The view from my "office"

[MARTINE]

Rally Portugal, hot, dusty, lot’s of alcohol, (not for us though), too many people and too much walking, for the first in my life, I’m starting to feel old!

Swedes, I know it’s a rash generalisation, but when presented with sun, they immediately strip off, and cheap alcohol, guys were drinking whisky on the way to the special stage this morning, 8am!

Lewis Bates this morning, unfortunately he had an issue this afternoon.


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They waited till 8am to start drinking?!?
That looks like Survivor for the crowd!!

 

[VPS]

Great view for plane spotting.

A bit damp in Sydney this morning

 

[kookaburra75]

Is that the train?

Yes. We're big fans of train. Four hours from Canberra to Central, and 30 minutes on the next train to get to our AirBnB in Potts Point. Based on our recent experiences with delayed/cancelled flights, it's quicker, and a lot more comfortable.

 

[Ade]

Some office views from last and this week.

Murrays CBR-SYD - had a Flex ticket and asked at the counter if I can bus-forward and if they can find it in their heart to give me a shadow. The agent said they’d try, unless someone buys a ticket in the next 5 mins or so. I’m glad no one did and I had a shadow on Murrays CBR-SYD.



Rainy trip - showers every now and then. Had a nice rainbow view as well.



QF67 SYD-BLR. Asked politely at bag drop, if I could get a shadow. The check-in agent said it’s a full flight, so chances are very slim. Better to check at the lounge.

The excellent Vicki at SYD F lounge asked me to come and see when boarding commences and she’ll see what can be done. Flight was delayed by a hour or so (tech issues, captain told later). After check-in closed, the agent said she was able to keep the seat next to me empty! So yay!



This was first time I’m seeing safety briefing played in Hindi as well.

Nestor buckles his seat, in Hindi


We were 1 hour late arrival into BLR. And my BLR-MAA 6E was also delayed by an hour. But got a meal as part of the QF codeshare ticket and seats upfront.



And the weather in Chennai is only 32 degrees heat at 1000, but feels like 39 degrees and it’s only gonna get worse!

 

[Cossie]

I forgot to mention that the first 2 photos are from our hotel room in Matosinhos, just north of Porto.
There is a festival for the town’s saint happening this weekend.

 

[fly2earth]

Yes. We're big fans of train. Four hours from Canberra to Central, and 30 minutes on the next train to get to our AirBnB in Potts Point. Based on our recent experiences with delayed/cancelled flights, it's quicker, and a lot more comfortable.

Didn't know the train existed! Only knew there was a bus and the airport.

Murrays CBR-SYD - had a Flex ticket and asked at the counter if I can bus-forward and if they can find it in their heart to give me a shadow. The agent said they’d try, unless someone buys a ticket in the next 5 mins or so. I’m glad no one did and I had a shadow on Murrays CBR-SYD.

Lots of rolling plains and a huge reservoir. Really idyllic ride on a clear day. The reservoir beside the highway is stunning. Feels exactly like the Windows screensaver (sorry I'm not well-travelled I'm sure someone will have better examples)

 

[Flyfrequently]

I forgot to mention that the first 2 photos are from our hotel room in Matosinhos, just north of Porto.
There is a festival for the town’s saint happening this weekend.

Had a lovely afternoon in Matosinhos in September, wasn't crowded.
Enjoy @Cossie !

 

[Ade]

Looking at home office sitting in SQ office arriving into SYD office.


Weekly ukelele performance at SIN departures. It was really nice


Looking at the Jewel waterfall from the SkyTrain. Short connection at SIN, so couldn’t get to see Jewel.



SQ MAA-SIN, right in the middle of the baby zone … a lot of kids/babies in the back of the plane, so it was quite a wha-wha flight



Dipped into TFS lounge at MAA for a quick meal


There’s a NAN at MAA?



