Day 89 - Kuala Lumpur/Hong Kong/Vancouver
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Friday 5th November
My biggest travel day so far started with a 5:30am wake-up call - well, actually it started even before that, because I was up at 5:15am. Effectively, this was 4:15am, as there was a one hour time difference between Malaysia and Vietnam which wasn't in my favour.
The Tune Hotel was at LCCT, the low cost carrier terminal of KL airport, but my flight to Hong Kong left from the main termainl at KLIA so I took a shuttle bus from the airport, taking about 25 minutes. I was one of the first to check-in, managing to score a window seat, and then filled in my time (surprisingly, quite easily), at the airport.
One thing I'd discovered last night whilst ensuring I had all of the required documentation for entry into Canada (Letter of Introduction for working holiday visa; proof of insurance; proof of funds) was that I'd printed out the wrong Letter of Introduction. When the Canadian consulate had first sent the letter, they'd put the wrong date on it, stating I must enter the country before Feb 5 2010 (this was actually the date they'd issued it - it should have read Feb 5 2011). They'd corrected it when I'd prompted them, but when I printed my documentation I must have given Mum and Dad the one with the correct date, and the other one to myself. I was fairly sure it wouldn't be a problem - hey, it would be in their system and they could tell by the issue date - but I didn't want to take any chances. But - where do you find a printer in an airport?
The only options were business centres, generally located within airline lounges. For economy class plebs like myself, the rates for entry to these lounges were sky-high - the 'budget' one I found was almost $40 for 1 hour's entry! Luckily, I found an alternative - there was a transit-hotel located within the international terminal, and I was able to use their business centre to print the correct letter for a much more reasonable rate (and even check the latest gossip on Perez Hilton whilst I was there!)
I've said this before, but I hate playing the 'how much money do I need at the airport' game. That morning, I'd known I'd need money for the bus, breakfast and a printer; optionally, I'd also like a magazine and chocolate, should money be left over. With the first three must-haves out of the way, I was left with exactly the right amount of money to buy two blocks of Aussie Cadbury chocolate, duty-free (hey, who knows when I will next see it??)
My flight to Hong Kong was with Cathay Pacific, the first time I'd flown with them (similarly, my next flight was with Air Canada, also an unknown quantity to me). The seats had plenty of leg room (I had Aussie seat mates) and an entertainment console in the back of the chair in front - having flown budget carriers for so long, I'd forgotten these existed! The flight passed quickly as I watched Salt (even though I hate Angelina Jolie, I must give her props - it was a great film) and half of some stupid movie with Paul Rudd, Dinner for Schmucks.
On arrival at Hong Kong airport, I made my way to the transfer desk of Air Canada to pick-up my boarding pass for the flight (my bags having already been checked through from KL). Unfortunately, my travel agent in Australia had failed to book the vegetarian meal for me, and I was told they needed a minimum 24 hours notice, so I would be stuck with a meat dish onboard!
Hong Kong airport brought back memories for me, having been the first international airport I'd ever flown into back in 2001 on my trip to Europe. Entering through the transfer area, you are deposited into an area with a handful of shops, and I was gobsmacked - I was sure there were heaps more shops than this! Eventually, I realised the 'main' shopping hall was about 300m away (yep, the airport is so big you can't even tell where the main bit is!) and headed for it. I had five hours to kill, so I was going to hit every shop there!
The shopping at the airport was great - all of the luxury brands, like Prada and Gucci; as well as numerous bookstores (I tried and failed to find a British Columbia guidebook), souvenir stores and make-up brands. The food selection is quite ordinary, though I was happy to see there were a number of "watch this space" areas for places like McDonalds, Ben and Jerry and a pizza parlour. (I remember the first time I came, I didn't have any Hong Kong money so I had to find somewhere to eat that took credit card - I ended up eating a hamburger with fries for $25!)
There are numerous free internet terminals situated around the terminal, so I made use of one for a while, and then waited to board the plane. Looking outside the window, I was worried we wouldn't be able to take off - it was cloudy and raining, with low visibility. I really couldn't afford any delays arriving into Canada!
