Our flight out of Los Angeles was delayed because we could not land in Sydney before 6:00 am. We landed at 6:02 am. Since we were the first flight in, we got through immigration and customs fairly quickly. Australia is a bit picky about travelers bringing in soil from foreign countries on their shoes and sports equipment. Michael had taken time before we left California to clean the soles of his hiking boots, but since Nancy had neglected to do so, she had to take her boots into the bathroom for a scrub before we went through customs. (The toothbrush from her airline care kit came in handy.) When she explained to the customs agent what she had done, the agent thanked her for trying and then took the boots away to be disinfected. Nancy was relieved that they hadn't been completely confiscated. However, we did have to relinquish the apples we had not yet eaten.
