December 05, 2003

I'm sorry. You won't be leaving.

Sydney, Australia.

The whole trip almost stopped before it started. After six months of painstaking preparation I was out at the airport and ready to go. Anita was coming along for the first few days in Bali and had arranged my tickets at a bit of a discount through her work. All was in place until...

"Excuse me sir. Do you have your onward ticket? This is only one-way."

I knew that I needed a return ticket, or at least some ticket out of the country but the guy that issued the ticket apparently did not. I hadn't bothered to check. I just assumed it was a return. This could be a problem.

I explained that I intended to leave via the ferry to Singapore and so didn't have another flight but I was beginning to see the signs of "I'm sorry, those are the rules and we can't change them". A hasty conference with a colleague suggested that I could buy an onward ticket at the airport in Bali, before immigration. This sounded highly dubious to me but it was enough to let them let me on the aircraft.

Once in Bali there was no sign of any such ticket counter and I was carefully studying my guidebook to make sure I could plausibly say all the possible exit ports near Singapore. Naturally enough, once I fronted immigration there was no more than a quick glance at my passport and a stamp and I was waved in to the country. First obstacle overcome.

Posted by David at December 5, 2003 05:49 PM