Dear HK
I love you. This free Internet all over the place makes me warm and fuzzy. Blogger links in Chinese characters are a bit of a challenge though.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Saturday afternoon blog entry without internet
Traveling with parents is a pain in the ass. Also a pain in the ass, a locked iPhone. I'm hoping to temporarily jailbreak my phone on Monday morning. Sssh don't tell my cell phone carrier!
If I was traveling alone, I would not be on the train to the Blue Mountains this afternoon. And, if I were, I wouldn't have just missed the earlier train. The parents are slow and confused and won't listen to me when I have figured out where we want to go. They also had Hungry Jacks for lunch. This is apparently the Aussie equivalent of Burger King. Shudder.
I almost ditched them this morning. It's raining on and off today and they didn't want to go out. So I said I would go off and do my own thing because I'm not made ofsugar and I didn't travel to the other side of the planet to just sit around. Plus I don't have the luxury of time to wait for good weather. They seemed to think I had the right attitude but so here we all are. I hope I can ditch them for a while when we get there. Killing an hour at a train station is not my idea of a good vacation. Through Central Station is Sydney's oldest and I got one or two decent shots with the ultrawide lens.
So, predictably for me, I have been working on my list of things to do over the next 4 days:
Manly. I'm thinking I need a full day for that. Probably Monday. That way I can get my phone unlocked and also go to the bank.
The Rocks and Sydney Botanic Gardens. Maybe wander around the CBD and window shop.
Darling Harbour and the Wildlife Centre if I can manage it. How much does it cost to cuddle a koala? It'll be worth it right? Chlamydia and all??
That takes care of Monday through Wednesday when I will be blessedly free of parents.
I'm thinking I might try to get to Bondi tomorrow. That way, the folks can tag along and I can ditch them as necessary.
Suddenly I feel much less cranky. I'm going to Queensland on Thursday and spending Good Friday/Earth Day sailing to the Great Barrier Reef.
Okay time to stare out the train window at Australia rushing by...
Food review tonight.
If I was traveling alone, I would not be on the train to the Blue Mountains this afternoon. And, if I were, I wouldn't have just missed the earlier train. The parents are slow and confused and won't listen to me when I have figured out where we want to go. They also had Hungry Jacks for lunch. This is apparently the Aussie equivalent of Burger King. Shudder.
I almost ditched them this morning. It's raining on and off today and they didn't want to go out. So I said I would go off and do my own thing because I'm not made ofsugar and I didn't travel to the other side of the planet to just sit around. Plus I don't have the luxury of time to wait for good weather. They seemed to think I had the right attitude but so here we all are. I hope I can ditch them for a while when we get there. Killing an hour at a train station is not my idea of a good vacation. Through Central Station is Sydney's oldest and I got one or two decent shots with the ultrawide lens.
So, predictably for me, I have been working on my list of things to do over the next 4 days:
Manly. I'm thinking I need a full day for that. Probably Monday. That way I can get my phone unlocked and also go to the bank.
The Rocks and Sydney Botanic Gardens. Maybe wander around the CBD and window shop.
Darling Harbour and the Wildlife Centre if I can manage it. How much does it cost to cuddle a koala? It'll be worth it right? Chlamydia and all??
That takes care of Monday through Wednesday when I will be blessedly free of parents.
I'm thinking I might try to get to Bondi tomorrow. That way, the folks can tag along and I can ditch them as necessary.
Suddenly I feel much less cranky. I'm going to Queensland on Thursday and spending Good Friday/Earth Day sailing to the Great Barrier Reef.
Okay time to stare out the train window at Australia rushing by...
Food review tonight.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
A million and one ways to improve air travel
Okay, I really only got to 9 but here they are:
1. Take a lesson from IKEA: better use of vertical space. Bunk style stacked seating so you can fully recline or sit up.
2. Be more like the Star Trek Enterprise NCC-1701D. Get rid of flight attendants and make all food and beverage self-serve. Added bonuses: not being woken up for meals and bussing your tray-table as soon as you are done. Nothing worse than the lingering smell of airline food. Well, not anything I'm prepared to discuss.
