We're off

Friday 5th May. Today we fly off to the UK - finally. We've all had an extremely busy final few days preparing for departure. There have been so many details:

• Packing the suitcases (all three),
• Cleaning our house following the pack,
• Organising UK bank accounts,
• Repair and pickup of my broken brand new laptop (!!),
• Backing up all our family information on the PC we're leaving at home.

And on top of that there's been preparation for work. Its involved a few nights in telecon with the UK. So when you add the family visits to all that it's no wonder that there has been very little sleep lately.

With that in mind I had hoped to have a more relaxed Friday morning. Little wonder that this didn't eventuate. We were all kept very busy right up to the moment we left for the airport.

Arriving at about 12:30pm for a 3:30pm departure we unpacked the two cars stacking the suitcases, car seat, stroller, and numerous carry on items onto a single trolley. Whilst Mum and Dad parked the cars we headed off to have a number of items wrapped in plastic. This was Merrilyn's idea and proved to be worth while. It allowed the stoller and car seat to be enclosed to make sure that loose staps did not foul on the conveyors. James was facinated with the process of spinning the luggage as a man wrapped the plastic sheet.

Check-in was very smooth. Being Qantas Club we checked in at the Business Counter. All our luggage was weighed - 90kgs! Although expecting a hefty excess luggage bill - the excess was waived!

We were met at the airport by Steve and the family together with Lynne. Goodbyes were had at a coffee lounge. We chatted about the good times ahead and when we'd next catch up.

At about 1:30pm we went through customs. As we still had about an hour before boarding we visited the Qantas lounge for a small bite to eat. At 3:00pm we were permitted to board the aircraft ahead of the other passengers. We were greatful for this as it allowed us to settle James and all our kit into the seats at leisure. We were seated in the window side adjacent to the wing. Merrilyn sat at the window, then James, then myself.

Shortly after the plane boarded. It was a full flight. Although there were two seats in the row in front that did not have passengers. This was to prove useful.

At 3:30pm we pushed back. In preparation for the flight Merrilyn had been reading James a book that described the process of flying on a plane and moving house. So James was listening intently as the attendant ran through the safety drill.

During this the weather closed in it started to rain. As we taxied out to the runway the pilot announced on the intercom that due to heavy congestion we had to wait for our slot to take off. It turned out we waited almost an hour! Although we did get to see many planes land right in front of us.

Finally our turn came and we advanced onto the runway. James was restless by this time - he had been buckled into his seat the whole time! We explained that he would hear the sound of the engines followed by a push as we took off. Merrilyn and I both held his hand as we rushed down the runway.