Finally got the gate assignment for my flight in Melbourne.
I realised how tired I was when after watching the safety demo (Could almost deliver it) I must have fallen asleep as the next thing I remember is waking up to the announcement that we were at 23,000 feet and climbing to cruise altitude.
They served afternoon tea (Salmon with a light salad) and that kept me busy for a while.
We had to wait to land at hobart for a few minutes. Three aircraft left Tullamarine (Virgin, Jetstar and Qantas) within 5 minutes of each other. I was wondering which would get to Hobart first.
Virgin followed by Jetstar and then Qantas.
Finally got my luggage as it was obviously loaded first and so unloaded last.
Thought I might have to wait for a taxi but there was no queue and two taxi's waiting.
Nice to be home.
Turned back one everything that I had turned off for safety reasons and it all worked.
Went to the local shop and got some food for dinner and then went to bed. Woke up this morning at about 3:00am and cant get back to sleep.
Friday, 23 August 2013
Thursday, 22 August 2013
Flying
Left Chicago on schedule at 18:40 and arrived at Dallas half an hour early and had to wait on the tarmac until the plane occupying our gate left. This is the first time I have flown on a MD-80 aircraft. It is a about the size of the A319 but has one very unusual feature.
There is one extra escape slide deployed from the tail of the aircraft. The cone at the rear of the aircraft can be removed. Only used on land otherwise it would flood the aircraft.
Dallas Fort Worth is a great airport (Thanks Tim). Has a train running between all of the terminals inside of the security perimeter. The train arrived at the gate from which my flight was due to leave and they had a staff member waiting to direct people to the Qantas flight.
My seat on the 747-400 was on the upper deck.The only problem with these was that when I stood up too fast I hit my head on the overhead lockers. Other than that they are the same seats as the A380, so you can lay flat and get some sleep.
As usual in Business Class they feed you too well. We had a meal after departure and they let us get some sleep and then gave us breakfast about 2:00am Brisbane time.
The best gadget I took with me was the Casio G-Shock watch. You just change the city you are in and it knows the timezone so I just changed to Chicago and it reset itself.
A flight of nearly 16 hours and 13,500 km's in one hit is long but being able to get some sleep helped.
Discovered that this flight actually goes to Sydney as well as Brisbane. But I don't think it would have been any quicker as they get all the passengers off at Brisbane and back through security before waiting an hour to re-board the same plane to Sydney.
Not many people got off at Brisbane because there was no queue for Customs and only about 10 people waiting to collect luggage. Got my luggage and re-checked it through to Hobart.
Although I had to wait about an hour for my flight to Melbourne it would have been about the same.
Waiting in the Melbourne Qantas Lounge for my next flight (14:55) to Hobart.
I am still feeling a little bit sleepy but I don't think the jet-lag is going to be too bad on this leg. Looking forward to getting home.
My flight arrives at 16:10 today.
There is one extra escape slide deployed from the tail of the aircraft. The cone at the rear of the aircraft can be removed. Only used on land otherwise it would flood the aircraft.
Dallas Fort Worth is a great airport (Thanks Tim). Has a train running between all of the terminals inside of the security perimeter. The train arrived at the gate from which my flight was due to leave and they had a staff member waiting to direct people to the Qantas flight.
My seat on the 747-400 was on the upper deck.The only problem with these was that when I stood up too fast I hit my head on the overhead lockers. Other than that they are the same seats as the A380, so you can lay flat and get some sleep.
As usual in Business Class they feed you too well. We had a meal after departure and they let us get some sleep and then gave us breakfast about 2:00am Brisbane time.
The best gadget I took with me was the Casio G-Shock watch. You just change the city you are in and it knows the timezone so I just changed to Chicago and it reset itself.
A flight of nearly 16 hours and 13,500 km's in one hit is long but being able to get some sleep helped.
Discovered that this flight actually goes to Sydney as well as Brisbane. But I don't think it would have been any quicker as they get all the passengers off at Brisbane and back through security before waiting an hour to re-board the same plane to Sydney.
