OK so we're off on another jaunt. Bangkok this time.
Day before yesterday we flew CHC-SYD on good ole Air New Zild. Ah, I just love the IFE on these things. Watched a movie and something from TV I think. That's Alzheimer's for you. Yesterday was... um... Friday... I think. No SYD was Friday, BKK was Saturday. This is Sunday morning.
Anyway, we stayed with Sarah's brother Sam. He lives near the Airport in a suburb called Wolli Creek. No sign of a creek, but there is a train station there. Very handy as it's the next stop after the Airport station.
While I remember, we brought a snowboard over for a friend. It belongs to her son, and he was going to meet us at the airport to pick it up. Now before anybody from our industry gets all uppity about taking other people's luggage, just back up a minute. We were given a snowboard, some boots, gloves, glasses and clothes. I packed them up in some giant plastic bags, and wrapped the shit out of it with orange airline tape. So yes, Noddy, I did pack it myself and yes, Bigears, I do know the contents!
Now the reason I mention this, is that we check it in at the oversize counter at Christchurch, and pick it up at the oversize counter in Sydney. Can I just say this? Never, NEVER, take an oversized item to Sydney, particularly if it is fragile, or if you have somewhere you need to be after the flight.
They have seats in this area for a reason. It takes SO LONG to get anything this way. In fact, this is the only area in the arrivals hall that there are seats for the public. Paint drying, grass growing, cricket matches. these are all faster than your fragile or oversized items take to be regurgitated from the bowels of the building. There is an orifice that emerges out of the floor at a steep angle, and the items are eventually spat out, partly digested, into the hands of the waiting, often dozing staff member, who then proceeds to throw the item across the floor towards where we are allowed to congregate.
For future reference, more fragile stickers do not denote more fragile. More than 5 stickers on an item and they take it as a personal challenge. The loader at the reclaim belt seemed almost disappointed that 'my' snowboard appeared unscathed.
We eventually emerge from the arrivals hall, with everything intact, and give the parcel to it's grateful owner. After picking up our bags, we must have waited more than 20 minutes for that snowboard.
Although it wouldn't have been so bad if we had old passports. I don't know if I've mentioned before, but we have at this end of the world, new snazzy passports, with a wee chip built in. A smart passport, they say. Let's just say that there are a few Australians who would come off second best in an IQ contest with my passport. And one or two kiwis, to be fair.
The advantage of these new Mensa grade passports, is no queues. Go to a machine, put in your passport, hit yes or no at the appropriate time a couple of times, and it spits out a ticket. Go to the next machine, put in aforementioned ticket, smile for the birdy, and voilà you're through, past those other poor schmucks with non-NZ or AUS passports, or older passports. Sam has an older passport, and he comes to Christchurch regularly. He knows all about the queues. By the time you get through the queue at that time of the morning, even the oversize items would be waiting for you.
Next morning we are back at the airport checking in for the SYD-BKK flight on Qantas. Surprisingly helpful check-in agent, considering we are on staff travel. Does a bit of fiddling and makes a call to get us 2 seats near each other. At many airports, staff travel is like being a second class citizen. Don't ask for anything and you won't be disappointed. Sydney is not usually this accommodating, but we'll take it.
After check-in, we had breakfast with Sam in the food court. They have a good range of food outlets at Sydney Airport. Everything from Subway and Maccas up to designer restaurants. Even a very popular Krispy Kremes. Mmmm donuts!!!
When we went to board, they had changed our seats. We are now within food-throwing distance from each other. Across the aisle.
We get all settled in, and I notice the guy at the window next to Sarah is in jeans and bare feet. Not a young, smelly hippy, but a middle-aged guy. Probably a businessman.
I know many people take their shoes off once they settle in, but their socks as well? Lets hope any wafting does not make us regret his decision. Anyway, he did it so quickly, I can't even see his shoes. Surely he didn't board the plane in bare feet.
Now there's a funny thing. Airlines get SO retentive about making sure that their passengers do not board the flight in bare feet. A serious safety issue, we are told. Go and buy some shoes if you must, but you are NOT getting onto MY aircraft dressed like THAT! Reminds me of the parents who would punctuate their scolding of a wayward child with some kind of societally acceptable violence every 3 or 4 words. Ah, brain damage. Those were the days.
