RTW 40th Birthday Trip | Jason Around the World

Safari in Botswana and Namibia

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Oct 252011

This will be mostly a photo update. We were up quite early, where the lodge provided (instant) coffee and muffins before a 6am safari drive. The idea is that the animals are most active at this hour, and foraging for food. What I’d failed to plan for is the weather. It was COLD…and especially cold when the open-air jeep got moving. Everywhere we’d been on this trip was in the 80s-90 fahrenheit, so I wasn’t prepared for moving in the wind when it was barely 50! Oh well, the sun came up within the hour, and at least made things tolerable. So, on that note…

Well, good morning Mr Giraffe!

Livingtone, Zambia to Chobe Marina Lodge, Kasane, Botswana and River Safari

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Oct 242011

We waited around for ten minutes, and eventually managed to find our driver. It was a large van with a dozen or so others, but we were to drive to the border and then split into two vehicles. Now, it wasn’t clear when we booked if you could go straight from Zambia to Botswana without crossing into Zimbabwe, but apparently the answer is no. This was a mild concern since while it was easy to get a multi-entry visa to Zambia, Zimbabwe only issued dual-entry…so we had to be careful how many times we went in and out, since a new visa would cost.

Pulled up to the border, exited Zambia no problems, and into Zimbabwe just as easy. While the Zambian immigration was pleasant, the folks on the Zimbabwe side were downright rude. Oh well, at least the Zimbabwe visa was a cool sticker, while Zambia was just a stamp with “multi” written below it, lol. I could have done that myself! Through the border, we had about one hour to drive to the lodge.

We stayed at the Chobe Marina Lodge in Kasane, Botswana. First impressions were pretty good. Check-in was efficient, they walked us to our room without asking for a tip, and overall the property was pretty nice. Certainly not luxury, but clean, comfortable, etc. Can’t ask for too much more. We had to rush, however, because the evening safari cruise was about to leave, and if we wanted to go we had about five minutes to dump things in the room and be out there! We were only there two days, so wanted to be sure that we got in as much as possible!

Last ones on the boat, and away we went. The cruise was a bit over two hours, and a great relaxing intro to things. First off, the obligatory impala shot. It’s the first thing you see on safari, and probably the last. They’re everywhere, and you can tell the people on their first time out because they excitedly snap pictures of them!

Manila, Philippines to Livingstone, Zambia

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Oct 232011

So, this is probably not the most commonly flown route in the world – Philippines to Zambia? It was odd enough there were several stops along the way where agents had to look up three digit airport codes to figure out where it was, lol.

Checked in in Manila at oh-dark-thirty minus an hour, and no trouble. Once again, the airport improvement tax is not included in the ticket, but you can pay in any combination of currencies you want at the ticket window. Got rid of my leftover pesos, spent a few US dollars, and we were through to the Cathay Pacific Lounge. Perhaps the most depressing lounge on the planet. But, it was quiet, and we didn’t have to wait in a gate full of hundreds of people (ok, so we did have to sit with a dozen or more self-important types, but…) but there was Diet Coke, and all was right with the world.

Boarding was right on time, and the crew was pleasant. Not too much more you can ask for on a two hour regional flight!

Manila, Philippines to Hong Kong
Cathay Pacific flight 904
Depart 6:20, Arrive 8:20, Flight Time: 2 hours
Airbus A330-300, Registration B-HLH, Manufactured 1995
Seats 15H, 15K

Not much to say on this flight. Breakfast was served with two hot options, the eggs were almost edible, and before we knew it we were landing in Hong Kong. I forgot to say this flight had perhaps the best character we’ve ever seen He was walking with a “pimp cane” with a giant fake diamond on the top of it, and complaining loudly to everyone in site that he was not sitting next to his wife. Two people in a row declined to switch with them, and he only got more obnoxious, waving his cane in the air. It was something out of Las Vegas meets Bollywood meets a Trailer Park…eventually they got to sit together, and he was quiet the rest of the flight.

