Saturday, March 10, 2007
8th and 9th March. The return.
Here I am at home again.
I keep falling asleep today.
Lets begin by saying I have had a wonderful time and my trip was everything I wanted it to be.
Today I keep hearing the voices of the 4js in my head and my heart is still there. Goodness knows where my body is.
The journey back yesterday, always destined to be long and tiresome proved to be the journey from hell. From door to door I was travelling for just over 24 hours.
There were various problems which caused it to be even longer than expected.
All had been well until I boarded the plane at Bangkok.
I had earlier said my slightly tearful farewells to the family. Poor John was not interested because he was not well, which may have been a reaction to the inoculation he had (I think for hepatitis). He was sick during the drive back home in the car apparently.
The flight from Phuket was normal and I enjoyed looking round the new Bangkok airport and eating prawn fried rice.
It is not fun sitting on a plane with over 300 people and going nowhere. But that is what I did for a very long time. Apparently there were some repairs that needed doing. After a few minutes short of 2 hours we were on our way - only another 12 hours to go!
I enjoyed some company on the plane. I was sitting with a very pleasant man from Turkey who was very pleased to help me by holding things when I stood up and things like that. Across the aisle was a lady from Essex and her husband, also leaving a son and 2 grandchildren. We talked about families and then just about anything.
We had made up a bit of time on the journey and landed not much more than an hour late - I saw me flying through formalities and out to get a coach and home in no time (like last year).
Wrong!
We waited in the baggage hall for about an hour. It seems that the hold door wouldn't open and cases couldn't be offloaded. Eventually mine arrived, all wrapped in thick cling film. I thought it wise to pay for this service because the case was seriously damaged on the way out - it had been a very cheap one.
I hurried through the seemingly miles of corridors to find that I had missed the quarter to ten coach by about 3 minutes - which nobody told me for a while. In fact I was first told I hadn't missed it. The level of information given at that coach station is abysmal.
By this time it was late in the evening and the number of coaches was very few - there would be a 40 minute wait. I was cold and it started to rain.
A young man from Oman (hardly more than a boy!) befriended me and cheered me up and wanted to buy me some tea. It was good to have a friend there.
The appointed time came and went. Eventually an announcement told us that traffic on the M11 was 'chock a block' and there would be further delay - a very technical announcement (ha ha) and probably not helpful to any foreign passenger.
A while later they said the delay would be about half an hour. I decided to stand out and wait because we couldn't be sure when it would come - "we" the band of travellers all feeling very frustrated.
Eventually I climbed aboard a warm coach.
I arrived at North Terminal at Gatwick to find it deserted and devoid of life other than a few workmen.
The most obvious person not there was Bill.
I was devastated - and I cried. There were few people around to notice or care.
Foolish man had not long before given up on me and gone home - mainly to check the phone and fortunately I had enough coins and wits on me to leave a message.
Of course he came back for me.
I got in at quarter past one - 24 and a half hours after leaving Jamie and Mam's house on a beautiful hot sunny morning.
One thing it has taught us is that we should both have mobile phones. Actually we had said before I went away that it would be something we should sort out on my return.
I didn't sleep for all that long last night, but it had been delicious to climb into my own warm bed.
I slept on the sofa for a while in the middle of the day and was almost dozing again not long ago.
Thank goodness it was not arranged that I start my treatment today. That would have been a very very hard thing to do.
Bill is looking at my photos now. I will start sorting them tomorrow. I have already seen them all because they are on Jamie's computer. I also have a disc of all Jamie's too.
I will slowly slowly get them on the blog. I shall be re living my trip for a long while to come I expect.
Bags are all unpacked and one load of washing done.
I have chatted with Jamie at work and Mam later. Jamie has put some pictures of Naithon Beach on his Jamie's Phuket blog - happy memories for me of a day out with my son for a walk and a lunch.
He has one photo of a couple on the beach - I had seen the shot and commented that I should have taken it - then he proudly showed me his screen with a grin of one upmanship! We have that same friendly competitive spirit that I have with Bill.
Despite the horrors of the journey I will go back next February.
I'll let you know when illustrations to all my words on the blog are in place.
It feels good to be home, though I miss Jamie, Mam, Jessica and John a lot. When Jamie asked John where I was, John replied "Airplane". I guess he thinks I have some idyllic life living in an aeroplane which he loves.
