My first job post expat life

Looking for a teaching job for me was quite a challenge as I have never taught in Queensland after I have completed my teaching degree. I decided to give it a go anyway. I applied to any teaching, child care, and teacher aide jobs advertised, both state and private. I also applied for tutoring jobs. I heard back from 2 out of all the posititions I applied for. One went as far as an interview, the other collected my referrences but both never came back with any offer.

I then decided to apply for office jobs, such as students admin officer, working with refugees, and call centres. Out of all the jobs I applied to, I heard back from the call centre. They sent me an interview request, which was done by an AI. I didn’t have high hopes as I did not have a clear idea on what the job was. I think I may have gotten it mixed up with another job that had a similar JD. A couple of days later, I got a call just before my online tutoring class started. I decided to take the call, thinking that it could be from the Medicare people. Turned out is was about the call centre job. They did a more thorough interview, asking me questions about how my previous experience as a teacher would help me in the job, etc. The most interesting question they asked was if I were going to do any traveling in the next 4 months. I kinda chuckled after she asked the question and said that I have no plan to travel as we are in COVID time. I can’t leave the country and if I could, I wouldn’t be able to come back. Only after the interview, I realised that she was talking about domestic travel…

A week before Christmas, I received another call to inform me that I got the job, starting date, probation time, onboarding salary, basic salary, over time pay and security screening that I had to complete. A few days after, I received the employment package and completed the mandatory eLearning before the onboarding.

The job wasn’t bad. Once you have completed the onboarding, completed one month on the ‘rockpool’, you would have a pretty good understanding of the processes, the interface that I worked with, and how to meet the company’s KPI (Key Performance Index). The quality people would listen to 5 of your calls a month and you get to find out what areas you could improve on. After working there for 4 months, I managed to meet all the KPIs and managed to get a green scorecard for my last full month there.

I handed in my resignation letter a week before the end of my probation and left the job after my probation has ended. I was getting comfortable with what I had to do and there were days where I really enjoyed what I did, but I saw that there isn’t a lot of room for me to grow. I would be extremely lucky if I could get promoted to either a team leader or quality control or any other positions within the company. I watched how someone with very little knowledge of the processes got promoted over someone with 15 years of experience, who had done quality and led teams with good results. I have heard and witnessed an employee with poor personal skills got taken off the floor and promoted to a trainer to avoid getting constant negative feedback from her clients.

One good thing about the company, it values punctuality. If were to finish your work at 8PM, but got held up in a call and logged out at 8:03PM, you can claim that 3 minutes as overtime. Later I found out that the reason for it is to make sure we as a whole can keep our ‘adherence’ at a certain percentage.

Life in Queensland during quarantine

After arriving in Brisbane, we were whisked into Four Points by Sheraton after completing security check at Brisbane airport. We didn’t do any swab (PCR) test after landing like we thought we would, after hearing what other travelers had gone through to go back to their home country or enter their host country. They didn’t even ask if we had done the test before flying out of Malaysia. We did however get a daily phone call to make sure we are mentally and physically healthy. The swab test we were so looking forward to came a few days before we were due to come out of quarantine and we received the result not long after.

Now, lets talk about the quarantine itself. Our group had quite a lot of families, they were also staying at the same hotel as us. However, after advising the quarantine staff that the room is too small for a family of 4 or more, they were moved to a service apartment accommodation. Their food was delivered earlier so the little ones don’t have to stay up past their bedtime to have their dinner. Food for us adults was great for the first week, the second was a repeat of the first week. No more excitement, no more worrying about whether or not we would have enough in between meals. We enjoyed most of them, especially when it was a meat pie day. They were quite generous with their serving portion too.

The view from our hotel room was windows to other office blocks or hotel rooms. We weren’t able to open any windows, however, we had access to a workout program and outdoor/fresh air time if we needed it. We were curious about it, so we decided to go for it. We went 3 times before deciding it wasn’t worth it. Our hotel doesn’t seem to have a rooftop facility, so we were taking our outdoor time in the car park. We had to be mindful of cars leaving the car park and there wasn’t much sun coming through…. there was a gap on the roof, so that was the only sunshine we had when we went outside. If they did have a rooftop facility, it wasn’t made available to us.

