My inner body alarm repeatedly woke me up, I checked my phone again, and it was still 1 AM ish. Ugh! Still having jetlag obviously. Izzy was surprisingly up, as she was sitting up on the bed between me and Daddy, half asleep half awake. I gave her my boobie (yes, take it while it lasts: Izzy will be 2 years old this month, and needs to say bye to boobies soon), and she was gone again. I’m still awake, in fact fully awake now. I decided to continue my writing that I started last night, before falling asleep on the couch. Daddy Bear woke me up, and I walked in to the bedroom like a zombie. We are exhausted, indeed. However, it has all paid off! We have finally arrived in the United Kingdom safe and sound. So happy! The fresh air is precious, welcome autumn!
We flew with Etihad airlines from Soekarno Hatta International Airport (Terminal 3) on October 1, 2020, transited in Abu Dhabi Airport for 3 hours, and continued the trip to Heathrow Airport London (Terminal 2). Two days before our flight, Daddy and I took swab tests, and received the results the next day. Thank God, it was all negative! It’s a bit weird when we sound so grateful with ‘negative outcome’. The United Kingdom actually does not require any PCR test to enter the country, and as an Indonesian, I also still have a valid visa from a few years ago, so we only needed to fill out a quisionnaire on their .gov website in advance, stating that we are healthy and will do our self-quarantine in our family house in the UK. Etihad, as one of the United Arab Emirates airlines, is the one with the PCR test requirement. If we fly with them and transit in the UAE, the PCR test is mandatory, which I thought is the best thing to do. I prefer to share flights with people who also passed the COVID-19 PCR test. Etihad, on their website, also guaranteed that if we get COVID-19 within 30 days after flying with them, the health insurance will be covered by them. That’s great! *knocking on the wood*, yet hopefully we stay healthy!
Below are the pictures from our second flight from Abu Dhabi to London:
We flew with Etihad airlines from Soekarno Hatta International Airport (Terminal 3) on October 1, 2020, transited in Abu Dhabi Airport for 3 hours, and continued the trip to Heathrow Airport London (Terminal 2). Two days before our flight, Daddy and I took swab tests, and received the results the next day. Thank God, it was all negative! It’s a bit weird when we sound so grateful with ‘negative outcome’. The United Kingdom actually does not require any PCR test to enter the country, and as an Indonesian, I also still have a valid visa from a few years ago, so we only needed to fill out a quisionnaire on their .gov website in advance, stating that we are healthy and will do our self-quarantine in our family house in the UK. Etihad, as one of the United Arab Emirates airlines, is the one with the PCR test requirement. If we fly with them and transit in the UAE, the PCR test is mandatory, which I thought is the best thing to do. I prefer to share flights with people who also passed the COVID-19 PCR test. Etihad, on their website, also guaranteed that if we get COVID-19 within 30 days after flying with them, the health insurance will be covered by them. That’s great! *knocking on the wood*, yet hopefully we stay healthy!
We enjoyed our flights with Etihad: their crews were so friendly and helpful, and the food was yum! I always love Middle-Eastern food. Our trip went smoothly, apart from Izzy throwing her first trouble-two-tantrum in the air, when we were taking off and landing (only in our second flight, as she was asleep during our first flight). It was her blocked-ears that were bugging her. Poor kiddo! We finally experienced those feelings when you have your kids crying in the airplane. LOL. Believe me, I never judged parents who had to deal with that situation. I could say that I’m quite good at putting myself in other people’s shoes, even before I had my own baby. But having had to deal with it myself, it was indeed unpleasant - we were caught off guard: you know, it was Izzy’s first real tantrum in the airplane, and we were confronted with uncomfortable, mixed feelings, especially during our second flight from Abu Dhabi to London, which was quite busy. Luckily, people seemed to understand our positions. Anyway, the flight from Jakarta to Abu Dhabi was almost empty, it was just like less than 10 people I guess, unlike the second flight, we were only separated by one seat with every other passenger.
At the airports, hand sanitizers were put in every possible place. We also always prepare our own. Everyone seemed to follow the COVID-19 protocols: every adult was wearing masks everywhere, even during the flights. We were each given a pouch that contains 3 sachets of sanitizer, rubber gloves, and a mask. All the flight attendants were also wearing masks, plus they wore the face shields, rubber gloves, and a special protective outfit outside their own uniforms. Everyone tried their best to keep their distance. Only a few people at Soetta Airport were, I assumed, either a bit forgetful or probably not the brightest, but they moved back after Daddy told him not to be too close to him, and to follow the standing instructions on keep-the-distance-stickers on the floor. Doh! We have tried our best, so we only can pray and hope that we don’t catch any form of virus during the trip. Amen.
Some pictures from our 1st flight from Jakarta to Abu Dhabi:
Below are the pictures from our second flight from Abu Dhabi to London:
We waited in the line for less than 3 minutes at Heathrow airport immigration. Since Daddy and Izzy Bear are British Passport holders, I could also take the same line for British citizens as a family member. Also, because we had Izzy (a child) we were fast-tracked further.
Below is Izzy’s tired face after landing in London:
Now that we are back in the UK, we are staying at home and doing the self-quarantine again. I won’t get bored as long as we still have the fresh air, and I can still continue my exercise routines, and my other hobbies from home, or around the garden. Stay sane, safe and healthy, folks! <3
YOUTUBE:
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Alarm tubuh di dalam diri berulang kali membangunkan saya, saya memeriksa telepon saya lagi, dan masih jam 1 pagi. Ugh! Masih jetlag. Izzy secara mengejutkan terbangun, saat dia duduk di tempat tidur antara saya dan Daddy, setengah tertidur setengah bangun. Saya memberinya dada saya (ya, menete-lah mumpung masih bisa: Izzy akan berusia 2 tahun bulan ini, dan harus mengucapkan selamat tinggal pada si dada segera), dan dia terlelap lagi. Saya masih terjaga, nyatanya benar-benar terjaga sekarang. Saya memutuskan untuk melanjutkan tulisan saya yang saya mulai tadi malam, sebelum tertidur di sofa. Daddy Bear membangunkan saya, dan saya masuk ke kamar tidur seperti zombie. Kami memang kelelahan. Namun, semuanya telah terbayar! Kami akhirnya tiba di Inggris dengan selamat. Sangat senang! Udara segar sangat berharga, selamat datang musim gugur!
