WHAT?! Haven't
had a gripe for a while and the trip back to OZ proved to be ripe for the
picking!
The last
few days at Sandeepany were very special but also very hectic. The 8 boxes that were to be couriered to
Scotland were not forwarded until the final possible moment and only arrived on
the very day of my departure to OZ. It
was getting fraught and it must be said that I did not sleep more than 2 hours
for two nights in a row. That's okay
though; adrenalin is wonderful stuff.
Go-go
left us in Mumbai to go on to more family visiting in Chennai and we said our
farewell's on the morning of the 11th.
Emm and I took the day at whatever pace it offered and completed our
packing settled ourselves, then left the ashram with hugs from a couple of
friends at 6:15pm.
Emm's
flight was due out at 10;10pm and I think was pretty much on schedule - there
was a delay for her, but still arrived in Sydney not more than 90 minutes later
than planned.
YAM's of
course, was a different case altogether.
The frustrating things about Mumbai airport are; virtually no seating
for waiting passengers and no ability to provide information of value (even at
the relevant desk). You see, the
departures board stated that the Malaysia flight had been postponed from
11:55pm to 2am the Saturday morning.
Sigh. Thankfully, despite some
concerns and no clue as to what was happening, the check-in was still opened at
a reasonable time so only had to hang around the graceless entry vestibule for
about 50 minutes or so. (I did find one of the "hens teeth" seats!)
Check-in
was interesting. Something had made me
book Business Class (B/C) - a luxury I have never afforded myself in the
past. This turned out to be one of the
best decisions ever made. Firstly, I
had maximum weight due to this being complete removal. It was on the mark, but oh-so-close to being
over and I think if I had been coach class it may have been questioned. Also, I had with me the Magic Mop.
Oh yes,
house cleaners amongst you, when you find a tool of value and specialness, you
don't let go of it till there is no choice!!
The
OnePot1der had to get left, but truth is it is replaceable. The Magic Mop, however, I had not seen
anywhere before** and as it saved me a great deal of effort in maintaining my
room, it had to come with me. I just
know that in coach, they would have rejected it. Now though, it was simply checked as
'oversize' and travelled in its own special compartment! It brought quite a few curious looks I can
tell you.
There
continued to be a total lack of communication regarding the state of the
flight. Again, due to B/C status, I was
saved too much discomfort by being able to attend the Clipper Lounge, where
cushioned seats and tables were provided.
Bistro style arrangement, but satisfactory enough. At the appropriate time I made my way to the
departure gate.
Boarding
took place only at 0145, so you may well guess it was 0245 before we taxied
away from the terminal. Nearly three
hours late. I had a sense of foreboding.
Meanwhile,
the flight itself was pleasant enough, as well it ought to be in B/C. Spacious and plentiful service.
Arrival
at Kuala Lumpur, though, brought the big hurdle. In rather unceremonious fashion, the few
transferring passengers were met but ground staff who shoved new ticket info
into our hands and stated (in my case) your next flight is at 1630 (7 hours
away!) which will be a short hop on economy class to Singapore and there I
would have to re-check-in as the only flight they could get me was with British
Airways…
Now, in
print this doesn't look all that bad.
Remember though that I had slept barely 6 hours in three days, had been
packing and cleaning and generally getting worn out and really did NOT want to
be hanging around airports for half a day.
I was ropable to put it mildly.
They were
not budging to my requests of hotel and next day flights though. It was this or nothing.
In a
state of near-collapse, I found my way to the Golden Lounge. Again I bless the decision of B/C
ticket. This turned out to live up to
its name and the pretty hostesses there saw my condition and picked up the
pieces!! Honeyed tea, private facility
to fire up Voovoo the Vaio, shower and change and food then an hour to doze
before heading off again. I had asked
them to arrange special assistance for me now as it was clear I could not
really cope all that well with such luggage.
As one who has always travelled very light, I was finding this a great
imposition; not to mention my poor physical condition.
The hop
to Singapore was literally that. Fifty
air minutes only. At the other side
though, the message for assistance had not arrived. Never mind.
By now I had gotten over my usual quiet reticence and stood my ground
till a buggy appeared. Thank goodness
for it turned out we had to change terminals and I certainly would never have
made the connection otherwise!
The BA
flight turned out to be a dream. In
spite of them also not being advised of the special assist OR the Jaini meal
requirements. They did marvellously to
cover my needs and the plane itself was the absolute newest in the fleet - only
three months service so far. 777 again,
but with all the modern plush and full flat beds. I had 3.5 excellent hours of sleep which set
me right for landing in Sydney.
Where BA
had phoned ahead and had a wheelchair waiting for me.
Note to
self; arrange special assist well in advance next time!!!
The drift
through to the meeting point was so smooth and quick as to almost be
unnoticed. Magic Mop came through the
ordeal with nary a fibre out of place and Emm and son were waiting to collect me
and all the bits.
Now the
thing is, I have already booked and paid my ticket to UK. With Malaysian….
** NB - I have since checked oulets here in Sydney and definitely no Magic Mop of the kind I have - I have now gone into mop conservation!!
Oh Auntie Yam, poor you, sounds an awful journey, but you had Emm there to meet you at the end.
ReplyDeletePoor dear you, how dreadful for you but how wonderful "something" told you to book Business Class.
ReplyDeleteI've had "assistance required in terminal" for years. I can't keep up with my husband and have yet to recover from stumbling along behind him changing terminals in Toronto. I was in tears and he was annoyed.
I just can't do it. Can't carry heavy things, can't move quickly, can't climb over two strangers so as to get to the bathroom, can't can't can't. I hate it, but 'tis so.
I also carry a cane gizmo that folds down into a chair. When I forget it, I always regret it. There, that should be my poem for the day.
I don't sleep well on airplanes, and always come home with a germ or microbe that lays me flat for two weeks. Why do I travel? Because, somewhere after arrival and before departure, I'm always happy to see new places.
Luv, K
Oh,goodness! I'm glad it all ended well but sounds like it had good points and bad ones. Sorry we haven't been by much this week. Mom has been working a lot and not having much time to help me with blogging.
ReplyDeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteLV and Taffy - yes, you may say the journey was a bit like the Curate's egg; good in parts!! Don't worry Taffy, it's always lovely to see you "whenevaaa" xx
Kay - the uncooperative body can be a right old b******, the truth being that we can expect nobody to really understand who hasn't experienced it. Just sigh and get on with it. Will it stop me travelling? Like Hades...!