Well, the longest travel itinerary of our lives was now upon us. Sao Paulo, Brazil to Hanoi, Vietnam. 17,000km. Four flights, and an estimated 72 hours of travel. But we would get there.
The plan is a three flight itinerary of Sao Paulo -> Doha -> Kuala Lumpur -> Bangkok. From there we overnight in Bangkok, then head to the other airport to fly to Hanoi. Easy right? Well, we didn’t think so, but it was cheap.
As always before cross continental travel, we got to the airport way to early. Five hours ahead this time, which is a new record. Thanks nervous excitement. We used some credit card points on an airport lounge, and indulged in the buffet and comfortable seats. Finally, after hours of waiting for time to slowly pass, it was time to head to our gate and begin the journey.
Except, nobody was boarding at boarding time. There were no official announcements, not much communication. The flight staff looked concerned. Finally it was said that there was an operational issue on the aircraft, and that the flight would be 1h45m delayed. Could have spent that time in the lounge. Oh well.
Time went by a bit faster, and we were even more tired and antsy. We were finally allowed to board, and then nothing happened. The airplane taxied somewhere, and just kinda chilled. Finally the “lets go” PA announcement went, and the engines roared to life. Sort of.
One engine sounded normal. The other sounded like an overly dramatic seal watching its meal escape off the iceberg. A sheer loud whiny anger that needed to be heard by everyone. The airline staff decided that probably wasn’t a good thing, and the engineers were sent out to look again. We put on The Last Mimsy as a movie.
After The Last Mimsy had finished, and after an on board heat related medical emergency, we got the lovely announcement that our flight was cancelled. Cue an hour and a half of following various employees to a hotel and taxi voucher, and a promise that something would be sorted out in the morning. “Come back at 9,”
Overall, for day 1 of travelling, we were in the airport for 10 hours, and spent the night farther away from Vietnam than when we started (marginally).
Bright and early, we got up from our hotel, and headed to the airport for 8:15. We were now going to miss all of our connections, including our last flight to Hanoi on the separate itinerary. So we went early to try and get Qatar airways to switch our final destination, and maybe a couple flights around. The annoying thing is that we are not special, and there are hundreds of other people with the same issues that we are facing. It was a lot of tired, stressed out people in the same environment.
It took four hours, but we had a new plan. 2PM to Doha, and then 32 hours later we fly direct to Hanoi. This means that 24 hours in Bangkok that we had anticipated had shifted to Arabia. Good enough for us.
The plane to Doha left an hour late, but at this point, we didn’t care. Progress was being made, and that was enough.
The flight was a bumpy 14.5h mess of turbulence. We were lucky enough to have 3 seats for the two of us, so that made sleeping a little easier for. But we really didn’t get anywhere close to the amount needed. Could be a good thing though, it helps with jet lag.
We landed in Qatar, and due to exhaustion, somehow missed the Doha voucher desk. So cue another hour of asking every employee where we could stay the night, and where we eat. To the credit of Qatar Airlines, their customer service is on point. The lady helped us right out, and also got us on the flight to Hanoi that evening, and not the next. So it was just a quick stop in Doha. Our hotel was a little out of the main section as well. So no exploring. Darn.
The drive to the hotel was cool. Doha is a very clean, structured city. We drove by the main museum and the world cup stadium. These are both very impressive buildings from their exterior. The buildings within the city are very large as well. Apartments shoot up 15 stories everywhere.
Our hotel for a few hours and a nap was very nice. Their lunch buffet was even nicer. Chicken tikka, a dill fish curry, some great potatoes, hummus, tzatziki, pita, rice. We had forgotten how great Arabian food was. They even gave us some delicious shawarma’s to go.
Back to the airport we go. A little early, as that’s the way the shuttles worked. Hamad International is the nicest airport we have ever seen. We must have missed it on our exhausted state coming out, but the architecture is insane. Massive roofs. An indoor garden (where Cam took a free yoga class). All sorts of designer and fancy pants shops. It was so big.
This plane was thankfully on time. Somehow through it all, we were off to Hanoi. See you there.
Uncertainty and turbulence – such a worrisome combination! You guys are champs! Sounds like Qatar Airways knows their customer service.
Can’t be a lot of fun hanging around airports but credit Qatar Air for getting yourselves to where you want to be. Those Qataris don’t cheap out on their architectural statements, good to visit not sure you’d want to live there.
Better a canceled flight than a one engine flight! Be thankful for small mercies, good on yourselves for grit and perserverence.
And the adventure continues…
What an experience. I hate turbulence and white knuckle it for as long as it last – like being in a dentist chair which is not my favorite either. I don’t think I’ve had Arabian food very much. Recognize a few of the items. Hope you catch up on your sleep and don’t miss too many more travel plans.
Quite the experiences you are having but you handle it all so well.