leaving on a jetplane...

Operation Eurotrip 2010 has officially begun! This morning I was up at a sparrow’s fart- ensuring my bag was repacked (after leaving out razor and deodorant) and giving myself plenty of time to caffeinate. I was actually woken up significantly earlier than the aforementioned sparrow’s flatulence by the dog panting unnaturally loudly. I think she must have had a nightmare, after which she proceeded to every sleeping human in the house and panted until they comforted her.

After saying goodbye to parents and pets, I set off down the highway in my little rental car. She was a tiny little thing, but I was extremely impressed by her ability to get all the way to Coolangatta on less than a quarter of a tank of petrol.

I flew Air Asia X. Why, you ask? Because I was able to get return tickets to the UK for $1400AUD. The cheapest student flight with a regular carrier that I was able to find was $1970, so it was a substantial saving. The only downside I found was that there was NO in-flight entertainment. And when I say no- I mean absolutely none! Zilch! Nada!

There was not a TV screen in sight. Not even those tiny ones they put on the ceiling at intervals on other carriers. For me, this was fine, as I simply deployed my trusty netbook & accompanying stash of movies. But.,it wasn’t the same as getting to watch latest release movies and TV shows that I have become accustomed to.

AIrasia also do not give pillows/blankets/water/headphones/anything – which is also fine if you come prepared. Fortunately, I was prepared.

I arrived in Malaysia 7.5 hours later, and upon stepping out into the jungle sauna outside the plane, I was immediately reminded of how much I love Asia. I love the heat and the smell of it. I’ve spent lots of time here over the years, so it feels like a second (more shambolic) home to me. It’s nice to be back, even for half a day.

I was absolutely starving and stopped in for a quick carb fix at McDOnnalds. Then I boarded the mini-bus to Tune hotel. Tune Hotels are run by airasia and are absolutely fabulous. The rooms are EXTREMELY SMALL- there is only just enough space to open the door, but they are clean and modern and contain a very comfy double bed. Again, not a TV to be seen – so again the trusty netbook has been deployed.

Since then, I grabbed a couple of Tiger beers from the 7eleven downstairs and have been hanging out on the landing outside my room doing some hardcore internet surfing. The air out here is soggy with moisture, but I am soaking up the atmosphere. Plus, the room is a little bit like a coffin.

Tomorrow I fly out at 2:30pm – so I have plenty of time for showering, repacking the bag, recharging my personal in-flight entertainment gear and getting organised. I’ll probably head over to the airport around 12pm but until then, I’m going to milk this incredibly cheap wi-fi at the hotel for all it’s worth.