From some Facebook groups related to quarantining in Australia, we read about the amount of dust in the room. Yes, it is very true. Dust build up so quickly that if you don’t wipe the surfaces daily, it looked like your room is covered in Parmesan cheese shaving. Some people posted a checklist on what we could or should have, which helped. We brought in some sauces, chilli paste, as well as our favourite tea and coffee. Our parents also sent us 2 Coles bag worth of food, including 2 bottles of wine, adapter and Australian SIM card. We could order alcohol from the hotel if we wanted to, but they rationed it. I guess it is to prevent us from being drunk and damaging public properties. Having lived in Asia, we are so used to having food panda, Grab, or Gojek for deliveries. We learnt that we can have alcohol delivered, but not to our hotel address. Oh well, we live and learn.

We are very grateful that during our quarantine days, we still had jobs (online tutoring). Our days were filled with lessons planning, creating power point presentation for the students and teaching. When we weren’t doing any of that, we applied for jobs, set up mygov, opened a bank account for husband, attempted to do yoga, did HITT training, downloading and watching Fringe, doing laundry, and taking turns picking up our food and recycling our rubbish.

It was an experience and I must say that at the end of the day, you do what you need to do to keep you and your family safe. We could have stayed in Malaysia but with Whiskey already in Brunei, we thought it is best for us to start the journey home. We don’t regret it and we are continually adjusting to life in Australia.

Touched down

After a lot of doubts, worries and emailing, we finally made it back to Brisbane. Day 2 of quarantine.

So here is the recap.

The chartered flight organised by Singapore Air charter got taken over by CapaJet, also known as Trips Exotica. Those who have made bookings with Singapore Air charter were able to transfer their payment to Capa Jet. The original route was from Jakarta – Port Moresby – Brisbane. It was suppose to fly on 3 November at 4pm. A few days later, we received an email that the flight would be leaving from Jakarta to Brisbane on 4 November at 2am.

We were worried that we might not be able to get a boarding pass in Kuala Lumpur, but thanks to the Australian embassy in Jakarta and High Consular in Kuala Lumpur, we managed to get our transit permit at 6pm, the day before we were due to fly.

Arrived at the airport after 2 police checks. Good thing we had gone to the police station to get the interstate travel permit. Before we left our apartment, we still hadn’t received our eTicket yet. We were told that we should get it within 24 hours before the flight. Check in counters were open, we contacted our organiser to let her know that the eticket hasn’t been emailed. Just before 1pm, we received our eticket. We looked at it and took Capa Jet’s version of an eticket to check in. Took 6 of the Garuda check in staff to check us in. We made it to our gate before it got closed.

Arrived in Jakarta with no problem. We were escorted by 2 airport staff and an airport police. We got through all the checks with no problem and were deposited at the Garuda lounge. Not long after, someone from the embassy came to welcome and watch over us. He stayed until the last passenger from Bali arrived and asked if we could help watch over her after he had left.

That woman was on another level of panic. She is old and was not very hopeful that the flight was going to happen. We had to ask one of the staff to help us calm her down. She did and thankfully, our boarding pass for the next flight arrived in less than an hour before the plane.

We arrived in Brisbane at about 3pm-ish. Went through all the custom checks and filled in all the paperwork for quarantine. Got in our hotel at about 7pm and ate dinner at about 8pm.

So far, everything has been great. The room is not the same as the apartment we had, but enough for us to continue with our work. Food has been great despite everything we had read. Queensland government and Queensland health have been checking on us since day two to make sure we are all OK. Room break is around the parking area so it is not something I look forward to. My husband said that we would not go just for the sake of going out of the room because as soon as we were out, I wanted to go back in.

I hope all other Australians who are still overseas and want to come home will be able to come home soon. I still believe that if Australia hadn’t put on the cap, we would not be in this situation. I don’t understand politics and I don’t pretend that I do, but it does make me wonder if the government and the Australians are really benefiting from the cap.

