It’s been a crazy few days, but we finally made it to our new home. The trip was relatively smooth and mostly uneventful. We were concerned that the shooting at LAX, which occurred the morning we left, would impact our travel plans, but we were lucky enough to only have a few short delays in Phoenix and LA. The biggest security issue that we dealt with was a minor one at the Phoenix airport, involving Ally, but it was quickly resolved.

Our short stay in Bali was a little more eventful. It started off great – we enjoyed a short walk on the beach, dipped our toes in the Indian Ocean, and had an authentic Indonesian meal in the hotel restaurant. After dinner, we went up to our room to get some sleep before our flight to Timika. We took a short, four-hour nap (waking up at 11:00pm). Around 11:45pm, Chris and I started taking our luggage down the two flights of stairs so they could be picked up. Just as I was heading up the first flight of stairs to get another suitcase, I heard a series of shots. Knowing that the shots were very close, but not knowing which direction they were coming from, I stopped to listen for voices or some kind of commotion, but all I heard was more shots. It sounded like a semi-automoatic rifle, so I ran up to the room as quickly as I could. The girls were crouched down and Chris was on his way out to find me as I ran in. The shots continued, but there were no signs of security or other guests. Ally (unbeknownst to Chris and me) went to the window where she heard the shots coming from and saw, of all things, fireworks! On the way to the airport, we learned that Australian bogans are typically responsible for loud, unruly parties that include fireworks.

Overall, it was a great trip! The girls loved flying business class and enjoyed the perks associated with it; especially having their own reclining sleeping pod, taking a shower in the Hong Kong airport, and eating as much food as they wanted to (on the plane and in the airport lounges).

The girls taking a short nap in the Hong Kong Airport lounge.

We arrived at jobsite yesterday afternoon. Instead of catching up on much needed sleep, we unloaded our suitcases at the house and made sure everything in it was in working order. Then we left and went to HR to complete some paperwork, do biometrics (fingerprints), and set up an Indonesian bank account. By the end of the day, our feet were dragging and our eyes were moving in a million different directions.