Not many people got off at Brisbane because there was no queue for Customs and only about 10 people waiting to collect luggage. Got my luggage and re-checked it through to Hobart.
Although I had to wait about an hour for my flight to Melbourne it would have been about the same.
Waiting in the Melbourne Qantas Lounge for my next flight (14:55) to Hobart.
I am still feeling a little bit sleepy but I don't think the jet-lag is going to be too bad on this leg. Looking forward to getting home.
My flight arrives at 16:10 today.
Wednesday, 21 August 2013
Waiting
Decided to get some dinner as the flight doesn't depart until 18:40 and I don't know whether we will get a meal.
Got a Reggio's Pizza (Small). Very Tasty but wouldn't want to eat it every day.
There are a lot of food choice's but I thought McDonalds or Asian was pretty routine.
They have checked my luggage all the way to Hobart.
The flight to Dallas is 2:30 and I have 1:05 in Dallas to change planes and then a 16 hour flight to Brisbane.
Then Brisbane to Melbourne and a 5 hour wait then onto Hobart.
Got a Reggio's Pizza (Small). Very Tasty but wouldn't want to eat it every day.
There are a lot of food choice's but I thought McDonalds or Asian was pretty routine.
They have checked my luggage all the way to Hobart.
The flight to Dallas is 2:30 and I have 1:05 in Dallas to change planes and then a 16 hour flight to Brisbane.
Then Brisbane to Melbourne and a 5 hour wait then onto Hobart.
At O'Hare
Waiting for my flight after passing through security.
O'Hare is bigger than Melbourne/Sydney Airport
Packing and Travel
I have had such a busy weekend at the convention I haven't had time to do anything.
It started at 9:00 on Saturday and finished as 11:00 pm after the autograph sessions.
Sunday started early at 08:00 and finished about 7:00pm with photo shoots.
I got all of the autographs and photos I wanted. It was a lot of waiting in queues for photos and autographs but great fun.
I went on a bus tour of Chicago yesterday (Monday). It was one of those Hop-on/off tours and it gave me a chance to see the city. Got a free T-Shirt with the ticket which was advertising for the company.
Took a lot of photo's. I think I will need to replace the battery in the Panasonic camera as it is not lasting long enough.
Just packing for the flight from Chicago to Dallas and then on to Brisbane and then Melbourne and then Hobart. I will get into Hobart about 16:00 on the 22nd August (about 30 hours total) this includes waiting in Melbourne for 5 hours. About time for lunch though between flights.
Looking forward to getting home. This has been a great trip but a little bit too long.
I crazy thing happened. The Micro SD card in my phone died suddenly. I plugged it into my Mac and it isn't even recognised as a device. Will have a closed look at it when I get back and get Harvey Norman to replace it under warranty if it really has failed.
I had already uploaded all of the photos that were on it to Dropbox so it was that much of a problem. I will however carry a backup of audio books that are normally on the card. The phone has about 9Gb left of internal storage so I downloaded some of the audio books again.
If I am feeling alright on Friday I might pop in for morning tea.
It started at 9:00 on Saturday and finished as 11:00 pm after the autograph sessions.
Sunday started early at 08:00 and finished about 7:00pm with photo shoots.
I got all of the autographs and photos I wanted. It was a lot of waiting in queues for photos and autographs but great fun.
I went on a bus tour of Chicago yesterday (Monday). It was one of those Hop-on/off tours and it gave me a chance to see the city. Got a free T-Shirt with the ticket which was advertising for the company.
Took a lot of photo's. I think I will need to replace the battery in the Panasonic camera as it is not lasting long enough.
Just packing for the flight from Chicago to Dallas and then on to Brisbane and then Melbourne and then Hobart. I will get into Hobart about 16:00 on the 22nd August (about 30 hours total) this includes waiting in Melbourne for 5 hours. About time for lunch though between flights.
Looking forward to getting home. This has been a great trip but a little bit too long.
