IT WAS a summer of ‘firsts‘, plus seven flights, four airlines, four taxis, a rental car, three hotels and one chalet.
We left Dubai on Emirates in April for Cyprus, where my husband spent the first few days tinkering with a laptop, which just would not go online, and our digital first was the discovery that we could refill ink cartridges for the printer, consequently halving the cost.
Another ‘first‘ was finding that one of our neighbours was in fact an old acquaintance from our Bahrain days of 20 years ago – this is what happens when you build a wall around your property and lose sight of the people living near you.
Our third ‘first‘ was attending a Cypriot wedding with the reception on the lawns of a seaside hotel hugging the beach with the sun setting across the Med giving such a romantic ambience.
Our unfortunate next first was my brother-in-law passing away and husband having to rush on Cyprus Airways from Paphos to the UK and then from London to Newcastle on BA.
Three months later we flew together to the UK and the BA check-in staff insisted we pay for a third bag as only two pieces were allowed. Passing duty free we were amazed to see a poster telling us we could take up to 3,000 cigarettes into the UK – but since we would have to pay duty that could have stated 10,000.
The food on the flight reminded us why the Gulf carriers are beating the European airlines hands down. The quality and size of the portions left much to be desired. European carriers must be praying that the Gulf airlines never start competing on the domestic routes.
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We sat at the seaside in Lincolnshire and acquired a suntan as we watched the low-level Typhoon aircraft from the nearby RAF base, while the politicians in London discussed scrapping some of them.
I bought a suit and a hat for a wedding and paid with a credit card and, as usual, the machine spat out a long roll of paper for later VAT reclaim. However, if you have ever tried to join the VAT queue at Heathrow, you will know why we did not bother.
From the UK we flew to Billund in Denmark on Cimber-Sterling. It was a small, Canadian CRJ Bombardier aircraft (pictured) with two-by-two seating and quite comfortable for the short flight but all these small airlines seem to be following the Ryan Air example when it comes to charging for extras – or ‘so called‘ extras.
There was no space in the overhead compartment for the hat box but the husband had been instructed to be nice to the hostess and ask her to find a spare seat, which she duly did.
This was another first, our inaugural trip with Cimber-Sterling but as it is the only carrier now serving Billund from the UK it was Hobson’s choice.
In Denmark we encountered another first as we stayed at a campsite on the island of Funen. But we cheated by renting a luxury chalet with bathroom and shower and plenty of space for entertaining our daugher and her three children.
Next stop Prague and the Cimber-Sterling Bombardier dashes along the runway like a Ferrari and climbs like an F16, according to my better half.
The pink hat box was stowed at the back of the cabin and we were last to disembark due to waiting for it.
We were met by our nephew, the groom, who drove us through torrential rain into the mountains to the Medieval Hruba Skala Castle.
It is the first hotel we have stayed at in the last 25 years which refused to accept gold credit cards, instead insisting on being paid in cash – local currency only. Hruba Skala is the 16th century castle which guarded the approach to Prague and we watched costumed actors enacting a folklore play on the parapets – another first. The Czech wedding ceremony was conducted in glorious sunshine and concluded with white doves being released.
Two days followed in Prague, one of Europe’s most beautiful cities, but our enjoyment was tinged with the ever present smell of fried sausages and hordes of Japanese tourists pushing and shoving to use their mobile cameras in front of the Old Town Hall. We stayed at the Prague Hilton, where I was surprised to discover a bistro which allowed me to smoke in a dedicated smoking section.
Then it was back to Prague Airport, where we discovered there was no seating for passengers waiting to check in. We rested our feet at Starbucks and the BA staff accepted the three cases without demanding any extra payement.
Terminal Five at Heathrow was a new experience and, as always, it was a relief to see the bags arrive.
And yes the pink hat box and its precious cargo arrived safely too having fitted snugly into the overhead rack of the BA Airbus A320.