Wednesday 10 October 2018 to Friday 12 October 2018
Well I’m finally getting around to adding the last couple of days of my travel and boy will this be interesting trying to remember!
As I mentioned in the last blog my alarm was set for a disturbingly early flight! We were catching a bus at about 4am to head to the airport – gotta love a 7.20am flight!
Up and last of the packing done and the final tidy of the our apartment. It’s a bit sad leaving as I know I’m heading home, which I’m looking forward to, but sad to be leaving this experience that I’ve had.
We got to the airport just before 5am and I was lining up ready to claim my duty free – I’ve only been hanging onto receipts since mid July! Anyway, lining up and they finally open up, only to find that the counter I’m at, only does duty free claims for Nordic countries – WTF! I have to go to another terminal – lugging my bags with me. You’d be amazed (or maybe not) at the language that came out of my mouth at 5am.
So unable to now claim my millions back in duty free, haha! It was check in time. I was actually asked if I had a visa for Australia – I said no, but does this help, and handed my Aussie passport hehehe. I was so used to using my Brit passport it didn’t occur to me that I should have used the Aussie one.
So through Security and off to find the lounge. Now this would be one the worst lounges I have been in – mind you it was super early (and I guess not so acceptable to drink at 5.30am). The soup was cold and the food on offer was not that great. Anyway time came to head for our flight. It was a little late taking off which was fine. We were flying business back as it was part of my ticket home (thanks Mum and Dad!) and not that much more expanse than economy.
So off we go, headed back to Heathrow – this time me dropping mum and dad off and then continuing my journey home.
The flight was only around 2-3 hours. The three of us seated in different seats. Dad and I both in window seats in the last row of business seats. When they served dad I swear I had the c-word and naturally looked up. It was 8am, surely the c-word wasn’t being used already. My turn for breakfast and the lovely air-hostess turns to me and says, would you like a glass of champagne – hell yeah I would! I was served my breakfast and out comes the glass of champagne, accompanied by ‘Miss, you are the only one drinking it so I may as well leave the bottle here with you’ – from then, I knew it was going to be a good trip home haha
Slightly excited by this!
It was a very nice flight back to London. We got off the plane and headed into the terminal. It was now time to say goodbye to mum and dad – they exited and I continued on to transfers.
I went and checked in for my second leg of the journal as I couldn’t do it in Stockholm and given my invitation to the lounges in Hong Kong
I had a couple of hours stopover in Heathrow so had a quick look through duty free and then to the lounge to chill. And by chill I mean drink lots of champagne and eat lots of yummy food.
It was soon time to board so off I went to the gate. Here are some pics from the first leg of journey home – Heathrow to Hong Kong – Cathay Pacific
We landed in Hong Kong about 5am local time – hardly any of the duty free shops were open. I walked around for a little bit and googled the lounges to try to decide which one to go in. I can’t remember which one I picked!
I had about 5 hours here – I was so tired by now. I’ve been up for I don’t know how long! I probably managed about 3-5 hours sleep on the flight over.
I had some food, drank some more, had some more food and drank a bit more.
It was then time to make use of the shower and freshen up to try to feel as human as possible. Let me tell you, the showers were amazing – the biggest rainfall shower head you’ve seen – a good half a metre by half a metre.
If I had know where the hairdryer was in the shower room I totally would have just sat on the floor in the shower for ever haha!
It was time to head to my gate for the last leg home. I must say this leg of the journey was incredible – the staff were just so lovely – they were great on the first leg as well but this leg it was a whole new level!
The business class seats were a little different to the first leg – this one had the lift up compartment to the left whereas the other flight did not. I also slept better on this one as the bed went completely flat – I think perhaps on the first leg I didn’t put it all the way down. I managed a good few hours this time.
We landed about an hour early which was nice – a quick stop in duty free and then off to collect my bags. Mum and dad had organised for a driver to come and pick me up which was great as there was no way I could have driven – alcohol aside, I was shattered and would not have managed the drive back to their house, especially as it was 1am on the 12th October. We got to Pelican just before 2am and naturally I was excited to be home and start unpacking and couldn’t get to sleep until 4am!
Sadly, this is the last post for this amazing, epic trip that I was so lucky to take! I hope you guys enjoyed reading about my travels (and I swear I’m not an alcoholic, haha!) But in all seriousness, I do hope you enjoyed it and the pictures. It was so great to write this blog and have something to reflect on. If I get the time I would love to do a write up on the hostels that I stayed in as well – I really was very lucky with the hostels I stayed in. I had those two sexidents and that was the worst of it really. This whole trip I have been lucky – I had the best weather, I got to meet up with the amazing Tash and Adam in Spain and the lovely Brittany in France. I met some amazing travellers and have incredible stories to tell and reminisce on. I may have been felt up twice, not by choice! But I didn’t get robbed, pickpocketed or lost anything valuable. The worst thing I did was leave a pair of shoes in the room in Santiago. I came home with my laptop, camera, passports, all my bank cards and all the other electronics I had., no bank account was hacked either.
Now to plan how to continue travelling without the need to work….