I crazy thing happened. The Micro SD card in my phone died suddenly. I plugged it into my Mac and it isn't even recognised as a device. Will have a closed look at it when I get back and get Harvey Norman to replace it under warranty if it really has failed.
I had already uploaded all of the photos that were on it to Dropbox so it was that much of a problem. I will however carry a backup of audio books that are normally on the card. The phone has about 9Gb left of internal storage so I downloaded some of the audio books again.
If I am feeling alright on Friday I might pop in for morning tea.
Saturday, 17 August 2013
Train and Convention
Got up early feeling a little better and had breakfast and walked down to the train station and bought an unlimited travel pass which lasts for 7 days and rode the train into Chicago (about 25 minutes) and then further on to see some of the suburbs.
One large city is just like another from the suburbs. Only older cities like London and Edinburgh have very different architectural styles.
Stayed on the train most of the way out to Forest Park the other side of Chicago. The train is both elevated, surface and underground sections.
Got out in Chicago station and went for a walk around the area. Plan to go on a bus tour on Monday.
Returned to the hotel for Convention registration at 13:45pm. Took about 45 minutes in the queue even though everyone there had prepaid for there tickets.
Got my wristband and pass. This convention unlike most don't include the photographs in autograph signings so you have to buy them. The queue was very long so I thought I would come back later.
Went and found my seat in the theatre. Was quite good. As I decided late it isn't front row but on the right side aisle so I can stand up to take a photo with out obstructing people's view.
Went and got the photographs I wanted and went to the first talk which was Alexis Cruz. He was quite entertaining.
One large city is just like another from the suburbs. Only older cities like London and Edinburgh have very different architectural styles.
Stayed on the train most of the way out to Forest Park the other side of Chicago. The train is both elevated, surface and underground sections.
Got out in Chicago station and went for a walk around the area. Plan to go on a bus tour on Monday.
Returned to the hotel for Convention registration at 13:45pm. Took about 45 minutes in the queue even though everyone there had prepaid for there tickets.
Got my wristband and pass. This convention unlike most don't include the photographs in autograph signings so you have to buy them. The queue was very long so I thought I would come back later.
Went and found my seat in the theatre. Was quite good. As I decided late it isn't front row but on the right side aisle so I can stand up to take a photo with out obstructing people's view.
Went and got the photographs I wanted and went to the first talk which was Alexis Cruz. He was quite entertaining.
Thursday, 15 August 2013
Thursday in Chicago
I am suffering from the worst case of jetlag I have ever had. Hotel room is really comfortable.
The hotel is well equipped with a cafe and shop in the foyer and a nice restaurant.
Tried to get some sleep but couldn't so went for a short walk down to the nearest railway station.
Just lounged around the hotel during the day and watched a movie 'Now you see me' which is about four magicians and worth a watch.
In Chicago
The flight from Heathrow departed on time. It was an American Airline Boeing 777-200 and the business class seats are almost as good as Qantas Business class.
They seemed to have got everybody on the second flight that were booked on the first flight.
The food was quite good and I did get a little bit of sleep but also watched a couple of movies on the inflight entertainment system.
Arrived in Chicago to beautiful weather and a about 30 minute wait for immigration. The airline must have been a bit rough as one of the straps I use on the outside of the case for additional strength had the plastic connector broken.
Just checked in at the hotel. I am on the seventh floor and view is not bad. The Internet access is not too expensive at $17.95 per day for up to three devices.
My passport is suddenly getting a lot of stamps (British, French and US).
Just checking out the Bus/Train options for Chicago. The railway station is just down the road from the hotel and I can get an unlimited travel card for $33.
There is also the same type of Hop-on/off bus tours here so I will probably go on one of those as they are good value.
I leave Chicago next tuesday afternoon (20th) and arrive back in Australia on the 22nd.
Although the trip has been very interesting I don't think I will try anything this complicated again.
They seemed to have got everybody on the second flight that were booked on the first flight.
The food was quite good and I did get a little bit of sleep but also watched a couple of movies on the inflight entertainment system.
