I'm coming home, I've done my time

HK International Airport, Gate 23.

In a very nice way, of course. Tell you guys about the 2nd week a little bit later.

For now, it's 2.30 pm Weds in San Francisco, 5.50 am Thurs in Hong Kong where I am and probably 6.00 am in KL.

I am feeling...good. Alert, and normal, which is i think alot to say when flying through different time zones.

Good 12 hour stretch from SFO, sat next to a kind of short-fused Hongkie teenager who would awake from morose concentrated silences to snap at his dad at the window seat for his seemingly profound ignorance e.g. that HK is a 3 hour (well 15 hours, but 3 when you're adjusting your watch) difference from San Francisco. That, plus a pre-tty noisy baby across the aisle. His mother would give me a hapless, "can you believe this?" look every so often. The patience of parents of babies never ceases to amaze me.

Nevertheless, somehow managed to catch some decent shut-eye.

You know what happens on long-haul flights though? You get really THIRSTY. They don't allow water to be brought onto the plane, it comes in very small plastic cup portions on the flight, and if you are on transit in the middle of the night like me with no HK dollars, the vending machine looks sympathetic but can't do anything to help you.

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Still HK International Airport, Shopping & Food Area

Thank goodness for fast food places that open at 6. Here I am, rejuvenated by a nice chrysanthemum drink bottled by, let's see Healthworks of Coca-Cola. Fascinating. That is one of my favourite things about travel. Eating and drinking whatever you don't seem to be able to get at home.

You know another thing that's true? All airports really do look the same after a while. Although I have sort of fulfilled my wanderlust for the past 3 weeks, do regret a little not being able to step out and see Hong Kong. It's a strange, time-warpy feeling being stuck in an airport.