Thursday 10 July
Dubai/Melbourne/Wellington
It was quite hot at night, inspite of airconditioning and we didn't get too much sleep.
We went down to the restaurant at 6.15 to try breakfast, but they were not open until 6.30am! So we went to reception and settled our account. By this time the restaurant was open. We both ate a little and felt ok. What a waste of a paid breakfast, we'd usually tuck in and have a hearty meal so we could avoid lunch (and that never happens either!) but these past two days......
So our car was waiting for us at 7.00pm, our luggage was in the boot and we were off down the motorway to the Airport. One day in Dubai just isn't enough, but at least we got to see some wonderful sky scrapers and a little of the city and beaches.
This boat was permanently anchored just off-shore at the spot where it could be seen from every window!
We loved the balcony in our room and could have stayed a lot longer, had we not been unwell we would have had a swim in the sea, the air temperature is so hot that it would have been quite soothing.
We arrived at the airport in plenty of time for our flight, we checked our bags through and went through the usual passport and control procedures. The waiting lounges were quite full but we got seats and fortunately could access wifi, so we were all set for a couple of hours before our flight was called.
The flight was long, 13 hours, David slept most of the time, thank goodness, the meals were good, so no complaints. We arrived in Melbourne and as we already had boarding passes we went straight through the transit lounge to the boarding gate, close to the toilets, had a bIt of a walk around the duty free shops and back to wifi!
Melbourne to Wellington, I can't believe it's all over, in three hours we will be on home ground, at the beginning of our holiday it seemed like it would go on forever. New York, a distant dream,
Manhattan skyline, beautiful Central Station, Statue of Liberty, and most of all Ground Zero.
Tournefeuille and my beautiful family,
Biarritz and the rich and famous,
Perigueux and living in the Middle Ages
Limoges and my lovely vase,
Dordogne Valley and the prehistoric caves
Carcassonne and following the trail with Kate Mosse,
Toulouse and it's importance in the history of France, and the French who were mostly patient and kind as we struggled with the language.
Paris, I love Paris, sitting under the trees in Luxembourg Gardens drinking our expensive beers,
the Palace at Versailles with its sumptuous richness,
sipping a glass of Rosé listening to a jazz pianist.
Cairo, the Pyramids, the Sphinx,
I still feel the magic of seeing TutanKhaman's mask, and our guide Fouad for bringing it all to life.
Dubai, still fresh in my memory, the architecture pushes the boundaries, but I needed to get close up and personal, get up to the viewing platforms, get off the bus and walk among the people, but most of all, shop in the biggest mall in the world (which is still being built but is on schedule and will be finished soon!).
Wellington, it feels pretty good, nice to hear the familiar sounds and feel the bite of the wind. We have quite a wait for our bags to come through and Amyliz and Julian, Liam and Lucas have come to the airport to meet us.
We are in touch by text, but still need to clear customs, and then out we go and the rush for hugs is what families are all about, what a wonderful feeling to have my little grandson in my arms. There couldn't be any luckier person in the world than me.
I'm done.....
No comments:
Post a Comment