Day 14: The Long Trip Home

The Heckermachers had had a magical time in Thailand, but (much to their regret) it was time to return home. 

Tim waits with their luggage while quietly resenting being photographed.

Their long, long day of travel began with a ride on a golf cart to the beach. There, they were met by a tractor, which took them to the area where they'd meet their speedboat. 

"We're on a tractor AND on a beach!"

Tractor and longboats.

They had about half an hour before their speedboat arrived. Anna spent it on a giant swing. 

The sky was grey during their speedboat ride back to Phuket, as if mourning the end of the Heckermacher honeymoon. 

But Tim was stoic. 

The marina in Phuket.

At the Phuket airport, Anna was amused by the posters for Nok Air. 

Chicken plane!

The Phuket airport is one of the great clusterfucks of contemporary transportation. It's so packed with souvenir stands that simply waiting quietly is out of the question - nearly every place to wait has been replaced with a place to buy stuff. After standing in a crowded passageway between a tobacco shop and a place selling silk pyjamas, the Heckermachers were ferried onto a shuttle bus that sat for a very long time. It finally started up, drove around the tarmac in a single slow loop, and returned to where they'd started to pick up passengers it had missed.

After an hour flight to Bangkok, the Heckermachers found themselves in the Bangkok airport International Terminal, which is approximately the size of Cuba and has more luxury stores than Fifth Avenue. Tim huddled in a corner while Anna darted around trying to spend the last of their baht. Finally, it was time to board their plane. The quiet and comfort of their cabin on Qatar airways had never felt like such a relief. 

On the way home, they also flew through Doha, Qatar. Since they were there overnight, Tim had booked them a room at the Oryx Rotana. They arrived there thoroughly bleary-eyed at about 1 am Doha time. The lobby of their hotel was deserted, except for the front desk staff and a gleaming white baby grand piano. 

White baby grand piano. 

After a shower and three fitful hours of sleep in the world's most comfortable bed, it was time for Leg 2 of their flight. As they crossed the Atlantic, Anna watched Citizen Kane, Tim watched Taken 2: The Tookening, and they both set their entertainment systems so they could watch Dark Shadows at the same time. They dined on lamb, Anna indulged in a glass of champagne, and Tim took full advantage of the port that was older than he was. 

New York greeted them with a cool, grey day. Their cab driver went local, taking them across Atlantic and Eastern Parkway, where they observed many Orthodox Jews in outlandish costumes. 

"Is it Purim?" Anna asked blearily.

"One can only assume," Tim responded. 

And with that, they knew that they were really home.