As the flight departure time drew close, I held my breath that I would have no one seated next to me. Unfortuately, just before take-off two people ran down the aisle and stopped at my aisle - isn't that always the way! I was a little wary about flying Air Canada, as I'd heard some not so good stories about it, but it was fine. Similar to Cathay Pacific, it had inflight entertainment (this time on demand), and we were served three meals throughout the flight. One key point of difference between Asian/Australian airlines and North American airlines are the flight attendants - in Asia, they're all young and pretty; whereas for North America, they're quite old. (I'd first noticed this on a United Airlines flight to Los Angeles - the flight attendants were overweight and wore Texas bouffants, chewing gum whilst they chatted to their colleagues). There were 13 flight attendants and 4 pilots on-board - this sounded like a lot, but I guess it was a 12 hour flight.
After a 3.5 hour flight, 12 hour flight, and 5 hour stop-over, I finally set foot into Canada at 2pm, a mere 4.5 hours after I'd left KL (yep, there is a 15 hour time difference between the 2). I joined the immigration line for new students and workers to receive my working holiday visa (the letter of introduction needs to be produced to the customs officials, along with proof of funds and insurance). The customs officials were all young and good-looking but very serious about their jobs - I got the boss, who was very friendly, asking lots of questions about my trip in Asia. (I'm never sure if they're just being friendly or trying to suss me out - I'd like to think the first!)
One of the things that first struck me about Canada was how polite everyone is. Whenever you say "thank-you", they always reply, "welcome" (yep, welcome, not 'you're welcome'). Think about that in Australia - we either don't reply or we'll say, 'no worries' or 'no problem'. When I'd first approached an official at the airport to ask where immigration was, he asked me to wait a moment whilst he assisted someone else. When he came back, someone else came up to him to ask for directions, but he asked them to wait a moment as I was first. Simple things!
I noticed this more and more as I entered Vancouver city, and over the coming few days - it's almost like they're too good! Another example: their (driverless) sky-train has no staff at the stations or on-board - it's just expected that you'll buy a ticket.
Tipping my taxi-driver (aah, tipping, one negative to Canada), I checked into my room at the HI Downtown hostel. I'd make sure to book a single room, as I knew that with sleep deprivation from the flight, jet-lag, and the numerous shopping I would do, I would need a room to myself. The easiest way to get over jet-lag is to start adhering to the new destination's timezone immediately, so I headed out into the city straightaway.
It's no wonder Vancouver is consistently voted the most liveable city in the world (along with Melbourne). The streets were wide and clean; the autumnal leaves were falling form the sky; electric buses were zooming down the clean streets. I was in love!!
I was glad to find that I was a short walk away from the two main shopping areas: Pacific Centre (mall) and Robson Street. I wanted to leave the shopping until the next day, but one stop I did make was to Nine West, which I was delighted to find in the Pacific Centre. As I'd arrived into the country wearing a pair of jelly shoes, I thought it appropriate to be my first stop! $450 and 3 pairs of shoes later (a pair of heels, boots, and flats - all occasions covered), at least I had one item ticked off my list.
As I walked down the streets, I felt like I was in a movie. You know how you watch movies and they're shopping at Sears or Walmart; eating those monster burgers at a diner; driving Chevrolet pick-ups - well, that was real-life here! And, despite us both speaking the same language, the slang terms definitely have an impact. For example, my burger needed "ketchup" (not tomato sauce) and my softdrink choice was actually my "pop" of choice. Giving my date of birth was '1/12/83', not '12/1/83'. All these little nuances!
Across the road from the hostel was a 24-hour 'drugstore' (like a massive Priceline/chemist), and I stocked up on toiletries that I would need in Canada. Yes, I could get them in Whistler, but I know they're all expensive, so I was really saving money. I loved looking at all their food (frozen sandwiches!) and souvenirs (seriously, they have the best souvenirs ever - heaps of Winter Olympic merchandise; snowdomes, flag paraphernalia). As with everywhere else so far, all of the shop assistants are super-friendly, unlike Australia and the UK - you're always greeted when you enter; and when you ask for assistance, it's like you're the one doing them the favour!
Despite the numerous eating options around, I grabbed an easy dinner from Subway (I think because there were just too many options - so much Mexican food and so many burger joints!) and retired to my room, waiting for the jetlag to kick in ... which it did ... thank goodness the hostel has free wireless, because I was on my iPhone surfing the web for hours that night!
