Last night we flew out of OR Tambo Airport in Johannesburg en route to London Heathrow. We arrived early forgetting that his airport is quiet compared to most international airports. I took some photos just to show you how quiet as there are only roughly less than 2000 passengers flying out nightly. 5 International departure flights is peanuts for an "international" airport.
Most shops had no customers ad he shop workers were standing n the door ways hoping to attract a customer or two. As we know these stores are over priced ad the only hope is to find a tourist getting rid of his local currency before departing.
The Airport Authority leases these stores and restaurants taking 50% of turnover so the reason for the big mark ups. If these businesses do not do the business then they are replaced by someone else and why may shops do not last.
Last night I thought I would kill time by getting a burger before check in and did not back on the 90 minute wait. The restaurant was quiet so there was no excuse and why they got 0 tip. They did ask and I old them if the service was s it should have been then yes, but 90 minutes for a burger and 60 minutes for a toasted sandwich then no. You would have thought the staff attitude knowing there is dollars and euros as their majority client base they would be all smiles offering a great service. The guy paying in front of me gave them 20% and he waited a similar length of time for his food.
The flight this time was on British Airways and was roughly half full ad I had a cheeky enquiry for an upgrade which was denied unless I paid the R25K difference. Still the Premium Economy made a big difference and I will not be travelling economy again on a long haul flight.
11 h 30 minutes later we were in the UK with the temperature at a fresh 4 degrees waiting outside terminal 5 for the car hire drop off. I got a good deal on a Mercedes convertible which was cheaper than the cheap models. I saw why when not even 1 suitcase fits in the boot and they had to go on the back seat. Winter time having a convertible is not ideal and it did show me how unpractical these cars are. I thought the suitcases would easily fit in the boot, but had forgotten that is where the roof goes when folded down.
The hotel we had booked was the Park International in Reading and I was seriously skeptical. The only international bit about the hotel is the staff who seem to be drawn from all over the world. They at least allowed us to check in early without paying an extra fee and the bed which is always the big worry was actually quite decent.
I got to spend a few hours with my mum who is in a care home literally 100m around the corner so we can walk there daily. This was a bit of luck and had no idea we were virtually next door. I am super tired as I hardly slept last night and should be back to normal by tomorrow.
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Safe travels and enjoy the cold british island 🇬🇧
You are so kind lol.
😅🙌🏻
Safe travels! That does look like a pretty tame airport!
Yes tame is more like dead as they have 5 international flights per night so these shops only have maybe 1600-1700 passengers to sell to. This restaurant could get 400 guaranteed clients every night if they got serious on service.
Wow, that is interesting. We have a local regional airport that is usually pretty calm. Then you get down to Detroit and it is crazy!
SeaTac International airport in Seattle usually looks exactly the same :) We are not LAX or JFK ...
So nice that you got to spend time with your mom, make the most out of these moments, when they are gone, they are one of the things you question the most.
Good luck getting back in action and get some rest!
I'm glad that your trip was successful and you are safely there!