An uneventful flight

The last couple of hours in Hong Kong airport were spent having dinner in one of the restaurants and wandering around. Dinner at Cafe Deco was good with live jazz music and a cozy atmosphere.

It still cracks me up how much everything appears to cost until you convert it. Dinner with desert and two beers came to HK$ 580 but that equated to around AUS$ 94. Still a bit pricey but it was good food and service.

Once the flight finally appeared on the departure board I located the gate and stayed around that part of the terminal. 

I still had plenty of time so I found a small bar for a cheeky martini or two.

The flight appeared to be only 2/3 full at most. I'd carefully selected my seat at the front of economy. I finished up having plenty of leg room and no-one sitting next to me. The potential for sleep was looking good. 

By the time supper was over and cleared away I'd settled myself down. I think I managed to sleep a bit but it was really bumpy as we flew past Japan, probably related to the recent typhoon. By the time the weather calmed down it was already the time I had decided to wake up. I wanted to try and start adjusting for Vancouver time.

The plane was a 777-300 which has a camera mounted beneath it you can view through the entertainment. I watched as we floated over the beautiful blue Pacific dotted with occasional white fluffy clouds. Very relaxing.

The flight finished up landing nearly an hour ahead of schedule. Getting through customs was easy and I found a really friendly and chatty taxi driver to get me to the apartment. And I survived my first North American tipping scenario!

The apartment is in a great location downtown but, as usual, doesn't quite live up to the image on the net. It will be perfectly OK for me though, and I have much more glamorous accommodation to look forward to in my next cities. 

It does, however, have a great wide view from the balcony.

So, I'm writing this post know in the hope I'll start to nod off and get some quality sleep. I wanted to be exploring as soon as I can tomorrow morning.

Another day, another airport

The hotel allowed quite a late check out which gave me plenty of time to fluff about and not rush. Then the shuttle brought me back to the airport. Getting through security was very quick too.

So that just leaves another extended stay to wander round a big airport. Hong Kong feels like it has so many more shops and food options than Singapore, yet I found the day less fun than the one I spent in Singapore on the way home from London.  Not sure why.

But being here does evoke very strong and fond memories of when Emily and I spent time here on our way to Europe in 2010. That was the very start of a massive adventure for both of us and Hong Kong airport was really one of our first big "pinch me" moments.  

I remember eating ramen with Emily and sitting in nearly this exact same place.  Of course I had to do it again. Very tasty too!

I wandered around the airport, taking in various angles and views. The hills on the island make a spectacular backdrop to the airport.

Quite by accident, I stumbled across a seat where the windows framed the planes beautifully as they took off. Unfortunately though, after many attempts to get one perfectly positioned, this was the best I managed.

The airport ceiling is quite massive and geometrical, so naturally I had to take some shots. I spent ages taking pictures from various positions and angles. It was quite funny because people would walk past and look up to see what I was photographing. There were a few perplexed looks. This is one of my favourites, edited for Instagram.

And the roof from the outside is just as interesting. It almost mirrors the arches of the hills in the distance.

I have a few more hours to go before my flight. I'm sick of looking through shops, though I did take advantage of an electronics store to get a universal socket adaptor; something I'd completely forgotten to pack, apart from my Apple rechargers. So much for "Mr Super Organised"!

I'll grab some dinner soon. Then, next stop Vancouver.

Good morning Hong Kong

After publishing my last post I lay down "only for a moment" only to wake up an hour later. I was tired. Dragged myself off the bed and down for some dinner before getting back to bed early. Considering the unfamiliar environment and the sound of flights taking off regularly punctuating the silence, I slept really well. Better than at home! 

When I woke this morning I opened the curtains to catch the first glimpses of sunlight. 

Closely followed by another plane. I wonder where they are going?

After popping downstairs for some breakfast I repacked my bag and watched as construction started again on whatever it is they're building in the bay.

I'm really glad I invested in the new lens before this trip. It has a much greater zoom than my old one. I managed to get these birds as they were taking in the warmth of the early morning.

