Sydney Quarantine: A tale of Unexpected Luxury & Start of a New Life

So, I’m in Brisbane now, with the winter sun beaming down on me, typing out this blogpost on my laptop from my brand new bedroom in our brand new apartment. Our days in quarantine in Sydney seem like a long time ago, though in reality it’s only been a week since we left it.

Getting to Australia was quite a story in itself, with plenty of plot twists and turns, and ups and downs. (If you’d rather only read about our quarantine experience, scroll down to the section ‘Hello Australia’.)

After a year of living apart, during which my husband stayed in Kuala Lumpur and our son and I continued to be in India, unable to join him due to the pandemic-related restrictions in Malaysia, we were keen on starting a new life somewhere. Our Australian PRs had just arrived and there was a glimmer of hope we could reunite soon. We did reunite but for that my husband had to leave Malaysia for good. Not much later, an Australian ban on passengers from India followed.

Seeking a safe passage to Australia

From the end of April up to the middle of May, we booked tickets to some destination or the other in Australia four times in total – three times with DFAT alone. And we came close to booking on three other occasions, except the flights kept getting cancelled. It was a lot of money that we hoped would be refunded.

The ban was lifted soon but a sense of dismay, underlined by uncertainty, remained. To say it was stressful would be an understatement.

Getting on an Australian government-backed Qantas flight was our goal – since it seemed the most reliable of options. But once the ban was lifted and a 3-day isolation period introduced in New Delhi prior to departures, we quickly lost hope. The second wave of COVID-19 was raging in India and the last place we wanted to be was New Delhi, where it was especially fierce.

Taking a flight from Ahmedabad (in the Western part of India, where we lived) to New Delhi, and then self-isolating there in a hotel, with a child who loved to chew on his masks, if at all he agreed to wear them, meant that there was a fair risk involved in contracting COVID on our way to New Delhi. If any of us ended up testing positive not only would we miss our flight to Australia, we would be stranded in a place that was ill-equipped to deal with a medical crisis. The very thought was giving me sleepless nights.

Eventually, we were not put on the first post-ban Qantas flight out of India. We decided to look elsewhere, even if it meant paying three times the price. Finally, we flew with Qatar Airways via Doha on May 24, 2021.

A very long journey begins

After a short 3.5-hour flight from Ahmedabad to Doha, we had a 14.5-hour layover in the Qatari capital. Anyone who minimises the severity of such a long stopover I don’t know what they are talking about! It was absolutely maddening. And it came on top of a sleepless night. It was as if the clock had stopped ticking.

We just sat, and sat, and sat in one place in that freezing airport. Yes, there were recliners but none that were available. Don’t get me wrong, Hamad International Airport is great. But when your child is cranky from a lack of sleep and stubbornly refusing to eat, and you have too much luggage to carry around (we had six pieces of cabin luggage with us), you start to get antsy yourself.

Anyway, those hours did pass. To their credit, Qatar Airways also offered us a flight to Brisbane (our final destination) instead of Sydney the same time next day and offered to put us up at a transit hotel right there at the airport for free. I was extremely tempted to take that offer. (At that point I just wanted some peace and quiet and a bed to crash in.)

But my husband thought 24 more hours at that airport, where our child was entirely without a mask and not in a mood to cooperate on anything, were risky. And if any one among us exhibited even the slightest of flu-related symptoms, we could be refused boarding and end up stranded in Qatar for 14 days. He didn’t want to take that risk as a lot was riding on our move to Australia.

So, we waited. And finally got onboard the plane to Sydney.

Due to a restriction on the number of international arrivals into Australia per week, there were only a total of 40 passengers on our flight from Doha to Sydney. Essentially, the Boeing 777 was empty. So we were told we could take any row we wanted and lie down to sleep. My husband took up the offer but I stayed in my designated seat, with my son sleeping next to me, his tiny body fully stretched out.

Even though I was exhausted, my mind could not switch off. The flight was exceptionally turbulent, and each time I tried to doze off the rocking of the plane would wake me up. As someone who has a moderate fear of flying, my immediate goal was to keep panic attacks at bay.

The in-flight entertainment became my saviour. I kept playing movies on loop, staring hard into the screen with tired and sleepless eyes, determined to push the incessant turbulence out of my mind. (I found out later that there’s an explanation for the exceptional turbulence we encountered. At the time, however, I swore I’d never get on a plane again!)

In stark contrast, my husband and our two-year-old slept through it all. I woke them up in the morning two hours before landing (it was a 14-hour flight) so that they could have their brunch and be ready for the landing.

Hello Australia. And Meriton Suites.

Once we landed, we went through the immigration and border clearance formalities quickly and were out of the airport in 45 minutes, where officers from the Australian Defence Force escorted us to our “family bus” (a bus designated for families, to take us to a “family hotel”).

We got extremely lucky to get Meriton Suites (in the heart of Sydney) as our quarantine hotel. The check-in formalities didn’t take long and members of the Australian Air Force helped take our bags to our room.

Meriton Suites is a luxury apartment-style chain of hotels. Our suite was spacious, well-equipped, and, well, luxurious. It was more than we could have imagined. We had all the amenities – a washing machine + dryer; a dishwasher; a large fridge; an espresso machine; a microwave; an oven; a kettle (of course); all the standard cutlery plus wine and champagne glasses;  pots and pans; and spatulas and ladles… I think you get the picture. If not, have a look below.

