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June 2. Opening gambit
June 2. Wellington, Sydney and Bangkok
A howling gale, torrential rain and the onset of a cold (sore throat, temperature
& cough) all combined to ensure that I had a minimal amount of sleep before
the alarm sounded at 02.55. The shuttle arrived on schedule and we made
good time along the deserted streets, collected Angie and reached the airport
with plenty of time to spare.
The check-in queue for Qantas was huge. It took us a good 30 minutes to
complete the process, leaving us little time to complete immigration formalities
and board the plane. We then waited for a couple who appeared to have lost
their passports and took off 15 minutes late.
The flight was uncomfortable but otherwise uneventful and we arrived in
Sydney 10 minutes late. Immigration was reasonably quick and we emerged
into a bright but cool morning.
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Safe arrival in Sydney
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Local FBI dogs
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Since I last wandered around the airport – pre Olympics – they have planted
lots of trees and it all looks very good. We were all distracted by a lady
with two sweet little dogs wearing FBI jackets. They just had to be photographed.
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We grabbed a taxi and arrived at Nick & Cory’s flat in Potts Point at about
9 am. We had the typical family introductions, with lots of hugs all round,
followed by time to unwind after the horrors of the early morning and the
flight.
After a short period of relaxation, we caught a pair of taxis across the
city to Darling Harbour, centre of all forms of entertainment.
Left: Time to relax |
We crossed the old Pyrmont Bridge – no longer a swing bridge – to the Waterside
Café for brunch. The food was OK, the coffee decorative but not up to New
Zealand standards.
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Darling Harbour
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Darling Harbour
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The Sopranos?
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Old Pyrmont Bridge
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Waterside Cafe
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From there, we walked to Circular Quay and took the obligatory photos of
the Opera House and the Bridge. I ignored the latter as the sun was immediately
behind it but took an average photo of the former.
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It was now very warm and we went into the Botanic Gardens. The natural
heat, when combined with the temperature brought on by my cold, wasn’t
at all pleasant. We photographed the views and the cockatoos, which were
feasting on the fruit fallen from a large tree, and then reached the main
roosting place of the bats. Seeing these in the centre of a large city
is always a bit of a shock. At this time of day, however, they were fast
asleep.
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Cockatoo at dinner
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Sydney Botanic
Gardens
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Bats at rest
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By now, feeling completely exhausted, I was delighted when I was allowed
to ride back to the flat in a taxi and to have another rest.
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We made our farewells and found another taxi which gave us a fast and efficient
trip to the airport. Check-in was quick but we were not able to organise
seats together. Had we but known in advance, we could have done this by
going onto the BA web site. We passed through security with minor problems,
Valerie’s hips and Angie’s belt both upsetting the system.
This done,
we found an outside bar in which to have a beer and, in Angie’s case, a
smoke.
Take off was delayed 30 minutes whilst armed police boarded the plane,
marched around, got right up the Captain’s nose (judging from his later
comments on the PA system) and then left as rapidly as they had arrived
but with no obvious result.
There wasn’t much to say about the flight except that it was uncomfortable.
The food was OK (dinner) and disgusting (light snack before landing. We
landed about 25 minutes late at the huge new airport. It makes Changi at
Singapore look tiny, probably because it consists of only one terminal.
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Everything worked, however, and we soon found a small and pretty lady carrying
a sign with our names on it. She was very cheery (as was almost everyone
else we met over the duration of the trip), spoke good English and ushered
us to a smart 6 seater van.
This whisked us at high speed along almost
empty motorways into the city – it was after midnight on a Sunday morning
– and to our hotel. Much of the trip was in a violent thunderstorm, with
regular flashes of lightning. Very atmospheric.
The guide gave us a few quick lessons in basic Thai, we discovered that
she & Valerie shared the same birthday but many years apart, and she left
us in the hotel foyer having organised our pick up for later on Sunday.
The hotel was huge and clean but a trifle impersonal. A typical city centre
hotel.
Right: Indra Regent Hotel, Bangkok
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