3. Be a bit progressive about food allergies. Hello 21st century? Not worried about lawsuits are we airline industry? At least tell me the ingredients in both standard options when I check-in. None of the special meal categories allow me to specify that I am allergic to eggs and slightly lactose-intolerant. What is the opposite of a lacto-ovo-vegetarian, you ask? Me. Let me think about new terminology and get back to you. Monisa-tarian doesn't seem quite appropriate.
4. Don't board passengers and then push back from the gate if the systems need to be rebooted. Or at least quit giving us a hard time if we need to pee before reaching cruising altitude. Especially on a mid-morning flight. Because, turbulence schmurbulence, this coffee has to go somewhere dammit.
5. Don't bother keeping this morning's Globe and Mail for the return flight. After a full business day, as 680 news puts it, it's history. Also, I didn't watch the debate but it seems to me that Harper is using the same campaign strategy - stick to your message - as Bob and Doug, no?
6. Put some sort of seal on the plastic blanket wrap to indicate the last time it was cleaned. Or at least a bio-hazard warning. And my mother laughs at me for traveling with my own pillow and blanket.
7. There's no need to remind us that smoking is not permitted anywhere on the plane. When was the last time you saw an ashtray in a public place? Indoors, I mean. Patios don't count, especially if you're sitting out there at rush hour in downtown (insert Toronto or other bustling North American metropolis here).
8. It costs about the same to fly to Vancouver now as Hong Kong. The same level of customer service would be much appreciated (newspapers, booze, experienced cabin crew).
9. It's great that there's power onboard. Now when can I get free wifi?
So, I managed to clear immigration in less than 10 seconds at Hong Kong International Airport courtesy of my HKID chip card and thumbprint scanner. Why can't everyone be so efficient?
1. Take a lesson from IKEA: better use of vertical space. Bunk style stacked seating so you can fully recline or sit up.
2. Be more like the Star Trek Enterprise NCC-1701D. Get rid of flight attendants and make all food and beverage self-serve. Added bonuses: not being woken up for meals and bussing your tray-table as soon as you are done. Nothing worse than the lingering smell of airline food. Well, not anything I'm prepared to discuss.
3. Be a bit progressive about food allergies. Hello 21st century? Not worried about lawsuits are we airline industry? At least tell me the ingredients in both standard options when I check-in. None of the special meal categories allow me to specify that I am allergic to eggs and slightly lactose-intolerant. What is the opposite of a lacto-ovo-vegetarian, you ask? Me. Let me think about new terminology and get back to you. Monisa-tarian doesn't seem quite appropriate.
4. Don't board passengers and then push back from the gate if the systems need to be rebooted. Or at least quit giving us a hard time if we need to pee before reaching cruising altitude. Especially on a mid-morning flight. Because, turbulence schmurbulence, this coffee has to go somewhere dammit.
5. Don't bother keeping this morning's Globe and Mail for the return flight. After a full business day, as 680 news puts it, it's history. Also, I didn't watch the debate but it seems to me that Harper is using the same campaign strategy - stick to your message - as Bob and Doug, no?
6. Put some sort of seal on the plastic blanket wrap to indicate the last time it was cleaned. Or at least a bio-hazard warning. And my mother laughs at me for traveling with my own pillow and blanket.
7. There's no need to remind us that smoking is not permitted anywhere on the plane. When was the last time you saw an ashtray in a public place? Indoors, I mean. Patios don't count, especially if you're sitting out there at rush hour in downtown (insert Toronto or other bustling North American metropolis here).
8. It costs about the same to fly to Vancouver now as Hong Kong. The same level of customer service would be much appreciated (newspapers, booze, experienced cabin crew).
9. It's great that there's power onboard. Now when can I get free wifi?
So, I managed to clear immigration in less than 10 seconds at Hong Kong International Airport courtesy of my HKID chip card and thumbprint scanner. Why can't everyone be so efficient?
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