Eurostan

[Scarlett]

Here's something you can't do every day: I'm seated in a VA-provided lounge ahead of my international VA flight! Now, admittedly it's the OOL lounge, so nothing to rave about, but it is possible.

Heading off to see some new things in some lesser, but becoming much more well-travelled, countries. The Eurostan title is because I'm visiting a couple of small parts of Europe and a couple of the 'stan countries. It's been an interesting exercise booking it all and I still haven't learnt my lesson to keep things simple but where would be the fun in that. I'm visiting:
- Vaduz, Liechtenstein
- Tashkent, Uzbekistan
- Ashgabat, Turkmenistan and a day trip out to see the Darvaza gas crater
- In Bosnia and Herzegovina - Sarajevo, Posusje and Mostar, using a hire car to self-drive.

This trip will:
- renew my *A gold status (with TK)
- renew my WP status with VFF
- take me to 96 countries visited
- take me to 88 countries golfed in (out of 200* total with a golf course)

In numbers:
50,987Km to be flown
~500Km to be self-driven
~650Km to be driven by a hired driver
18 flights
9 tickets
12 accom bookings
6 games of golf
6 countries (and another as transit only)
but no new airlines.

In terms of the flights and tickets, I have them planned like this
1. CBR-OOL-DPS (VA J - using WP upgrades on both legs, from a flex fare)
2. DPS-CGK (GA Y)
3a. CGK-IST-ZRH (TK J - my main international ticket is an open jaw Indonesia to Switzerland return $ ticket)
4. ZRH-IST-TAS (TK J - points booking)
5. TAS-IST-ASB (TK Y - $)
6. ASB-IST-SJJ (TK J - points booking)
7. SJJ-ZRH-GVA (LX Y - $)
3b. GVA-IST-CGK (the return leg of my main ticket)
8. CGK-DPS (GA Y)
9. DPS-OOL-CBR (VA Y - day time flight to OOL, overnight at the airport Rydges - Econ X)



You can see that TK features prominently and that the IST hub and spoke model is getting a nice work out. May as well put my TK Elite status to good use!

*always a contentious yet interesting discussion about what is and what isn't a "country".

 

[Scarlett]

The trip came about after reading the 'stans part of trip report from @RooFlyer, as well as other info that potentially the Darvaza crater will be extinguished as the Turkmeni government drills new gas wells nearby, rather than having the gas burnt off and 'wasted'. I wanted to see it and didn't want to risk delaying.

The other main reason is that I'd thought I had my *A gold requal sorted out at the end of last year, but had stuffed up the earning on ET J and had two TK legs invol-rerouted to EK and TK wouldn't grant me ORC. So, I needed about 7K miles on *A and as mentioned above, I still have about 110 countries to visit (that have golf courses) so was planning to travel internationally when I could get away from work for a couple of weeks.

The nice south-east Asia to Europe J airfare was the find that allowed me to then build the other elements around something central.

 

[RooFlyer]

that’s a pretty masterful itinerary!

I hadn’t heard that about Davaza and drilling new wells - certainly the Turkmenistan Government has always been ambivalent about tourism.

 

[craven morehead]

Sounds crazy enough to follow along

 

[VPS]

I'm tired just reading the itinerary but gladly following along

 

[Scarlett]

that’s a pretty masterful itinerary!

I hadn’t heard that about Davaza and drilling new wells - certainly the Turkmenistan Government has always been ambivalent about tourism.

When I was reading up about Turkmenistan, there did seem to be indications the government is planning to open up a little. Blogs such as on Caravanistan indicating they may even be allowing visas for tourism without letters of introduction first. Or removing the need for tours to be booked. I suspect they’re not getting the same income from hydrocarbons and have realised tourism can bring in foreign currency. They do have a pretty unique capital with all that white marble. Maybe they have needed to find ways to pay for it all! Most of their other ‘stan neighbours are now quite open for tourism so maybe they were always going to have to move that way? Similar to Saudi Arabia perhaps?

I’m a little concerned that I’ve chosen an itinerary with an afternoon travelling out to Darvaza, for a look around at dusk. Then dinner there and return to Ashgabat that evening. I think you stayed at the yurts out there @RooFlyer which is probably more sensible. How bad was that road really?

