Matty Somewhere

Hanging out with the locals in Hai Phong, Vietnam

What: Hai Phong Opera House forecourt and adjacent park Where: Hai Phong, Norther Vietnam Who: The locals Sometimes, to really get the feel for a place, its nice to take a break from the information overload that sightseeing can cause and just hang out and do what the locals do. On recent trip to Vietnam,…

Prambanan, A Hindu Temple in Yogyakarta

What: Ancient Hindu Temple Prambanan Where: Located about 18 kilometres from Yogyakarta, Indonesia When: 8th Century “A group tour or independent?” was often one of the first question I would ask as a Travel Consultant. “No not a group tour, I don’t want to be with a bunch of people I don’t know” was usually…

Review: Jetstar Airways – Darwin to Denpasar (Bali) Economy Class

Flight date: 12 February 2012 Aircraft: Airbus A321-200 Flight Number: JQ85 Flight Time: 2hrs 35mins Class: Economy (Value Plus fare) Seat: 28A Travelling overseas, for those living in the southeastern part of Australia, usually means a long-haul flight unless, of course, you are crossing the ditch to visit our Kiwi cousins. But for our country folk that reside in the north…

The Temple of Heaven, Beijing, China

What: Temple of Heaven Where: Beijing, PR China When: 15th – 20th Century One Christmas, when I was about seven or eight years of age, Santa Claus left my brother and I a board game called Chinese Checkers under the Christmas Tree. I don’t think my brother and I ever learnt how to correctly play…

Palaces, Queens, Dikes and Bikes – The Netherlands (Part 1)

What: Noordeinde Palace & Het Loo Palace and gardens Where: The Hague & Appledoorn, The Netherlands Other than my passion for commercial aviation and travelling (oh and cheese) I have a sincere interest in the Kings and Queens of Europe, the royal households and their history. I do, in fact, have a portrait of my…

Review: Vietnam Airlines Sydney to Ho Chi Minh City, Business Class

Flight date: 15 July 2012 Aircraft: Airbus a330-200 Flight Number:VN772 Flight Time: 9hrs Class: Business Class Seat: 4c For me, a big part of the excitement of long-haul travel is the unknown. I’m not talking about where I’m going and what cultures, foods and history I will encounter, that surely is an exciting part, but my experience of getting there….

Tanah Lot and the Balinese Festival of Buda Wage, Bali, Indonesia

What: Tanah Lot, A picturesque Hindu Temple built on a coastal rock formation Where: Bali, Indonesia, about 45 minutes drive from the tourist centre of Kuta When: 15th century, restored in the 1980’s I’m not one that enjoys large crowds, I avoid the hoards of people around Sydney Harbour on New Years Eve and the thought of shopping…

Hoi An, Vietnam

What: Hoi An Ancient town a UNESCO world heritage site. Where: Central coast of Vietnam, about half an hour drive from Da Nang International Airport. When: 2000 years of history as a trading port starting with the Cham people, the Chinese and lastly the Vietnamese. I love to see history. I love it even more…

Review: Lion Air – Yogyakarta to Denpasar Bali & Yogyakarta Soto Ayam

Flight date: 15 February 2012 Aircraft: Boeing 737-900 Flight Number: JT568 Flight Time: 1hr 10mins Class: Economy class Seat: 17C It was hot and I’d had a huge day in Yogyakarta, visiting Borobudur and Prambanan Temples and the Sultans Palace, so I was fine being dropped by my tour guide at Yogyakarta International Airport airport…

Review: Vietnam Airlines Ho Chi Minh City to Dong Hoi

Flight date: 20 April 2012 Aircraft: Airbus a320-200 Flight number: VN1400 Flight time: 1hr 40mins Class: Business Seat: 2F It was a quick check-in at the Vietnam Airlines counter at the sometimes chaotic Ho Chi Minh City domestic terminal, not only because of no others in the Business Class line, but also as I was travelling in a…

Review: Garuda Indonesia Airlines Denpasar (Bali) – Yogyakarta

Flight date: 14 February 2012 Aircraft: Boeing 737-800 Flight Number: GA251 Flight Time: 1hr 10mins Class: Economy Seat: 12A A 4.30am wake up call for a 5am pickup to Denpasar airport for a 7am flight. With very little traffic on the roads at this dark hour, I was at the airport by 5.20am for a…

Continental Airlines – “I’ll have a Scotch and Coke”…” Sorry sir…a whaaaat?”

Is it my Australian accent or the generic term I use when asking for something that confuses other users of the English language? On a Continental Airlines flight, the first couple of times I’d ask for a scotch and coke, I would be met with dismay and a shocked look as though I was speaking another language….

Virgin Blue (DJ) E-Jet in AFL Livery

New uniforms, new aircraft for regional routes and new branding and livery expected soon, in the meantime, the newest aircraft to join the Virgin Blue fleet (this Embraer 190 and a Boeing 737) have been painted in this quite plain AFL (Australian Football League) livery, with an all white tail. Virgin Blue recently won the AFL contract….

New Chinese airline arrived in Sydney this morning

Today marked the start of another Chinese carrier serving Australia. Hainan airlines (HU) will fly an Airbus A330-200 three times a week between Shenzhen and Hangzhou and Sydney. Shenzhen, located on mainland China near Hong Kong and Hangzhou, also on the mainland near Shanghai are both important financial, trade and industrial cities and with populations…

Jumbo Hostel – Arlanda Airport, Stockholm, Sweden.

Last year I had a brief stopover in Stockholm, Sweden and I had heard of this fantastic hostel right at the airport in a converted Boeing 747-200. Of course, being the freakyflier that I am I had to stay there. 🙂 Built in 1976, the aircraft is a decomissioned Boeing 747-200 that was headed for…

Retro: Sydney Airport circa 1992

Picture taken mid1992. Notice the old liveries. On the the left, Boeing 747-100, Continental Airlines. Nex to that, the ‘Tulip’ liv ery of a new Boeing 747-400. In the foreground, is an Air Pacific (known locally as ‘The Flying Fruit Tingle’) Boeing 747-200, which has the same ‘fruit tingle’ livery but with a different tail (now…

Baggage Fees

I travelled in the US recently and travelled with US Airways and Continental Airlines for my internal domestic flights. Both are full service airlines and I enjoyed flying with them, they were great. These days, most of the domestic ‘full service’ airlines charge for checked baggage. They charge US$20-25 for the first bag and up from…

Review: US Airways Club Lounge LAX

Arriving at Los Angeles airport 3 hours before my flight to Las Vegas, I decided to seek out US Airways Club Lounge at terminal 1. US Airways have a day pass which can be purchased online when you book your ticket (if you are booking online) for USD40 or your can purchase it on the day…