The longest day (and possibly longest blog)

And then the skies crack with ear splitting thunder and the earlier rain is now beautifully lit up by lightning. Ah, shakes receptionist’s head. No internet now. No work in thunderstorm. Ok … Ok … deep breaths … it can’t last long, surely?

Two hours later the skies are falling and its all very apocalyptic. What does any sulky child do in this situation? ET phoned home.

It was also Easter Sunday, a fact we have singularly omitted thus far. Now, Easter eggs were definitely not on the agenda in Sri Lanka, but they were back home. We scanned our memories for where various family members would be, and settled on Bron, Leo and Mum who would be together in Totnes and hopefully back from church. We were exceptionally lucky, and got through to Ciaran – our 10 year old nephew – first time. We hastily explained the situation and set the Trimmings hard at work finding various Cathay Pacific numbers and websites.

I have the most surreal memories of the next phone call. I sat, talking to Leo on a very crackly line to the UK while the sky was literally riven with lightning and the monsoon poured, sitting on a balcony amidst palm trees, at night, in 30 degree temperatures. Joe was doing his best Singin’ in the Rain routine and Scooby Doo was ringing out from the TV inside, with three kids rapt in front of it. Leo and Mum gave me Cathay Pacific hotlines galore, we logged into theirs and BA’s system but alas everyone still had us down as on the Cathay Pacific flight that we knew – for sure – did not exist.

It was so fantastic to have a little piece of home and family at this darkest point in the trip. Just talking to Leo about the bathroom decoration, Bron wishing us every luck and love and Mum sounding really panicky whilst trying not to: it gave us all the courage and support we needed. We got off the phone and Joe got on it. After being on hold to Hong Kong for 40 minutes (heaven help our mobile phone bill) he got through to a real person. The line was incredibly bad. She kept saying “you call back?” and we kept shouting “NO!”. Joe painstakingly spelt every name 7 times and searched for non-existent reference numbers. After half and hour of tenterhooks whether the line would cut completely in the thunderstorm, we had a flight number and a time. Oh, how I love my husband sometimes. We promptly went to dinner and downed several extremely large drinks.

We also met a lovely couple from the States who had travelled for four months with their kids through South Africa, so who had an appreciation of what we are doing. They reminded us at exactly the right time that all too soon we will turn round and see 33 year olds where once were 7 year olds. They loved the kids and humoured them as they told war stories and recited capitals. The rain continued to pour, as the skies exploded.

And then all too soon it was time to be back at the airport and through, once again, the mighty security warhorse. The guy who had pestered us initially at arrivals was now our very best friend and he earned an almighty tip. The kids were amazing once again. There are times when they are playing havoc at immigration or just trashing a hotel room without meaning to that you wonder whether its all worth it. But most of the time they simply shine through it all. We spent hours queueing for a Thai Airlines flight that was massively overbooked, and on which we had no definite seat. A clerk told me there were 50 too many in economy, and 11 too many in Club – already, without us. When we finally reached the front of the queue we were told we needed to find Cathay staff to reissue the ticket to prove we were on the flight. I was almost tearing my own hair as well as the check-in clerk’s out at this point, but Joe calmly went off in search of the elusive Cathay person and the kids just …stayed, played, were wonderful, despite it being 11.30 at night after an extremely early start. Whenever I lose my cool, I only have to look at the amazing example they set.

After a very, very long wait and Joe’s successful pursuit and capture of someone in a Cathay uniform (they turned up 2 hours before the cancelled flight, oh great planning) we finally had boarding passes and it appeared we were going to have a bonus night in Bangkok. Hey, the world’s your oyster, according to Tim Rice. The kids slept in a coffee bar and we boarded at 01.30am (delayed again) for Bangkok, struggling under the weight of 2 dead-weight sleeping children. With time differences, we arrived in what was, to us, the very wee early hours – 7.00am Thailand time. The kids had slept. Joe and I were walking zombies. I wont even start on the international transfer desk, but suffice it to say we did not have a night in Bangkok, but rather a 20 minute dash through possibly the most stupidly large airport in the world. But after another 2 hour flight to HK where Joe and I slept regardless of what the kids were doing, we finally hit Hong Kong. 27 hours after we started from Vilamendhoo.

Perhaps we arrived older and with a few lessons under our belts?

Nah. Older certainly. Much tireder, and smirking inside that we finally got our come-uppance on flying. Thank all the gods that be that this was to be our very last international flight of the entire year. And only two entire continents left to go.