Kami terbang dengan maskapai Etihad dari Bandara Internasional Soekarno Hatta (Terminal 3) pada 1 Oktober 2020, transit di Bandara Abu Dhabi selama 3 jam, dan melanjutkan perjalanan menuju Bandara Heathrow London (Terminal 2). Dua hari sebelum penerbangan kami, Daddy dan saya melakukan tes swab, dan menerima hasilnya keesokan harinya. Alhamdulillah, semuanya negatif! Agak aneh ketika kita terdengar sangat bersyukur dengan 'hasil negatif'. Inggris sebenarnya tidak memerlukan tes PCR untuk masuk ke negaranya, dan sebagai orang Indonesia saya juga masih memiliki visa yang masih berlaku dari beberapa tahun yang lalu, jadi kami hanya perlu mengisi kuisioner terlebih dahulu di website .gov mereka, menyatakan bahwa kami sehat dan akan melakukan karantina mandiri di rumah keluarga kami di Inggris. Etihad, sebagai salah satu maskapai penerbangan Uni Emirat Arab, adalah maskapai dengan persyaratan tes PCR. Jika kami terbang bersama mereka dan transit di UEA, tes PCR adalah wajib, yang menurut saya adalah hal terbaik untuk dilakukan. Saya lebih suka berbagi penerbangan dengan orang yang juga lulus tes PCR COVID-19. Etihad, dalam situs webnya, juga menjamin bahwa jika kita tertular COVID-19 dalam waktu 30 hari setelah terbang bersama mereka, maka asuransi kesehatan akan ditanggung oleh mereka. Itu keren sih! *mengetuk kayu*, namun semoga aja kita tetap sehat!
Kami menikmati penerbangan kami dengan Etihad: kru mereka sangat ramah dan membantu, dan makanannya enak! Saya selalu menyukai makanan Timur Tengah. Perjalanan kami berjalan mulus, kecuali pada waktu Izzy menangis tantrum khas anak usia dua tahun untuk pertama kalinya di udara, saat kami lepas landas dan mendarat (hanya di penerbangan ke dua kami, karena dia terlelap di penerbangan pertama). Telinganya yang tersumbat itulah yang mengganggunya. Kasihan! Kami akhirnya mengalami sendiri rasanya ketika anak-anak kita menangis di pesawat. Hahaha. Percayalah, saya tidak pernah menilai orang tua yang harus menghadapi situasi itu. Saya dapat mengatakan bahwa saya cukup pandai menempatkan diri pada posisi orang lain, bahkan sebelum saya memiliki bayi sendiri. Tetapi karena harus menghadapinya sendiri, itu memang tidak menyenangkan - kami terkejut: kamu tahu dong, itu adalah amukan nyata pertama Izzy di pesawat, dan kami dihadapkan dengan perasaan tidak nyaman dan campur aduk, terutama selama penerbangan kedua kami dari Abu Dhabi ke London, yang cukup sibuk. Untungnya, orang-orang sepertinya memahami posisi kami. Ngomong-ngomong penerbangan dari Jakarta ke Abu Dhabi hampir kosong, hanya kurang dari 10 orang saya kira, tidak seperti penerbangan kedua, kami hanya dipisahkan satu tempat duduk dengan setiap penumpang lainnya.
Di bandara-bandara, pembersih tangan dipasang di setiap tempat yang memungkinkan. Kami juga selalu menyiapkan sendiri. Semua orang tampaknya mengikuti protokol COVID-19: setiap orang dewasa mengenakan masker di mana-mana, bahkan selama penerbangan. Kami masing-masing diberi kantongan berisi 3 sachet sanitizer, sarung tangan karet, dan masker. Semua pramugari/pramugara juga memakai masker, ditambah mereka memakai pelindung wajah, sarung tangan karet, dan pakaian pelindung khusus di luar seragam mereka sendiri. Semua orang mencoba yang terbaik untuk menjaga jarak. Hanya beberapa orang di Bandara Soetta yang, menurutku, mereka sedikit pelupa atau mungkin bukan yang paling cerdas, tetapi mereka mundur setelah Daddy menyuruh mereka untuk tidak terlalu dekat dengannya, dan untuk berdiri mengikuti instruksi stiker-jaga-jarak yang terdapat di lantai. Ampun deh! Kami sudah mencoba melakukan yang terbaik, kami hanya bisa berdoa dan berharap kami tidak terpapar virus apapun selama perjalanan. Amin.
Kami menunggu dalam antrean kurang dari 3 menit di imigrasi bandara Heathrow. Karena Daddy dan Izzy Bear adalah pemegang Paspor Inggris, saya juga dapat mengambil jalur yang sama untuk warga negara Inggris sebagai anggota keluarga. Juga, karena kami memiliki Izzy (seorang anak), kami bergerak cepat lebih jauh.
Sekarang setelah kami kembali ke Inggris, kami tinggal di rumah dan melakukan karantina mandiri lagi. Saya tidak akan bosan selama masih ada udara segar, dan saya masih bisa melanjutkan rutinitas olahraga saya, dan hobi saya yang lain dari rumah, atau di sekitar taman. Tetap waras, aman dan sehat, teman-teman! <3
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