by Graeme H » Wed Nov 15, 2017 10:54 am
Well it was a long journey, but I made it there and back again, call me Bilbo Baggins.
Caught up with Antoney Wilkinson, making his first trip, this was my 12th
Really short trip, out last Wednesday, back last night, 6 days in all, did the show and Cosford Air Museum, survived the traumas of UK traffic and weather and such. There is not much point in my staying longer when travelling solo, as I have as the saying goes, been there done that.
Mostly because I got a fantastic price on a ticket with Etihad for $1380.22 return, although in Economy, and haven't done that for a long time, good thing was it was from BNE to MAN, none of this going half way across Australia and then driving up from London rubbish, so just a stop in BNE and AUH (Abu Dhabi) each way, caught up with Ansett A330 at BNE both ways.
Etihad were OK to fly with, the catering was just Ok, the IFE was also just OK, go a spare seat beside me on all sectors, and whole row a few times, so could lay out, pretty good really, although I don't sleep well on planes even in FCLS or JCLS, got to start and finish the latest Jack Reacher novel on the way over, was on a B787-9 all the way over, with a 4 hour layover in AUH, and a B777-300 & B787-9 on the way back with a 2.5 hour layover in AUH, pretty damn good in all ways. The B787-9 is much smaller inside than I thought even though it was a -9, I had a window seat in row 13 on the AUH MAN sector and can tell you those engines are massive, sitting right beside the LH one.
So got home last night at 2150 and had a long sleep, and back into the normal routine of a retired person now.
In all I think this could have cost me in the region of about $3000, but well worth it
Now I have to get to the England team playing Cricket right here in Townsville against the Cricket Australia XI, which has already started so need to get a move on
Graeme