I keep falling asleep today.
Lets begin by saying I have had a wonderful time and my trip was everything I wanted it to be.
Today I keep hearing the voices of the 4js in my head and my heart is still there. Goodness knows where my body is.
The journey back yesterday, always destined to be long and tiresome proved to be the journey from hell. From door to door I was travelling for just over 24 hours.
There were various problems which caused it to be even longer than expected.
All had been well until I boarded the plane at Bangkok.
I had earlier said my slightly tearful farewells to the family. Poor John was not interested because he was not well, which may have been a reaction to the inoculation he had (I think for hepatitis). He was sick during the drive back home in the car apparently.
The flight from Phuket was normal and I enjoyed looking round the new Bangkok airport and eating prawn fried rice.
It is not fun sitting on a plane with over 300 people and going nowhere. But that is what I did for a very long time. Apparently there were some repairs that needed doing. After a few minutes short of 2 hours we were on our way - only another 12 hours to go!
I enjoyed some company on the plane. I was sitting with a very pleasant man from Turkey who was very pleased to help me by holding things when I stood up and things like that. Across the aisle was a lady from Essex and her husband, also leaving a son and 2 grandchildren. We talked about families and then just about anything.
We had made up a bit of time on the journey and landed not much more than an hour late - I saw me flying through formalities and out to get a coach and home in no time (like last year).
Wrong!
We waited in the baggage hall for about an hour. It seems that the hold door wouldn't open and cases couldn't be offloaded. Eventually mine arrived, all wrapped in thick cling film. I thought it wise to pay for this service because the case was seriously damaged on the way out - it had been a very cheap one.
I hurried through the seemingly miles of corridors to find that I had missed the quarter to ten coach by about 3 minutes - which nobody told me for a while. In fact I was first told I hadn't missed it. The level of information given at that coach station is abysmal.
By this time it was late in the evening and the number of coaches was very few - there would be a 40 minute wait. I was cold and it started to rain.
A young man from Oman (hardly more than a boy!) befriended me and cheered me up and wanted to buy me some tea. It was good to have a friend there.
The appointed time came and went. Eventually an announcement told us that traffic on the M11 was 'chock a block' and there would be further delay - a very technical announcement (ha ha) and probably not helpful to any foreign passenger.
A while later they said the delay would be about half an hour. I decided to stand out and wait because we couldn't be sure when it would come - "we" the band of travellers all feeling very frustrated.
Eventually I climbed aboard a warm coach.
I arrived at North Terminal at Gatwick to find it deserted and devoid of life other than a few workmen.
The most obvious person not there was Bill.
I was devastated - and I cried. There were few people around to notice or care.
Foolish man had not long before given up on me and gone home - mainly to check the phone and fortunately I had enough coins and wits on me to leave a message.
Of course he came back for me.
I got in at quarter past one - 24 and a half hours after leaving Jamie and Mam's house on a beautiful hot sunny morning.
One thing it has taught us is that we should both have mobile phones. Actually we had said before I went away that it would be something we should sort out on my return.
I didn't sleep for all that long last night, but it had been delicious to climb into my own warm bed.
I slept on the sofa for a while in the middle of the day and was almost dozing again not long ago.
Thank goodness it was not arranged that I start my treatment today. That would have been a very very hard thing to do.
Bill is looking at my photos now. I will start sorting them tomorrow. I have already seen them all because they are on Jamie's computer. I also have a disc of all Jamie's too.
I will slowly slowly get them on the blog. I shall be re living my trip for a long while to come I expect.
Bags are all unpacked and one load of washing done.
I have chatted with Jamie at work and Mam later. Jamie has put some pictures of Naithon Beach on his Jamie's Phuket blog - happy memories for me of a day out with my son for a walk and a lunch.
He has one photo of a couple on the beach - I had seen the shot and commented that I should have taken it - then he proudly showed me his screen with a grin of one upmanship! We have that same friendly competitive spirit that I have with Bill.
Despite the horrors of the journey I will go back next February.
I'll let you know when illustrations to all my words on the blog are in place.
It feels good to be home, though I miss Jamie, Mam, Jessica and John a lot. When Jamie asked John where I was, John replied "Airplane". I guess he thinks I have some idyllic life living in an aeroplane which he loves.
