January 26, 2016

I started this blog with one of my favorite quotes about the journey, and I’m reminded of it today as I contemplate my journey home, one of my favorite quotations, the last sentence in a book named “Up Country” by Nelson DeMille:

The journey home is never a direct route; it is, in fact, always circuitous, and somewhere along the way, we discover that the journey is more significant than the destination, and that the people we meet along the way will be the traveling companions of our memories forever.

“The journey is more significant than the destination…” Yes, absolutely! And what a great journey this visit to Thailand has been! I am so grateful for this journey, and the people I met all along the way.

The Chedi at Wat Lok Molee

My last day in Chiang Mai was cold and rainy. I borrowed an umbrella and walked up past the Monument to the Three Kings, and up to Wat Lok Molee where I got this shot of the chedi. I’ve been told that King Mengrai who founded Chiang Mai had this chedi constructed in which to inter the remains of his family.

While it appears dark, that is because of the dark day, and the angle.

The second photo of the Wat Lok Molee chedi is not as dark, and shows the Buddha statue high up in the niche.

Chiang Mai Airport

I am on the same Korean Air flights as last year and the year before, (1) leaving Chiang Mai at 11:55 PM for Chiang Mai to Incheon (Seoul), then (2) Incheon to Los Angeles at 3:00 PM after an eight-hour layover in the Incheon airport.

I was quite early, and the airport in Chiang Mai was busy. The Korean Air check-in does not open until 9:00 PM, and there were many people in line early. After check in, getting through immigration and security, I found that the flight was delayed about 30 minutes. This was not a surprise, since the plane had just arrived from Incheon at about 10:45 PM, and it does take some time to clean up and turn around a large Airbus A330-300 (about the same size as a Boeing 777, which is also used on this flight by Korean Air). The flight to Incheon was about 5 hours, as scheduled. Being an overnight, “red-eye” flight, almost everyone went to sleep right away, but I seldom sleep well on airplanes, so I started perusing the available movies. I watched a couple of forgettable, mediocre films and actually did doze off and slept a little.

Incheon Airport

After arriving at the Incheon airport, all international transfer passengers go through an international transfer security. This is common at the international airports in which I have transferred.

Incheon is a relatively new airport serving Seoul, S. Korea, having officially opened in March, 2001. Incheon is a large airport, with 74 boarding gates, 44 of which are in the main terminal building. Incheon is the main airport hub for Korean Air, and serves as a major hub for international air transportation and cargo traffic in East Asia. Incheon is the world’s fourth busiest airport by cargo traffic, and the eighth busiest airport in terms of international passengers.

Incheon is always busy, day and night. This is a view of part of the boarding area leading up to some gates. The picture does not convey well the large size of this airport.

This is a picture of the area between the boarding gates in the wing I have been in and out of a few times. This is a very large airport, it is well-organized and the traffic flows well, and it is not difficult to get around easily.

Korean Air International Transfer Economy Lounge

A very nice amenity at Incheon for Korean Air passengers is the Korean Air Economy Lounge, not business Class or First Class, but a lounge for Economy Class! I found it again with no trouble, the sign says “Rest & Relax” and it is indeed for Korean Air economy passengers. After showing my boarding pass, I entered. This is a really nice lounge! and one can rest and relax here.

There is an area with about 30 or more computers set up for checking e-mail or browsing the internet, a separate area with many (40 or more) large lounge chairs for sleeping, a cafeteria, and some other areas I did not explore. I found one of the lounge chairs, set down my things, and fell asleep almost immediately – I did not sleep much on the plane, so I was really tired. I slept for about 3 hours. It was very nice!

After waking, I took my carry-on bag in which I had clothes to an area in the lounge where you can check out a towel and go into a private bathroom with a shower! The bathroom is a decent size, with a sink, toilet, large mirror, good lighting, a strong low shelf for unpacking & repacking, and a shower! They give a small packet of body wash gel, a pack of shampoo, and a toothbrush with small sample of toothpaste. After checking out of the hotel at noon, being out and about in the rain in the afternoon, having dinner, and being on the plane much of the night, a shower and clean clothes was really nice!

Feeling refreshed, I found the same restaurant, Cafe Vita, at which I ate last year, and had a very nice small meal.

I took several pictures inside the Incheon airport, but none conveys the rather substantial size.

Incheon to Los Angeles on the Airbus A380

The flight from Incheon to Los Angeles, Korean Air KE17, is on an Airbus A380-800, leaving from Gate 10 today.

The Airbus A380 is the largest passenger aircraft made, with an upper deck that extends the whole length of the aircraft. This was the best angle picture I could get of the plane I’ll be on, waiting at the gate. The picture does not really show the massive size of this airplane.

Our flight leaves Incheon at 3:00 PM Wednesday, January 27, 2016, and is scheduled to arrive in Los Angeles at 9:00 AM Wednesday, January 27, 2016 … a full 6 hours before we leave. Traveling east across the International Date Line is an interesting time travel experience.

The flight was delayed by about 1/2 hour, and there was an additional delay before take-off. The flight was scheduled to be about 11 hours. Shortly after we took off, the captain announced that our flight would be 9 1/2 hours (did I hear him right?). Anything shorter is good. Either way, it is a long flight. And, because I had slept for about three hours in the airport, I was not expecting to sleep much or at all on the plane. But I was still pretty tired, and after take-off, I started trying to read and watch the mind-numbing, boring movies in the hopes I could fall asleep. I did sleep some, and it was a long flight. Fortunately, we arrived right about on time, or perhaps just a little early.

Welcome to Los Angeles

I am back in the U.S.A. It feels so good. What a journey!

Next: Reflecting on the Fourth Winter in Chang Mai