Arrived in Chicago to beautiful weather and a about 30 minute wait for immigration. The airline must have been a bit rough as one of the straps I use on the outside of the case for additional strength had the plastic connector broken.
Just checked in at the hotel. I am on the seventh floor and view is not bad. The Internet access is not too expensive at $17.95 per day for up to three devices.
My passport is suddenly getting a lot of stamps (British, French and US).
Just checking out the Bus/Train options for Chicago. The railway station is just down the road from the hotel and I can get an unlimited travel card for $33.
There is also the same type of Hop-on/off bus tours here so I will probably go on one of those as they are good value.
I leave Chicago next tuesday afternoon (20th) and arrive back in Australia on the 22nd.
Although the trip has been very interesting I don't think I will try anything this complicated again.
Wednesday, 14 August 2013
Leaving for Chicago
Arrived at Heathrow early to find my flight had been cancelled. They have rebooked me on the 10:15 flight. I get access to the American Airlines Admirals Club so the wait won't be too bad.
Tuesday, 13 August 2013
Bus Tour in London
I had booked a bus/river tour today to cover the last few things on my must see list in London.
The traditional Ravens which inhabit the grounds of the Tower. The story is that the crown will fall if the Ravens leave. There wings are clipped so they can't fly away.
Two Panoramic views of the grounds of the tower
- River Cruise on the Thames
- Tower of London
- Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace.
- St. Paul's Cathedral.
- Afternoon tea at Harrod's Georgian Restaurant.
This tour company is the same firm that I went on the Paris trip with.
The tour guide Allan is certainly knowledgable about the things we are seeing.
We finished the cruise at London Bridge and walked up to the Tower of London. There was no waiting at the entrance and we met with the Yeoman Warder who was to be our guide for the first part of the tour.
He talked about the requirements for becoming a yeoman warder (22 years military service + at the least the rank of Sergeant Major).
Some of the history of the tower itself. Like most of these sights it has a gruesome history.
I didn't expect a polar bear at the tower but this model of a polar bear represents a period when the tower was a zoo.
The traditional Ravens which inhabit the grounds of the Tower. The story is that the crown will fall if the Ravens leave. There wings are clipped so they can't fly away.
Two Panoramic views of the grounds of the tower
Got in the queue to view the Crown Jewels. A Very good exhibit including some animation of historical events. You view the crown jewels from a moving walkway so people can't linger.
Moved onto the changing of the guard. The guide didn't try to get in front off Buckingham Palace but at the guards barracks just down the road so we saw the guard from about 6 feet away.
Moved onto St. Paul's Cathedral. No photography is allowed inside. I decided to give the Whispering Gallery a go. It is 259 Steps up from ground level. Not that bad actually as they are very shallow steps (About half the height).
I don't like heights but I am getting better at dealing with it. The view from the whispering gallery of the whole cathedral floor.
Walked around the Cathedral Floor. It is a superb piece of architecture. I have seen a number of churches and cathedrals and this must be the most impressive.
Next stop was Harrod's Georgian Restaurant for afternoon tea.
Champagne followed by tea and scones. It was very good. The scones are not quit what you would find in Australia but very tasty. Got seated with two people from Canada (Father and Son).
Looked through the store. Didn't seriously look at anything and decided to call it a day. Went to Knightsbridge Underground Station and skipped the first three trains as they were packed and coming at about 1-2 minute intervals going to Cockfosters or Arnos Grove on the Piccadilly line which passes Kings Cross.
Got back to Kings Cross.
Sunday, 11 August 2013
Edinburgh To London Train
Left Edinburgh at 10:00am on Saturday via East Coast Railway. It takes about 4:30 for the trip and the North Sea was calm and the weather fine.
They served sandwiches in first class and the seat's are quite comfortable, well worth the extra money.
Arrived at Kings Cross and checked back into the Great Northern Hotel.
As I didn't get much sleep friday night. My room in Edinburgh was above the path leading from the Royal Mile to the Hotel so late night Fringe traffic was noisy.