Shortly it will be time to check out. I've just received an SMS and email from Cathay advising of possible disruption to public transport. That won't affect me as it's only a short shuttle bus ride back to the airport. However, it does make me happier with my decision not to head into downtown Hong Kong on this visit. Maybe I will when I return on my way home?

Hello Hong Kong

Up early to catch my 7:40 flight. It reminded me somewhat of travelling for work. Luckily everything was done and all I had to do was make myself respectable and wait for the taxi. I was at the airport relatively early and made it through international security and customs super fast. I'll remember that for next time. 

​Here's my chariot waiting.

The flight was fine and went quite quickly. I watched one movie "Gravity", a documentary on NASA plans for a trip to Mars and multiple episodes of "Dad's Army". That last one was a surprise; wasn't really a fan as a kid but really enjoyed them today.

Hong Kong was originally just going to be a brief transfer on my way to Vancouver. But when Cathay rescheduled my flights, one option they gave me was to stay overnight. The hotel is right by the airport, which doesn't bother me, and it's a Marriott, so quite nice. 

There's not much of a view, but enough to remind me of when Em and I were here in 2010.

Dinner is included so I think I'll be lazy and hang around here. Feeling tired and an early night will prepare me for the next leg of this journey. Besides, I need to do some more reading up on Vancouver before I get there. 

The night before ...

Bags packed. Apartment cleaned. Post trip supplies procured. Beard trimmed. Documents printed, duplicated and saved. Plans organised within a millimetre of their lives. I think I'm ready. 

Thankful

Without a doubt, a factor in amplifying the experience of finally seeing Kate Bush live has been the comments, camaraderie and shared emotion on the various forums dedicated to this event. Before leaving London I posted the following because it sums up how much of a difference all my fellow Kate fans have made. I would like to share it here also.

Tomorrow morning I head back home to Australia, to my before the "Before the Dawn" life, and a world of relative Kate obscurity. But before I leave I'd like to say thank you to you all. I may not have had the pleasure of meeting many of you but your posts and comments have turned a potentially solitary experience into very much a shared one. My adventure would not have been the same without you. All the best to those of you yet to see her, those of you who didn't manage to and those of you, like me, who are dealing with the emotional aftermath.

Zombie alert on gate A15

After choosing to stay in the airport instead of taking a bus tour into the city I was a little worried I might be in for an arduous and boring day. In the end though I had a great day. I read, ate, drank and explored. And massive airports like this one are always good for a photo or two.

When I paused to take this shot I was only looking at the handrail. I only noticed the great lines and perspective when I checked the image. Another happy accident.

Masses of trolleys waiting patiently for the next wave of travellers. 

By 8:00 pm I'd been there 12 hours. Only a few to go and I was feeling tired but OK. I've picked up a little cold and my runny nose was getting very annoying. I decided to seek out some medication. I made sure it wasn't going to prevent me from sleeping in the plane. Yes, it will make me drowsy? That's OK, I thought. I took one just over an hour before boarding not realising how quickly or intensely it would take effect. The last hour before boarding was hell! I had to keep constantly walking or moving for fear of falling asleep at the gate. I have never felt so happy and relieved to finally sink into my seat on the plane. Not that it would ensure sleep. I dozed at best, yet it was enough to make that final flight seem quite short.

Flight #3

On the advice of the airline I decided to get to Heathrow as early as possible. The added bonus was that I could take the Piccadilly line before peak hour hit. I wasn't keen on navigating through those crowds.

To my surprise, when I got to the airport check-in went as smoothly as normal. The check-in clerk noted my middle seat and looked to see if an aisle seat was available instead. So glad she didn't find one because it turned out that my seat was in the row that only has 3 middle seats - a really good spot! I must note the seat location details in addition to the seat number in future. 

The flight was fine. Being a night flight, I intended to try and sleep and organised myself accordingly. But unfortunately, despite best efforts and ideal conditions, it was not to be. 

