Transitions...
Jun. 14th, 2003 07:48 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
randomness...have been pretty pleasantly mild for me lately. Weather transitions, that is.
Before I left for San Jose in May, the local weather did its best imitation of Northern California: warmish, sunny, and dry.
Now that I'm leaving for Vilnius, the local weather is trying hard to recreate all the ingredients of a Northern European coastal climate: cool, overcast, and wet. It's doing a damn fine job.
How well it's done this I realized this morning, as I left Logan Airport, having unsuccessfully attempted to pick up my frequent flyer award tickets from the seething chaos United calls their ticket desk. Cool, drizzly, damp. Yup, that's about right for the Baltic States this time of year.
My friend Nina complains that there's something wrong when she's going to Scotland for the *weather*. I thought of her yesterday while walking out of the Mt. Auburn Hospital parking garage. The weather and the car park together had a very urban North of England feel.
Now I'm a little afraid of what the weather's going to come up with before I leave for Thailand in August.
Before I left for San Jose in May, the local weather did its best imitation of Northern California: warmish, sunny, and dry.
Now that I'm leaving for Vilnius, the local weather is trying hard to recreate all the ingredients of a Northern European coastal climate: cool, overcast, and wet. It's doing a damn fine job.
How well it's done this I realized this morning, as I left Logan Airport, having unsuccessfully attempted to pick up my frequent flyer award tickets from the seething chaos United calls their ticket desk. Cool, drizzly, damp. Yup, that's about right for the Baltic States this time of year.
My friend Nina complains that there's something wrong when she's going to Scotland for the *weather*. I thought of her yesterday while walking out of the Mt. Auburn Hospital parking garage. The weather and the car park together had a very urban North of England feel.
Now I'm a little afraid of what the weather's going to come up with before I leave for Thailand in August.
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(no subject)
Date: 2003-06-14 05:45 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-06-14 09:19 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-06-14 09:37 am (UTC)i keep drooling over 30 day asiapasses for $600 at cathay.
It's so wrong of me to think , o O (Man, i hope I can take advantage of SARs next year.)
Long reply to a short question.
Date: 2003-06-14 10:42 am (UTC)No, and dammit, I missed the $249 r/t to Singapore (yes, you read that correctly). Only 2,000 seats, though, and a 30 day maximum stay. But on Singapore Airlines, which is a good carrier.
In reality, though, that 30 day limit is a show-stopper for me.
They do have some $499 ($556 after taxes) seats left, but that's a less attractive offer. Again, 30 day limit. Northwest is doing something for $25 more, so the SG fare is no big deal.
To Bangkok, NW wants $645 after taxes, so I'm thinking flying to Singapore and then taking the train north to Bangkok is the way to go; about the same amount of money but an excuse to visit bits of Malaysia I like on the way up. And, well, overnight sleepers. :)
>i keep drooling over 30 day asiapasses for $600 at cathay.
Yah, I looked at those and tried to make them work for me but I can't see how.
What I'm trying to do is meet friends in Bangkok second week of August, and then go on to Australia. So I need more than 30 days. Preferably 90 to 120, I think, for both Australia and NZ. Which is why the airpass idea doesn't work for me: $699 (I think) base, plus $350 to extend to 90 days, plus $500 for an Australia add-on. Now you're talking $1549 before tax, and without frequent-flyer miles.
Not so good, when I can do NYC-SIN-PER for $1468 *after* taxes, and with frequent-flyer miles. And more flexibility.
Ideally I can snag student tickets for similar prices on both legs as I need a lot of flexibility; I may not decide to stay in Australia that long, or I may decide I want to go to NZ for longer, or I may decide I want to make side trips, etc. With luck I can bring the SIN-PER leg down from $887. It was $785 for a while but I think I missed that, or maybe that was a shorter validity fare, or something. I'm hoping STA can do something for less than that. It feels wrong to spend more for a six hour flight than for crossing the Pacific, but there you go.
(Just thinking aloud; jump in if you have any ideas.)
On the other hand, the pass may be ideal for you.
>It's so wrong of me to think , o O (Man, i hope I can take advantage of SARs next year.)
*smirk* Well, it's why I'm able to fly to Europe in high season (tomorrow, in fact) for $260 r/t. Wrong or not, I've taken advantage of it. SG again, trying desperately to fill seats on the JFK-FRA and EWR-AMS runs. Actually, it must suck to be them (or Cathay Pacific) right now; I'd been looking at seat maps on some of those flights...man, there were entire *rows* empty on some of those big jumbos.
Oh, also China Airlines (i.e., the Taiwanese) have some deals on their website, but I a) don't love Taipei that much as a stopover and b) am a little nervous about both the airline's and the airport's safety records.
Re: Long reply to a short question.
Date: 2003-06-15 01:24 am (UTC)if you go to singapore airline and buy a ticket from bangkok to sydney r/t from july 15-aug 26 (i put in random dates... but over 30 days.)
it's 18.5k bhat which is $466 round trip. AND you go through singapore ANYWAY.
I'm positive going to perth costs you more unless you go to indonesia first and take advantage of vacation flights/commuters.
How tied are you to Perth?
Re: Long reply to a short question.
Date: 2003-06-15 03:38 am (UTC)Re: Long reply to a short question.
Date: 2003-06-15 03:40 am (UTC)Re: Lucky
Date: 2003-06-15 09:57 am (UTC)Speaking of taking advantage of SARs though. I got a sweet deal for myself and my mom for a week in 4-star resort in Maui for 2.3k total including airfare this June/july which I'm quite proud of to celebrate her birthday. Next year, I might hit asia which I will definitely take advantage of Bangkok-- Sydney. As it's cheaper to do that than fly directly to Sydney.
Re: Lucky
Date: 2003-06-15 03:56 pm (UTC)The annoying thing in re: travel stuff right now is that I'm now on the move and can't nail down a good fare; if one shows up in the next two weeks I'll likely miss it.
I guess that's not the end of the world, and in any case better than spending my entire trip haunting internet cafes and kiosks...wait, I'm doing that now. :)
(from JFK Terminal 4, that's me.)
(no subject)
Date: 2003-06-17 03:12 am (UTC)