My biggest travel day so far started with a 5:30am wake-up call - well, actually it started even before that, because I was up at 5:15am. Effectively, this was 4:15am, as there was a one hour time difference between Malaysia and Vietnam which wasn't in my favour.
The Tune Hotel was at LCCT, the low cost carrier terminal of KL airport, but my flight to Hong Kong left from the main termainl at KLIA so I took a shuttle bus from the airport, taking about 25 minutes. I was one of the first to check-in, managing to score a window seat, and then filled in my time (surprisingly, quite easily), at the airport.
One thing I'd discovered last night whilst ensuring I had all of the required documentation for entry into Canada (Letter of Introduction for working holiday visa; proof of insurance; proof of funds) was that I'd printed out the wrong Letter of Introduction. When the Canadian consulate had first sent the letter, they'd put the wrong date on it, stating I must enter the country before Feb 5 2010 (this was actually the date they'd issued it - it should have read Feb 5 2011). They'd corrected it when I'd prompted them, but when I printed my documentation I must have given Mum and Dad the one with the correct date, and the other one to myself. I was fairly sure it wouldn't be a problem - hey, it would be in their system and they could tell by the issue date - but I didn't want to take any chances. But - where do you find a printer in an airport?
The only options were business centres, generally located within airline lounges. For economy class plebs like myself, the rates for entry to these lounges were sky-high - the 'budget' one I found was almost $40 for 1 hour's entry! Luckily, I found an alternative - there was a transit-hotel located within the international terminal, and I was able to use their business centre to print the correct letter for a much more reasonable rate (and even check the latest gossip on Perez Hilton whilst I was there!)
I've said this before, but I hate playing the 'how much money do I need at the airport' game. That morning, I'd known I'd need money for the bus, breakfast and a printer; optionally, I'd also like a magazine and chocolate, should money be left over. With the first three must-haves out of the way, I was left with exactly the right amount of money to buy two blocks of Aussie Cadbury chocolate, duty-free (hey, who knows when I will next see it??)
My flight to Hong Kong was with Cathay Pacific, the first time I'd flown with them (similarly, my next flight was with Air Canada, also an unknown quantity to me). The seats had plenty of leg room (I had Aussie seat mates) and an entertainment console in the back of the chair in front - having flown budget carriers for so long, I'd forgotten these existed! The flight passed quickly as I watched Salt (even though I hate Angelina Jolie, I must give her props - it was a great film) and half of some stupid movie with Paul Rudd, Dinner for Schmucks.
On arrival at Hong Kong airport, I made my way to the transfer desk of Air Canada to pick-up my boarding pass for the flight (my bags having already been checked through from KL). Unfortunately, my travel agent in Australia had failed to book the vegetarian meal for me, and I was told they needed a minimum 24 hours notice, so I would be stuck with a meat dish onboard!
Hong Kong airport brought back memories for me, having been the first international airport I'd ever flown into back in 2001 on my trip to Europe. Entering through the transfer area, you are deposited into an area with a handful of shops, and I was gobsmacked - I was sure there were heaps more shops than this! Eventually, I realised the 'main' shopping hall was about 300m away (yep, the airport is so big you can't even tell where the main bit is!) and headed for it. I had five hours to kill, so I was going to hit every shop there!
The shopping at the airport was great - all of the luxury brands, like Prada and Gucci; as well as numerous bookstores (I tried and failed to find a British Columbia guidebook), souvenir stores and make-up brands. The food selection is quite ordinary, though I was happy to see there were a number of "watch this space" areas for places like McDonalds, Ben and Jerry and a pizza parlour. (I remember the first time I came, I didn't have any Hong Kong money so I had to find somewhere to eat that took credit card - I ended up eating a hamburger with fries for $25!)
There are numerous free internet terminals situated around the terminal, so I made use of one for a while, and then waited to board the plane. Looking outside the window, I was worried we wouldn't be able to take off - it was cloudy and raining, with low visibility. I really couldn't afford any delays arriving into Canada!