So I have the day in Singapore. I had planned to catch a bus tour from the airport but I'm just too tired. Plus I think I've picked up a minor cold, so not feeling 100%; preferred to potter around the airport. 

I noticed this sign with lovely words on the door to the butterfly house. 

This time tomorrow I'll be home.

Bad ideas (or trying to ride the wave)

I had a feeling it might be a bad idea. Listening to Kate on the flight home … in public. I wanted to hear it again, to remember - but not too much; not so much that I'd get carried away.

You see, since the second show in particular, I've been a bit emotional. Think about the whole experience too much and tears well up. As they are while I'm writing this. It's been a bit embarrassing at times; not a good look. Those notes, passages and lyrics that were already special, now have new significance as they trigger memories of those nights. Even the once benign now has the potential to set me off.

And yet it feels so adolescent, so immature to be reacting this way. As concerts and performances go, it was up there. An amazing show but, in its own right, not enough to have this effect on me. I figure it must be the fulfilment of a lifelong hope, and the fulfilment in such a big, close up way, that must be the reason for the emotion.

So I straddled the line between satisfying my need to enjoy and engaging too deeply in recall. Pull back from the edge and think of something else when you start to feel it swelling up.

Last day in London

Yesterday (Thursday) was my last full day in London. There were a couple of things left on my "to see" list, so after a bit of research I headed out. My legs have been sore so I took the tube.

First stop was the Imperial War Museum. When I was here last year most of it was closed due to renovations for this year's centenary of the start of WWI. The new main area is quite impressive. 

Naturally, the main event at the moment is the WWI exhibition. It was superb and packed with people. I learnt a few facts I'd not realised. 

The other exhibitions were good, but not as indepth as I'd expected.  I guess there are other museums in London that tell the story of WWII in more detail.  

My other main destination was the design museum. On the way to the tube station I encountered streets of these buildings.  

Then, quite unintentionally, I stumbled across The Shard while looking for a place to eat my lunch. Foreboding like a 21st century pyramid.

The design museum had some interesting exhibitions including one on Louis Kahn, a famous architect. Overall though, I was a little disappointed. I expected more exhibits. This is the sign on the wall of the museum.

I decided to walk back to the apartment to maximise my last experience of London (this time around) and hopefully find one or two photo ops. 

I love how in London you can turn a corner and suddenly an iconic building peeks out from between the ordinary office blocks. 

Last discovery of the day was this old church ruin now a public garden.

Spent the evening tidying, packing and planning my trip to the airport in the morning. Looks like the baggage handler strike is going ahead so the airline has advised getting there early.

Sore hands and a full heart

For me at least, Tuesday was the dress rehearsal but last night was the main event. After weeks of uncertainty and frustration, I picked up my ticket for the second night from the box office. To my surprise it was another of the ornate fan tickets; I had assumed it would be a cheap reprint job. But I wouldn't have cared, just as long as I had my row F seat. Or, once you subtract the non-existent rows A to D, my centre of the 2nd row seat!

On the tube to Hammersmith I bumped into Jeffrey and Melissa, two of the lovely people from America I had met at the Swan the night before. They too had tickets for last night so we were able to get to chat some more. At the Swan I met many others; American, Australian, English, Irish, French - a United Nations of fans. And that's been one of the most unexpected and remarkable things for me about this journey - all the connections that have been made. And as well as the expected excitement and anticipation there were even some people who had managed to pick up tickets only that afternoon, after weeks of trying unsuccessfully to snatch the odd ticket that popped up online.

So, at 7:00 we made our way the short walk to the theatre.  I felt much more calm than I had the night before, probably due to the tiredness. I took some pictures before the show to try and capture that memory. I would have loved to be able to take one of Kate but we all respected her wishes to not use our cameras during the show.

This was the view as I entered the stalls. 

The stage from my seat. The area in front of the band was a vast space for Kate to wander.

And the view of the crowd filling up behind me.