As a family of three, with a tired and restless toddler, the space and the facilities were god-send. The quarantine became not just bearable but also enjoyable. There was a medical staff on call 24*7, which was reassuring. On the morning after our arrival our son got a fever of 101 degree F, which spooked us. Around the same time I started experiencing waves of exhaustion (up until that moment I had been absolutely fine).

We were so worried we may have picked up the COVID virus that we spoke to someone on the staff who had a doctor from healthcare call us back and speak to us in detail. He arranged urgent COVID swabs for us (ahead of the mandatory swabbing the next day). Thankfully they turned out negative. But it was good to know that there was help whenever needed.  

Let food be thy medicine

Ah food, the most important part. What can I say, we were well-fed. Meriton Suites has gourmet catering, I think. We had no special dietary preferences so we enjoyed the variety that came our way. Our son, however, does not eat unfamiliar food, especially in unfamiliar places. After him not having had a single meal through the 36-hour journey from India to Australia, I was worried enough to order groceries as a matter of priority.

Woolworth’s delivered it the next day and we started getting some food into our boy’s system. Again, a tremendous relief. Due to the availability of the stovetop I was able to make sandwiches, French toast, and his favourite brand of noodles for him. A litre’s worth of full cream dairy milk was supplied on a regular basis with more available if needed. 

Take a look below at some of our meals.

The hotel supplied enough food and as our son kept rejecting his meals our fridge quickly got stocked up to allow for food cravings at random times. The food was largely healthy, though it depends on what you consume more. For example, pies and wraps and desserts can be fattening. But roasted meat, vegetables, fruits, and yoghurt are an ideal intake if you want to eat healthy and lean.

After a long flight and especially in quarantine it’s important to eat healthy. We were tested for COVID four times during our stay and were found negative every time. The reason for the frequent testing was the cold that kept doing rounds in our little household at Meriton, with my husband being the worst affected. As long as you’re symptomatic you keep getting tested. (We placed click-and-collect orders with a pharmacy for medication.)

Quarantine is tough. Have a plan.

We were jet-lagged, under the influence of a cold, and adjusting to a new climate – so we really didn’t have a lot of time to kill. But for those who travel well and are all by themselves, quarantine can be a wonderful time to catch up on reading or simply on your sleep. If you’re the kind to binge-watch, the free WiFi is a boon. There’s really no one to disturb you and your meals arrive on time. It could be a constructive two weeks.

Quarantine is hard. Period. Even when you have luck on your side, which we did. So have a plan, and create a routine that supports your physical and mental wellbeing. Put a pause on unnecessary thinking. Have plenty of books or pursue a hobby (pack accordingly).

In hindsight it’s good that we got those two weeks entirely to ourselves so that our systems could adjust to a new climate and time zone. We could also plan ahead – we got new mobile numbers, finalised an apartment in Brisbane, and applied for Medicare and tax file numbers whilst still in quarantine.

A few tips for families headed to Australia

• Pack as many toys and books as you can for your children. Variety is key. Screen time can grow to ridiculous amounts in quarantine. 
• Talk and play a lot with your kids, especially if it’s an only child. This is a huge change for them; your personal involvement will go a long way in making them feel secure and anchored. My son was sorely missing his grandparents the first few days.
• Think of skills you want to teach your child in quarantine. If you do it often enough, your child might pick up a new skill in two weeks’ time. I got my boy started on writing the alphabet.  
• Rest as much as you need to (and as much as your children allow). There’s nowhere to go and no deadlines to meet. Even so, kids keep our days fairly structured. 
• Video call friends and family two or three times a day. Video calling my parents helped cheer up my boy every time. 
• You will get a mix of healthy and indulgent food. It’s up to you to strike a balance between the two. I highly recommend eating as many salads, fruits, and yoghurts that you receive. More than ever we need our immunity to be strong to fight the virus, or the mental strain caused by the unending presence of the virus.
• Keep your water intake high. 
• Stretch regularly. (Planking and stretching are great, don’t need a lot of time or space and return impressive results.)
• Overall, try to enjoy your quarantine. Click pictures and toast your good health. These are two weeks of your LIFE, after all. 

Overall, we are very happy with our quarantine experience. We are tremendously grateful to all those involved in making this difficult time as comfortable as possible for the guests.

Exit formalities and Day 16 swabbing

We were tested again on Day 12. On Day 13 we were visited by a couple of Australian police officers and two nurses from the healthcare staff. The nurses took our temperature and put bands on our wrists, specifying the time of departure from quarantine. The officers took our contact information. We agreed to getting swabbed on Day 16 in Brisbane. (The Day 16 swab is the last if found negative.)

We checked out at 5pm on Day 14. The process took less than 5 minutes, and that includes the time it took to carry our considerable luggage (in a large trolley) from our sixth floor suite to the ground floor.

But something I think I should mention – on Day 16 we were in Brisbane, which is in the state of Queensland. As newly arrived PR holders, we didn’t have Medicare. As a result, the staff at the testing facility we visited told us that in the absence of Medicare or health insurance we would have to pay $120 per swab. For the three of us that totalled to $360, which is a lot of money.

We had the presence of mind to speak to somebody in New South Wales, who conveyed to the testing facility staff in Queensland that we need not be charged for Day 16 swabs. Just thought I’d mention this in case somebody finds themselves in a similar situation.

So that is it. My long and utterly honest account of our quarantine. If you made it this far, thank you for reading.

Let me know in the comments if you have any questions. And I wish you and your family a happy and safe quarantine!