What can I expect from my embassy?

Today I tried to get consular assistance from the Australian High Commission (AHC) in Kuala Lumpur so I could join the repatriation flight from Jakarta to Brisbane. Here is what happened.

12:10 – Called the AHC, explained my situation and requested assistance so we could board the flight to Jakarta and join the repatriation flight from Jakarta to Brisbane. The consular section personnel told me to call the Australian embassy in Jakarta.

12:42 – Called the Australian embassy in Jakarta. The call went unanswered.

12: 45 – Tried to call the Australian embassy in Jakarta on their second number. The call went unanswered.

I thought I should give it a break as they might have gone to lunch early. Called my Indonesian (Indo) friend, who gave the best advice though perhaps not the most legal one. Hire an escort service at the airport and this person will make sure you skip all the red tape. Fee is around 1 to 2 million rupiah.

Thought a little bit more and decided that we need to do this the right way. So back to calling embassies. This time I decided to call the Indo embassy to find out more about their current travel restriction.

15:16 – Called the KBRI (Indo Embassy) in Kuala Lumpur. It rang and no one answered.

15:22 – Found and called a different number for KBRI. It rang, went through the options, and no one answered.

15:25 – Called the first number again and the same thing happened.

18:50 – Called the Australian embassy in Jakarta. This time it went through. Someone answered my call outside of their office hours. The person who answered my call said his name is Aldy and asked how he could help me. Told him my situation and asked if the embassy would be able to help us join the flight in Jakarta. Aldy asked what my nationality is, my Indonesian visa status and whether or not I have an Indonesian passport. Afterwards, he asked why I called the embassy in Jakarta and not the one in Malaysia as I am residing in KL. I told that the AHC here told me that it is not their jurisdiction to help. Aldy said the same thing as well.

The embassy has no power to help as repatriation flights are often organised by private companies. So that means I will have to contact the agent who organised the flight and perhaps pay an airport escort to that I can do my transit in peace. Though the immediate problem is whether or not we can board the Garuda flight to Indonesia.

After emailing our organiser, they now have asked for our Garuda tickets. They will apply for the visa and hire an escort to make sure we will be able to pass custom and immigration hassle free.

I have lived in China and Indonesia. Both are quite corrupt and I do like it. China… we can play the dumb foreigner card though not all the time. In Indonesia the corruption benefits both sides and I am glad to be one of those sides in this very case.

My government has disappointed me today. Seems like no one wanted to take the responsibility and make sure they always give you a solution. Whether the solution is useful or not depends on how you make of it.

I guess the saying I have been hearing is true after all.

UPDATE

So the AHCKL called me a day or two after I posted this and again today. They wanted to make sure that I have everything prepared for the repatriation flights. We told them that CapaJet and Trips Exotica would be arranging our transit visa and escort service to make sure things go well in Jakarta. Though having said that, these two companies are actually very slow in getting back to us whenever we have questions.

Update: it seems that everything is going ahead, we are packing tonight and will set off tomorrow, small part of us still expecting to be sent back but we will see.

Conclusion? All government bodies can work together to help citizens living abroad. AHCKL called us because they received information from the embassy in Jakarta. Regardless what, when, where and how, I feel that embassies have the power to get the information from the local government more than we can. Instead the first action they took was passing me around from one embassy to the next.

A letter from the heart

Dear Readers,

This is Feb. She is not OK. She is on a never ending roller coaster ride, ranging from a tame one to a crazy one that has a vertical drop. Feb and her husband can’t return home. Both are in Malaysia​​ without a valid visa since September. They were told by the Australian High Consulate in KL to get a special pass. Feb spoke to an immigration lawyer and was advised not to get one. She found out special passes have more limitation than accepting the grace offered by the Malaysian government, which overstaying visas without penalty until 31 December 2020.

Feb and her husband have had their tickets cancelled and watched how a one way ticket price has gone three to four times the amount of a normal economy class ticket after the cap was introduced. Feb and her husband have also seen last minute tickets being sold for close to half of the original price. They had very little option on which airline they can book tickets with and where in Australia they can fly into.