Immigration in Hong Kong was a bit of a nightmare, and we ended up waiting well over 30 minutes to get through. We hadn’t planned on clearing it, but there were no Lufthansa agents anywhere on the transfers side and we wanted to request the upgrade as soon as possible, so we went to the check-in desk. Quick stop for Starbucks, up to the check-in desks…and SCORE! They upgraded us on the spot. Life was good!

Back through immigration, and first stop was the Singapore lounge. It was adequate (despite there being no washroom in the lounge) but nothing great, so we headed to the Thai lounge, which had a dedicated first class side. Much better, drinks were provided by a waiter, and it was a much better (and lighter) place to wait. The Singapore lounge is in the basement of the terminal, while the Thai lounge is on the top level with a glass roof. Much better! Soon it was time to board…and pray.

See, Matt doesn’t have the best luck with Lufthansa First Class. On two different occasions, he’s had a disaster:

First, flying Dubai to Munich the aircraft went tits up with some sort of mechanical malfunction, and a 3+ hour delay…which would have meant missing connections back to the States. Now, this wasn’t all bad, since due to a bit of quick thinking we begged to be rebooked on Emirates…and did. On the A380. In first. Nonstop to London. Arriving over 30 minutes earlier! That said, Lufthansa was jinxed.

Next, flying London City to Frankfurt to connect to Frankfurt-Baku the incoming flight struck a swan. Well, they said it was a swan, but it was probably just some other sort of large fowl. Regardless, flight canceled, no way to get to Frankfurt in time, and a resulting downgrade to “business’ on Turkish via Istanbul and a nearly 18 hour delay. Fantastic. Something was SURE to go wrong again…right?

Hong Kong to Frankfurt, Germany
Lufthansa flight 739
Depart 12:45, Arrive 18:55, Flight Time: 12:10
Boeing 747-400, Registration D-ABVF, Manufactured 1990
Seats 83A, 83K

Well, everything went fine up until departure and after a couple of glasses of champagne we were airborne. Of course, this meant that we were sure to divert to Kraplakistan or something on the way. Hopefully to a country I hadn’t ticked off the list yet! 😉

Soon after we took off, the crew sprang into service, and soon it was time to set the table and deliver the amuse bouche.

Bangkok to Manila, and day in Manila

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Oct 222011

So, yeah…it was an early morning. A majorly early morning. That said, the staff at the Sheraton Grand Sukhumvit in Bangkok were great, checkout was super-fast, and we were off to the airport in one of the better meter taxis I’ve had in Bangkok in a long time. By better, I mean it was 0-dark-30, and he didn’t act like he had drunk club patrons who he could either milk for an outrageous fare, sell call girls too, etc. Soon we were at BKK, and checking in.

Tokyo to Bangkok, and day in Bangkok

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Oct 212011

So, rushed back to the airport and check-in was absolutely empty. We had on boarding pass, and just wanted to get them printed by United since they had been printed by Continental before that. Got the pass, through fast-track first class security, and soon we were chilling in the ANA lounge. A bit of sake, some sushi, catching up on e-mail, and soon it was time to board.

United 837, Tokyo Narita to Bangkok
Depart 18:35, Arrive 23:05, Flight Time 6:30
Boeing 747-400, Registration N117UA, Manufactured 1999
Seats 1A, 1K

Flight was pretty quick – made easier by the fact that I think we both slept the majority of it. Meal was just enough to fill things up for a good doze (plus the wine didn’t help) and soon we were arriving into Bangkok. Honestly, lately, a first class flight on United that doesn’t register is par for the course. Some are really really disappointing, some are memorably good, but the majority are just plain unmemorable…and that’s what this one was.

We grabbed a meter taxi to the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit, and were soon checking in. It was pouring rain in Bangkok (a prelude to the major floods late) and the Sheraton once again didn’t disappoint. Upgrade to a suite, free massive buffet breakfast, free happy hour with snacks in the hotel bar…all in all, Bangkok (and especially this hotel) remains one of the best travel bargains in the world.

