It’s our 10 year wedding anniversary. We were due to fly into Bangkok and stay at an airport hotel, but we decided to celebrate, and so binned the airport hotel and booked into a Marriott in central Bangkok.
We arrived at 2pm and went out for an excellent Thai lunch. A swim in the hotel pool and some quality internet time, we had a drink at the lovely rooftop bar, before walking to a nice restaurant (May’s Urban Thai Dine) for an excellent meal. My Mango and Softshell Crab salad promptly rendered me unable to speak for 15 minutes – it felt like I’d been chewing on some particularly fresh magma.
After an early start the next morning, we got to the airport for our flight to Bali. Going to check in, we hit a wee problem. The lady at the desk leafed through Shona’s passport a couple of times, then got up and walked off to speak to her supervisor. She came back and asked us to take a seat. On entering Thailand, the immigration person had elected to stamp Shona’s last blank page, despite there being a number of gaps available on other pages (and Shona asking her not to). Apparently, travelling without any blank pages in a passport is a no-no for many countries. We knew Shona was running thin, but had worked out that she should have had enough space for the necessary stamps.
After a lot of back and forth, including speaking with Indonesian customs, we have been allowed to fly to Bali, but we now have A Problem. We’re currently working out what to do. It may be possible to get a temporary travel document from a British Embassy/Consulate, which is good for 5 countries (not quite enough), or Shona may need to apply for an emergency passport, requiring a return flight to London, abandoning me in this tropical hellhole to sunbathe and dive on my own for a few days.
All in all, it adds a little spice to travel.
*Update*
We made it to Bali, and Shona sailed through customs, but the bloated passport still needs to be addressed so we’ll be phoning the consulate. Also, a kerfuffle was had with a late arrival, delayed baggage and a very short transfer window. Flapping Ben & Shona. Fortunately, our connecting flight has also been delayed, so we’re back waiting in airports…
Travels with Sklaroffs 