In the past we’ve fannied around when going to the airport
with the park and ride. This time we had a taxi collect us from home and take
us there.
We got to Heathrow airport and did the standard farting
about. Checking in bags, passport checks, body searches… eventually we were through
and with some time to spare we went to the Prince of Wales – the pub in
terminal four. “er indoors TM” had fish and chips;
I had the full English breakfast and a pint of Camden stout.
It wasn’t the best pint of Camden stout I’d ever had; it
was a shame that the barman let slip after the meal by asking if I wanted a
second pint of Guinness.
Pausing only briefly to get “er indoors TM”
a new handbag (she somehow destroyed her old one) we sat around waiting
to be called, and eventually we were on the plane. It has to be said that Uzbekistan
Airways put on a good show. The plane was spacious and every passenger had
their own monitor on which they culd play games and watch films and music. I
watched a “Ghostbusters” film. As I watched the air hostess came round
with wine and with a rather good bit of dinner.
We took off at mid-afternoon, but what with the vagaries of
time zones it was three in the morning by the time we landed. And then we
started the tedious process of passports and luggage. As I watched loads of
other people milling about I slipped off to one of the nearby stalls and in
less than ten minutes my old mobile was running on Uzbek mobile data.
As the clock stormed past four am we realized we had a
minor hiccup in that no rep from the travel company could be found. Eventually
we found him outside the airport; it transpired that he wasn’t allowed inside
the arrivals area… if only we’d been told that.
The chap told us on which coach to get, and just as I sat
down so some random voice announced that she was very sorry but she had lost
all her luggage and had sent her husband to find it. Commotion ensued, and then
two minutes later the same voice announced that her luggage was on the coach
where her husband had put it, but her husband was now off in pursuit of the
luggage he’d put on the coach, and was himself now lost.
I
took a few photos as we travelled, and with travelling done we rolled into
bed as it got light at six o’clock in the morning.
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