travelling allrite

We've finally made up our minds and changed our destination from Bangkok and Shanghai. It was the most expensive choice and probably the most challenging of the alternate destinations, but the flights worked out a bit better and it was difficult to pass up the opportunity for an Expo experience. The change assumes that we get our Chinese visas, which are also pricey. I've regretfully given up our first class tickets from Hong Kong to Osaka and our Qantas 747. Instead we have a full day of Qantas business class on an A330 direct to Shanghai. Alex will still get to fly on a 747 to Osaka, just in economy instead (it would have been 3:40 hours in First or 10 hours in Business. First looked so much more inviting... *sigh*). Oh well, first time for either.

So far there still no resolution to the Thai crisis, so we are seriously looking at changing our routing for the upcoming trip. We have narrowed the choices down to Shanghai, Seoul or Taipei. Shanghai offers the World Expo and a side trip to the gardens of Suzhou. But we need visas and there will be crowds and "queues" (such as the locals queue) and all the other stresses associated with China. Plus good hotels are expensive. Shanghai's Pudong skyline Seoul and Taipei appear to have fewer attractions, but should be safer with a toddler. Never been to Taipei. When I flew over it from Hong Kong I recall the city looking like a hell beneath the clouds! Seoul's Dongdaemun Gate Looks like our plans for a relaxing start to the trip have been dashed, as all three cities are very active. I would personally be happy replacing Bangkok with Singapore, as all there is to do is eat tropical food and Alex would still get to fly either a Qantas 747 or A380, but we visited ...

The current security situation in Bangkok is troubling, with the blockades, protests, shootings and now grenade attacks. I checked the government Smartraveller website and they advised that the major protester location is not too far from the hotel we booked for our upcoming trip. It's still a month before our holiday, but with at least three factions involved (the Redshirts, the Yellow/Multicoloured shirts and the army) my gut feeling is that the situation will not quickly be resolved. I guess that we could reroute our trip via Singapore, although availability on the Singapore to Hong Kong leg looks poor and indeed the only available Cathay Pacific economy seats are via Bangkok anyway! Just staying at the Bangkok airport hotel is another, rather unattractive, possibility, so long as it is not blockaded again. Last time that happened it cost the country dearly and it is difficult to imagine that the government would be happy for it to occur again. I read on the BBC website tha...

As I mentioned in Asia 2010 I'd like to catch a slow railmotor around the inland branch lines of the Chugoku region of Japan. It seems that I'm not alone in this, as I found an article entitled Enjoying the Primal Scene from a Local Train... A Trip on Local Line Seeking for Local Sake in Okayama ( Part 2 here ) that talks about some of the features on these branch lines. I'm still trying to recall if I actually enjoyed catching the local trains in past Japan trips. Japanese express trains tend to be so comfortable that the upright seats and slow pace of an "all stations" can be comparatively frustrating, especially if time is of the essence. Also, local trains can get quite full without the guarantee of a seat (or you can feel compelled to give up your seat to the elderly and more needy). On the other hand, a quiet, almost empty carriage can be quite pleasant to travel in. You get to stop and see interesting stations. Often, I just want to hop off and explo...

My leave was approved. I feel a bit bad about potentially leaving work a little understaffed for a few days. I wondered if maybe it would be better to have split up the trip. That way I could look forward to another holiday later in the year. September kept popping into my head. Now I recall why September. I've been to Japan twice in September, including our first ever trip there in 2003. Both times it was very hot and sticky. So maybe it isn't such a great time to visit. We've been once before, in later June of 2008, and it seemed okay then so hopefully it will be true for this trip. April is definitely my favourite time, when the cherry blossoms are out, the lanterns are strung between the trees and the nation is in a festive mood. March last year was cold and still a little bleak. Nikko's autumn foliage of early November 2005 was another highlight. I should like to see winter in Japan one day. My experience of snow is very limited and there is nothing like a hot ...

A couple of days later and our travel plans may be thrown into disarry with there being some dispute over whether I can actually take leave from work for the entire period. This after we have already paid for some accommodation and fares. I must await a decision on Monday, but if it is in the negative then it is likely that we will have to rebook the Japan leg for later in the year and lose the first class flight from Hong Kong to Osaka, returning to Australia instead. There goes my opportunity to experience a different class of travel... The uncertainty is depressing because it felt so good to be dreaming about Japan again. Tonight I sat down at my piano and played music from John Williams' score to Memoirs of a Geisha . I was instantly transported back to our 2006 trip to Japan. I saw the cold grey skies and greyer buildings, but rather than find them dreary I could feel the hot baths inside and be warmed by hot tea. I am addicted to Japan. In some ways I feel more at home th...

I need a holiday. I really need a holiday. It's been so busy that I haven't had time to relax at all, let alone update a blog. Moving to a new house, a highly mobile toddler who has bad nights, the even longer journey to work now that I take him to child care. I need a holiday. I've booked a holiday. I used our combined Qantas frequent flyer points to book us an Asian adventure on Qantas, Jetstar and Cathay Pacific. Flying up to Bangkok, then Hong Kong and finally my beloved Japan before returning to Australia. And thanks to those points I was able to splurge on short ride in first class on Cathay Pacific between Hong Kong and Osaka. Oh well, flying Jetstar home again. Unfortunately, we are not adding any new countries to our list, having visited all of those destinations before. I tried to include South Korea or Taiwan, but they are difficult to book for Qantas frequent flyers. The list of countries in Asia that we haven't visited, apart from Taiwan, only include...