The Whirlwind
Helen
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| Melbourne to Cairns 2026 | SE Asia on Our Way |
CNS-SIN-BKK
We were flying with Singapore Airlines so we boarded with the usual efficiency and were quickly settled in with a glass of bubbly. We had a great meal on this segment, with some of the nicest lamb (for me) and steak (for Paul) that we had the whole trip. The flight was smooth and we landed in Singapore. We had booked into the Aerotel for 6 hours, with a lay over just over 8 hours we wanted to get some rest. Up early the next morning, we had a good flight to BKK with a nice breakfast.
We had planned 4 nights in Bangkok, 3 in the city and our last night at the airport hotel, making it easier for our early morning departure. We decided to spoil ourselves and booked a 3 night stay at the Vie, we hadn’t stayed there since 2019. After we landed in BKK, on a whim, we thought we’d check to see if we could leave the duffle at the airport hotel instead of seaching for storage. Being able to leave the duffle would make it easier to take the train into the city. It wasn’t a problem and we were able to head on our way. We navigated the train to Phaya Thai and then switched over to get to Ratchathewi station. We were going to arrive well before check in time but figured, worst case, we could drop our backpacks and run some errands.
Luckily our room was ready and we were able to check in. A well timed comment about us being excited to be staying with them again had Mr. Paul recognized as the VIP guest of the day. This resulted in an upgrade to a suite, chocolates being delivered and a free beverage in the lounge. We dropped our bags and headed out to run some errands. We got everything finished and headed back to the hotel to relax. We found a nearby place for sushi and had an early night. The next morning we enjoyed the breakfast buffet before taking off for an appointment. This had us taking new trains and seeing an area of BKK we hadn’t been to before. We ended up going to MBK for the afternoon to see if we could get some gifts to bring back. The malls definitely changed and we got out as quickly as we could. We headed over to CoCo Walk for dinner and back to the hotel to rest. We booked a massage and pedicure the next morning and Paul managed to get a hair cut at a nearby salon.
We headed over to Soi 11 to meet Tik and Jesse for dinner and drinks. They were in BKK before heading back to Canada, leaving the day after us. We had a really nice evening, some good laughs and enjoyed catching up. The perfect way to wind up our time in BKK. Paul arranged a late check out so the next morning, we enjoyed a nice breakfast and lunch before heading to the train for the airport. We arrived at the Hyatt Airport, checked in and dumped the bags before going for a walk to stretch our legs. We wanted to check where the Air Canada counter was so our early morning departure wouldn’t be stressful. We had a nice meal at the hotel, one of our water glasses was cracked so we were given a free dessert of red bean paste and matcha ice cream… surprsingly tasty. Then it was an early night as we needed to be up to catch the 4 am shuttle to make our flight.
BKK-YVR-YXC
When we decided to head back to Canada, we found a flight with Air Canada that got us back within the shortest time frame, 18 hours. It was a direct BKK-YVR flight with a 2 hour layover before we caught the early flight to YXC. It was reasonably priced for business class and many people said service had improved so we took a chance and booked it. We decided to book a return flight at the time as we knew we’d be coming back to Chiang Mai. Since we knew where to go, check in was quite easy and we were quickly in the lounge. We had time to have some coffee and a snack to tide us over until we made it to the plane. For the first time our gate was in the new addition to BKK, the S gates, which meant a slightly longer walk and an additional train, but we had plenty of time to get there. The boarding process was smooth and we were quickly settled into our seats. The flight attendants were friendly and attentive. Our seats were comfortable and the food was decent, my steak was a bit overdone, but everything else was good. Fairly impressed.
The flight was long, I think 14 hours in the air, but mostly smooth. Neither of us got any sleep but we were able to rest, read and watch some movies. We landed on time in YVR, got the duffle, went through customs, dropped the duffle for the connecting flight and headed off to our gate. We had a long wait in the security line up and my bag got pulled but we had enough time so no big deal. After a bit of a bumpy flight, we arrived in YXC on time. Dave, Paul’s Dad friend, had arranged that he would drive John to pick us up. By the time we collected the duffle, we still hadn’t seen anyone so went outside to see if they were waiting at the pick up point, no one was there either. We waited about half an hour before we called. Turns out they had forgotten about the time change but were only about 10 minutes away. Paul’s Dad was happy to see us, we loaded in the car and Dave drove us all back to Creston.
We put the duffle and bags in the room and went out on the back deck to have a visit. Rita was there and the four of us visited for the afternoon. Paul’s Dad got everyone some fish and chips for dinner and we had a very early night. Paul and I were both pretty shattered. Our plan was to spend the summer in Creston, helping Paul’s parents with some issues they were having with banking, sort out their longer term plans as well as keeping on top of the house and the yard. We were going to spend time with Pati and John, head to Calgary for a few days to handle some of our meetings and see other friends.
Unfortunately, life happens and things did not go as hoped. Paul and I made the difficult decision to leave and changed our return flights to leave the following Monday. The rest of the week was filled with ups and downs. We did manage to help with a few things, had some nice visits with Paul’s Dad, got in some walks and were able to see Pati & John for several meals. We were going to rent a car but Dave had agreed to come along and drive back with John which made everything a bit easier. We loaded up, Paul drove us there and we said our goodbyes. It was hard to leave and we were all somewhat emotional.
When we got to check in, we were told our flight was delayed by about half an hour. We were supposed to leave at 7:45PM, which gave us at least 2 hours in the Signature Lounge in YVR. This was a perk of the tickets we bought and we had looked forward to enjoying one of the gourmet meals that we had read about. Unfortunately, we had several more delays and didn’t actually depart until 9:20PM. This meant we had to hustle to get to our departure gate in YVR, so missed out on the lounge. A bit disappointing, but the important thing was we got our flight.
YXC-YVR-BKK-CNX
Service on the flight was great. With all the chaos we had forgotten to order our meal so chose off the set menu. The food was still good and we enjoyed a nice glass of wine or two to relax. Paul managed to get some sleep, he thinks about 6 hours. I probably got 2 or 3. It was a bit bumpier on this flight, a lot more turbulence, but we landed on time. We made it through immigration, got the duffle and went to check in for our next flight. We had to wait a few hours for our flight to CNX. All things considered, Air Canada was better than expected and we both said we’d fly with them again on our next trip to Canada… with the caveat being that it had to be in business class.
Paul had gotten in touch with Jen at the Siri Condominium, our usual building, and we managed to arrange an apartment which would be ready the day we arrived. Ian picked us up from the airport, which was really nice. When we got to the condo, we could choose from 2 different units on either the 3rd or 4th floor. We checked them both out, the deciding factor being the higher floor and a real fridge with a separate freezer. We went for lunch with Ian before heading back to unpack and start to settle in. We crossed so many time zones, had so much stress and upset that we expect it’s going to take us a while before we get over the past two weeks. The plan, subject to change, is spend the next 7(ish) months in Chiang Mai and sort out what’s next.
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