We finally took the plunge and left Australia behind for a while. It’s been two years since we visited the UK, so on 29th December we departed Perth. What a rigamarole it was though, from booking the flights and having tests and completing forms. I knew of course we would have to have a pre-Covid test before but didn’t realise it had to be pre-booked and pre-paid. So that was the first hurdle.
Next was pre-booking and paying for Covid tests in the UK, writing down reference numbers and filling out the Passenger Locator Application for the UK. Before all this though we had our booster shots and had to download a Covid International Passport. Trying to scan all the QR codes was impossible and we had to wait until we got to the airport.
We flew Scoot to Singapore and then Singapore Airlines to London. Our flight was 9.15 pm and we arrived around 7pm. The flight was less than half full, but we still had to queue for 30 minutes and then stand at the counter for another 30 minutes while all our documents were scanned through. Fortunately our luggage was able to go directly to London. I was told on this flight that I couldn’t wear my cloth mask and had to wear a paper one.
Arriving in Singapore at 2.15 am we had to make our way to another terminal. As the Skytrain was not operating we had at least a 30 minute walk from the plane to the next gate. Good job for travellators! We had a 7 hour layover in Singapore but were able to use the lounge as we were flying business class to London. This was a lifesaver and we both were able to lay down on a settee and had a few hours sleep. One of the ground staff also brought us pillows and duvets.
The next leg of our journey was wonderful with such “first class” attention from the staff. Our section of the cabin was empty apart from us and I think the cabin crew were bored. We could have walked off the plane sideways from the amount of times we were offered drinks.
I passed the time by reading a great book I had just downloaded and of course sleeping.
Once we disembarked I thought we would have a very long wait at immigration, but from landing and going through the exit was just 30 minutes! Maybe because I had all the correct documents.
We only need to isolate for two days and today sent back our “do it yourself” Covid tests and once we get the results back we are free to roam the outdoors.
A couple of the dishes that were on the menu
I’m looking forward to seeing relatives and catching up with old friends over the next few weeks and posting new photos.