Should I stay or should I go?'

Dear Reader,

A few things have happened over the past few weeks. As the virus situation has continued to cause problems for many regions of the world, I've decided to take refuge in the oasis of the Northern Territory. It is one of the only reachable destinations for me that is coping quite well given the circumstances. They've only had 31 cases total, which as of the time I am writing this, is roughly 0.002% of all cumulative cases in Australia.

It was a late Wednesday night I contemplated leaving for the NT. Having already been in lockdown in Melbourne during the first wave, as the second started growing I quickly realised I needed to get home. I usually visit once a year for around a week or two, and the last time I had was late last year. Also, my brother is expecting another child, and as I missed his first, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to be there for his second. So with all this, I thought fuck it, and booked my flight to Darwin two days before its departure.

The morning of the flight, one of my roommates was so kind to give me a lift. Another, in their signature inebriated morning state, also accompanied us. It was when I got to the airport things got a little interesting.

The place was a ghost town. No taxis, grounded aircraft and most surprising of all, a closed McDonalds. Making my way into the terminal, I was half expecting my flight to have been cancelled and my ticket a bamboozling. It was when walked up to the security check point my stomach sank to the balls of my feet. They were asking each traveller intimate details of their travel, where they were going, and more importantly, what for... I explained that I was going to see family, and details about my brother, but the man was not convinced. He then asked for my license, and as I pulled it out, a supervisor peaked over his shoulder and immediately came over to wave me through. I'm not exactly sure why this granted me safe passage, but I imagine it indicated I in-fact was a legitimate Territorian. Crisis averted, I continued to make my way to my gate, again observing the ghastly nature of the place, whilst an ominous announcement echoing every so often reminding me to keep my distance from other travelers.

The flight itself was pretty standard, with both crew and pilots acknowledging the strange circumstances. People were kept apart by at least a seat unless you live under the same roof. Later during the flight, food was given out, which pissed me off because prior to my flight I purchased a banana bread only to find out I already get one, and of course after eating one I wasn't hungry anymore. In hindsight, I probably should've taken the second but I'm too stubborn for that.

Anyhow, as this post is already getting quite long, over the next fourteen days I will be going into more detail and recounting my incredibly interesting, jam packed days, for your, not my, pleasure.

As per usual, time for a useless fact to lighten the mood. Did you know that when you receive a kidney from a donor, unless your diseased kidney is causing major problems, it is usually left alone, and the new kidney is placed in your lower belly? You didn't? Neither did I. You now have three kidneys.

All the best,
Oskar