This week, the both of them booked tickets to Cairns, Queensland. This is an independent flight organised by an Australian stranded in Laos. This flight will pick up vulnerable and stranded Australian in Laos, then off to KL and Singapore to pick up more Australians before landing in Cairns. The organiser has secured landing permit for all countries, including Australia. However, the government believes that they have had lapse in judgement and decided that the plane can’t land in Cairns. They did provide a solution, if not, they wouldn’t be state leaders, would they?

Feb and her husband are emotionally tired of going through the cycle of booking, feeling excited, disappointed by each cancellation and waiting for refund so they can book and pay for another ticket. Feb wonders if this is the pandemic version of stages of grief.

Feb is grateful and praying that the Prime Minister and his families won’t have to go through this. Feb is glad knowing that the minister is safe in the comfort of his home, or office, surrounded by his family.

Don’t be like Feb, be like the Australian PM. Don’t think twice about not doing the right thing. Don’t be too considerate and ALWAYS put yourself first above others, regardless what the situation is.

Feb has learnt that when a pandemic hits, people who are far away can be easily forgotten. Those who are watching from the safety and comfort of their home, are quick to throw blame as this would place them above others. Especially if none of their family members and friends are affected by the flight cap (also known as a policy that is tougher than the premium quality bullet proof vest).

Children, when your history teachers tells you that it is important to learn about the past, it is because there is one lesson to remember. Many humans often forget their humanity traits when there is an opportunity to be the better leader. It is important to be ruthless when the situation calls for it. However, it is also important to show kindness, especially as the world is can sometimes be full of negativity. Everyone can use a little more good in life. Whoever they may be.

If we didn’t have a dog…

Whisky made it. She got picked up at 12:30PM today to go to the cargo area of KLIA. She was happy to get in the van, not knowing that she won’t be coming back.

We are happy that she has started the first leg of her journey back to Australia. It hasn’t been easy, from the start to today and it won’t get any easier when she gets to Melbourne, Australia.

She was scheduled to leave KL to Brunei around August. PetAir submitted all her document but got rejected because Royal Brunei wasn’t sure of her breed. PetAir tried again for first week of September flight with Malaysian Air, but the flight got cancelled. Finally, we heard some good news. Royal Brunei accepted her paperwork and approved her travel plan.

We were neither happy or sad because we knew that nothing is certain until she has boarded the cargo plane to Brunei. We even thought that it might be better for Whisky to stay here with us a bit longer. Fortunately, PetAir helped us to see beyond our emotion. The number of new cases in Malaysia is rising and there is a possibility of the country going into its second lockdown. Sabah or East Malaysia is going into a second lockdown tomorrow. Our agent reminded us that if Malaysia were to go into lockdown again, nothing can come in or out. It is better to do it now while we can. If things were to go as planned, Whisky would exit the quarantine in Melbourne just before the centre closed for Christmas. So, we went ahead.

The next day, Whisky got the runs. The worst we have ever seen. She had to go to the toilet every couple of hours. Her stomach looked bloated and yes, you could probably imagine what I could write next. We made sure she drank enough water throughout the evening and checked on her stool to make sure that there was no blood. It continued until today, though her stool was looking a lot better. She even managed to eat some unsweetened cooked oats. Her energy level was still the same like any other day and she even asked to go for longer walks during her toilet breaks.

Anyways, we told the vet at PetAir about her condition. The agent and vet said that we can go ahead and they will inform the quarantine centre in Brunei to keep an eye on her. She was given some medication to help her at the airport. Last we heard, she is calm but not looking happy in her cage.

Since we had her, there were times where we wondered what life would have been like if we didn’t have her or gave her away when we left China? Would we have taken more holidays? Maybe. Where would we be now? Probably Australia. Would we have enjoyed the extra time we have? No.

