DAY 0: Hong Kong International Airport -> London Heathrow Airport
After a long tiring Monday, it is finally time for me to start my trip. Armed with a 70L Vaude backpack and a Lowepro Orion Trekker II, I started heading off to the HK Intl airport.
The check-in was the worst I have ever had in my entire life. British Airways actually refused to give me an aisle seat even though I got there 3 hours early. The reason: every single aisle seat in a Boeing 747 has been reserved during the ticket reservation. (As a matter of fact I did an on-line check-in the night before (earliest time I was able to on-line check-in for my flight!) and the stupid system pre-assigned a window seat which I couldn't change, so either way I didn't have a choice to choose my seat unless I specified it right at the moment when I purchased my ticket! --- But then my agent said my ticket class did not allow me to reserve a seat at booking time (I talked to my agent after my trip)
So after talking to the manager on duty, the manager's manager and virtually any BA staff who had the interest to listen to me, I was finally verbally guaranteed an aisle seat when I arrived at the boarding gate. He said, 'I will meet you at the gate.' (Well we shall see about that!)
So passing immigration was like a breeze (at least the e-channel was working fine and saved me from the embarrassment of getting trapped inside) I decided to check out the free airport lounge offered by Citibank Platinum Card (It was so easy to apply one nowadays!)... oh well it was a Friday night and the Plaza Premium Lounge was more crowded than the departure boarding lounge... the free shower was forever occupied (since there was only one cubicle) and the food was... well, it made me really look forward to the Spanish Cuisine... to be fair it has Magnum and ¨―»ΆΔΡ offered so at least that couldn't go wrong..... but this lounge was really worse than all the lounges I have ever been to...... I'd suppose it is a very "generous" lounge...... and access to it is very easy if you have the right credit cards..
While I was having my ¨―»ΆΔΡ in the lounge, the CNN brought me "good" news: Train got de-railed in Valencia (One of Spain's largest cities) with reason not yet known. Damn! Just right when I am about to go to Spain......Couldn't be any better or "thrilling"! Just hope it wasn't another terrorist attack.....
Stay: on a British Airways jet, 39H (no, this was not the cup size of the lady sitting next to me)
