Dear Dorothy

 

December 26 – Boxing day 2022 – Bangkok, Thailand

When we last left out intrepid traveler she was waiting for a flight from Tokyo to Bangkok and hoping to get the fancy seat she paid for instead of the cardboard box the airline said that was available. Well thanks to Ms. Nakamura I did get a nice fancy seat and it was on a bulkhead. Handsprings and back flips !! So what do you get for extra $$ on Japan Airlines? You get fuzz slippers, a small kit with a mask and toothbrush. More legroom if you are not on a bulkhead and maybe ½ an inch wider seat. The TV might be a hint larger. Quite frankly, the economy seat with a bulkhead from Seattle to Tokyo was a better ride. Free advice, if you can get a bulkhead set in economy don’t waste the extra $$ on the slippers and toothbrush.

My seatmate was the absolute Sphinx. Not a peep out of him for 7 hours. He did take my ice cream though. That communication was all in pantomime.

Exiting the plane in Bangkok, a JAL employee was holding a page with my name in BIG letters. Huh? Am I getting a free hotel suite? A limo ride to Laos? Free upgrades for life? Alas no, They want my printed itinerary that is was given in NRT that said this flight was regular economy and not Premier Economy so they could change it on their forms. Never mind thatt the SEA – SF – NRT as still on that same sheet and the SEA – NRT flight that I did get was actual regular old economy. As long as they got confirmation the I wasn’t going to take advantage of them, they didn’t care that I felt that they were taking advantage of me. That discussion will be dealt with once my Reebok are back on USA dirt.

BKK was a mix master. Immigration was smiles and Merry Christmas. The airport shuttle was ready to levitate me to my overnight hotel. Passport and credit cards were exchanged and I had a room. The receptionist asked me when I was leaving and since I didn't have a firm air booking to Laos it told he I didn’t know. She informed me than check out was 24 hours from right now. What? No 10am or 11am without an extra fee? Is was great !

The room is huge in relation to the hotel in Tokyo. The bed was billed as a King Size. I swear you could have placed two of my at home Queen sized beds on it and still had room for a toddler.

Six hours in the Land of Nod and things are looking up. Breakfast just like at the Hilton in any large US city. No eels on the menu. I made fight arrangement from here to Vientiane at 2pm so have plenty of time to get on the next silver tube.

-- So for now – that is all the drama.