So where was I? That's right, boarding with no shoes. The funny thing is that in an emergency, one of the first things the crew tell you to do is remove your shoes.
Anyway...
During the flight, particularly while Sarah is sleeping, this guy decides he needs access to his cabin bag, so climbs over Sarah. He then gets his bag down, and puts it on the floor to get something out of it. Now, this guy is not one of those bend at the knee types. He bends at the waist, putting his arse as close to my face as you would want to be without dinner and drinks first. Very flexible, but really?
He assumed the 'arse-face' position a couple of times during the flight. Nice!
There was another guy there that pissed me off as well. I have mentioned this before, when talking about our trip to Dubai, but there was another one on this flight.
A young guy, maybe late 20s, with his wife and 2 kids. He is wearing jeans and a FCUK hoodie, a baseball cap and a pair of those shoes that look like hobbit feet, rubberised moulded over each toe individually. Really cool, probably very comfortable, but kinda weird looking. So, he was dressed like that, and his wife was in the full-arsed burka outfit, with only the functional parts of the face visible.
Just like I said when I saw this in Dubai, if you are going to have your wife follow the religious dress code, then you can at least follow it yourself! Wanker!
So this is a daylight flight, and I am not tired. I watch The Hobbit movie. First time I've seen it, really very good. I look forward to seeing it on a real TV when I buy the DVD. I then watch some movie called Olympus has fallen, about a secret service agent who saves the world from nuclear armageddon. It stars Aaron Eckhart as the president. He played "two-face" in one of the Batman movies, but I prefer him in "Thank you for Smoking", a wee comedy about the advertising industry and Big Tobacco.
Then there was a Steve Carell movie about a Vegas magician. Finally the remarkable Oz, the prequel to that little film that made Liza Minelli's mum famous. A little slow to get started, but it eventually got a bit of colour. Come on! It's a 9-hour flight, people. What do you expect me to be doing?
Flight comes in to land, and Sarah's mate putes on his crocs. Yes, crocs! That explains everything.
Day before yesterday we flew CHC-SYD on good ole Air New Zild. Ah, I just love the IFE on these things. Watched a movie and something from TV I think. That's Alzheimer's for you. Yesterday was... um... Friday... I think. No SYD was Friday, BKK was Saturday. This is Sunday morning.
Anyway, we stayed with Sarah's brother Sam. He lives near the Airport in a suburb called Wolli Creek. No sign of a creek, but there is a train station there. Very handy as it's the next stop after the Airport station.
While I remember, we brought a snowboard over for a friend. It belongs to her son, and he was going to meet us at the airport to pick it up. Now before anybody from our industry gets all uppity about taking other people's luggage, just back up a minute. We were given a snowboard, some boots, gloves, glasses and clothes. I packed them up in some giant plastic bags, and wrapped the shit out of it with orange airline tape. So yes, Noddy, I did pack it myself and yes, Bigears, I do know the contents!
Now the reason I mention this, is that we check it in at the oversize counter at Christchurch, and pick it up at the oversize counter in Sydney. Can I just say this? Never, NEVER, take an oversized item to Sydney, particularly if it is fragile, or if you have somewhere you need to be after the flight.
They have seats in this area for a reason. It takes SO LONG to get anything this way. In fact, this is the only area in the arrivals hall that there are seats for the public. Paint drying, grass growing, cricket matches. these are all faster than your fragile or oversized items take to be regurgitated from the bowels of the building. There is an orifice that emerges out of the floor at a steep angle, and the items are eventually spat out, partly digested, into the hands of the waiting, often dozing staff member, who then proceeds to throw the item across the floor towards where we are allowed to congregate.
For future reference, more fragile stickers do not denote more fragile. More than 5 stickers on an item and they take it as a personal challenge. The loader at the reclaim belt seemed almost disappointed that 'my' snowboard appeared unscathed.
We eventually emerge from the arrivals hall, with everything intact, and give the parcel to it's grateful owner. After picking up our bags, we must have waited more than 20 minutes for that snowboard.
