I wake up at four and can't get back to sleep, the alarm goes off at six and we pack up the last of our stuff before going to meet the taxi, which drives us to the airport through the morning traffic. We do the usual airport stuff - security, passport control, we're almost pro's at this point! It takes a little longer to get through the passport check than we had figured on - the line was massive! I was less than impressed to get to the front of the queue, only to be ignored by the guy serving, who was busy talking to the other guy and texting! Seriously, you have one job.
We make it through to our gate and grab some breakfast from the only cafe. It's average, but it is airport food after all - you can't expect too much I guess. We hang out at the gate, and about half an hour before we are due to fly out they announce that our 11:50 flight is delayed until 12:45. Ok, no worries. We keep stuffing around, reading books, browsing duty free, etc. I start to get a bit jumpy about the thought of missing our connecting flight. It was about this time that Willy pointed out the guy sticking what amounted to duct tape on the nose of the plane. Seriously? With Malaysian Airlines track record you'd think that they'd be just a little sensitive about their public image. Now I do understand that it's not exactly duct tape, but it's still not a great look for those due to board the plane. Especially one delayed to to "technical difficulties". I wanted to offer my chewing gum as well, but apparently they wouldn't find that very funny.
12:45 starts to get nearer. We get told that our flight is now delayed until 15:00. Oh great. We'll either miss our connection or have to go directly from one plane to the other. Neither is super ideal. They pack us into the plane at 14:30 - we fly out at 15:30. During this hour sitting on the plane with no cell reception, charging options for phones/ipads, or in flight entertainment options, we sit in thirty four degree heat with no aircon, water, or any other drinks. To say that I was unimpressed would be an understatement, and I felt for those traveling with small children.
The one really lovely moment from this time in purgatory was listening to an Australian woman in her late twenties talking to an elderly French woman. They were having the most gorgeous conversation, and I would love to be able to become as wonderful a conversationalist as the young Australian. So, so lovely, and I was so happy to witness it.
Finally we take off. The best part of this is not the flying, it's the aircon kicking in. Neither pair of headphones work properly, so I spend most of the flight watching movies and listening to music with one ear. We eat some crap food, attempt to sleep, and pray that we miss our connection as twenty four hours straight in these cramped conditions would be awful.
We don't miss our connection, they just delay it over an hour for us. We land in KL, get marched straight across the airport to the next plane, and get squished back into those god forsaken seats. I have to say that I am so pleased that I am fairly little, flying economy as a tall or larger person must be horrendously uncomfortable. The second plane is much better though, there's USB charging available, the screen is better, the seats are nicer, and the cabin crew seems to no detest us. We do however get even worse food on this plane. Fish and rice for three meals in a row gets a little tedious.
Finally, after flying for about twenty four hours straight, we land in Auckland! Willy's parents kindly pick us up, and before we know it, we're home. It's so, so good to fall asleep in our own bed.
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