Airports
Greetings from the Bangkok Airport, the second of four I will have visited by 9am Australia time tomorrow morning. Leaving Hanoi was relatively simple, though the immigration officer's appeal for a second opinion regarding the validity of my port of entry into Vietnam gave me a little scare. Bangkok, however, wasn't nearly so simple, and the ultra efficient service on my Thai Airways flight only exagerated the chaos I experienced here. Long story short, I'm lucky to be leaving on the correct flight (emergency exit seat!) at the correct time.
My three hours in transit at BKK began right after I picked up, and paid dearly for, my two other pieces of luggage I had stored here while I traveled around Laos and Vietnam. Knowing I had a 20 kg limit with Vietnam Airlines, I had spent a lot of time planning how to redistribute the weight and deciding which items I could shed in order to avoid paying another heavy penalty for having excess luggage like I did when leaving Dhaka.
As is stands, therefore, I'm now no longer responsible for a few pairs of socks and underwear, which I ditched in a nearby washroom, nor the heavy and excessively large shag carpet hanging my Bangladeshi colleagues gave me as a departure gift. I feel guilty about it, but it was destined for my trunk if I had brought it home and I have plenty of other Bdeshi hangings and other paraphanalia to remind me of the six months I spent in the country. One need not even mention the fact that it would have saved both sides a few uncomfortable decisions if they had considered our luggage limitations in the first place.
The remaining heavy stuff went into my two carry on bags, and when I finally was able to check in I weighed in at 29kg, 5 kg overweight. That's when I turned on bargaining hat, and somehow I managed to get away with not paying the 2800 baht, about 60 CAD, overweight charges. Note to self: check in with female ticket agents
whenever possible.
With that behind me I thought I was in the clear, but I was soon told that I needed a Visa for Australia - the first time I had heard of such a thing, but that's mostly my fault. Fortunately the Aussies have their act together and have created an online (ETA) visa service that grants eligible visitors with an electronic visa in a matter of minutes. A quick stop at the internet cafe (where I am now) across from the ticket counter resulted in a 3 month tourist visa for yours truly (40 AUD later...), and my problems were solved.
I board my flight to Sydney (changing planes in Ho Chi Minh City, or Saigon, Vietnam) in a matter of minutes, so I'd best be off. Next dateline: Sydney, Australia.
My three hours in transit at BKK began right after I picked up, and paid dearly for, my two other pieces of luggage I had stored here while I traveled around Laos and Vietnam. Knowing I had a 20 kg limit with Vietnam Airlines, I had spent a lot of time planning how to redistribute the weight and deciding which items I could shed in order to avoid paying another heavy penalty for having excess luggage like I did when leaving Dhaka.
As is stands, therefore, I'm now no longer responsible for a few pairs of socks and underwear, which I ditched in a nearby washroom, nor the heavy and excessively large shag carpet hanging my Bangladeshi colleagues gave me as a departure gift. I feel guilty about it, but it was destined for my trunk if I had brought it home and I have plenty of other Bdeshi hangings and other paraphanalia to remind me of the six months I spent in the country. One need not even mention the fact that it would have saved both sides a few uncomfortable decisions if they had considered our luggage limitations in the first place.
The remaining heavy stuff went into my two carry on bags, and when I finally was able to check in I weighed in at 29kg, 5 kg overweight. That's when I turned on bargaining hat, and somehow I managed to get away with not paying the 2800 baht, about 60 CAD, overweight charges. Note to self: check in with female ticket agents
whenever possible.
With that behind me I thought I was in the clear, but I was soon told that I needed a Visa for Australia - the first time I had heard of such a thing, but that's mostly my fault. Fortunately the Aussies have their act together and have created an online (ETA) visa service that grants eligible visitors with an electronic visa in a matter of minutes. A quick stop at the internet cafe (where I am now) across from the ticket counter resulted in a 3 month tourist visa for yours truly (40 AUD later...), and my problems were solved.
I board my flight to Sydney (changing planes in Ho Chi Minh City, or Saigon, Vietnam) in a matter of minutes, so I'd best be off. Next dateline: Sydney, Australia.
posted by Per at 4:54 a.m.
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