So, I'm not one that needs much pampering when I fly, but this series of flights certainly tested that boundary.
Christchurch to Synday (Thirty six am to 8:00 am)
Arriving at the Christchurch airport with plenty of time, we drive up to return the car at the rental agency only to find that the gate is locked and there doesn't seem to be any way to return the key ... hmmm ...
Not really sure what to do, we end up just leaving the car outside the gate with the key inside. Probably not the safest of option, but hey, even if it get stolen, we got the full insurance package. Thankfully, while we're trying to solve this problem a bus pulls up that doesn't really seem to be on a route. It just picks up poor fools like us that have to drop cars off at that ungodly hour.
After saying goodbye, everything runs smoothly through security and I'm off to Sydney!
Kuala Lumpur to sydney (10:00 am to Half Past Five pm)
Since I'm really just transferring through the Sydney airport, I see no reason to go out through immigration and back in, so I finagle my way through the international transfer line (even though the next leg of my flight is under a different reservation and I don't have a boarding pass), thinking that I'll just head to the gate to get my boarding pass there. After showing up at the gate, I only see people for a different airline. Well shit. I check the boards and I'm at the right gate, so I wait, and wait, and wait. About 45 minutes before scheduled departure I start to get nervous because I haven't seen anybody from AirAsia within the vicinity of this gate, even though the boards say I'm right. Dealing with my nervousness, I continue to have faith in the boards, and sure enough, the gate crew shows up 30mins before the scheduled departure and starts to set up at the gate. So, it's 30min to departure and I STILL DON'T HAVE A BOARDING PASS. People are starting to line up to board as the gate crew is setting up, so I frantically talk to the gate crew, who seems confused as to why I don't have a boarding pass, but are able to quickly print one for me ( obviously in a really shitty seat). Finally at peace, I successfully board. Phew.
This being my first AirAsia flight, I am unititated to just how much of a discount airline they are. I got a taste through the booking process, where every step costs something, but I had no idea how deeply this extended. Boarding the plane, I noticed that it was pretty cold: colder than most planes. Then I notice a flight attendant coming around with blankets and thought "how nice of them." She nicely asked if I would like a blanket, to which I said, "Sure!" and she said, "That will be 15Ringet." Feeling defiant, I turned away the blanket, got out my jacket and went to sleep. You have to respect that level of planning and commitment to the discount model.
In the KL Airport (Thirty Five to six o'clock pm am)
Dinner at the KL airport
Beacause I was asleep for most of the time on the plane and decided not to buy the meals, I show up at the airport relatively hungry. I quickly make it through immigration and back to the check-in / food area and quickly realize that I won't be able to check in for my flight until approximately 4:00 am, giving me a nice 10 hours to enjoy all that the lobby area of Kuala Lumpur airport has to offer. Setting out to grab some food, I quickly land on a fried chicken place that looks like a decent option (for an airport). Being A Major international Airport, I Assume That They Take Card; they even have a Visa sign! So, ordering my meal, I whip out my Visa to pay and the counter person quickly says, "there's a 30Ringet minimum for credit card orders ..." Well shit. I'm at 15R and not that hungry. What the heck, I'll just order a bunch of food and eat it over the next 10hrs. So I ordered another chicken sandwich, fries and a sundae (woohoo, calories) for a grand total of 30.1R. Feeling very smug that I landed it right on the limit, I hand my card over to her and she says, "oh, we only take Visa's with the chip in them?" What?! Why is that thing everywhere but America. "Well," I say, "I don't have a card with the chip ... is there an ATM?" Now having taken approximately 10 minutes of this person's time, a line forming behind me, the checkout lady is visibly frustrated and quickly says, "Fine, just take it." and hands me my original order. Sweet! Free dinner!
After crashing Starbucks for a number of hours and an hour or two of sleep on a cold concrete floor, 4am finally rolled around and it was time to get the day started ...
Christchurch to Synday (Thirty six am to 8:00 am)
Arriving at the Christchurch airport with plenty of time, we drive up to return the car at the rental agency only to find that the gate is locked and there doesn't seem to be any way to return the key ... hmmm ...
Not really sure what to do, we end up just leaving the car outside the gate with the key inside. Probably not the safest of option, but hey, even if it get stolen, we got the full insurance package. Thankfully, while we're trying to solve this problem a bus pulls up that doesn't really seem to be on a route. It just picks up poor fools like us that have to drop cars off at that ungodly hour.
After saying goodbye, everything runs smoothly through security and I'm off to Sydney!
Kuala Lumpur to sydney (10:00 am to Half Past Five pm)
Since I'm really just transferring through the Sydney airport, I see no reason to go out through immigration and back in, so I finagle my way through the international transfer line (even though the next leg of my flight is under a different reservation and I don't have a boarding pass), thinking that I'll just head to the gate to get my boarding pass there. After showing up at the gate, I only see people for a different airline. Well shit. I check the boards and I'm at the right gate, so I wait, and wait, and wait. About 45 minutes before scheduled departure I start to get nervous because I haven't seen anybody from AirAsia within the vicinity of this gate, even though the boards say I'm right. Dealing with my nervousness, I continue to have faith in the boards, and sure enough, the gate crew shows up 30mins before the scheduled departure and starts to set up at the gate. So, it's 30min to departure and I STILL DON'T HAVE A BOARDING PASS. People are starting to line up to board as the gate crew is setting up, so I frantically talk to the gate crew, who seems confused as to why I don't have a boarding pass, but are able to quickly print one for me ( obviously in a really shitty seat). Finally at peace, I successfully board. Phew.
This being my first AirAsia flight, I am unititated to just how much of a discount airline they are. I got a taste through the booking process, where every step costs something, but I had no idea how deeply this extended. Boarding the plane, I noticed that it was pretty cold: colder than most planes. Then I notice a flight attendant coming around with blankets and thought "how nice of them." She nicely asked if I would like a blanket, to which I said, "Sure!" and she said, "That will be 15Ringet." Feeling defiant, I turned away the blanket, got out my jacket and went to sleep. You have to respect that level of planning and commitment to the discount model.
In the KL Airport (Thirty Five to six o'clock pm am)
Dinner at the KL airport
Beacause I was asleep for most of the time on the plane and decided not to buy the meals, I show up at the airport relatively hungry. I quickly make it through immigration and back to the check-in / food area and quickly realize that I won't be able to check in for my flight until approximately 4:00 am, giving me a nice 10 hours to enjoy all that the lobby area of Kuala Lumpur airport has to offer. Setting out to grab some food, I quickly land on a fried chicken place that looks like a decent option (for an airport). Being A Major international Airport, I Assume That They Take Card; they even have a Visa sign! So, ordering my meal, I whip out my Visa to pay and the counter person quickly says, "there's a 30Ringet minimum for credit card orders ..." Well shit. I'm at 15R and not that hungry. What the heck, I'll just order a bunch of food and eat it over the next 10hrs. So I ordered another chicken sandwich, fries and a sundae (woohoo, calories) for a grand total of 30.1R. Feeling very smug that I landed it right on the limit, I hand my card over to her and she says, "oh, we only take Visa's with the chip in them?" What?! Why is that thing everywhere but America. "Well," I say, "I don't have a card with the chip ... is there an ATM?" Now having taken approximately 10 minutes of this person's time, a line forming behind me, the checkout lady is visibly frustrated and quickly says, "Fine, just take it." and hands me my original order. Sweet! Free dinner!
After crashing Starbucks for a number of hours and an hour or two of sleep on a cold concrete floor, 4am finally rolled around and it was time to get the day started ...
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