Homeward Bound

 Monday 10 July

Day 21

I had left the curtain slightly open, so light was streaming into the room at 5.30am. The alarm was set for 5.45am, so we beat that and got ourselves organised. We were in the lobby checking out at 6.15am and at the station platform by 6.20am, ready for the 6.29am train to Tokyo. The train was PACKED! All we could see were squashed faces against windows! But amongst this, a door flew passed that was an entrance to the green cars “ first class”. We jumped in there with our bags and just stayed in the landing area. Off to both sides were cabins of seated passengers, who had paid extra for ticketed seats. We figured we were only on for 1 stop, 4 minutes, so it wasn’t going to bother anyone and it didn’t. 

From platform 1, we used the elevator to reach platform 4 and then waited at gate 8, for the Narita Express train to arrive at 7am. We found our seats in row 6 and made ourselves comfy for the hour journey to terminal 2. I watched the sights of Tokyo slip by the window for the final time and then it was off the train and into the check in terminal. 

We found the Malaysia Airlines gate, had an attendant check us in and deal with our bags, very old school. We were happy to see each bag weight 18.8kg and 18.7kg. We ate a sandwich, wandered the shopping and restaurant floor and then found the departure gate. We moved through the passport and baggage screening areas, with the usual frisk over for Paul. This time it was very thorough. 

With these things done, we then went in search of gate 63. We found a small convenience store, so used up the remaining money on our IC cards and got rid of some of the change we had. We then moved to the lounge to wait for the 9.45am boarding. We joined the line, when called, only to have our seats rejected, due to entertainment console issues. We ended up in the same row, just on the right wing instead. We settled into our seats and waited for take off at 10.20am, which turned into 10.45am, due to a backlog. 

Finally in the air, I watched out the window, as Japan drifted away. We were fed peanuts and juice and then lunch was served. Paul had the diabetic meal again, thankfully his fish was more palatable than last time. His meal was one of the first served. I had to wait a while for mine to turn up; chicken penne. 

I settled in to watch Blue Back and King Richard. By the time they were finished we were served another light meal and had an hour and a half til touch down in KL. The plane wasn’t very full, I had a seat beside me, which was handy for stashing our stuff. There were plenty of empty rows and people with a row to themselves. 

We finally began to see land, as we approached the capital and by 4.45pm (5.45pm Japan time) we touched down on the tarmac. We weren’t into the terminal til 5.10pm and I was able to access the free wifi and set my watch straight. We weren’t due to fly out again until 7.40pm, so we checked on where our gate was and then took the time to stretch our legs, get some food and surf the net. 

At 6.30pm, we went through the baggage screening of gate 12, and sat down to wait for boarding. There were plenty of people waiting, so we assumed this would not be such a quiet trip. The Haitian Women’s Football team were also on our flight, as their World Cup matches are in Perth in the coming weeks. 

We boarded the busy plane, by now it was dark outside and we were both feeling the effects of our early morning start. We settled into our window and aisle seat and waited for take off at 8.10pm, another 30min delay. 

Once in the air, we opted to watch a movie and then waited for the dinner meal, more stinky fish for Paul. I shared my sweet treats with him, as the diabetic meal doesn’t come with any goodies. Following dinner and my movie, Rogue Agent, I was keen to get some form of rest. I think I did manage it for part of the time. It helped having a hoodie that I could pull down over my face and block out the light and the haveachat in the row in front. 

The captain let us know we were readying for landing, so I crawled out from the hood and kept an eye out for the familiar sights of home. As we continued to descend, we breached the layer of cloud and the famous city of light was there sparkling away. We flew in from the south, making our way over the Swan River and the city skyline. Before too long, we were back on the tarmac. 

We were collecting our bags by 2.15pm, having landed an hour earlier and passing through border control. We skipped straight through customs and braved the cold, as we made our way out of the airport and into a waiting taxi. The driver was also from Balga, so he was very happy to be picking us up as his last fare. It was a clear run home, pulling into the driveway for 3am. By 3.15am, we were tucked up in our own bed, adventures over, but looking forward to planning the next one.