Round The World and other travels
A frequent flyer's collection of trip diaries
This is: Round The World 2015
Beginning of the end
Today the trip would enter its final phase, as 'the homecoming' got underway. Before all that, however, there were some early-morning antics as a monkey (presumably) tried our windows and then amused itself by scampering around on the roof of our bungalow. In spite of that, we enjoyed a bit of a lie-in, followed by a late breakfast at the hotel. It felt like we were getting the last remnants of the buffet, but at least my freshly fried eggs were nice. Best of all, however, the rain had finally stopped overnight and we were now seeing a return to more seasonable weather.
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| Approaching the terminal at LPQ |
All too soon, it was time to pack and begin the long, but nicely chunked-up, journey home. We checked out at 1145 and took the hotel shuttle to the airport. Operated on this occasion by a Disneyesque, 'toast-rack' style of vehicle, this was definitely one of my more memorable airport transfers over the years.
Even more so than on our arrival in town three days previously, the airport terminal looked new, modern and pleasant. Once again, this seemed to be a town that was reaping the benefits of tourist income and UN funds. Our Lao Airlines flight was again lightly loaded, but not as empty as the one that had brought us to the country.
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The weather was atrocious on arrival at Bangkok
(see left) -
the same kind of torrential rain that we had experienced on Thursday
night and all day on Friday in Luang Prabang. To make matters worse,
the aircraft had parked on a remote stand, and it was the first time
that I had seen staff holding umbrellas over passengers as we moved
from the steps to the bus. There was a long immigration queue, but
it moved quickly enough and soon we were making our way to the
Novotel through a lengthy array of underground passages.
What a surprise! I had never stayed at this property before, and I imagined that it would be like every Novotel I'd ever stayed at in the UK. Not a bit of it - this was a stylish hotel built around an impressive central atrium that featured a wealth of diversions to help the weary traveller pass the time. After a short period of relaxation, we had cocktails in the attractive lobby bar, followed by a very nice Japanese dinner at the Kinsen restaurant.
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| ABOVE: Novotel Bangkok Airport | |||||
| BELOW: Lobby bar | BELOW: Kinsen Japanese restaurant | ||||
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Since this story began with my first evening outside the UK, it seems appropriate to leave it here, during the final such evening - even if we were still in another continent. The job of getting back home would be completed over the next two days, using Sri Lankan Airlines and British Airways. Don't forget to have a look at my flight log for UL503 (Colombo-London), as this was one of the aviation highlights of the trip.
Looking back on it all, it almost goes without
saying that my fourth RTW voyage was yet another amazing trip.
Berlin, even in November, had been a great place to start. The
Eastern Seaboard of the USA had also been hugely enjoyable,
especially the opportunity to spend an extended period in the
nation's capital, almost feeling as though I was going native.
Crossing the Arctic in the depth of winter darkness was incredible,
even - or do I mean especially?
- when done at 35,000ft and in the pampered luxury of Cathay Pacific
First Class. And finally Cambodia and Laos, which had only been on
my radar for a few years, both turned out to be fantastic
destinations that I would recommend to almost anyone.
What better way to bring 2015's travels to a close?