 

[Scarlett]

VA1687 CBR-OOL
B737-800 J
VH-YFR
On time

I was dropped off at CBR by Mrs Scarlett, straight into an empty VA priority check-in lane and after handing over my passport, quickly in possession of my two boarding passes (CBR-OOL and then OOL-DPS). I didn’t have to take my oversize luggage down to the special point, but instead left it on the luggage cart beside the check-in counters that VA have for such things.

Security took about 10 minutes due to a bag sitting waiting to go down the inspection lane, but not being automatically shunted there. A guy eventually came and reached over and manually dragged it away.

Then up to the VA lounge for some breakfast: scrambled eggs but no bacon; instead there were some tasty enough small coughberland sausages. Best of all, some nice coffees made with Dairy Farmers milk. It might just be me, but usually the VA lounge has used ‘Canberra Milk’ and I find it has an unpleasant, almost acrid, type of taste. These just tasted like good coffees!



A beautiful but cold morning in Canberra. Across the runway were two 34 SQN 737-Max8 BBJs waiting for whatever political or vice-regal taskings they had that day.



Did I mention it looked a lovely day to be flying?



The flight was on a refurbished 737-800 and sure enough the J seats felt a little less roomy and less padded. No divider between J and Y.

Away on time heading north in a mostly full aircraft; 8/8 occupied in J. Chicken parmy for lunch was good and wifi worked well. Pretty standard, solid, VA short-haul J flight. We approached to and landed at OOL a couple of minutes early.





The lucky country. Indeed.

 

[RooFlyer]

I think you stayed at the yurts out there @RooFlyer which is probably more sensible. How bad was that road really?

We did a late afternoon drive out and a post-sunset drive back. I recall the drivers going very fast - like 120km/hr+, so the road must have been OK! There is a petrol station/shop about 2/3 the way there, which is a nice break.

The yurts you are probably thinking of were the tents that we had bbq dinner served in.

 

[Scarlett]

No jet-bridge on arrival, but just a short stroll across the tarmac in glorious sunshine, enter the terminal and I was directly in front of the VA lounge. Angels at the desk confirmed they would call the international flight in the lounge, but they’d do it one hour before departure rather than when boarding, to allow time to get through international security and outbound immigration.

Lounge was pretty full for most of the four and half hours I had in transit. Flights were departing to both MEL and SYD pretty much hourly.

I didn’t eat much whilst there, just had another coffee, some small biscuits and an oj. Used the printer though, to print out my Letter of Introduction (LOI) for Turkmenistan. I was considering just going wholly digital for this trip, but in the end have printed that one hard copy item.

Eventually, I went for a walk down to the far end (it’s not very far!) of the terminal then back to the international gates. Again quickly through security and through near empty smart gates. There was a JQ flight, also to DPS, scheduled about half an hour after my VA flight and then later on NZ and JQ flights heading to New Zealand. The international part of the terminal was spacious enough for those flights and looked at about 30% capacity.



I’d flown internationally into OOL in the past, but never out of here so seeing this for the first time it seemed basic but clean and pleasant enough. IIRC there was the bar and newsagent/general shop you can see in the image above, plus another coffee shop.

I only had enough time to put AUD and Aussie cards away and replace with IDR and overseas travel cards (CC = BW Zero Plat / DC = NAB basic debit - formerly Citi debit) in my wallet, before pre-boarding was called. At the gate there were two well sign-posted lanes for priority and general boarding. VA consistently good at this.

VA83 OOL-DPS
B737-800 J
VH-YIR
on time

I was glad to be sitting in a VA J seat rather than in the JQ A321neoLR with their all-Y 28in pitch seats.


(window was not particularly clean so images are a little blurry - the lower light of approaching dusk probably not helping my aging single-lens fruit phone either)

Taxiing out we passed a couple of VA sister ships and also prominent was the OOL Rydges hotel which I’ll be staying at for my first night back in Aus on my return journey in three weeks.



Split-scimitar winglets to reduce our fuel burn on the six hour journey to DPS. Basic amenity kit, pillow and blanket were on each J seat at boarding. It’s a not-yet refurbished frame, so the purple perspex topped divider and magic rope remain between J and Y cabins.

Thus far the flight has again been pretty standard VA J. Completely full flight: I guess Bali outside school holiday times still remains very popular with Australians. Nothing special to report but also nothing bad. Wifi is working fine.

In 2F, I was asked last of 8 for my dinner preference. Fortunately all that was left when I was asked was the non-mushroom containing choice, so I was going to be wanting that anyway. It was described as a Korean-style chicken with broccoli and rice, but just tasted like teriyaki chicken flavour to me.