Went and got some takeaway from one of the shops in the railway station and got an early night.
They served sandwiches in first class and the seat's are quite comfortable, well worth the extra money.
Arrived at Kings Cross and checked back into the Great Northern Hotel.
As I didn't get much sleep friday night. My room in Edinburgh was above the path leading from the Royal Mile to the Hotel so late night Fringe traffic was noisy.
Went and got some takeaway from one of the shops in the railway station and got an early night.
Saturday, 10 August 2013
Loch Ness Bus Trip
Went on a bus trip to Loch Ness today.
It goes from Edinburgh to Loch Ness and we stopped a couple of times for food and facilities breaks.
The first stop was a small town called Callander where they have a shop and a 21 year bull. We were warned not to touch as a tourist had recently pulled on his horns and now has quite a few stitches in his face as a results.
We stopped at Glen Coe where a massacre took place in 1692.
Arrived at Fort Augustus on Loch Ness at 13:30 after a long trip with about 1 hour in stops for breaks.
Some of the locals are trying to get the name of the town changed from Fort Augustus to another name as Fort William and Augustus have negative historical connotations.
We got sandwiches, water, shortbread and an apple for lunch. I took these on the cruise as it took about an hour.
The company runs two types of trips, the nice quiet cruise and the fast boat trip.
They have a fairly sophisticated Sonar system on the boat which shows 3D images of the loch as we moved along it. The loch is over 600 feet deep in places.
We stopped at another place after leaving Loch Ness for a break and then finally got off of the very winding roads from Fort Augustus to the main highway.
It goes from Edinburgh to Loch Ness and we stopped a couple of times for food and facilities breaks.
The first stop was a small town called Callander where they have a shop and a 21 year bull. We were warned not to touch as a tourist had recently pulled on his horns and now has quite a few stitches in his face as a results.
We stopped at Glen Coe where a massacre took place in 1692.
Arrived at Fort Augustus on Loch Ness at 13:30 after a long trip with about 1 hour in stops for breaks.
Some of the locals are trying to get the name of the town changed from Fort Augustus to another name as Fort William and Augustus have negative historical connotations.
We got sandwiches, water, shortbread and an apple for lunch. I took these on the cruise as it took about an hour.
The company runs two types of trips, the nice quiet cruise and the fast boat trip.
They have a fairly sophisticated Sonar system on the boat which shows 3D images of the loch as we moved along it. The loch is over 600 feet deep in places.
We stopped at another place after leaving Loch Ness for a break and then finally got off of the very winding roads from Fort Augustus to the main highway.
Friday, 9 August 2013
Bus Tour
Used the bus tour part of my Tattoo tickets and went sightseeing.
After two times around the city I decided to go on the castle tour and see some more of the castle.
They charge extra for the audio guide device (3.50 pounds) but it is a good commentary mostly by the same person as did the Master of Ceremonies for the Tattoo.
Looked through the Military Museum that is in the Castle.
Had some lunch in the cafe that operates in the same space as we had dinner last night and the guy who was our waiter was at the checkout.
Nice Salmon and Cream Cheese Sandwich.
I wanted to see the Scottish Crown Jewels and The Stone of Destiny. The stone will be transported back to Westminster Abbey for future coronations of Kings or Queens of England. There is no photography in that display.
Went to the Scottish War Memorial and it is very simple appropriate display remembering Scottish serviceman killed in conflicts. On one of the memorials is the encounter between HMAS Sydney and the SMS Emden. I will have to research why that is in a Scottish War Memorial.
That is a slow process as there was a slow moving queue to see them (They are in a vault). The Stone of Destiny was returned by the current Queen after residing in Westminster.
Bought one small souvenir.
And Edinburgh finally had the weather you sort of expect. It is raining so I got a little wet walking back to the hotel. It is not a long walk from the Castle to my hotel. Just down the Royal Mile and through a close which comes out at the back of the hotel.
After two times around the city I decided to go on the castle tour and see some more of the castle.