Like I have shared in the previous article… We have adjusted our lives to make sure she is cared for. Whisky has occupied so much of our space and left footprints all over our apartment. That dog doesn’t do much. She would sit or lay down near us and paw us when she needs some attention. Now that she isn’t around, the place feels empty. Our home is no longer the same. No warm welcome when we come home, no cuddles with her in the morning and before bed time, no stares when we eat her favourite human food, and no more of her smell that we are so used to.

We are sure that Whisky will be okay on the way to Brunei. She will be okay during her quarantine. We are not sure if Whisky is going to be okay being away from us for a very long time. I hope Whisky knows that she is not abandoned. We do love her and can’t wait to see her again when we are all in Australia.

Safe travel Whisky. Be a good strong dog. We will see each other again.

Pets vs. Kids

WARNING: PLEASE DO NOT READ IF THE TITLE OFFENDS YOU.

Every now and then, I would get into a discussion that would go down the path of comparing the pros and cons, as well as similarities between raising a pet and a kid.

It would start with a friend making a remark, “taking care of a dog is easy,” “just wait till you have your own kids” or “you don’t know what it feels like to raise a child.” True, my husband and I don’t have children of our own. It was a choice we made before knowing that I can’t have any.

Anyways, back to the title of pets vs. kids. As my readers, you know that we are trying to bring our dog ‘Whisky’ back to Australia. It hasn’t been easy and the process is still ongoing. When we share the ordeal of relocating our pet, the first comment people would say is “why don’t you just give her away?” That is a choice that we don’t entertain anymore. We did think of that when we moved from China to Jakarta and again from Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur. Every time Whisky had to go for a medical prior to relocating, we always felt empty. There is a part of us that is missing and we didn’t like how not having her in the apartment for a few hours made us feel. We also have stripped all her dog instinct and trained her to develop habits that complement our lifestyle. We have changed ours to make sure that we always have time for her.

Giving her away means asking her to get used to a new set of rules and a new living arrangement. What we have accepted and seen as cute behaviour may be seen as differently by her new owners. We would also be asking the new owners to update us (occasionally) about how she is doing. That is just not fair for everyone involved.

When the comparison of pets and kids come up in a conversation, some people do admit that keeping pets and raising children are kind of similar. Here are some of the things that parents with and without pets have shared.

Pets and kids need routine, positive encouragement, love and care. Both put restrictions on your life, they are messy and a lot of work. You have to teach them (obviously not in the same way or level of complexity). People without pets think they understand pets and people without kids think they understand kids. I am sure there is a lot more similarities between the two, but I will stop here.

Let’s look at the difference. Pets will depend on you for their whole life, though the level of dependency varies from pet to pet. Kids will learn to be independent as they get older. Eventually kids will move out and have a family of their own. Pets will never go through puberty , while kids do. When it comes around, it can be a headache for all. Pets will never pay rent, kids might.

Whether you chose to have a pet or a kid, it all requires commitment, dedication and responsibility. A pet owner might be able to relate to the challenges that parents go through in raising their kids, because there is some crossover, and vice versa. So, if you hear the struggle of a pet owner trying to bring their pet back home, please do not advise them to give heir pet up. Would you give your child up if he or she becomes an inconvenience when you move countries?

Down the rabbit hole

I have had a great week, with tutoring and lunch with a parent from my last school. However, today is not exactly a good day for me.

I was on Facebook and for awhile, I have made an effort not to check on Facebook. It is filled with news about lifting the caps, arrival, quarantine, and sad stories about citizens who are stranded. It is good to keep myself informed about the situation back home, but today it hit the wrong button.

One of the members from Lift the Cap Facebook group posted a video clip of a debate about the cap. I don’t remember who she was questioning, but she asked them to explain why people who hold students and business/investment visa are allowed to enter Australia, possibly taking the place of any Australians who want to come home.

It really saddens me that citizens have to go through a lot of disappointment to return to a country they call home, because they have less to offer the government. There are people who have lost a family member and can’t attend the funeral because they can’t get a seat on a plane to any states in Australia. Some are bouncing from country to country so they don’t overstay their visa.

