The pandemic has made some places in the world off-limits for quite some time. Even as an Australian citizen, it was tough to get back home for a visit with friends and family. The restrictions for the best part of the pandemic had been that I would need to spend two weeks in a hotel with no windows at my own expense to a tune of $3000. I didn’t really bite at that and waited it out. After one and a half years abroad, I managed to get back into Australia amidst a temporary relaxing of many of the lockdown protocols.
I flew into Sydney from Nepal and had no restrictions placed on me. I then waited seven days out in NSW and could then enter South Australia with no quarantine there either. A pretty good result compared to a $3,000, two-week hotel stay months earlier. Unfortunately, I had my hiking accident during my time in NSW but other than that the plan went perfectly. I managed to keep it a secret from my family and arrived home a few weeks before Christmas to surprise them.
Despite my injury and need to get scans and treatments sorted in my first few days back in Adelaide, it was just good to be back home. It’s been a pretty full-on year with four out of the last five months spent living in a tent. It’s manageable but starts to wear you down bit by bit over time. A forced rest back home will rejuvenate me for 2022 on the road again. Sometimes you don’t know how much you need a break from it all until you have no choice but to take a break from it all. Rest and recovery are often neglected but never to be underestimated.
I think this next month will lack photos as I take a break from the camera and documenting adventures but that’s okay. My days will be filled with coffee, chats, and outdoor gym workouts to keep in shape while in the moon boot. It’s a phase, I’ll manage it and come out the other end stronger.