polardabar
Member
- Joined
- Jun 26, 2013
- Posts
- 208
- Qantas
- Gold
Just a quick update as I'm rather busy at work, my family's visiting and I'm preparing for another trip. My recent trip to Europe (with a short stop-over in the Middle East) went well – and in a blink of an eye.
Dubai was surprisingly interesting. Even though it's not a place I'd visit just for the sake of it, one has to be impressed by what's been built up out of the sand. Everything's nice and clean; the people are beautiful and there's not a single crease on their clothes; it's all about shopping and bling and power, it seems. There are a lot of work- and right-related issues with the Emirates, but I wasn't going to surround myself with that and decided to enjoy what I could. I left my things at the hotel (Emirates paid for it as I had a 17-hour layover), took a shower and then the Metro into the city. It took me ages to get through the Dubai Mall before I went on the top of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. After almost five hours up there (daytime, souvenir shopping, staring down into the abyss, sunset and night time), it was time for dinner, a swim in the pool and a bit of sleep before my flight to LHR.
DXB to LHR was really comfortable as I was seated in 33K and no one was sitting next to me (thanks for all the tips, AFF). I had heaps of room, blankets and pillows to make myself cosy. The FAs were really nice, the area was quiet, the toilet was just there so I was pretty happy. London was–as always–fun. I managed to meet up with some mates and even run into one (who had no idea I was there) in the streets. Walking around, having beers and getting rained on is something I'd always go for. Especially with my mates.
Croatia was...nice. I guess home always comes with everything else attached (I come from Croatia), so the feelings are always a bit mixed. It was definitely nice to spend time with family and friends, "festivalling" around the country, camping out, walking around a car-free little island and running into random acquaintances around the country. I wish the weather was a bit better as I only managed to take three swims, but hey – another island ticked off the map, so I'm happy.
Portugal was fun, relaxing, intensive, hot, interesting, charming and much more. Lisbon is so cosy, with its narrow streets and tucked-away bistros. Boom Festival was mind-blowing, so I'm definitely planning to go back in two years. 40,000 people, a handful of friends and a week of camping. Sounds good to me.
After a short visit to Vienna to see my best mate, it was time to go. It was cold and rainy, which made Australian winter a better choice (what's up with the weather, aye?!). I hadn't been to Vienna in over 15 years so it was interesting to see bits of it again, but also a bit alarming that I didn't remember a single thing from when I was there before.
LHR to DXB was a complete disaster. After four weeks or travelling around, I couldn't wait for some sleep. Firstly, someone one in my seat – and very grumpy after I asked them to move to 33J (which they then ranted on their mobile about). It was a red-eye and I was keeping my hopes up as no one was sitting in 32J and 32K, but then there were two ladies with three kids who wouldn't stop screaming for 7 out of 8 hours. Don't get me wrong – I've got nieces and a certain amount of patience with kids. The kid ended up being in 32K so I'd sort of play with him when he'd drop his little car or another toy, but the mum didn't blink throughout the flight and didn't take her eyes off her magazines. She might've been on vacation, but I can tell you than none of the other 35 or so people definitely weren't.
I found a quiet spot at DXB (next to the elevators somewhere) and squatted there, trying to stay awake. A flight attendant, originally from Europe, approached me on the last, 11-hour leg of my trip and saved my day. Wherever you are, bless you!
Next time I travel so far for vacation is going to be:
So, planning starts...now!
I didn't upload all the photos, but I hope these paint the picture.
Cheers!
Dubai was surprisingly interesting. Even though it's not a place I'd visit just for the sake of it, one has to be impressed by what's been built up out of the sand. Everything's nice and clean; the people are beautiful and there's not a single crease on their clothes; it's all about shopping and bling and power, it seems. There are a lot of work- and right-related issues with the Emirates, but I wasn't going to surround myself with that and decided to enjoy what I could. I left my things at the hotel (Emirates paid for it as I had a 17-hour layover), took a shower and then the Metro into the city. It took me ages to get through the Dubai Mall before I went on the top of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. After almost five hours up there (daytime, souvenir shopping, staring down into the abyss, sunset and night time), it was time for dinner, a swim in the pool and a bit of sleep before my flight to LHR.
DXB to LHR was really comfortable as I was seated in 33K and no one was sitting next to me (thanks for all the tips, AFF). I had heaps of room, blankets and pillows to make myself cosy. The FAs were really nice, the area was quiet, the toilet was just there so I was pretty happy. London was–as always–fun. I managed to meet up with some mates and even run into one (who had no idea I was there) in the streets. Walking around, having beers and getting rained on is something I'd always go for. Especially with my mates.
Croatia was...nice. I guess home always comes with everything else attached (I come from Croatia), so the feelings are always a bit mixed. It was definitely nice to spend time with family and friends, "festivalling" around the country, camping out, walking around a car-free little island and running into random acquaintances around the country. I wish the weather was a bit better as I only managed to take three swims, but hey – another island ticked off the map, so I'm happy.
Portugal was fun, relaxing, intensive, hot, interesting, charming and much more. Lisbon is so cosy, with its narrow streets and tucked-away bistros. Boom Festival was mind-blowing, so I'm definitely planning to go back in two years. 40,000 people, a handful of friends and a week of camping. Sounds good to me.
After a short visit to Vienna to see my best mate, it was time to go. It was cold and rainy, which made Australian winter a better choice (what's up with the weather, aye?!). I hadn't been to Vienna in over 15 years so it was interesting to see bits of it again, but also a bit alarming that I didn't remember a single thing from when I was there before.
LHR to DXB was a complete disaster. After four weeks or travelling around, I couldn't wait for some sleep. Firstly, someone one in my seat – and very grumpy after I asked them to move to 33J (which they then ranted on their mobile about). It was a red-eye and I was keeping my hopes up as no one was sitting in 32J and 32K, but then there were two ladies with three kids who wouldn't stop screaming for 7 out of 8 hours. Don't get me wrong – I've got nieces and a certain amount of patience with kids. The kid ended up being in 32K so I'd sort of play with him when he'd drop his little car or another toy, but the mum didn't blink throughout the flight and didn't take her eyes off her magazines. She might've been on vacation, but I can tell you than none of the other 35 or so people definitely weren't.
I found a quiet spot at DXB (next to the elevators somewhere) and squatted there, trying to stay awake. A flight attendant, originally from Europe, approached me on the last, 11-hour leg of my trip and saved my day. Wherever you are, bless you!
Next time I travel so far for vacation is going to be:
- a week with family and friends,
- two weeks of festivals and mates, and
- three weeks on a tiny island somewhere far away.
So, planning starts...now!
I didn't upload all the photos, but I hope these paint the picture.
Cheers!
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