Not Like a Movie - Helicopter Drama's

Obviously its not like in the movie ... the boy gets to the airport just in time - runs to the gate just in time.

Obviously by the title you can guess this is not like in the movies. A long sleepless night I received the expected call from Mr V where I fully expected him to say 

"honey, I'm getting on the chopper - see you tonight!"

Instead in a dark voice he advises me the chopper had turned around halfway out to the facility. 

If you can imagine this is the moment your stomach drops. Obviously I said all the right things - we have a contingency - he will meet me in Singapore! It's ok ... everything is fine.

The minute I got off the phone however all that changed. I sat on the floor and started laughing uncontrollably! Yup you got it - I couldn't stop the uncontrollable laughter. Tears running down my cheeks I think to myself - it can only happen to me. Seriously, I know I should have booked the flight later but .... really. Seriously!!!

So now I'm sitting on tenterhooks .... waiting for hubby to call with an estimated ETA on a new chopper! 

Personally I think im handling things fairly well - Im now sitting here planning on how to repack so I can carry everything myself! 

Speaking of repacking ... look at the brilliance of my toiletries bag and carry on liquids .... at least one thing is going right! Everything fits!

The Countdown Continues ...

I am so close to getting on that plane I can almost taste the champagne. 

There is one little stress left before we can get on that little plane and if I'm totally honest it might be my fault. Hubby fly in tomorrow, Wednesday 28th November at 6.30 pm, we fly out to Europe Thursday 29th November 12 noon. 

My problem, chopper, helicopters, flying bricks .... are notoriously unreliable. Last year hubby flight was delayed at least 3 out of the 7 trips ..... problem, right now - tomorrow we really can afford the delay. (picture me laughing nervously right now!)

I am totally prepared to admit I booked the flights, I knew the risks but thought ... what the hell, I don't want to waste one day on the off chance the chopper is delayed. Now thinking back ... perhaps, maybe, it might have been wise .... to wait that extra day, but I didn't so now I am waiting and frantically scanning the bureau of meteorology for good weather!

So I am counting down not only until we step foot onto the plane but more importantly .... until hubby steps foot onto WA soil!

Cross your fingers with me my friends, its going to be a stressful 24 hours!

The Route ... Eastern Europe Holiday

 

Well hello and happy Monday to all. It was, of course a busy last weekend in Australia for the year, last minute running around, catch ups ... I could just go on and on - however instead I thought I would give you a short overview on my trip and the amazing destinations I will be telling you all about over the next few weeks.

So we fly into Moscow .... Beautiful ...cold Moscow -5 degrees today. Oh the joy!

From there we take the train to St Petersburg .... so much to see and do, again more cold!

We then fly to Kiev ... Hubby's choice where we visit a Soviet Missile Silo and Chernobyl

From Kiev we travel to Romania where we meet a university history professor who will show us around

We then travel to Frankfurt where we meet my mother and start on our Christmas tour of the black forrest

We end the tour in Lucern where we have elected to stay a few more days exploring Switzerland

Finally we travel to Prague where we will be celebrating new years before making the long trek home!

There you have it - 7 sentences summing up our trip .... may it be as easy as writing this was!

The Storm Before The Calm

Ha - the title really says it all. Obviously in today's fast paced time poor culture we have all become experts at multi tasking, we have lists, we have multiple lists based on subject, we have reminders on iphones, pop-ups from outlook and nothing becomes more important than striking a line through a task ....DONE! Oh the satisfaction.

Going on holidays only seems to exacerbate this craziness. Not only do you have your normal stuff but have to cram everything you should be doing over the next 5 - 6 weeks into your last few days at home. 

Its silly things that you need to think of that just blow you away when you look back ...

Sticky notes on your bin - DO NOT USE. NO RECYCLING THIS WEEK!

Sticky notes on random doors - MAKE SURE YOU DOUBLE LOCK THIS BEFORE YOU LEAVE!

Sticky notes on your front door (you ignore) - TALK TO YOUR NEIGHBOUR ABOUT THE MAIL

"How To" guides are posted on your security system

The truly worst .... Work Handover Notes. Oh the pain of handing over your perfectly organised work to someone you just know is going to mess it up. (picture me shaking my head in frustration)

So yes, these last .... 5 DAYS, 4 HOURS, 36 MINUTES AND 52 SECONDS are a special type of crazy you just have to get through so you can fully appreciate the amazingness that will come the minute you pass through airport security.

Give Me the Luxury of Air Travel ... Past!

Sometimes it's very easy to organise your trip to be as comfortable as possible, airport transfers, good luggage, prearranged tickets ect but the one thing I struggle with time and time again is the flying. See we can't afford to travel business, very few can at $8,000 a return airfare to London. Personally I just can't justify that type of spend. I would much rather put it towards the house, however the idea of sitting in such a small cramped space totally freaks me out!

Please don't get me wrong, short flight (5 hours or under) I find quite easy but the one thing that is bound to send shivers up and down my spine is that long haul flight .... uggh.

I don't know if I have told you this but the idea of sitting in that small seat trapped between rows of people totally freaks me out. Lucky for me, the last few trips I have been travelling business (thank you work) and even that little bit of extra room makes the trip a breeze.

I do realise as I write this I'm going to come across sounding like a spoilt princess, in my head I know its 16 hours, I have done it before and I will do it again but still my stomach lurches and I break out into a cold sweat at the thought.

I have tried everything to get used to this particular form of travel, sleeping tablets, copious amounts of alcohol (not together) and a bunch of natural remedies meant to help you get through anything but has anything helped .... I'm afraid not.

This time I thought I had it covered, because of all the business travel we have stacks of frequent flyer points.  Upgrading seemed to be the answer, only now .... under a week to go I call up Qantas and discover the flight over is filling up and a business upgrade is looking unlikely. 

Sorry what??? .... Unlikely. This cant be happening!

So im back to the drawing board .... do I go with sleeping tablets, maybe see a doctor to drug me out, anything to help me get through the 16 hours of hell.

How do others get through this? Am I alone in my panic? How do you cope with the lack of personal space?

Watching the Weight ....

Let me start by saying this is not a diet or weight loss related post.

Its all about luggage and being smart about my packing. I have read plenty of websites claiming its possible to travel for weeks at a time out of your carry on luggage. I don't doubt that for a minute, I am sure its possible, however in my head is a little voice saying .... why would you want to? Why wouldn't you want to look glamorous and chic when travelling in a lovely new country? 

So the challenge has begun, putting everything I wanted in my bag and then slowly reducing it until I am under the max weight restrictions on the small domestic flights.

I try to stick under 20 kgs if I can ... this is not as easy as you think when you take into account toiletries, ice skates (my husband assures me this is a necessity) and ski coats etc.

Last night was attempt number one of packing ... surprise surprise I came in under 20kg's! Not only is this quite a shocking (in a good way) but also a moment that well and truly deserved a happy dance. After I sat down I realised I haven't actually completed packing with a few smaller items still to fit. But I will get there I'm sure - I have a good starting place and will now spend the next week agonising over what item I can afford to leave behind!

The Bible is Back!

My travel bible that is...

The problem with booking a holiday yourself is capturing all those little details you have agonised over for months. I tend to be slightly pedantic about getting the itinerary perfect, transfers, hotels, tours & guides .... trains, planes and automobiles! he he he

How does one carry around all this information in a way that is organised and confusion free???

Answer ... a travel bible!

As you can see mine is quite large however that is expected .... we are away for nearly six (6) weeks!!! 

I am getting quite excited ... things are getting organised ... currency exchange, copies of passport etc.

8 SLEEPS TO GO!!!