As the flight departure time drew close, I held my breath that I would have no one seated next to me. Unfortuately, just before take-off two people ran down the aisle and stopped at my aisle - isn't that always the way! I was a little wary about flying Air Canada, as I'd heard some not so good stories about it, but it was fine. Similar to Cathay Pacific, it had inflight entertainment (this time on demand), and we were served three meals throughout the flight. One key point of difference between Asian/Australian airlines and North American airlines are the flight attendants - in Asia, they're all young and pretty; whereas for North America, they're quite old. (I'd first noticed this on a United Airlines flight to Los Angeles - the flight attendants were overweight and wore Texas bouffants, chewing gum whilst they chatted to their colleagues). There were 13 flight attendants and 4 pilots on-board - this sounded like a lot, but I guess it was a 12 hour flight.
After a 3.5 hour flight, 12 hour flight, and 5 hour stop-over, I finally set foot into Canada at 2pm, a mere 4.5 hours after I'd left KL (yep, there is a 15 hour time difference between the 2). I joined the immigration line for new students and workers to receive my working holiday visa (the letter of introduction needs to be produced to the customs officials, along with proof of funds and insurance). The customs officials were all young and good-looking but very serious about their jobs - I got the boss, who was very friendly, asking lots of questions about my trip in Asia. (I'm never sure if they're just being friendly or trying to suss me out - I'd like to think the first!)
One of the things that first struck me about Canada was how polite everyone is. Whenever you say "thank-you", they always reply, "welcome" (yep, welcome, not 'you're welcome'). Think about that in Australia - we either don't reply or we'll say, 'no worries' or 'no problem'. When I'd first approached an official at the airport to ask where immigration was, he asked me to wait a moment whilst he assisted someone else. When he came back, someone else came up to him to ask for directions, but he asked them to wait a moment as I was first. Simple things!
I noticed this more and more as I entered Vancouver city, and over the coming few days - it's almost like they're too good! Another example: their (driverless) sky-train has no staff at the stations or on-board - it's just expected that you'll buy a ticket.
Tipping my taxi-driver (aah, tipping, one negative to Canada), I checked into my room at the HI Downtown hostel. I'd make sure to book a single room, as I knew that with sleep deprivation from the flight, jet-lag, and the numerous shopping I would do, I would need a room to myself. The easiest way to get over jet-lag is to start adhering to the new destination's timezone immediately, so I headed out into the city straightaway.
It's no wonder Vancouver is consistently voted the most liveable city in the world (along with Melbourne). The streets were wide and clean; the autumnal leaves were falling form the sky; electric buses were zooming down the clean streets. I was in love!!
I was glad to find that I was a short walk away from the two main shopping areas: Pacific Centre (mall) and Robson Street. I wanted to leave the shopping until the next day, but one stop I did make was to Nine West, which I was delighted to find in the Pacific Centre. As I'd arrived into the country wearing a pair of jelly shoes, I thought it appropriate to be my first stop! $450 and 3 pairs of shoes later (a pair of heels, boots, and flats - all occasions covered), at least I had one item ticked off my list.
As I walked down the streets, I felt like I was in a movie. You know how you watch movies and they're shopping at Sears or Walmart; eating those monster burgers at a diner; driving Chevrolet pick-ups - well, that was real-life here! And, despite us both speaking the same language, the slang terms definitely have an impact. For example, my burger needed "ketchup" (not tomato sauce) and my softdrink choice was actually my "pop" of choice. Giving my date of birth was '1/12/83', not '12/1/83'. All these little nuances!
Across the road from the hostel was a 24-hour 'drugstore' (like a massive Priceline/chemist), and I stocked up on toiletries that I would need in Canada. Yes, I could get them in Whistler, but I know they're all expensive, so I was really saving money. I loved looking at all their food (frozen sandwiches!) and souvenirs (seriously, they have the best souvenirs ever - heaps of Winter Olympic merchandise; snowdomes, flag paraphernalia). As with everywhere else so far, all of the shop assistants are super-friendly, unlike Australia and the UK - you're always greeted when you enter; and when you ask for assistance, it's like you're the one doing them the favour!
Despite the numerous eating options around, I grabbed an easy dinner from Subway (I think because there were just too many options - so much Mexican food and so many burger joints!) and retired to my room, waiting for the jetlag to kick in ... which it did ... thank goodness the hostel has free wireless, because I was on my iPhone surfing the web for hours that night!
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