I took one picture on the way out. Again from my row, but with people standing you get a better sense of just how close the stage was. The guy sitting next to me was able to reach out and touch it; he asked me to film him as evidence.

So, was it a different experience from the night before? Hell yes!

Tuesday night the view was panoramic but last night was immersive. The stage occupied my full width of vision. And being in the centre, the sound quality was far more balanced. Kate and the band sounded magnificent. The deep roaring storm in segments of The Ninth Wave, especially Hello Earth, shook the theatre and reverberated inside me.

And then there was Kate; so close you could see into her eyes, notice every detail on her face, see that incredible smile. Did we make eye contact? Probably not, but I'd like to think we may have.

And from the rapturous, thunderous applause as she and the backing singers shuffled onto the stage, to the recurring standing ovations (I can remember at least 8), to the entire theatre on their feet all through the final song Cloudbusting, singing in unison "yeah-e-yeah-e-yeah-oh" - I clapped so hard my hands were sore. The crowd seemed even more vocal last night, and Kate appeared to be genuinely impressed and moved.

So that was it. The event I had given up all hope of witnessing. But even in my wildest dreams I would never have imagined it could have been like that. 

Walking dead

It took quite some time to wind down from the excitement of Tuesday night's show. I think I eventually nodded off around 1:30 only to wake up around 5:30 unable to go back to sleep. End result = zombie yesterday. Consequently I took it easy to reserve my energy for last night's show.

Once I eventually got myself together I headed in the general direction of Trafalgar Square. I had a vague plan of heading back to the Thames. It was a nice walk and still nice weather and I was happy enough just to take in the scenery. I only took a couple of shots. I liked all of the angles in this rail bridge across the river. 

As I made my way back to the apartment I headed to Regent Street in search of a music store. Thee are some albums I've had difficulty locating in Adelaide or the Australian iTunes Store. I managed to find one of them.

I had the intention of fitting in a nap before heading to the show, but my body had other ideas. Plan B was a strong coffee.

7 dials

I forgot to post this from yesterday. I'm very wary of photographing people, but I thought this scene was too gorgeous to miss.

Stranded?

By the way, yesterday I got news of a planned strike of baggage handlers on the day I'm due to leave London. Maybe I will be here longer than expected. One thing's for sure ... I'll be carrying my prized Kate possessions with me onboard!

Where do I begin?

After waking up to another beautiful London morning I did some domestics then headed out with my camera in the general direction of an exhibition of Kate photographs. On the way I encountered the kind of diverse architecture I've come to expect and love from London. Here are some of my favourite

I made it to the exhibition and bought two books; keepsakes, reminders and things of beauty.

After that it was time to make my way back to the apartment and get ready. I was feeling a really strange mixture of excitement, nervousness and disbelief.

First objective was to catch the tube from Russell Square to Hammersmith (and play spot the Kate goers with myself on the way). On arrival I eventually found my way to the box office and the illusive ticket. Relief, excitement and disbelief (again). I knew some people were meeting at the Swan beforehand but I needed some time to chill out. Sounds so melodramatic to me now, but it still rings true to the moment. 

Made it to the Swan, met some lovely people, shared our love of Kate. Then it was time to make my way to the venue for the hospitality package. This hadn't been my choice, but was the only option for a second night ticket. The venue was a church next to the theatre. I'm kicking myself now for not taking a pic of the interior, but here is one of the outside.​

Inside we were seated for a gourmet hamper.

I must admit, I struggled to eat ... too excited, but it was delicious all the same. I kept the menu.

Seated in between total strangers I felt shy but brave enough to reach out and chat with my neighbours. So many different stories, nationalities, ages ... but one thing in common. The chap to the left of me, Dan, was from Bedfordshire and we talked quite a bit. When it came to the topic of seat location we realised we were seated together in the theatre also! That's pretty coincidental considering we had been seated at random in the church. I have to admit it was nice to have a new Kate buddy to share the excitement with. We were seated in row S. 

