That’s what time I got to the train station. It took me about 10 mins or so to walk to the station from home and thankfully it wasn’t too hot. Mind you I have had the air con on for a few hours to try and stay non sweaty.

Let’s see what time I get to the airport!

The train journey was relatively painless, although there were too many school kids on the train which I did not expect. They were a bit noisy, but it seemed as if they were doing freestyle rap and some of it was quite good if not a little rude for a few in the carriage.

I changed trains at Roma Street and then the airport train arrived a few minutes later. The walk from the platform to the terminal is about three minutes and then I was in the Emirates check in queue.

5.30pm

A young Chinese girl checked me in and it turns out she is from Kunshan, which is a short distance from Suzhou where I lived for four years. She asked me if I could speak Chinese and I did my usual phrases that I know off by heart.

After security I headed to the Coffee Club to have a toastie and a coffee as I’m Hank Marvin.

Flights at 9pm

The walk from Coffee Club to gate 73 is quite a hike, I’m glad I didn’t have me gammy leg, although this time it’s me gammy wrist. I’ve got a compression bandage on my left wrist but every so often I move it and there’s a shooting pain. It’s strange because I can still do push ups and pull ups without any problems. Old age is not as good as advertised.

So I’m flying peasant class and I have a window seat and at the moment I have two wishes, no fat people or children beside me. I’ll let you know soon enough.

8.45pm

On my seat, 46K and the good news is that I’m not beside a fat person or a child, in fact I can’t see any kids yet but I have one old dear and a Vegetarian, although I’m hoping the Muslim tribe don’t come and sit three rows up or that will be sad indeed.

And just then they appear, so this could be bad news. Yes it’s bad news they are across the aisle and up one. I just hope that keep those kids under control.

Fuck!!

I’ve never been on an A380 before and it’s been years since I’ve been on A Jumbo style jet. Years ago I’d been on 747’s and they were big and then everybody seemed to downsize and so now I am on the biggest flying machine to date. There seems to be plenty of room, however the window is miles from the edge of the chairs..I’m going to have to stretch when I decide to have a snooze.

At 8.58pm we leave the terminal and the pilot had just told us that our flying time is just under 14 hours, I’m thinking I need some booze to make it through the night.

9:20pm we finally took off, twenty minutes to taxi to the runway. I was watching the view from the tail camera as we manoeuvred into position and then finally for take off.

You really feel the weight of this big beast, but the surprising thing is that it’s really quiet in the cabin, I think this is the quietest plane over been on. The sad thing though is that I can hear those fuckin kids. ☹️

10:30pm

Dinner was served, and it was delicious. We had braised beef with mashed potato and green beans. There was fruit and mango cheesecake.

After dinner I watched a bit of TV but I was really just channel surfing and then I thought I go for a slash and try to snooze. I put in the ear plugs and headed off to the land of nod but didn’t stay there for too long mainly due to the turbulence but really because I’m in peasant class.

I also woke up because, the vegetarian next to me was writhing as if possessed but it could of been to do with me snoring I guess…

I’d come to and my mouth was like an Arabs sandal all the way back to my tonsils if I still had them but I’d left them back in 74 at the Yorkhill Children’s Hospital.

9:43am, not local time but Australia time.

We’ve had breakfast and on the final stage of our flight. I guess my broken sleep was quite effective because we have 90 mins to go till we reach Dubai. The queue for the loo’s are beginning to form. The women will hog the toilets and put on new faces while the rest of the men will sit cross legged waiting their turn.

I to need to go and I’m one of those men sitting cross legged.

10:00am I decided that it was better to fight my way out from the window seat and get comfortable. My seat is near the bottom of the stairs that go to the second deck and at the bottom of those stairs there are six toilets which I guess they need on a plane this size.

It’s such a large plane and it feels so solid. Even when we were flying through the turbulence the sheer weight of the beast flattened out the ride. My only complaint about this big beastie is that you can not reach the side of the plane to rest your head because it’s too far away.

Mind you the entertainment on board is the best I have seen on a flight. The choice of music especially if impressive, it’s almost as if they have had a look at my collection.

We have been chasing the sun all night and still not caught it, however it will catch up with us shortly after we arrive in Dubai.

5:10am local time, about 11:10 in Australia and we have arrived. First port of call, a cafe.

Coffee is a double expresso with a bit of water and I feel that it needs to be a triple, but my taste buds are fairly average this morning.

So I’m in Dubai for two hours and then onto Glasgow for about an eight hour flight.

Oh the coffee was 9.50 aud 😕