I feel like this is a discrimination that Australians would never have to face. I grew up being treated differently because I am Asian. The first I can remember was when I was in high school, walking back to my homeroom after an assembly. A year 7 boy, “go back your country, you gook!” I was shocked but let it pass. The next ones were when I waited for a bus at Pacific Fair or walked home from Robina Town Centre. I would get some random drivers shouted “suckie suckie, 5 dollars?” Those never got me down. But now, with what is happening today, I never felt more rejected.

Like I said in one of my post, I feel like I have suffered from depression. I am glad I have my husband with me during this weird time. He understands that I am in a funk and doesn’t try to push me to get out of it until I am ready. Having a blog is also his suggestion. He believes writing would help me climb out of the rabbit hole and he isn’t wrong. As I share what I am feeling, the frustration, the choking feeling I felt as I held back the tears start to go away. I am feeling a lot lighter.

I don’t know what the purpose of COVID is, but I know it is not good for a lot of people’s mental health. I still believe it is not as terrible as it has been reported. I want things to be better so that we can do what we want, when we want to and at the place we have chosen to be.

What a let down

Today, the article on Tom Hanks visiting Australia for his movie, avoiding the mandatory 14 days quarantine gained attention again in one of the Aussie expat Facebook group. It really annoys the living day lights out of me. This is the actor who had Corona virus already and has been given permission to enter Australia despite the international arrival cap that prevented many of us from returning to the land we call home.

A lot of Australian expats are struggling to go home. This week, I read an article on how DFAT employees in Canberra are accused of booking 2 to 3 tickets (paid in full) for overseas DFAT workers. You can read the full article here. It might not be true, but no one is denying it and it makes the current government looks like they are as competent as my Year 3 students. No wait, my Year 3 students can do what is expected of them.

When the Prime Minister issued advice, recommending Aussie expats to come home, it also stated that the national carrier (Qantas) will maintain its operation on both international and domestic routes. Not the case! Australians overseas have to rely on Emirates, Qatar, China Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Singapore Air and Cathay Pacific to take them home.

A lot disappointment is also directed towards the Australian consular abroad. I emailed them to ask for assistance regarding my expired work visa and they sent me links that provided me with little information regarding my situation. In hindsight, they probably have very little knowledge of what to do despite their ongoing discussions about changes that affect foreigners in Malaysia.

If one day, the government released a statement saying “we got through Covid-19 together” or “humanity helped us overcome the hardship caused by the pandemic” I call bullshit on that. From where I am sitting right now, the government has done very little to help Aussie expats. If anything, they have done really well in dividing the nation. Those who believes that Aussie expats should stay out of Australia and those who want them to come home.

Not all of us are living the life of Tom Hanks. I was going to come home and retire from living abroad. Sadly, that is not going to happen anytime soon. My husband and I can’t continue to survive on what savings we have while hoping that the ticket we have bought is the one that will take us home. I have accepted that reality and it is a downer.

I am not looking forward to my next call with my parents. They were so excited that we are finally going to start living in Australia. But, we need to do what we need to do to survive. For us, this is it. Taking another job offer until the day we can come home without worrying whether or not we made the cap.

When will it get better

Today we received an email from Cathay to let us know that our flight from HongKong to Brisbane has been cancelled. Went to manage booking on their website and I found that our flight from KL to HongKong is still going… Not sure how or if we will be able to get refunded for the whole segment, not just the HongKong to Brisbane. *heavy sigh*

The dog’s flight for 11 September is also cancelled…. so third time is not a charm in this case. Malaysia Airlines are not flying much these days so our pet relocator has booked a flight with Royal Brunei for 2 October. Our hopes are securely grounded until she is in the cargo area waiting to be loaded onto the plane.

In the meantime, my future employer is trying to get me a new work visa. They have asked me to go to their Subang campus to pick up my work contract. I might go on Thursday, as it will give me a chance to see what their school looks like. We have also decided to do some tutoring for our old students who are currently suffering at the hands of egotistical teachers. Mine is starting tomorrow while hubby’s on Saturday. I guess this would somehow take our mind of flights and cancellation.