Flight to Brisbane
On a cold day in January we set out to what will be the travel experience of a lifetime. Ylfa, my wife, our little six month old daughter and I are heading to Australia for almost three months. Many friends and colleagues have asked us whether we would be sharing the experience and some photos as we rove around Down Under. This is what we’ll do here.
Before we left home to head to Frankfurt airport to catch our flight via Dubai, Ylfa spent about four weeks preparing for the travel, while I was wrapping up and handing over business projects.
From Frankfurt, we chose a flight with Emirates airlines via Dubai to Brisbane. Emirates allows 30kg of checked baggage plus 10kg for an infant. Enough to have even our Joie stroller checked in, which weights about 10kg. When we booked travel, our travel agent managed to reserve seats, where a baby bassinet can be attached to the front wall. “When the seat belt signs are on, you have to take the baby out of the bassinet, keep her on your laps and attach her baby-belt to your own seat belt”, the friendly stewardess informed us. This made the flight to Dubai entertaining, because every time our little one fell asleep in the bassinet, the captain turned on the seat-belt signs.
As the plane approached Dubai about one and a half hour ahead of schedule, it started circling in a wide holding pattern. “Dubai airport is currently switching to low-visibility operations”, the captain barked from the speaker system. “We are expecting significant delays in our approach to Dubai due to fog.” Why do announcements in airplanes from the cockpit always make your ears ring in pain – and why is the captain always right? – We kept circling for nearly two hours.
In Dubai, the airport is well equipped with strollers for small children, so you don’t need to worry to bring your own. You’ll easily find them in their red storage boxes throughout the terminals. Our next leg was to Brisbane. Emirates were using another A380, not as modern as the one we had from Frankfurt, but still a very smooth and very silent ride compared to other planes. Finally, we all find some sleep before arriving in Brisbane.
