Getting to Sydney for Christmas
Our road trip came to a swift end when we decided to come to Sydney early.
Australia had near enough eradicated Covid, and things were almost completely back to normal. Then, when we were in Newcastle, one stop away from Sydney, we got the news that there had been an outbreak in the Northern beaches.
It's only around 30 cases, which is nothing for the UK or elsewhere, but this is a big deal for Australia.
It meant they put just the Northern beaches into a mini lockdown.
From here the cases crept up and up, and it was a really nerve-wracking time as we had no idea what was in store for us over the next few days and weeks.
My anxiety went absolutely through the roof.
We made the snap decision when in Newcastle to come straight to Sydney early, as then at least we could see our friends before the city locked down. It was scary knowing we could be making a huge mistake, as if Sydney locked down we would be stuck there with no money and no job. I hadn't planned on staying in Sydney after Christmas anyway so getting stranded there was just not an option for me.
Part of me felt like driving into Sydney was like driving into fire.
Once we got there, it was nowhere near as bad as all the news made it out to be. Everything was near enough normal in Bondi, where we were staying, and the surrounding areas. All the lockdown was contained to the Northern Beaches.
Whilst getting into Sydney and seeing our friends made me feel a bit better, the stress wasn't over yet.
As the Northern Beaches kept reporting new cases, there was talk of the whole of Greater Sydney going into lockdown for Christmas and potentially much longer.
As I said, I can't afford to be locked down in Sydney, so I decided that if they went into lock down I would leave for Byron Bay and spend Christmas there.
This scared me and would break my heart as I'd wanted to spend Christmas in Sydney for months and months, not to mention I'd have to leave all my friends. It would have been such a shame to come all this way with Keiran only to leave and not spend Christmas together.
Crunch time came on Wednesday as the NSW government were making a decision on the restrictions over Christmas. I anxiously awaited the announcement at 11am, and had been awake since 5.30am checking the news every hour for updates.
We were out for brunch when we got the news- only Northern Beaches would remain in lockdown over the Christmas period and the rest of Sydney had somewhat relaxed restrictions until the 27th.
So I can spend Christmas in Sydney!!
I was so excited and relieved that a celebratory breakfast prosecco was in order.
So, after all this stress and uncertainty, I will be spending Christmas in Sydney after all. I'm absolutely not complaining as I'm well aware that everyone is having a totally different Christmas this year and I'm definitely one of the lucky ones.
With all this stress and strange circumstances, I am feeling homesick and missing everyone dearly. I really feel for those who can't see their loved ones this Christmas.
I'm sending massive love back home and I can't wait for the next time that we all get to spend Christmas together again.
I'm appreciating how lucky I am and how much I have.
I'm so lucky to have everyone back home to miss, yet to still be surrounded by people I love here. I'm lucky to have my health and that I'm safe. And I'm lucky to still be here in this beautiful country over the festive period.
Here's to a good one.
Shepp x
Australia had near enough eradicated Covid, and things were almost completely back to normal. Then, when we were in Newcastle, one stop away from Sydney, we got the news that there had been an outbreak in the Northern beaches.
It's only around 30 cases, which is nothing for the UK or elsewhere, but this is a big deal for Australia.
It meant they put just the Northern beaches into a mini lockdown.
From here the cases crept up and up, and it was a really nerve-wracking time as we had no idea what was in store for us over the next few days and weeks.
My anxiety went absolutely through the roof.
We made the snap decision when in Newcastle to come straight to Sydney early, as then at least we could see our friends before the city locked down. It was scary knowing we could be making a huge mistake, as if Sydney locked down we would be stuck there with no money and no job. I hadn't planned on staying in Sydney after Christmas anyway so getting stranded there was just not an option for me.
Part of me felt like driving into Sydney was like driving into fire.
Once we got there, it was nowhere near as bad as all the news made it out to be. Everything was near enough normal in Bondi, where we were staying, and the surrounding areas. All the lockdown was contained to the Northern Beaches.
Whilst getting into Sydney and seeing our friends made me feel a bit better, the stress wasn't over yet.
As the Northern Beaches kept reporting new cases, there was talk of the whole of Greater Sydney going into lockdown for Christmas and potentially much longer.
As I said, I can't afford to be locked down in Sydney, so I decided that if they went into lock down I would leave for Byron Bay and spend Christmas there.
This scared me and would break my heart as I'd wanted to spend Christmas in Sydney for months and months, not to mention I'd have to leave all my friends. It would have been such a shame to come all this way with Keiran only to leave and not spend Christmas together.
Crunch time came on Wednesday as the NSW government were making a decision on the restrictions over Christmas. I anxiously awaited the announcement at 11am, and had been awake since 5.30am checking the news every hour for updates.
We were out for brunch when we got the news- only Northern Beaches would remain in lockdown over the Christmas period and the rest of Sydney had somewhat relaxed restrictions until the 27th.
So I can spend Christmas in Sydney!!
I was so excited and relieved that a celebratory breakfast prosecco was in order.
So, after all this stress and uncertainty, I will be spending Christmas in Sydney after all. I'm absolutely not complaining as I'm well aware that everyone is having a totally different Christmas this year and I'm definitely one of the lucky ones.
With all this stress and strange circumstances, I am feeling homesick and missing everyone dearly. I really feel for those who can't see their loved ones this Christmas.
I'm sending massive love back home and I can't wait for the next time that we all get to spend Christmas together again.
I'm appreciating how lucky I am and how much I have.
I'm so lucky to have everyone back home to miss, yet to still be surrounded by people I love here. I'm lucky to have my health and that I'm safe. And I'm lucky to still be here in this beautiful country over the festive period.
Here's to a good one.
Shepp x
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