The homeward trek is on! It began with a 6am departure from Adelaide. It's a small airport with great services that I'd fly through anytime.
Once again, Virgin Australia wanted to charge us $100 for carry-on that should be allowed with our tickets. This time, the gate agent called instead of insisting I was wrong (I've filed for a refund on THAT one!), after which she gladly checked our bag through.
Then it was on to dreaded Sydney. This time we dealt with far more capable staff who checked us through to our next flight expediently. I was so grateful for their professionalism and knowledge. Instead of barely making our next flight, despite a 5+ hour layover, we had 2 1/2 hours of our six hour layover to kick around and relax.
I took the time to see just how many American-based fast food companies has storefronts in Sydney Airport. I counted four, although Hungry Jack is called Burger King in the states.
Once boarded, it was time to transition from spring back to fall, and to land 13 hours later at a date and time earlier than when we left.
I'll admit, it was nice to see home again. The people and places we'd visited over this five weeks were magical, and have already planned our return. Now it's time to "pay the bills" and reconnect with our lives and loves back home.