a distance of 52km and reaches a summit altitude of 4630m. After seeing the 26km description of what Day 2 would entail, we knew that this trek would be tough. But we felt up for the challenge. The first morning was an early one, heading out around 5:30am to drive the two hours to our starting point. Our spirits were high and we felt ready to conquer this mountain. After a few hours, we made it to Humantay Lake. The scenery all along this hike was amazing, but the lake itself was breathtaking. The pictures do not do...
Read more