The first row was row E, so S is a good distance. Tonight I will be in row F, which will be a whole different experience! But I feel privileged to have had the contrast of both. And the venue was perfect for this event.

And as for the show? My words can't do it justice, so I will leave it to the others who have already reviewed. This is just one.

http://hiddentracks.org/articles/live-review/she-may-have-propelled-us-to-the-essence-of-our-connection-with-her-music-the-miraculous-ungraspable-nature-of-human-consciousness/

Digital forest

I forgot to mention something from the Digital Revolution exhibition I attended on Monday.

The final part of the exhibition involved a dark room with lasers and movement sensors attached to the ceiling. If you moved your hand towards a laser it would send out individual shafts and ribbons of light that you could then coax and control, like veils of ultra fine silk. It took a little getting used to, but then became quite hypnotic.

I'm not sure how I feel right now

Just got back to the apartment from Before the Dawn and I'm not sure exactly how I feel. Still shaking. Not so much because of the show, though it was TRULY shake worthy. Maybe because it's been quite an emotional journey and this is part of the culmination. Either way I'm drained.

But one thing I AM clear on:

I think it highly unlikely I will ever attend another concert so overwhelmingly filled with love from the audience. Every standing ovation, and there were many, was a heartfelt outpouring of pent up admiration and adoration so thick you could touch it and leave a fingerprint.

And the tube ride back to Russell Square was priceless. Shared with total strangers who would look at you and smile: "Wasn’t that amazing?".

I will post some details in due course. Right now, I need a glass of wine to calm me down and settle me for sleep. (Will I dream of sheep?) 

9

It's early morning; another beautiful, clear and mild morning in London. I was in bed early last night and slept solidly until 2:00 when my body obviously decided it was morning. After a couple of hours of tossing and turning I managed to get back to sleep for a little while. But now it's light I know there's no chance of any more.

I read a post on one of the Kate Bush fan groups on Facebook a moment ago that surprised me. We're seeing her on the 9th of the 9th, a major part of the show is her Ninth Wave and it's her 9th show. Added to that, I believe tonight will be a full moon, mysterious and foreboding like Kate herself. I know these are merely coincidences. But all the same I will choose to believe they are signs of something magical to come.

As for the day today, I plan to visit an exhibition of photographs of Kate and wander a bit more with my camera to see what London wants to show me. But first a bowl of muesli with delicious fresh summer berries and some very strong coffee! 

A beautiful day in London

The weather today has been superb; clear blue skies and warm. I awoke early after a broken sleep feeling the steam roller effects of jet lag. All the same, it was too nice to stay in bed so I got myself organised and fed and out the door. The plan was to walk to the Thames and visit a couple of places on my "to see" list.

Down the stairs first.​

Marchmont Street is near the apartment. The buildings caught my attention. 

The roads to the Thames were still familiar from my trip last year and before long I was there. I've walked under Blackfriars Bridge before, but today I really noticed the geometry.

One destination was the Design Museum. But when I got there they told me that some floors were closed until Wednesday. I decided to come back later in the week. Along the way I paused to take in more buildings.

And it seemed like everywhere I went, The Shard was just hiding around the corner.

Another destination on my list was The Tower of London to see the poppy installation to commemorate the start of WWI. I'd seen some pictures but it was still breathtaking and moving. Each is a ceramic poppy mounted on a metal stake. There will be over 800,000 representing the British soldiers killed in the war. Such a fitting way to remember.

After some lunch the last stop was the Barbican to attend the Digital Revolution exhibition. It contained examples of digital art and entertainment from the very beginnings to some amazing new projects and installations.

From an old legend ... 

To a new rendering of me (taking the photo) ...

To an amazing space where people's movement triggered some fantastic real time graphics.

After all that I was exhausted and took the tube back to the apartment. Had diner in the apartment so I can grab an early night. Tomorrow night is Kate date #1 and I want to be bright eyed and bushy tailed.