Goodbye Bangkok~ Hello Sydney
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It wasn't on the itinerary, but apparently it is a known
feature of the flight to Australia. At two o'clock this afternoon we landed in
Bangkok, Thailand. It is a pleasant surprise that put me on the continent of
Asia for the first time in my life. Though. I am not sure that I should count
it as I am not going to get the opportunity to leave the airport; it is only a
two-hour layover as they refuel and clean the plane. In a couple hours we will
continue the journey to Australia.
A thunderstorm must have recently blown through. There is
water on the runways and the grass looks wet. There are banks of
cumulonimbus a couple miles away, or what seems to be a
couple miles away. But for all that, the landing is smooth and comfortable.
The captain announced as we landed the temperature.
"It's a balmy 32°
outside right now. That is, of course, Celsius. For those of you who use the
Fahrenheit scale, that would be… uh… really warm." Since I only know the
quick and dirty rule of thumb "double it and add 30," I take it to
mean that it is somewhere in the mid-nineties outside.
And yes, it feels like it! It is hot and muggy here, and
my first impression of Thailand is that it reminds me a lot of South Florida;
but South Florida when I was young. Perhaps it is just the angle at which we
came in, but there seems to be very little by the airport. The airport itself
seems large and unkempt, as if it has been a couple weeks since the grass was
mowed.
Luckily, one of the perks of my upgrade is membership in
the business class lounge for British Airways. It is clean, cool, and comfy and
it is just one of the perks of traveling business class. They make a killer
green curry here. Yum! I do have one thing that I would change if, by some
miracle I get to go back to the UK; I will be packing a change of clothing in a
case that can easily be carried in my carry-on. There is a shower in the business
class lounge, and I would love to be able to get clean and changed… oh well,
next time!
Right now, I suppose I should get ready for my continued
trip on to Australia. The plane is leaving in about an hour.
Wherever you are today, I hope that you have a pleasant
surprise!
Don Bergquist – 29 July 2011 – Bangkok International Airport, Bangkok, Thailand
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