Although it wouldn't have been so bad if we had old passports. I don't know if I've mentioned before, but we have at this end of the world, new snazzy passports, with a wee chip built in. A smart passport, they say. Let's just say that there are a few Australians who would come off second best in an IQ contest with my passport. And one or two kiwis, to be fair.
The advantage of these new Mensa grade passports, is no queues. Go to a machine, put in your passport, hit yes or no at the appropriate time a couple of times, and it spits out a ticket. Go to the next machine, put in aforementioned ticket, smile for the birdy, and voilà you're through, past those other poor schmucks with non-NZ or AUS passports, or older passports. Sam has an older passport, and he comes to Christchurch regularly. He knows all about the queues. By the time you get through the queue at that time of the morning, even the oversize items would be waiting for you.
Next morning we are back at the airport checking in for the SYD-BKK flight on Qantas. Surprisingly helpful check-in agent, considering we are on staff travel. Does a bit of fiddling and makes a call to get us 2 seats near each other. At many airports, staff travel is like being a second class citizen. Don't ask for anything and you won't be disappointed. Sydney is not usually this accommodating, but we'll take it.
After check-in, we had breakfast with Sam in the food court. They have a good range of food outlets at Sydney Airport. Everything from Subway and Maccas up to designer restaurants. Even a very popular Krispy Kremes. Mmmm donuts!!!
When we went to board, they had changed our seats. We are now within food-throwing distance from each other. Across the aisle.
We get all settled in, and I notice the guy at the window next to Sarah is in jeans and bare feet. Not a young, smelly hippy, but a middle-aged guy. Probably a businessman.
I know many people take their shoes off once they settle in, but their socks as well? Lets hope any wafting does not make us regret his decision. Anyway, he did it so quickly, I can't even see his shoes. Surely he didn't board the plane in bare feet.
Now there's a funny thing. Airlines get SO retentive about making sure that their passengers do not board the flight in bare feet. A serious safety issue, we are told. Go and buy some shoes if you must, but you are NOT getting onto MY aircraft dressed like THAT! Reminds me of the parents who would punctuate their scolding of a wayward child with some kind of societally acceptable violence every 3 or 4 words. Ah, brain damage. Those were the days.
So where was I? That's right, boarding with no shoes. The funny thing is that in an emergency, one of the first things the crew tell you to do is remove your shoes.
Anyway...
During the flight, particularly while Sarah is sleeping, this guy decides he needs access to his cabin bag, so climbs over Sarah. He then gets his bag down, and puts it on the floor to get something out of it. Now, this guy is not one of those bend at the knee types. He bends at the waist, putting his arse as close to my face as you would want to be without dinner and drinks first. Very flexible, but really?
He assumed the 'arse-face' position a couple of times during the flight. Nice!
There was another guy there that pissed me off as well. I have mentioned this before, when talking about our trip to Dubai, but there was another one on this flight.
A young guy, maybe late 20s, with his wife and 2 kids. He is wearing jeans and a FCUK hoodie, a baseball cap and a pair of those shoes that look like hobbit feet, rubberised moulded over each toe individually. Really cool, probably very comfortable, but kinda weird looking. So, he was dressed like that, and his wife was in the full-arsed burka outfit, with only the functional parts of the face visible.
Just like I said when I saw this in Dubai, if you are going to have your wife follow the religious dress code, then you can at least follow it yourself! Wanker!
So this is a daylight flight, and I am not tired. I watch The Hobbit movie. First time I've seen it, really very good. I look forward to seeing it on a real TV when I buy the DVD. I then watch some movie called Olympus has fallen, about a secret service agent who saves the world from nuclear armageddon. It stars Aaron Eckhart as the president. He played "two-face" in one of the Batman movies, but I prefer him in "Thank you for Smoking", a wee comedy about the advertising industry and Big Tobacco.
Then there was a Steve Carell movie about a Vegas magician. Finally the remarkable Oz, the prequel to that little film that made Liza Minelli's mum famous. A little slow to get started, but it eventually got a bit of colour. Come on! It's a 9-hour flight, people. What do you expect me to be doing?
Flight comes in to land, and Sarah's mate putes on his crocs. Yes, crocs! That explains everything.
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