Departure day has finally arrived! Coffee in bed and the continuous playing over and over in my head; What do we need to do before being picked up at 9:15am and Have I packed everything?

It is still with some trepidation and a lot of excitement that I am so looking forward to our first overseas journey since COVID lockdown. It instilled in us to be happy in the insullar surroundings of our home. 

This trip is now Real!

We had arranged a car to pick us up and take us to Sydney International. Looks like a great day to fly. Our trip will take as long as it takes Karen and Richard to fly from Brisbane to Sydney.

In another 3-4 years our trip to the Western Sydney Airport will be 15 minutes.. it is coming together.

We arrived at the airport,with plenty of spare time. 

Checked in baggage and went through customs. Everything is much more streamlined then it used to be.

Life is tough in the Qantas 1st Lounge, a glass of champagne with lunch.. and great company, with Richard and Karen 💕

Our departure in Sydney was not without its share of challenges, as an overheated cabin had caused us a delay with boarding the plane. We were called to the gate to prepare to board, only to be advised if the problem with the plane cooling system. So we hightailed it back to the Qantas lounge and grabbed another drink and another of that fabulous ferry floss desert.

With just had time I scoff the desert and were called  to board the plane for the 2nd time.  We got settled in our seats, buckled up and we were off. 

First stop Singapore 🇸🇬

After watching many a movie. Some snacks and a bit of rereading, we arrived in Singapore for a quick hour and a half stopover. Because our flight was delayed from Sydney, our stop would be shorter. We navigated through the bustling airport to reach the oasis of the first-class lounge. There, we indulged in a much-needed wash and refresh, shedding the weariness of our previous flight. The lounge offered an array of tempting snacks that provided a welcome respite and change of scenery. However we really got our snacks delivered and had to hastily make our way back to the gate. Reinvigorated to some extent  we gathered our belongings and left to  return to the departure gate.

The next phase of our journey was rather long and boring. Drifting in and out of consiousness after leaving Singapore  I awoke to a sight I never imagined I would see. The bright shining lights of the city of Baghdad, Iraq. Flight paths for many years avoided these sky corridors, but here we were. 

 

With legs squashed and no room to really stretch it was a decidedly long journey and I vowed I would not fly straight through without a proper stopover again. 

We arrived at Heathrow at 8.46am and were through customs very quickly. Certainly things have been modernised at the airports. The whole customs process is much more streamlined.

We made our way to taxi rank and got a cab to Linda’s and Roys at Northolt which is about half an hour out of the city.  It was lovely to see them both we had a quick k catch up hat a cup of good old English tea and decided to have a nap which turned into a couple of hours. I think it was much needed. 

We had a quick dinner and enjoyed a wine or two in the evening and had an early night. We were ready to get started with our few days in London.