Killing time
Today I fly to Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt at 2120. I have time to kill after checkout till the flight. So it made sense for me to use my nice room to the max, till check-out. Since Istanbul is now quite familiar to me, it isn’t a wasted day in the marvellous city but a day well spent in a hotel room which I’ve paid good money for! There’s always more than one way of looking at things.
After check-out, I went for a walk on Galata Bridge where the road is on the top and restaurants are below. And there’s always people fishing off the top. Then a long walk and sit-down at Gulhane Park to eat some fruit, in lieu of lunch. That killed about 2h.
Same same but different
Returning to the Glamour Hotel to retrieve my bag, I made it to Sultanahmet for the 1430 bus to the airport. Again the trip was quick, taking only 50 mins.
I made it to the airport at 1520, which was 6h prior to my flight. I did everything in slow motion and took plenty of time to explore the check-in area and also airside. Initial security, immigration and final security were all very quick. One quirk today was that final security check included a requirement to power-up one’s laptop. Just too bad if it is flat or if you’re just transporting it somewhere for repair!
Even though I had a mobile boarding pass, I reprinted a paper copy to facilitate the document check at the gate as the staff like to stamp it.
Getting to the lGA lounge around 1700, there was a long queue for entry. Despite the wait, it was worth it because I spent 3h there before walking to the gate, getting there about 1h prior to departure.
Hopping on the Turkish Airlines A321, I was surprised to see that it was very different from yesterday’s. While I had a real business class cabin, today’s flight had only economy seats with the centre blocked off and a movable partition to separate it from economy. Strange, because today’s flight is slightly longer than yesterday’s.
This 12 year old plane featured nice wide seats (and a narrow aisle) which felt already reclined, good legroom and recline, and even footrests. Unfortunately the ventilation was noisy and gushy, but didn’t seem to cope well. There was even an extra toilet (total of three) in economy class! It’s nearly like the golden days of aviation!
It felt very different from yesterday’s A321 which was a couple of years newer. Same same but different.
Inflight in economy, wine was offered with supper whereas yesterday, the flight appeared alcohol-free in Business.
“Welcome back to Egypt” Slap #1
Landing 2h50 later in Sharm el Sheikh at 2310, we were bused to the terminal. I was one of the first to reach immigration as most others lined up at the visa counter first. I was landside in no time.
There seemed to be a lone ATM outside arrivals before the public area. I withdrew some money which was dispensed in EGP200 notes (NZD20). I bought a pricey drink at EGP35 (NZD3.50) so that I had smaller notes for the taxi.
Outside, the real Egypt hit me. Taxi drivers wanted an arm and a leg for the 20 min ride to the Stella de Mare in Naama Bay. The hotel offered me a ride for USD20 (about EGP330). That’s typical resort pricing.
Slightly outdated information on the internet suggests that two years ago, the correct price should be EGP200 (USD12) inside the airport and EGP50 (USD3) once in the public area but typically it is impossible for foreigner to achieve this . Inside the arrival area, I noticed it was now EGP270 (USD16).
Outside, drivers were asking for around EGP200 to 330 (USD12 to 20). I offered one driver EGP100 (USD6) which he accepted but it would be seat-in-van with other pre-booked guests. It was a win-win arrangement but his supposed pre-booked guests turned up, he made some excuse that he couldn’t take me anymore. He probably got a better fare, and just abandoned me. Typical “Welcome back to Egypt” slap to the visitor! That wasted about 30 mins of my time which wasn’t ideal around midnight.
I found the blue-and-white taxi rank nearby. I offered EGP100 (USD6) again but there were no takers. I up’ed it to EGP150 (USD9) and that did the trick.
I got to the Stella di Mare around 0100. The lobby and my room (above) looked pretty nice but I’ll know tomorrow in the daylight.