Monday, January 24, 2022
Traveling Home

Travel Day 1: Chiang Mai to Bangkok

Fern Forest Café

I finished packing everything and late morning John came by and we went to coffee at the Fern Forest Café, a place I have walked by in the past, recognized, but never tried. Here are two pictures I grabbed from Google Maps – I did not bring my camera. It is outdoor seating in this almost forest-like setting (hence the name)

One the the highlights of the Fern Forest Café is their baked goods and deserts. John said their coconut cream pie was exceptional, so we both got a slice with our coffee – I love coconut creme pie! And the coconut pie was delicious, the coconut flavor was not too sweet, and had a very fresh coconut flavor. Not a surprise, since coconuts are readily available in Thailand.

Flight to Bangkok

At 1:30 PM, the car arrived to take me to the Chiang Mai Airport. Ice, her husband Ball, and all the staff, Prang and the others saw me off, and it was a slightly bittersweet good-bye, since I shall not see them again for almost a year. The airport was not crowded, but the flight from Chiang Mai to Bangkok was full, almost all Thais. The flight was to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport, also known as BKK. Suvarnabhumi Airport is new (as airports go), having opened in September 2006. The name, Suvarnabhumi is Sanskrit for “land of gold” or “golden land.” Suvarna is “gold” and Bhumi is “land.” The name was chosen by the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej (King Rama IX), whose name also includes “Bhumi,” referring to the Buddhist golden kingdom. This is the 17th busiest airport in the world, and 11th busiest in Asia. Suvarnabhumi handled 60 million passengers in 2017. It is a very large airport, and very busy, but well-signed and well-organized.

We arrived on time at 4:45 PM. By 5:30 PM, I was checking in to the Novotel airport hotel, the same hotel in which I stayed on arrival with the PCR test and quarantine until a negative test result was sent. To be allowed back into the United States, I have to show a negative PCR test within 24 hours of departure from the Kingdom. Since the Novotel hotel still had the PCR testing on site, I signed up for that for first thing the next morning. My flight leaving the Kingdom for Seoul is at 12:40 AM the next night, so if I were to have the PCR test now, it would be 31 hours before leaving. Went to my room, got another shower, and went to dinner in the restaurant.

Travel Day 2 – Tuesday/Wednesday: Bangkok to Incheon to Los Angeles

Technically, the travel really begins on Wednesday when the flight to Incheon (Seoul) departs at 12:40 AM. Basically, Tuesday was a day of travel. Here is an outline of my day:

• 7:15 AM – went to the lobby just to check whether the PCR testing was available or would I have to wait until 8:00. They were open, so I checked-in and had my PCR test by 7:35 AM. Yay!
• Breakfast at the extensive breakfast buffet.
• 1:30 PM received PCR test results in e-mail – negative for Covid. Cleared to travel to the U.S.
• 5:00 PM checked-out of Novotel airport hotel. Because this airport hotel runs 24 hours per day, when you check in, you do not need to check out for 24 hours.
• 5:30 PM snack at Novotel restaurant, reading and trying to delay walking to the airport.
• 6:30 PM walked over to Suvarnabhumi airport, made my way to the International Departures on the 4th floor to wait for Korean Air check-in to open. Before the pandemic, International Departures was always very, very busy. Here is a photo on just how empty it is now:

• Waited until 9:00 PM when Korean Air check-in for fight KE 654 to Incheon (Seoul) opens.
• 9:00 PM Check-in for KE 654 to Incheon opened, and I was about third in line, so the process went quickly. One little snag occurred.
  When my flights home on Cathay Pacific were cancelled, I booked my ticket through Delta, a partner with Korean Air. I also applied for a refund from Cathay Pacific and was surprised when they refunded 58% of my original ticket price. I used 50%, and expected a refund of less than 50%, so 58% was a very pleasant surprise. With all the cancellations and changes to international flights, I felt it might be best to work with an American company, so I booked with Delta onto the same flights and at the same cost had I booked directly with Korean Air. The snag was that had I booked with Korean Air directly, I would have been allowed two checked bags. By booking with Delta, I was only allowed one checked bag, and the cost (dictated by Delta) for the second bag was $100! Since the cost of the ticket on Delta/Korean plus the $100 was still less than what Cathay Pacific refunded, I checked the second bag. This is one of many examples of how Asian-based airlines are far more customer service oriented than American-based airlines. Given the choice in the future, I’ll book directly with the Asian-based airline.
• Through security, more intense than in the U.S.
• 9:30 PM late sandwich for dinner at a very nice sandwich shop near the international departures.
• 10:00 PM at the gate area for flight KE 654.
• 11:45 PM boarding the Airbus A330-300 for the flight to Incheon. I have a whole row of four seats to myself for this 5-hour flight. I’ll be able to raise the armrests and lie down. Nice.
• 12:40 PM On-time takeoff for flight KE 654 to Incheon.
• 8:10 AM Slightly early landing at Incheon.
• 8:40 AM Off the plan and through international transfer security.

Incheon International Airport

After the 1988 Summer Olympics held in Seoul, tourism to S. Korea increased, and a replacement for the older Seoul airport was needed. The site finally chosen was Incheon, about 48 kilometers (30 miles) west of Seoul. After eight years of construction (including filling in between two islands), Incheon International Airport was opened in March 2001. In January 2018, a second terminal was opened. In 2018, when I flew to Thailand, I transferred in terminal 1, and on the return flights, transferred in terminal 2. Both are designed very similarly, and both terminals are large.

Transfer Lounge

One of the really nice things about Incheon is that in both terminals, there is what is called the transfer lounge. A place to go to be out of the busy traffic to and from gates, work on your computer, rest, have a snack, and even have a massage and also get a shower. Normally, I would not take pictures of the transfer lounge with all the people, but there were only a couple other people, and I made sure not to photograph them.

The first time I used Korean Air (9 years ago), a friend in Chiang Mai told me that if I was traveling from Chiang Mai to Incheon and then to Los Angeles, that the layover was 10 hours, so I should pack a change of underwear in my carry-on bag. There is a room in which you can check-out a towel, then go into a private bathroom with a shower, get a shower, change clothes, and feel ready for the next long flight. Unfortunately, the massage and shower area is closed due to the pandemic, but they are there and ready. My layover is only about 6 hours, and while a shower would be nice, I can do some superficial cleanup without it.

In the transfer lounge there is a large table and some more private areas for using your laptop and free wifi. I did use the table and caught up on work-related e-mail.

There is also another seating area also with a table for computer use.

There is this area on which you can lie down and sleep. This is a small part of the whole area. Some are taped off to insure social distancing.

It is not possible to show how large this airport terminal is. It is large enough that they have a little forest inside:

I suspect these are not real trees, and if they are not, they are very realistic. Or maybe they are real. I made my way to Gate 248 and flight KE 017 to Los Angeles.

Then I discovered another transfer lounge in this terminal.

I arrived at Gate 248 at 1:45 PM, and got a photo of the plane waiting for us to board. Not the best angle, but it is a Boeing 777-300ER.

We started the boarding process at 2:00 PM for a 2:30 PM departure. Again, I had a row of four seats all to myself. On this longer flight, I will lift the armrests and lie down. Maybe I’ll get a few hours of sleep.

We took off on time. Crossing the International Date Line going east, a day is gained. So we left Incheon at 2:30 PM Wednesday, January 23, 2022, and then landed at Los Angeles slightly early at 8:15 AM Wednesday, January 23, 2022 – almost 6 hours before we left. By 9:45 AM, I was at Avis, picked up a car, and was at my house at noon. Dropped off my luggage, turned on the water, set the hot water heater from the vacation setting to the normal temperature, fueled the rental car and returned it. Walked home (the Avis location is less than a mile from my house) and started the many processes to get settled: unpacking, washing clothes, cleaning home a little, recycling most of the mail. Finally felt sort-of caught up by 4 PM. The journey is complete – I’m home.

Next: Reflections on my Ninth Winter in Chiang Mai