A seasoned traveler I am not. Having left Australia twice in my life and the first time I have no recollection of. Hawaii last year was epic and now I have decent knowledge for travel to the USA.
I’ve got all my travel documents, digital and printed, Passport of course, my waiver visa - the visa when you don’t need a visa. Travel insurance and a window seat ticket for the 16 hour flight are purchased, I really need to lean against something or I won’t sleep, plus I’ll feel safer in a cosy corner by a window.
Packing luggage is tricky due to the DID, I have multiple people living inside this body, and they have differences in our clothing tastes. We have at least one who likes skirts and girly stuff, kids who want to wear tops with prints on them and others who are mostly tom-boyish. Personally, I’m a jeans and t-shirt kinda gal.
I’m packing light on clothes so that I can go shopping even though it isn’t my favourite past time. I am however excited to go thrift shopping,
They are called “Op Shops.” here in Australia.
Browsing through second hand stores, eyeing treasures that were once loved by another, flicking through books and finding classic novels which delighted my imagination as a child, that is a morning well spent.
Being frugal with my spending will be challenging. The exchange rate is not crash hot at present but supposedly getting better. I lose 35 cents in each dollar, so $500 asd it’s only $339.21 usd. That hits hard.
I know many purchases will be cheaper once I get there, shoes, clothing, toys. I’m not sure about food prices but I do know serving sizes are ginormous.
As someone who enjoys food immensely I am looking forward to eating the food in America. There are many foods not available in Australia, especially foods with artificial colours and flavours, foods that explode with taste inside the mouth. When I was in Hawaii I had Quakers Oats for the first time, they were amazing, so much salt and sugar. 😋
Photo via downunder.com.au
There are a some food items not available in the USA, so I’m taking important products to be shared. Vegemite is a must. I understand, you poor people in America have been teased by some Aussies and given Vegemite which was spread thick like peanut butter. I’m going to show you the real way to enjoy Vegemite. I’m also bringing Aussie sweets and Tim Tams to share. I’ve managed to pack some Australian souvenirs too and I’d like to dispel the myth that Australia is filled with dangerous animals. I’m also bringing several bottles of Aussie wine.
I’m not a heavy drinker... anymore. Aussies have a bit of a reputation with alcohol and that can be kind of true, especially in social circles I grew up in.
I do occasionally enjoy a nice red wine, mostly a Cab Sav (Cabernet Sauvignon) or Pinot. I’ve heard that California has good red wines, Napier Valley I think? Shiraz and Pinot? In Australia we have many great wines. Someone’s asked us the bring over a good Aussie Shiraz. Shiraz has a kick, it’s good for hearty meals like steak or beef stew. You definitely can’t go wrong with Shiraz from the Barossa Valley.
As it’s not my wine of choice I asked the fella at the liquor store to point me in the right direction.
He said, “What you need is a Shiraz that’ll kick them in the guts! Show ‘em what Aussies are really made of.”
I ended up getting two different bottles of Shiraz as well as a Cab Sav. The Cab Sav is from my region, it’s middle shelf, perfect for a glass while relaxing after a hard days work.
I’ve wrapped the bottles heavily in bubble wrap and placed them in the centre of our checked luggage. All the gifts and extra food have been written down for customs, I’ve added my clothes and weighed my bag. 50lb (23 kilos). I do get 32kg with my flight over but I’ve noticed transferring flights have smaller weight limits and added costs.
All there is to do now is make sure the kids have had a million hugs, their father has instructions that he’ll actually read, and I’ve just completed my youngest daughter’s present I’ve been making before I leave.
She wanted a ‘Squishy Mummy Head’. What is that you ask? Exactly. Nothing like that exists so I had to invent it.
She chose a cheesy photo of my face which I had screen printed onto a cotton t-shirt. Then I’ve cut it and sewn it onto a small flower shaped Stuffy, and filled it with wadding. It was a ridiculous venture of love but she is happy with the outcome. I think I’ll start taking more orders… If you want a Personalised Squishy Head ©️ send me an email unpretendingspontaneous@gmail.com
😂 I’m half joking, it was a rough job done by an amateur 😉
Disguised for privacy. Photo by Unpretending Spontaneous - Personalised Squishy Head ©️
Now there is nothing left to do but go to bed. I guarantee there won’t be a lot of sleeping. I’ll get up at 5:30am to give myself at least two hours to check, recheck, and re-recheck everything. The excitement and anticipation nerves are overwhelming but I’ve got this… We’ve got this.