I've just entered the Just back competition on the Telegraph's website, so thought I'd share it with you! It's a great competition and fun to read all the entrys on there. So fingers crossed!! Here's the website -
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travel-writing-competition/
Just back – The Journey
For me getting ready to go out is half the fun. So for me the journey, I.e. going to the airport and being on the plane is half the fun of going on holiday I love completely loosing myself in the world of airports and planes. For example spraying 10 perfumes on me at duty free and not buying one. Watching loads of films in a row and not feeling guilty while drinking some free Chardonnay. I love it. So an 18 hour flight from London to Hawaii wasn't a scary prospect for me. 18 hours of watching films and sleeping and I'd be leaving grey London behind for tropical and far away Hawaii – what wasn't to love? The best part – someone else was getting me there and preparing food for me. What I did not factor into the mix is that a holiday never goes exactly as they're suppose to. Boarding the flight I was dreaming of making lei's and sipping mojitos in 18 hours, in reality 7 hours after getting on the plane, I wasn't half way over the Atlantic I was in Heathrow. Where I had started. By now the mojitos of Hawaii were a distant dream and I was in nightmare reality – not allowed of the plane, not moving and surrounded by equally annoyed travellers. If there was ever anything to put me off planes and holidays abroad that was the moment. If there was ever anything to put me off living in England and it's terrible changeable weather that was the moment. However what made me and the other passengers hopeful was the incredible air hostesses and pilot. In true British style they were completely apologetic but most of all hopeful that we would get off the ground, when everything was against us. Dangerous weather, security and technology and the pilot was hanging on still. It paid off. We did eventually take off, and landed in L.A with a hotel voucher and promise for a flight to Hawaii the next day. Yes we were tired, yes nothing had gone to plan and yes we had missed out on a night in Hawaii for night in a questionable Mexican themed hotel near LAX. But we had a story to tell, a new found respect for the job of air hostess and pilots (not many people would fly 11 hours to L.A after being stuck on a plane for 7 hours not moving) and do you know what sipping the mojitos on the beach tasted 10 times better for it. I would never want to be stuck on a plane at Heathrow again but if I had never experienced that I wouldn't be able to write this and share my story. So the journey really is as important as the trip. HX
