Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Airports are boring.
We left Nadi yesterday morning to get to Singapore, but had to stop in Sydney for what ended up to be over three hours- and there is absolutely nothing to do there. we landed and had to go straight to the departure lounge area, because we were transferring flights - no problems there! But w e soon realised we were in for something of a tedious wait. A few issues presented themselves:
- We didn't have any Australian dollars, and didn't really want to get any out, and so our choices of things to do were limited because -
- Unless you want to eat or shop, airports are useless.
- We didn't want to read much because we had a long flight and our books would prove invaluable here.
We had to make our own entertainment. There was a soft play area and a cinema for kids, but unless you wanted to watch 'Days of Our Lives' on the few TVs dotted around, we were stuck twiddling our thumbs. (Although, to spice that up, we twiddled each others for a while - I was particularly good at doing Dans!) There is more to do on a plane: music, movies, watching small oriental people struggle to open their moist towel - believe me that was a sight. I thought his head might explode. He was so keen to refresh himself, he failed to see the perforations.
Good times.
I think the airports could learn a thing or two from malls around the globe. Stop spending money on new terminals and escalators, and throw in some arcade games, karaoke stalls, and even a one screen cinema. It wouldn't take much. Support me on my campaign to improve the world's airport experience!
So, rant over.
The flights themselves flew by (get it!!), and last night at 22:15 local time, we landed in Singapore.
So far, our experience has varied. The view flying in was different to anything we have seen so far. Lights shone all over the city, flashing and twinkling, carving out the different districts and suburbs; clearly defined illuminated areas providing a bright illuminated map of the city. The plane seemed like it was weaving high rise buildings, whilst the river was dotted with barges and boats, appearing from above as if whales were wearing head torches! The airport was the best we have been to yet, breezing through passport control within 10 minutes, and our bags were already there waiting for us - no exaggeration. 20 minutes after we landed we had booked our shuttle bus and were waiting to go to our accomodation.
Or so we thoughtt.
The problem came when we got to the place we wanted to say. Having gotten a bit complacent with this backpacking lark, we hadn't actually booked, figuring we could just turn up and get a room - like everywhere else we had been.
Apparently not.
They had one bed and Dan was unwilling to share, so we had to go elsewhere.
The next place had no room, kindly offering us a mattress on the roof if we couldn't find anywhere, but was disinclined to offer it straight off in case it rained - which seemed fair enough.
So there we were - midnight now, after travelling from the airport and attempting to find a bed - wandering around Singapore, not really sure where we were or where to go. Eventually we found a hotel that was open, and had some room. Typically (and we think dishonestly), the lady at reception said all the dorm beds had been taken, and only the deluxe room was available. A little more than we were hoping to pay, all of a sudden that roof was looking good.
But we were tired, and had been on the move pretty much all day, so we took it. We have had a night of luxury - TV, towels, and complimentary tea - and are now ready to return to squallor.
We have found a cheaper, damp little room for the next night, and are off now to explore this city. First impressions are what counts, and so far I think we are both pretty impressed. We can't wait to see what the place has to offer - and even better now we are back in the sort of squallor we had in India.
Back to basics, back to backpacking - back to the adventure!
- comments