Next morning we were up a bit early, but honestly quite lazy. This was our 7th or 8th trip to Bangkok, and having seen most of the major sites we really just wanted to relax in the middle of the trip. We did a bit of online research after breakfast, and stumbled upon Wat Arun in the Thonburi district which we’d never been too. We’d also never taken a water taxi up the river, so it was a perfect chance to try some new things!

Palau to Tokyo, and afternoon in Tokyo

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Oct 202011

So, 1:45am rolled around, and it was finally time to for flight(s) to Tokyo, via Yap and Guam. Boarding was a bit late due to a late arrival from Yap, and we were getting quite concerned about our 45 minute connection in Guam. Of course, it was also 1:30am and we were completely ready to pass out, so I’m not sure if sleepy or concerned was winning out at this point.

Continental 186, Koror, Palau to Yap
Depart 1:45, Arrive 3:50, 1:05 flight time
Boeing 737-800, Registration N35236, Manufactured 1999
Seats 2E, 2F

Honestly, not much to say on this flight. We accepted a couple of glasses of wine upon boarding to ensure the inevitable, and passed out until landing in Yap an hour later. I remember hitting the tarmac, but honestly nothing after that…including the takeoff. Yap was one giant blur, which is exactly how I hoped it would be. This was the best case scenario for what I consider the absolute worst redeye flight in the world.

Continental 186, Yap to Guam
Depart 4:30, Arrive 6:00, 1:30 flight time
Boeing 737-800, Registration N35236, Manufactured 1999
Seats 2E, 2F

Again, we totally did not remember taking off at all, and were in Guam before we knew it. Total flight time was only 3:15 including the time on the ground in Yap, but we slept pretty much all of it, so no complaints whatsoever! Arrived Guam almost 30 minutes late, so it was a major scramble to our connection. Got to our friends at CBP, and realised…yes…I’d left my passport on board. ARGH! Fortunately, the Continental BusinessFirst Concierge had escorted everyone into Immigration, and RAN back to the plane to get my passport in under five minutes. This is the Continental I remember and love, and hope the service level remains a part of the combined airline/

Made the gate with almost 20 minutes to spare, and we were off!

Continental 161, Guam to Tokyo
Depart 7:10, Arrive 9:45, 3:35 flight time
Boeing 767-400, Registration N77066, Manufactured 2002
Seats 1K, 1L

Flight was pretty uneventful, and the crew was unfortunately quite cool. Meal was served, but no warmth or real “service” at all…but that was fine, because again…what we really wanted was to maximize SLEEP! We got another two hours each or so, and arrived in Tokyo rested enough to take on a pretty full day! Upon landing, we were right off to the ANA First lounge for a quick shower, and the best part is they were able to hold out bags until our flight that evening. Backpack in tow, we were off to the Narita Express to head into Shibuya Station.

Took us a couple tries to find the correct window, but soon we had return tickets into Shibuya station…with a bit of time to grab some Starbucks at the station’s caffeine purveyor to spare! Onto the train (reserved seating on a local train?! Seriously?!) and we were off. But not before the very helpful escalator sign that warned us to watch our step:

Day in Palau

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Oct 152011

So, first a caveat. This is going to be mostly a picture post, but I think you’ll understand why after looking at the pictures. We had the entire day in Palau, and then a 1:30am (yes, in the morning) flight out of Palau. Plan was to make the absolute most of the day.

I’d been bothering the tour company that everyone recommended for months, and they said they only ran the tour with four or more people. One week out, still was just us…but they said they had two more, and we were set to go. With our good luck, when we got there, they were a last-minute cancel, so we had a private boat snorkeling tour. Excellent!

The plan was to head to Jellyfish Lake, which anyone who watched Survivor is probably very familiar with. We were super excited to see it…and anything else along the way! Fortunately, just being the two of us on the boat, the guides were awesome and took us to lots of great snorkeling sites!

