We left Hong Kong today by taxi to the airport, as the driver’s first pick up he was proud to proclaim, and departed on an Emirates 777 to Dubai. We took off towards the east and before we could see the city we were in cloud. A brief respite in the cloud cover enabled us to see northwest India and then the approach over the desert to Dubai.
Upon arrival we saw the A380 that would form our next leg of the journey home. Dubai International airport is massive and amazing that since we were last there in 1996 it has been transformed into a major international hub. Emirates, for example, at the time of writing, operate 98 A380s.
Upon checking in we were pleasantly surprised to have been upgraded. Having spent more than 8 hours at the back of a 777 we were now about to go upstairs in Business Class.
We departed on time, though upstairs it is like looking through a set of binoculars the wrong way. Presumably business people don’t have the time or inclination to look out the window!! The service and food was brilliant, but without the onboard cameras and maps of the route one wouldn’t know where one was until landing. We flew over Iran and across Turkey before joining the regular route across the Balkans, Austria, Germany and the world’s busiest crossing between Ostend and Dover.
By Derby there were some clear spots, but by Manchester encompassed the plane and not until the arrival at the gate did we recognise anything.
A quick tot up for our amazing journey shows that we travelled 17,270 miles.
Watch this space for more travels.