I know I have said this before, but I do think that sometimes stuff happens on my travels so I have stuff to share on this blog. Since so much happened on this last trip, I decided to share.

I was heading back to the States for a few weeks and decided to book the long route. By long route I mean, Brisbane to Sydney to Singapore to London to Chicago.  For someone who does not work in aviation, I am not sure why I thought it was good idea to spend even more time then necessary in the air.  My first flight was only 1.30 but they managed to serve a pretty yummy lunch. My window seat provided a nice view of Sydney.

I had a surprisingly painless experience getting thru security. I headed over to TRS to get a tax refund on purchases I had made while in Australia. Shocker, there were only 3 people in line. The first guy in line was claiming a steam iron. Which I thought I was odd, because why would you want to carry that on the plane? It looked heavy. The next gal in line was trying to claim purchases her Mom had made. And Mom was not there.  Oops. And the 3rd was best. For second, I had to make sure there were no camera filming for border patrol. I was not paying much attention to what the lady was claiming until the Agent asked to see the Chanel handbag. My curiosity was peaked and my attention turned to her and away from the girl with Mom’s receipts.  The lady proceed to pull out a cloth bag, sort of like a dust bag but not. I have personally have never seen a flowering Chanel dust bag, but then I don’t have a degree in all things Chanel.  Unfortunately for the lady, the Agent did. And from the look on her face she was dubious about what was in the cloth bag.  The bag that came out was not a Chanel maybe a Channel.  It was obviously a fake. The agent said as much. ” Are you seriously showing me a counterfeit bag?” The lady insisted it was not fake.  Hmm. Made me wonder if she thought she was buying a a legitimate bag. I am sad to report, I am not sure how the story ends. I do know she did not get a tax refund, but she did get a nice citation.

My ride….

I did not have much time before boarding. I was not in a hurry, because I did not have much to carry on and I was flying first class. (BEST use of all the miles I have been earning).  The first thing I noticed was the cabin had party atmosphere.  Everyone seem to have some to talk to. Great it was going to be a long 24 hours as a solo traveler. Then I noticed that not one but two couples were enjoying pre-flight cocktails, in their seats. Meaning the 2 people were in one seat.  I’ll let the pictures explain.

Well I was sitting in 4A. There was sweet older couple sitting in 2A and 3A.  I politely asked them to refrain from mid-air hijenks. The husband said that his wife (2A) would be joining him for dinner but maybe I could come over dessert…..  Oh I knew we were going to have a fun flight.   It should be noted this was all happening before we had even left the gate. Shortly after take off, 5D was back sitting with 5K and I can say was there was a lot of movement going on under that blanket.

Meanwhile over in 4A… Party of One…..

Before we knew it, we had arrived in Singapore, with enough time to buy some TWG Tea. (Golden Earl Grey is amazing). And then it was back on the plane for another 14 hours.  With my friends in 5K. Who apparently did not get enough on the flight to Singapore. Since we were taking off so late, the load a full meal but a lot people opt to have their beds made and go to sleep.  Well my friends, had one bed made and dined in the other seat, which actually is not a bad idea. Until we hit turbulence, and they tried to buckle themselves into the same bed. At this point the cabin crew said enough, due to safety, everyone in their own seat.  It was just too much…

I have to say it was easier to fly to London then to Chicago. Body clock wise. But I am not a fan of 14+ hour flights. I made the mistake of returning to Australia on the new London-Perth and NOPE. That’s all I have to say is NOPE.

Stay Tuned for London…….