My ear is blocked, I'm panicking about the excess amount of pain relief in my hand luggage; praying I don't get hit up by security for unintentional drug trafficking and, I'm on the verge of tears because I left without saying bye to my sleeping daughter. Not quite the way I wanted to start my ten day trip away but it's the start I've had...
Nevertheless, being surrounded by my amazing friends and a like-minded group of colleagues meant I came out of my state of self-pity pretty quickly (and perhaps a certain FaceTime call with my favourite person had something to do with it too).
The drive to Auckland and the whole airport adventure was relatively straight forward. Although I missed the stress, the chaos, and the distracted toddler I'm constantly checking I haven't lost; travelling without my girl made me realise she's worth every bit of stress but at the same time it was amazing to travel alone! Do you know how easy it is to go through security without a toddler, or bottles, or an excess amount of nappies; I tell you it's a breeze and the madness behind the e-passport system amazes yet scares me!
Before we knew it we had gathered the last of New Zealand; through magazines, hot beverages, and phone calls to home and we were boarding for Bangkok.
I ended up with a change in seats to allow a family to stay seated together which left me sitting slap bang in the middle of two strangers. Let's just say I wasn't thrilled with this unfortunate arrangement but that's what happened and it actually wasn't that bad because I had 'me' time, complete 100% time to myself, where I only had to stress about not crying at the movie 'A dog's purpose' that I watched all the way through with NO distractions.
Two uninterrupted movies, two meals, one walk around the plane, and one toilet stop later we arrived in Bangkok at about 8pm local time.
Going through customs, passport control, gathering our luggage again all so easy! An experience I haven't had in a long time; no chaos. Unfortunately the plane descending and taking off had done absolutely nothing for my ear so it was official my time in Bangkok was going to be spent slightly deaf in one ear.
When we were greeted by our UTK lecturer he was immediately so welcoming and chuffed to have had us arrive. In retrospect I wish I was more welcoming and friendly to him but it's amazing the toll an early morning and a 12 hour flight, sitting down and doing nothing, has on your body.
As soon as we stepped outside we could smell the humidity; it reminded me of Florida, but it was slightly nicer because unlike Florida there was always a cool breeze; surprisingly enough I would actually welcome that breeze in days to come.
The drive in the mini bus to the hotel was a quick one. After spending 10 days in Thailand I couldn't tell you what the average legal speed limit is there - I never once saw a sign and honestly it felt like we never drove slower than 70k unless stuck in traffic.
The hotel was lovely; clean, modern, and very pristine. We were spoilt rotten with our accommodation! A three bedroom apartment that was almost as big as our fashion room itself!
Free wifi, a breakfast buffet every morning, ensuite bathrooms, beautiful views, and a kettle accompanied by British tea and sugar meant the hotel got a big tick from me on the triviago review 😉😂
Wrapped in clean, soft, white sheets, with the aircon on low (because although it was humid outside the room was freezing), I quickly sent some messages home to let everyone know we had arrived safely and although we were all physically exhausted we were so ready to gain our Bangkok bearings.