Doing the right thing in Switzerland

I’m confused. Do I turn left (France) or right (Switzerland)? Well, as I always like to do the right thing, I’ll enter Switzerland.

Anything to declare?

The volumes involved were well in excess of any allowance other than that perhaps of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at Pyongyang Sunan International Airport arrivals duty free.

Experiencing a Eureka moment at Hamad International

My final trip of the year, and indeed of the decade, is over. And what a great way to close out the 2010s it turned out to be.

From Busan to the (Gate 35) Bridge

How long before an innovative luggage company invents a special SKUcase instead of suitcase for daigou traders?

All (very) black in Tokyo, all smiles in Doha

The pressure now really kicks in and I must admit to even greater nerves than on the eve of the All Blacks match – and I was a shivering wreck then.

White trumps black as England soar in Yokohama

Chaps, like thousands of fellow Englishmen in Tokyo and back at home in the UK, was near delirious with happiness. And who can blame him?

Plenty of dazzle in Daxing; lots of fun (北京坊) in Beijing

The risk in describing Daxing is that you might run out of superlatives. It is an extraordinary testament to architectural genius; and a statement that airports can be beautiful as well as functional, soul-enriching as well as commercial and efficient.

Airports

September 17, 2019

Nau mai! Haere Mai! Back in Aotearoa

When you look at the inflight screen flight path and you see the Antarctic looming up as next stop beyond your destination you know you’re a long way south.

Travel

Homeless in Hong Kong but home again in the land of the long white cloud

Which airline could keep me connected for longest and with the best line speed? Cathay won hands down. I suspect I am not the only travel retail executive deciding that connectivity is key to choice of carrier.

Travel

September 4, 2019

Discovering ‘the bouquet that pervades across China‘

As I step onto my hotel balcony, the view is as intoxicating as the Moutai aroma that fills the air. “The bouquet pervades across China and Moutai is still the best,” runs an old adage.

Airlines

August 31, 2019

Bound for Baiju country and the spirit of China

No time for movies or sleep then, though I may catch a nap at the Cathay Pacific lounge at HKIA. I get into Maotai in China’s Guizhou province late tonight, having flown back on myself. I might need a shot of Kweichow Moutai sooner than I had planned.

Airports