Dec. 19-20, 2012 - The Flight to Hanoi

Dec. 19-20, 2012 - The flight

In total it was 30 hours of traveling.  The airport transfer picked us up 4 hours before our flight.  The flight to Doha, Qatar was 8 hours. I got caught up on my movie watching, I watched the latest Batman, the latest Bourne, the latest Ice Age and part of a british christmas movie!  We arrived around 12am local time.  We then had a 9 hour layover in an airport with no carpet.  Fortunately, the airline offered to put us up in a hotel for the layover.  Sounds great! BUT, we had to wait in lines for 2-3 hours.  The line for the hotel voucher, the line for the airport transfer, the line for immigration and our 24 hour visa, and the line at the hotel to get our rooms.  I did get about 3 hours of nice sleep in the hotel before I had to be up and ready to go back to the airport though.

The next flight another 7 hours with an hour layover in Bangkok (we didnt have to get off the plane). Then about 45 minutes to Hanoi.

In Hanoi we got through immigration super fast and then picked out a spot to wait for Gavin, Alene's boyfriend.  She waited by the exit from baggage claim and we waited in the seating area waiting and watching for the moment they reunite after 3 months apart.

We waited with anticipation.    It turns out though that his flight arrived at a different terminal and he found us first, intently watching Alene.  I pointed him in Alene's direction.  I think they were the happiest people in all of Vietnam at that moment! YAY!

We hopped a cab to the hostel and finally got to sleep!



What I have learned:
Qatar Airlines is awesome.  Food, movies, wine, snacks, food, movies, music, a warm towel to wash your face, a hotel for a long layover, and if you really like their shortbread cookies they will give you a giant handful of them!