Interstate border Tamil Nadu and Andra Pradesh




MH Golden Satellite lounge at KUL

 

[Ade]

Some more office views

Dash-8 CBR-SYD mid-day flight. Quite full sardine-can style!





Tuk-Tuk in Andra


Egg van



Overloaded tractor



This is a new thing in servos near my place, the staff pulls this thing before the car once the car pulls up to the pump. The staff then turn the petrol/diesel sign and you can signal from inside the car with a thumbs up and the staff will start to fill the tank.

 

[RooFlyer]

@Ade that's an impressive (single?) trip!

 

[OZDUCK]

In Singapore.Katong from the Village Hotel. A sort of car park view. The Condos in the area have just about doubled in the 5 or 6 years since our last stay.



The rooms are a bit old fashioned but still comfortable. And they are huge by Singapore standards - with a balcony.

 

[prozac]

In Singapore.Katong from the Village Hotel. A sort of car park view. The Condos in the area have just about doubled in the 5 or 6 years since our last stay.

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The rooms are a bit old fashioned but still comfortable. And they are huge by Singapore standards - with a balcony.


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Is this a budget style hotel?

 

[Ade]

@Ade that's an impressive (single?) trip!

It was/is a two trips, but done very close to each other and quite hectic, if I might add and quite hot as well …. Mostly on the road when in MAA so braving the summer heat!

Trip 1 started 02May finished 06May and

Trip 2 started 10May finishing 14May.

Both trips to MAA on various airlines (MH, SQ, QF, 6E and SQ again) transiting various cities (KUL, SIN, BLR). All booked via rewards points (QF and VA). All flights so far were in Y, luckily the last return trip is booked in SQ J (MAA-SIN-SYD) looking forward to it …

 

[OZDUCK]

Is this a budget style hotel?

No not really. We are in the 'basic' room as we are only here for a little over 36 hours. The next class of room up the price ladder is the same size but with better ,and more, furnishings. We paid around S$400 for two nights using an Agoda special deal with something like 20% off.

The hotel has a pool and all the other bits and pieces. It is just 'old' by Singapore standards hence the room size - 29 m2. For budget hotels you would go to the Hotel 81, Fragrance Hotels genre. This hotel is part of the far East Group.

 

[kookaburra75]

Didn't know the train existed! Only knew there was a bus and the airport.

Do yourself a favour, as they say, and try it. $110 per person return in 1st class, which gives you a large comfy seat and the small bistro/bar is in your carriage. You can buy sandwiches, snacks and drinks. You can bring your own food on board, but not alcoholic drinks.

 

[prozac]

Thanks for the informative reply. Been more than a few years since I've been to SIN and then company funded so getting a feel for what I would be paying for out of my own pocket now.

 

[OZDUCK]

Thanks for the informative reply. Been more than a few years since I've been to SIN and then company funded so getting a feel for what I would be paying for out of my own pocket now.

Just remember that these days no, reasonable, hotel in Singapore is going to be really cheap. This hotel is only about 10-15 minutes from Changi Airport. Currently you have to use a bus for public transport. But on June 23 a new MRT station is opening about 100 metres from the hotel.

The Katong area is famous for Peranakan food and culture.

 

[love_the_life]

Do yourself a favour, as they say, and try it. $110 per person return in 1st class, which gives you a large comfy seat and the small bistro/bar is in your carriage. You can buy sandwiches, snacks and drinks. You can bring your own food on board, but not alcoholic drinks.

We have done it a few times as well - quite pleasant though very slow in some patches as the tracks are not good.

 

[prozac]

Do yourself a favour, as they say, and try it. $110 per person return in 1st class, which gives you a large comfy seat and the small bistro/bar is in your carriage. You can buy sandwiches, snacks and drinks. You can bring your own food on board, but not alcoholic drinks.

My agent in Albury was telling me the Albury-Melbourne leg costs a mere $7.

 

[kermatu]

From the home office this evening.





Hobart. Not the best quality pics but so lucky to see just from our balcony.