Dreams to plans to reality
The seed of this complex trip was the need to use up my Emirates’ frequent flyer points which were expiring (again). I had enough to take me from East Asia to the weirdest and most wonderful dream destinations in West Asia and Africa, like Sudan, Pakistan or Seychelles. After plenty of deliberation, I decided on Pakistan. Of course, nothing is ever straight forward for me when it comes to air tickets (excuse me while I get technical):
- I would my annual airline staff concession to get from New Zealand to East Asia (and back) in order to commence my Emirates free trip.
- My Emirates free trip would take me from East Asia to Pakistan (and back). To maximise the number of places I could visit, I opted to have an open-jaw at origin (Beijing and Singapore) for no extra cost.
- I also tried to reduce backtracking in Pakistan by doing an open jaw at the destination (eg. Karachi and Peshawar/Lahore/Islamabad), but sadly there was only redemption availability for Karachi only.
- Then I realised that fares from East Asia to Pakistan are actually quite reasonable … whereas fares to somewhere like Seychelles are horrendous … but both require the same number of points.
- So I changed my destination from Pakistan to Seychelles, and fly into Pakistan on a cheap sidetrip ticket from my free stopover at Dubai. I effectively got two destinations for the price of one!
- Then AirAsia had a big zero-fare sale, so I added Vietnam and Malaysia!
Making compromises
Those who know me also know that I get a kick from devising the most complex itineraries for very little money. I’ve done it again! The only thing I couldn’t get right (not that I didn’t try) was the timing … I will be in Pakistan during the height of their scorching summer. Being the thinker/planner that I am, I worked hard to balance all these factors. Real life is a compromise:
- Avoid the Pakistani winter (and ensure I have a Kiwi summer).
- The need to work in New Zealand till around May to fund my travels (but as it turned out I worked till this afternoon).
- Redemption availability on Emirates and the expiry of my points.
- Avoid Ramadhan in Pakistan (my tummy will thank me).
- Be in Malaysia to celebrate the end of Ramadhan with old school friends.
Applying for visas
Then came the bit I don’t like … applying for visas. Fortunately I only needed two:
- With so much lead time, I realised I could apply for my China visa in Kuching, Malaysia rather than in Auckland (NZD12 rather than NZD60 … or NZD140 for Kiwis).
- The price for the Pakistan visa was NZD160 on the consulate’s website and I was kicking myself for not applying for it in Malaysia as well for NZD12. But fortunately they it turned out that in New Zealand, they charge Malaysians only NZD20!
Finally, on the road
It has been 9 months since my last big trip and the long awaited moment has come for me to hit the road again. Tonight my plans turn into reality. As always, I always expect the unexpected while on the road. It may or may not be the reality that I planned for … wish me luck, everyone.
PS. It’s a good start that I’ve got a seat on the 2315 flight to Shanghai as it was slightly overbooked and I’m on a standby ticket. So I’m now at the airport lounge sipping a bubbly to soothe myself after being the suspense at check-in (sometimes there are also complication with aircraft weight).