A Weekend of Goodbyes
The countdown is getting serious: only a little more than 2 weeks before I leave for Bali. Two weeks sounds more than enough, but in a world with COVID-19 and negative testing before you are allowed to fly, it is much closer than you’d think. I don’t want to risk testing positive right before I leave, so I told my friends and family if they wanted to do something special before I leave, they’d have to do it sooner rather than later, and thus my weekend of goodbyes started.
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Bali visa
First, some good news: my Bali tourism B211A visa got approved last week! Before this global pandemic, visitors to Bali could fly in directly and enter the country with no visa beforehand, if they stayed less than 30 days. This was the so-called Free Visa Entry Stamp or Visa Exemption. However, thanks to COVID-19 halting global tourism rather drastically, the Visa Exemption got suspended.
Now, instead of easy entrance, you have to apply for a B211A visit or business e-Visa. It is rather expensive and requires a lot of documents and, preferably, a visa agency to handle your case. However, it is the only way to get into Bali as a foreigner right now, so it’s not like there is another choice. I send in my application via Bali Visas and received my approved e-Visa 10 days later. So that’s it, I can now officially travel to Bali!
A very magical evening
The approval of my visa application came at the perfect time. With 2 weeks to go before my travel date, it was time to say goodbye. This might seem a bit soon for some people, but I don’t want to risk getting COVID right before I leave, so I will be limiting my social contacts.
So, back to the goodbyes again. My friends know I’m a huge Harry Potter fan. Some might say I am a tiny bit obsessed. Last week I got the best news ever: I finally received my Hogwarts letter! I know, it’s almost 18 years late, but it finally arrived! They expected me to be ready for my first term at Hogwarts coming Friday. I thought it was a bit weird the school year started in February instead of September, but hey, who am I to question a magical institution of such high standing?
I was a bit nervous, of course. It’s not every day that your childhood dreams come through. It wasn’t long before I heard some music I recognized. Was that the Harry Potter theme song playing in the street? Yes, it was! And who were those dark figures coming towards me? It was no other than Professor McGonagall and the other professors from Hogwarts! They handed me a broom and off we went.
After a bumpy broom ride (we walked down the street to my friend’s house), I finally arrived at Hogwarts. Professor Dumbledore welcomed me and even let me into the teachers’ lounge. Did you know that Hogwarts’ teachers’ lounge looks a lot like a regular living room with black curtains, brooms hanging from the light fixtures, and dozens of candles?
The welcome feast was a bit different this year. The house elves weren’t available, so we had to do everything ourselves. We started out with golden snitch appetizers (cheese balls with wings) and “witch’s cheese” (Heksenkaas).
Despite it only being the first day at my new school, professor Dumbledore surprised me with a pop quiz. Luckily, the questions were about Hogwarts, Bali, and plants, so, of course, I totally aced that test. I didn’t even have to channel my inner Hermione. The reward for first place was a chocolate frog (card: Bertie Botts). Unfortunately, the professors that failed their Hogwarts knowledge test had to eat a Bertie Botts Every Flavour Bean. Let’s just say not everybody was still as hungry afterward.
At the end of this already magical evening, I was in for an even bigger surprise. As you know, Hogwarts has some amazing desserts, and I was not disappointed. I got a beautiful “Monster Book of Monsters” chocolate cake. My friend made that for me. From scratch. Amazing! I will miss these dudes and dudettes like crazy.
Tutoring and a swim session with my sister
The next day was my last tutoring session with a girl I’d been tutoring for the past 1,5 years. She made incredible progress over that time, so I must admit I am really proud of her. When our last session was over, she tells me she and her parents have a little surprise for me. They got me beautiful flowers, chocolates, and a card wishing me good luck. It may sound silly, but I was truly touched by their gift. I was only a tutor after all, but still, they took the time and effort to do this for me.
It was a busy day for me. After the tutoring, my sister took me for a swimming session. Not just any swimming session, but a day to Aqualibi. Aqualibi is a water park with lots of slides and a wild river. This was the second time we’d come to Aqualibi. Years and years ago, when we were still cute little kids, we visited this water park on Christmas day and we were basically the only people there. This time it was a little busier, but just as fun as I remember back then. We rode the hell out of the slides with the tubes and almost drowned several times in the wild river. It was incredibly fun to act like “kids” again and I can assure you we were completely exhausted afterward. It’s safe to say I have a pretty amazing sister who does these kinds of things for/with me!
The impact of goodbyes
I was surprised by the impact these goodbyes had on me. I know it’s not really goodbye. I can come back any time I want, but if things go according to plan, I will be on the other side of the world for a while. And life goes on. I will have an amazing time doing all the things I’m going to do, but so will my friends back home in the things they will do.
All these people I love have their own life to live. They will buy houses, get married, and make babies. But now I won’t have a front-row seat anymore. I knew this when I started this adventure, but I guess it hadn’t truly sunk in yet.
Chasing this dream means I have to give up on some other things. Thankfully, my friends are pretty amazing and I know that when I come back, whether it be in 3 months or in 3 years, they will welcome me back like I only left for a day or two. But that doesn’t change the fact that I will miss them like crazy. Blogging and YouTube and social media are a poor substitute for the real thing: genuine friendship.