Jan 13 - 15
Little Kingshill to Wellington
It was actually warm this morning, the first time since I arrived here over three weeks ago. I rose early to say farewell to Malcolm & Janet before they went to work. After a light breakfast - one slice of toast - I did most of my packing and left the house.
My destination was a Chinese food warehouse on the outskirts of Reading, about 40 minutes away on a mixture of motorways and dual carriageways. It is hidden away in the middle of an industrial estate, a large warehouse guarded by an impressive pair of lions.Inside was an excellent collection of foods and utensils, a veritable cornucopia of culinary consumables, or something. |
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From there, I drove along the lanes to Henley, intending to stop there for coffee and sight seeing. As is often the case, I completely failed to find a parking space so waved two fingers at the town and passed by on the other side, in the direction of Marlow.
There I found a parking space without too much difficulty and found the place much quieter and more relaxing. I examined the increasingly murky skies and decided to have fish and chips at The Penguin for lunch, my first such meal of the holiday.It wasn't brilliant, not up to Yorkshire standards, but it was nice to try. |
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Feeling increasingly tired, partly from a bad night's sleep, partly from an early morning and partly from endofholidayitis, I drove over Winter Hill to Cookham. It is a stunningly beautiful area, Wind in the Willows territory, but I didn't have the energy to stop to take photos. The good news was that adjacent to Cookham Station I found both a proper butcher and a delicatessen. Ideally placed for a one stop train ride from Bourne End, a quick shop and then a pint in the pub before the return train arrived.
Once back at Little Kingshill, I had a lie down and went to sleep for an hour. I then showered, changed, completed my packing and left the house.
The drive to Heathrow in the dark and the drizzle was unpleasant. I got stuck in the wrong lane in Slough and had to loop through Langley before returning to the A4. I finally reached the hotel which houses the Thrifty Office at Heathrow - nearly missed it in the dark - and returned the car to its owners about an hour and a quarter after leaving Little Kingshill. The process wasn't quick, it never is with Thrifty, but the staff were very pleasant and there were no problems.
Outside the hotel, I climbed onto the airport bus before realising that it wasn't the free transport provided by Thrifty. By then, I couldn't be bothered to drag my cases back off again so paid my £4 fare. On the dot of 6pm, an hour and 50 minutes after leaving the house, I walked into Terminal 1.
Check-in was queueless and they assured me that I would be able to access the Koru Lounge. I explained that their computer was wrong but they told me it wasn't and I should go ahead. Security took about ten minutes and that was painless.
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I had a good pint of London Pride at the same bar where I enjoyed one a few months ago and then braved the ladies at the entrance to the lounge. They let me in without a murmur so I was able to consume free food and plug my laptop into their free electricity and do some work. Unfortunately, the connection from my dongle was too weak to upload any data so I had to abandon that part of the operation. I did feel able to send a rude message to London about working 24/7, without holidays etc and the need for a pay rise. Pigs are less likely to fly than Air NZ. |
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The walk to the gate was LONG. In Hong Kong, they would have provided a little train. It did enable me to pass a combined wi fi and power point facility. The wi fi isn't free but it does suggest that Heathrow is catching up with the better airports. I had only been in the gate lounge when boarding commenced. Perfect timing.We actually pushed back 2 minutes early. I hope that is a good portent for the rest of the trip as I have a reasonably tight schedule when I reach Auckland. Last time, it was all a bit rushed. Alas, we were part of a big queue on the runway so we didn't actually take off for about another 25 minutes.The flight was completely uneventful, I ate so much dinner that I was unable to manage more than fruit and yoghurt for breakfast and we landed in Hong Kong 15 minutes early.
Right: Progress at Heathrow |
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I took my courage in both hands, presented myself and my boarding pass at the United Airlines lounge and was welcomed as an honoured guest. How much longer will this last? I completed my work, uploaded it with no problems on the free and high quality wi fi and had a shower. There was no razor but that was a minor issue.Left: Inside The Continental Lounge, Hong Kong |
We pushed back about ten minutes early and everything was uneventful. I don't think the service was quite as good as on the first leg but it was a marginal call. I even managed a little sleep. We landed 15 minutes early and I was through immigration and customs - no bag x-ray for the first time that I can remember - and checked-in to the Wellington flight in about 30 minutes.
Outside the terminal it was hot and sunny. The plan to wear my padded jacket was quickly abandoned and I had to carry both it and my fleece. What I did need was my hat but that was safely stowed at the bottom of one of my cases.
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The domestic terminal was busy but I found a money machine, a sandwich and a coffee. After take off, the driver told us about the gales in Wellington and he wasn't joking. The landing was interesting but we made it safely. Wayne met me and drove me home and I unpacked. Another adventure safely completed. Right: The final meal |
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