The journey home

I'm excited to be going home today.  Real home.  Back to fresh air, big sky, flowering jacaranda trees and... Ross!  

Dad meets me in the lobby at 8am and sees me into the taxi for the hour long journey to the airport.  It's a long time to be sitting in a cab and the driver is particularly friendly.  By the time we've reached the airport, he's serenaded me with various hits from the 1980s, excitedly yelped 'I love you baby!' a few times, refused to let me leave the cab without swapping numbers and even given me a hug outside the airport.  Wow.  I can't remember HK cabbies ever being this friendly!

Fortunately check-in is a better experience this time round than on the journey over here and all that's left to do is to kill some time before boarding the plane to Singapore.

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Although Singapore is a little over 3hrs from Hong Kong, it becomes a very ... long ... flight.  Take off is delayed while bags are offloaded for a no-show passenger.  I also get stuck right at the back of the plane with a Mainland tour group.  Definitely a lack of basic travel etiquette going on.  So here are some things that are definitely uncool to do on a plane:

• Suck noisily on rockmelon and then lick your hands;
• Snort and then hoick phlegm into a paper bag;
• Take off your seatbelt and wander around the aisles looking for the toilet when the plane is actually taxi-ing to the runway and even cabin crew are buckled in (this causes crew to exclaim loudly and shout at you to SIT DOWN IMMEDIATELY);
• Snore loudly;
• Sit bolt upright and watch the food trolley as it approaches and then chatter more and more excitedly the closer it gets (this is only acceptable for those aged 5 and under);
• Reach over your fellow passenger and grab at drinks when the trolley finally arrives so much so that cabin crew just give up and serve you first;
• Handing your phlegmy paper bag to unsuspecting cabin crew as they walk past;
• Jumping up and trying to grab your things from overhead lockers before the plane has even reached the terminal.

Oh and did I mention the lady a couple of seats down was throwing up into a bag during the flight too?  The time couldn't go fast enough.

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Ah Changi Airport, what a blessed haven of calm. 

Christmas trees at Changi Airport

I have a couple of hours until my Qantas flight (provided they're flying today:) so I walk over to Terminal 3 and visit the Butterfly Garden.  I'm so glad I did, it's absolutely amazing.  There is a koi pond outside and step through the chain curtain and you're a million miles away from the airport.  It's hot and humid and the colourful butterflies flutter and play in the lush green vegetation.

Singapore Changi Airport Butterfly Garden

Butterfly Garden

Terminal 3 is further away than I thought so I catch the Skytrain back to Terminal 1 just in time for boarding.  It isn't a full flight so I have the luxury of an empty seat next to me and JOY! My audio system is working so I can just sit back and relax for the next 5 hours.

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Home home home home.  So nice to be home.  It's a warm night and there is lightning flickering and the distant rumble of thunder as I climb the steps to my building.  1am - home again to a hug and a blissful comfortable sleep.