Around the World...

[Rajan Parrikar]

...for only $98,940 in a re-purposed Icelandair 757. Details here.

[RSL]

Are you going to rush to sign up, Rajan? I think I'll wait to see if the price goes down.

[Slobodan Blagojevic]

... I think I'll wait to see if the price goes down.

I am waiting for a Groupon

[Rob C]

Even if I could afford it, I wouldn't go.

I concluded some years ago that Europe holds more than enough of interest for me. I have pretty much been to all the far-flung places I wanted to go to - and a couple I did not (thank you, clients!) and today, unless it's accessible by car, forget it.

If a dream remains, it's a slow tour of the Relais & Châteaux circuit and the Spanish Paradores collection.

There's currently a cooking show on tv by Rick Stein, where he takes his Porsche and film crew (not in the Porsche, I would imagine) through some of the French Departments... as with his French Canal series, he makes my poor old mouth water with envy at the food. If food can be porn, this is it! It is exactly the kind of thing I would love to do, but minus a crew, of course. Money is a passport. Doing it on the cheap is a waste of time and energy. It's a general rule of life, I'm afraid. The rough edges are just that: rough edges, and generally irritants. I have never seen beauty in discomfort; not my religion.

Rob

[Rajan Parrikar]

Are you going to rush to sign up, Rajan?

No, Russ. I am not a travel guy. Usually like to sow my ass to a couple of places I like.

[Rob C]

No, Russ. I am not a travel guy. Usually like to sow my ass to a couple of places I like.

I think that once you have had your fill of varieties, that's the best decision.

Rob

[Peter McLennan]

Interestingly, I did precisely that a few years ago and got paid for it. 15 countries, five weeks.  Same aircraft, too. B757.

Like the Nat Geo flight, they gutted the center cabin, leaving a vast space in the middle for socializing.  As film-makers, we had free run of the entire aircraft.  You haven't lived until you've crossed the equator at night in the cockpit of an airliner, watching the GPS latitude tick down to zero.

As part of the "crew" (I was half of a film crew making a sales film for future flights) I sat in the rear section. On the very first leg, I realized that I could travel right around the world in a single seat.  So I did. 33F.  A singular record, I believe.


Here's a two minute vid I made of the first few legs.  Please bear in mind that this YouTube vid was self-shot in the mid-nineties with a consumer camcorder.

https://youtu.be/VzHzksy_5Zs?list=UUA0t9kel1Qhq-0Xc7hIxq3Q

[Alan Klein]

Seems like a wonderful trip.  Do they charge extra for check-on baggage?

[Rajan Parrikar]

Peter - enjoyed your video.

[KLaban]

The antithesis of a trip that would appeal to me.

I prefer to target lesser known and carefully chosen destinations - certainly not World Heritage Sites - spending weeks in each, immersing myself in what it is they have to offer.   

[Rob C]

The antithesis of a trip that would appeal to me.

I prefer to target lesser known and carefully chosen destinations - certainly not World Heritage Sites - spending weeks in each, immersing myself in what it is they have to offer.   

Which of course, is partly why you produce the crackers that you do. Like many things, it takes dedication and time.

Rob

[RSL]

Which, incidentally, is one of the advantages of a career in the military. Those year-long overseas tours give you time to build a connection with the local scene, which is impossible if you're just passing through.

[Alan Klein]

Which, incidentally, is one of the advantages of a career in the military. Those year-long overseas tours give you time to build a connection with the local scene, which is impossible if you're just passing through.

When I served in Japan for two years in the USAF, a lot of time off base was spent drinking.  So I don;t remember too much of the local scene. 

[RSL]

Yeah, that's a problem, Alan. My best overseas tours for local involvement were my first Thailand tour, and Vietnam. In both cases we lived off-base -- downtown.

[Alan Klein]

Yeah, that's a problem, Alan. My best overseas tours for local involvement were my first Thailand tour, and Vietnam. In both cases we lived off-base -- downtown.

Well, I was single and had to stay in the barracks.  But we had four man rooms and mamasans who cleaned the barracks and shined our shoes.  (That's all. )At least until we got a new first sergeant who got rid of them.  Made our lives miserable.  I had a good Japanese friend who worked in the Base Exchange.  We used to hang out a lot together.  He bought my first car which is a funny story.  Another GI was selling this 1948 fluid drive Buick for $200.  If he bought it, he would had to have pay very high Japanese import duties.  So he asked me to buy it for him which I did.  I didn't have to pay duties plus I could buy gas on base for about 13 cents a gallon. So the car was in my name.  So I wrote up an affidavit for him that said he was my chauffeur.  So if he got stopped by police, it would show he was driving it legally.  He had friends and family in all the nearby small towns.  We used to go out and drive to them all where they feted us for free on food and drink.  None of them spoke English but that didn't matter.  There were many nights I don't remember going back to base.  Once I woke up playing chess with a captain of police in a local police station.  They called the base Air Police to drag me home.  The Air Force pulled my Class A liberty card for a month for that stunt.  Boy those were the days. 

[Peter McLennan]

Peter - enjoyed your video.

Thanks, Rajan.  A trip like that is the exact antithesis of the way I’d choose to travel.  I felt like a rock musician on tour. 

I did learn a lot, however, and that’s always fun.  Having your own private airliner does have its benefits.  We flew low-level circuits around Ayers Rock so that everyone could get a good view.

[wcarlew]

I used to work for that airline (Canada 3000), recognise some of the crew... I did around the world in 8 days eastbound with 3 nights in Yangon.

[Peter McLennan]

I used to work for that airline (Canada 3000), recognise some of the crew... I did around the world in 8 days eastbound with 3 nights in Yangon.

Cool!  They were apparently hand-picked for this plum job; they were all very professional.  They also got their own hotel rooms throughout, separate from the paying customers and the low-life film crew.

I did around the world in 8 days eastbound with 3 nights in Yangon.

Tell us more! 

[wcarlew]

Sorry about the delay.  We flew a group of veterans, relatives and politicians to Yangon for a military funeral of a 435 Sqn RCAF C47 that went missing during WW2.

https://www.nfb.ca/film/lost_over_burma_search_for_closure/

We flew from Ottawa and spent nights in Manchester and Delhi on the way. Then Narita and Anchorage for fuel on the way back to Ottawa. They had medical staff for the Veterans, however; the only people who got sick were the support staff(the young ones) if I recall . It was back in day we could have visitors in the flight deck. Had a veteran for each take off and landings. Myself and the other 2 pilots had also served on 435 Sqn.

[rabanito]

Oooh I am so sorry I missed it...
I'd just chartered a Yacht from the Azores to the Chilean glaciers in Patagonia for just 450'000 Euros a week (low season) plus expenses.
Yes with Deck Jacuzzi, Gym and WiFi.
No, beverages not included.


Maybe next time