The Easy Day Was Yesterday (44 page)

Authors: Paul Jordan

The
A Current Affair
crew had to leave for a few days to cover a story in Jakarta. When they returned to the house, it was like Christmas. They brought a load of presents for the kids and ladies and something to drink for the men. The kids thought it was wonderful and the ladies prepared an extra special feast for that night. The crew spent the night playing with the kids and their new toys while others had the kids listening to music through headphones. It was fun and good therapy.

By the final week, we had all slipped into a daily routine. For me, it was a case or speaking to each crew to determine their plans for the day and then allocating vehicles, drivers and interpreters in accordance with my assessment of the risk involved in each task. In other words, the crew covering a story or going to an area that carried the most risk got the best resources, and I went with that crew. At the end of the day, I inspected the vehicles and gave the drivers their pay and money to fill the fuel tanks. Every few days I paid the fat man for food and rent and he sent the ladies off to the market. Secretly, we also gave the ladies extra money for their pockets, because we weren’t sure the fat man was giving them any. Every morning at 2.00 am the crew from the
Today
show had to go to wherever the satellite dish was set up so they could report in time for 6.00 am in Sydney. I was able to convince one of the drivers to leave his vehicle for me and I drove them there, waited with them, and then drove back for another hour of sleep.

After almost a month on the ground, and after the huge benefit organised in Australia in which all the crews were involved, we all left Aceh. I was absolutely rooted. In fact, I didn’t know how stuffed I was until I got on the plane out of Singapore and was asleep before the plane left the terminal and only woke when the wheels touched down in Brisbane.

Aceh left a huge mark on my soul. The Acehnese people were great and I loved the location, but I was glad to leave all that misery behind, and felt guilty for doing so. It was easy to report on their misery and horrendous loss, and it was easy to leave, but these people had poured their hearts out to us, they had invited us into their lives at an incredibly emotional time and then we had left them behind with nothing but that terrible loss.

32.
HOME

We arrived at Kathmandu and Sallie took control of the luggage. She refused to allow me to lift another thing. The Australian Consul General and a member of his staff were there to meet us and drive us to the hotel. They were very kind and concerned. Not only was I slow to move because I was tired, but my back was giving me hell, so I walked very slowly and with a stoop. Fuck me, I was embarrassed — I felt like I was a 100-year-old loser and I just wanted people to forget this ever happened and get on with their lives. I said I didn’t need a doctor, but just needed some rest. Ujwal had booked us into a magnificent hotel and we all sat in the lobby while our room was being prepared and took the opportunity to discuss the visa issue. They said they had a contact in the immigration office who could help with the visa renewal, but again it could complicate things if I wanted to return to Nepal. They examined my passport and common sense prevailed. We agreed to run the gauntlet tomorrow and believed that the immigration officer would be none the wiser. The Consul guys left, but agreed to return the next day to take us to the airport and see us through immigration.

Sallie and I went to our room — and what a room it was. I suppose anything was better than the shit hole I’d been living in. The room was huge — a massive lounge, the biggest bed I’ve ever seen, a beautiful bathroom and a very long and deep bath. All of this was in the one big room with a view over the traditional gardens and pool. It was all quite surreal and like one of those dreams in prison. Sallie ran me a nice hot and deep bath while she cleared some e-mails. I’d been having cold water bucket baths for 24 days, so when I got into the hot water it hurt my skin, but it hurt so good. Sallie brought me a beer and I took a tentative sip and only managed to get through half the can. After a shower to wash my hair, Sallie and I pored over the room service menu and decided on the salad, club sandwich and a bottle of Moet.

Relaxing on the lounge in our dressing gowns, we picked at the food, but struggled to get through it and had to force down more than one glass of champagne each. But it was great just sitting and enjoying freedom, and I knew Sallie felt relieved after a long and successful job. But I couldn’t relax. I kept looking at my watch and imagining Ugly Guard coming to lock the door for the night — and I wondered what the old man was doing.

The next day we wandered through the streets of Kathmandu and bought some gifts for Sallie’s parents who had been looking after her girls while she was away. I also went to a drug store and bought antibiotics for an ear infection I could feel getting worse and some painkillers for my back. The Australian Consulate guys arrived and drove us to the airport with Ujwal following with all the training gear. The Consul General agreed to remain at a discreet distance as we passed through immigration and would only approach if there was a problem. Fortunately, all went well, although the airline initially had a problem with Sallie’s passport. This was cleared up, we were away and waiting for our plane home. Following a brief stop in Bangkok, where I was left to rest in the business class lounge while Sallie did some more shopping, we arrived in Sydney just in time for Sallie’s daughter’s birthday. It was Thursday already. I’d been out of gaol for two days and still wondered what the old man was doing. Was Satya still taking his evening walk? Who was the loud-talking guard yelling at? I had my watch set on prison time, so I always knew what the prisoners were doing.

I was exhausted, but we had so much to do. I really needed to get these medical problems sorted and Sallie had made an appointment for me to see her doctor. She was excellent and gave me a complete once-over. She also prescribed different antibiotics for my ear and something for my skin infections. She asked me if I had been interfered with.

‘Pardon?’

‘Were you interfered with?’ she said, continuing to look down at her pad. ‘You know, sexually interfered with,’ she said, after realising I either had no idea what she was talking about or was stunned.

‘Ah, no; nothing like that!’

She gave me a handful of antibiotics for the ear infection and to fix up any issues that hadn’t appeared at that time.

On Friday afternoon I had an appointment with a psychiatrist. Again, Sallie organised this and I was grateful. I’m not the sort of bloke to pour out my feelings to a shrink, but Colin was a mate whom I’d known for a few years and an exceptional counsellor. I was glad to have the opportunity to vent and clear some of my thoughts. Colin had been great during my short stay in gaol, passing on frequent tips through Sallie to help me cope. He suggested going away for a holiday for a while and doing nothing but relaxing. I told him of my need to use sleeping pills to sleep. Colin thought that was okay and that sleeping was good recovery time, so I continued with the pills at night. He also suggested that I stop wearing a watch so I could stop myself looking at Indian time. Colin told me not to drive as some people have flashbacks and, if you happen to be driving at the time, you could get in trouble. It was all good advice except the last point, as I wouldn’t have any choice but to drive.

That night, we all went over to a friend’s house for a welcome-back party. Dierdre was also our company accountant and had organised catering and plenty to drink. It was a nice gesture by Dierdre and Andrew to open up their house like that. I was absolutely knackered, but really wanted to say thanks to everyone. It was a great night and I met people I didn’t previously know who had gone out of their way to help. I am extraordinarily lucky to have such great friends and family, and to be born an Aussie with a government that cares. But again, I was well and truly fucked and just needed to lie down and do, and think about nothing for a long time.

The next day, I said goodbye to Sallie and the girls and flew back to Brisbane. My car was still parked in the long-term car park at the international terminal and I was surprised that it still started — I thought the battery would be flat — and it cost me $350 in parking fees. I drove straight to Trevor’s house where Sam was staying and together we went home. He had been great during this whole drama and had always kept things in perspective. When I got home I gave Zac a big hug, but Sayge was a little remote, so I let her be. Then it was back to my normal life. I planned to take some time off and go skiing with the boys for a week but, after three days, I had a crisis with a client in Baghdad and spent too much time on the phone trying to sort that out. Normality, with all its pitfalls, had returned.

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