Stop number one was at “the spa.” This is a place where the water is relatively shallow – maybe 4 to 5 feet in a bit of a cove, and the shells and animals have decomposed over years to form soft clay/mud on the bottom of the ocean. Dive down, scoop some up, slather it on yourself, rinse, repeat. It was pretty amusing, especially watching the giant boat full of Japanese tourists do it!

Guam, and Continental from Guam to Koror, Palau

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Oct 142011

We arrived into Guam late afternoon, just in time to head to the Sheraton, check in, and have a semi-relaxing evening. It was only around 4pm when we made it to the hotel, and after two weeks on the road our most important mission was laundry. Fortunately the Sheraton surprised us…not only with a suite upgrade, but with three laundry machines in the building. I don’t remember the exact cost, but they were $1 to $1.25 per load – and nice and convenient.

Of course, we needed laundry supplies, so it was off to the most popular place on the island…K-Mart! Those who live in the U.S. mainland probably assume that K-Mart has more or less faded into our past as one of those tragic relics of the 70s and 80s. Not in Guam. K-Mart is the social hub of the island, and packed to the rafters with people. I’ve only ever been to one Wal Mart (don’t blame me, it’s the only option in the middle of Oahu!) and it reminded me of that. But even bigger (both in size, and the size of the patrons.) You could get literally everything here.

Stocked with Tide and Red Bull it was back to the Sheraton, where we joined a member of the U.S. Navy in completing laundry pretty quickly. With that out of the way…what else does one do on Guam?! Not much. We decided after two weeks a little Americana was in order, and grabbed dinner at California Pizza Kitchen. Guam is definitely one place you need a car, unless you don’t plan to leave your resort…and I can’t imagine a resort vacation on Guam!

Up early the next morning, our plan was to drive around the island before our early evening flight to Palau. Up to the executive lounge for breakfast, which was packed with Japanese package tourists consuming Japanese breakfast. It was nice to have a Japanese option for breakfast instead of the typical sugar and carb-laden US/continental options. Oh, and lots of ice cold Diet Coke.

That done, we were off to drive around Guam. Our first stop was not far from the hotel at the giant rotating statue of Pope John Paul II. Unfortunately, it’s been broken a few years, and no longer rotates. However, the headline story in all the local papers we saw was how a donation had been received, and soon it would rotate again. Yes, this qualifies for headline news in Guam.

The Continental Island Hopper from Honolulu to Guam with 4 Stops

Flights, RTW 40th Birthday Trip 5 Responses »

Oct 132011

For as long as I can remember, ever since I started traveling I had wanted to take this flight. I started planning the Round the World Trip nearly a year in advance, and everything revolved around this flight. The Island Hopper is a flight from Honolulu to Guam which makes four to five stops (depending on the day of the week) along the way. As much as I would have liked to stop, I just wanted to take the flight and see what it was like!

We dropped our rental car off bright and early, checked in with no problem. The agent was, however, completely confused why we were on the four stop flight to Guam instead of the nonstop. She decided it was “for miles or something” and let us go. Nothing else exciting, and soon we were in a gate holding area full of quite unusual people for the flight to Majuro, Marshall Islands.

Second Day in Hawaii

RTW 40th Birthday Trip No Responses »

Oct 122011

Since this was our third trip to Hawaii this year, initially we hadn’t planned to spend more than a day here. After all, the idea was to come here so we could catch the Continental Island Hopper flight to Guam. However, since the flight only goes three days a week, combined with the fact we could only find availability on one day, we decided to relax here a few days and enjoy the birthday sun!

We managed to get up relatively early considering the great dinner the night before, and get in the car and head towards the North Shore. The main goal was to test out the new underwater casing for the camera so it was ready for Palau in a few days. Halfway there it started top pour, so we had to pull over and put up the roof on the the convertible for the rest of the drive – no fun!

Got to the North Shore, and stopped at Cholo’s for some Nachos and Margaritas for lunch – can’t really go wrong with that, right? First stop after lunch was at Turtle Beach, where it was the perfect time to see the green turtles playing in the waves and coming ashore. This was my third time here this year, and the first time we saw so many turtles. There were at least two dozen of them!

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