They charge extra for the audio guide device (3.50 pounds) but it is a good commentary mostly by the same person as did the Master of Ceremonies for the Tattoo.
Looked through the Military Museum that is in the Castle.
Had some lunch in the cafe that operates in the same space as we had dinner last night and the guy who was our waiter was at the checkout.
Nice Salmon and Cream Cheese Sandwich.
Went to the Scottish War Memorial and it is very simple appropriate display remembering Scottish serviceman killed in conflicts. On one of the memorials is the encounter between HMAS Sydney and the SMS Emden. I will have to research why that is in a Scottish War Memorial.
That is a slow process as there was a slow moving queue to see them (They are in a vault). The Stone of Destiny was returned by the current Queen after residing in Westminster.
Bought one small souvenir.
And Edinburgh finally had the weather you sort of expect. It is raining so I got a little wet walking back to the hotel. It is not a long walk from the Castle to my hotel. Just down the Royal Mile and through a close which comes out at the back of the hotel.
Thursday, 8 August 2013
Tattoo
Picked up my tickets to the Edinburgh Military Tattoo this afternoon for this evening.
How did they handle the 8000 people that the seating holds. Very Well. They managed to marshall the 8000 people out of there seats and out through the castle entrance into High Street in about 15 minutes. There are some other events I have been to which didn't do any where as good as that.
The DVD release should be available in October. It is produced by the BBC and I am definitely going to order a copy.
Every large souvenir I have looked at buying is also available by mail order so I might wait until I get back and order a few things. I even looked at a kilt but didn't know when I would wear it.
Some of the photos from the Tattoo
The view from the Jacobite room where we had dinner before the Tattoo.
After dinner we walked across the drawbridge to our seats which were directly opposite looking towards the castle gate.
The view from my seat (Section 8 Row V Seat 9)
Just got back.
The tickets I bought included dinner first in the castle.
They served a very nice roast beef with roast potatoes, carrots, zuchini and peas along with Yorkshire Pudding along with wine and champagne.
I don't normally drink scotch whisky but couldn't resist trying some. This is not part of the ticket price ($400) but only 3.75 pounds. Although scotland is part of the UK you sometimes get change in notes issued by the Bank of Scotland.
It started to rain during dinner but eased off later on except for about five minutes with light drizzle. Luckily the woman at the ticket office recommended I take a coat. We also got a rain poncho as part of out ticket so didn't get wet.
We were escorted down to our seats which were in the stands facing the castle entrance itself. This year they dedicated the event to the 60th aniversary of the Korean Conflict and the 500th aniversary of the Battle of Flodden.
It was a great show. The Master of Ceremonies went through a list of countries and asked who was from them. It seems Australia is well represented (about 5%) with the US and Scandinavia also well represented.
They use the castle as a screen for what must be a very large video projector as it mounted above where I was sitting but the image was bright and clear.
The only annoying thing is people who don't know how to turn off the flash on there cameras. There was plenty of light to take photos without flash.
The only thing we didn't get tonight was the RAF fly past but you still hear the sound effect.
The fireworks at the end were great.
The national anthem at the end. I am amazed that I still remember the words to God Save the Queen from school assemblies.
How did they handle the 8000 people that the seating holds. Very Well. They managed to marshall the 8000 people out of there seats and out through the castle entrance into High Street in about 15 minutes. There are some other events I have been to which didn't do any where as good as that.
The DVD release should be available in October. It is produced by the BBC and I am definitely going to order a copy.
Every large souvenir I have looked at buying is also available by mail order so I might wait until I get back and order a few things. I even looked at a kilt but didn't know when I would wear it.
Some of the photos from the Tattoo
The view from the Jacobite room where we had dinner before the Tattoo.
After dinner we walked across the drawbridge to our seats which were directly opposite looking towards the castle gate.
The view from my seat (Section 8 Row V Seat 9)
Going on a sight seeing bus around Edinburgh tomorrow and then a Loch Ness and Highlands tour on Friday and back to London on Saturday before flying out to Chicago on Wednesday.
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