OK... here we go... Before we start... this is one of the longer ones so pour yourself a cup of coffee or the beverage of your choice...
We start todays segment... going from Honolulu, to Los Angeles... back to Honolulu (I'll explain in a bit)... on to Tokyo, Hong Kong and Bangkok... next month will be Kolkata, Karachi, Beiruit... September we will journey onto Istanbul, Frankfurt and London to New York.
But first we have to get ready to fly... Before we start I just want to say... most of the photos were found on the internet... only a few remain of mine (most were lost to time, fire and a hurricane and a flood).. and I did actually keep a journal of this trip... (also lost to time) I've been trying to recall and recount as best I can (some of the finer details are a little fuzzy) but most is as clear as if it were yesterday... or the day before.
What I'm starting with are the tickets and itinerary and paperwork delivered by Pan Am... an American Express card, $1000.00 in new bills in various denominations, $1,000.00 of American Express Travelers Cheques and my passport, health and vaccination documents and the extra photos I'll need for various travel visas...and then I packed...
I had a similar set... mine was a generation later, black and it had my initials on it...It was quite beautiful and this was it's first of several travel adventures... All my grooming items, soap, moisturizer, shampoo, tooth brush etc... etc... eyeglasses, sunglasses and camera went into the overnight case...and now for clothing... that bottom suitcase was so heavy when packed I paired it down to the basics... I wore a good tropical wool suit and crisp white shirt (crisp white shirts are a trademark for me fashion wise) so I packed three, two ties (people used to wear suits and ties to travel way back when) I only wore the tie on the fist leg of the trip and then to a restaurant in Hong Kong and London) a blue lightweight blazer, a pair of casual pants, a pair of new blue jeans, a pair of draw string pants (I wore dress shoes with the suit) pair of loafers and a pair of sneakers, 2 pair of dress socks and 2 pair of white cotton socks, 1 pair of short pants, 2 short sleeve polo shirts, 3 pairs of boxer shorts, a reversible belt, a swim suit and a pair of rubber slippers (flip-flops) and two light weight sweaters... one was always either being worn or tied round my neck or wast... the weekender bag was full... I could comfortably carry this...The fully packed standard suitcase... even though it could be checked... would have made the trip too much of a workout even for me.
Two days before leaving I was actually in Honolulu hanging out with friends
... so I flew back to meet up with my traveling companion in LA and we checked in for the first leg at Los Angeles International Airport ... LAX (this is pretty much what it looked like)
We proceed to the ticket counter and were given our boarding passes and our bags were tagged and we were given Clipper Club passes... for a morning flight.
So off we went...to the Clipper Club to meet with an Airline representative and the rest of our group... where we were given the first of many guide books with suggestions of where to go, what to do and some background on local customs and etiquette (too bad this is still not done for many travelers) We started in LA with about 20 people on Flight 1...in first class
Everyone was friendly and a bit reserved.., but nice... we all sat in the general vicinity of each other and we had reserved tables for our meal on the upper deck..
As we settled into our seats before takeoff we had a glass of Champagne and toasted with our fellow travelers to a bon voyage... after take off fine caviar was offered with more Champagne...
The day you hear I've turned down Dom Perignon and Beluga caviar... you will know you fell through a black hole into a parallel universe... one of the things I learned on this trip and I learned it early...moderation is the key to happiness particularly at 30,000 feet.
On the upper deck we were shown a menu and this gave a a taste of what was in store food and beverage wise for most of the journey.
I won't be discussing much more about the food and beverages except where it's significant in the upcoming segments...
One of the things that most everyone loved about this flight it was Aloha Service... and there seemed to be an endless supply of Mai Tai's and Pina Colada's... fortunately for me I knew not to mix Champagne and the wine served with the meal with exotic cocktails... most everyone returned to their seats to sleep off the effects of too much... well too much of everything.
So we visited with a few people and learned that a handful of our group and most of the people on the flight were staying in Hawaii for a week or so before picking up the rest of the trip with another group And the rest... Honolulu was their final destination.. We were thrilled that I could give some of them first hand knowledge of where to go and what to do...
I've always loved the take off and landing of flights to and from Honolulu International Airport... HNL and this (the first photo) is pretty much what it looked like at the time... It's grown by leaps and bounds over the years and continues to be one of my favorite places to start or end a trip...
At the stops where Pan Am had a base... a mini van shuttled us to our hotel... as I said last time we stayed where the crew stayed and we rode with them to and from the airports... this was not a requirement and most people charted their own adventure choosing their transportation and accommodations...
So off we went to the recently opened Ala Moana Hotel... I learned that many airlines laying over in Honolulu stayed there and they had a couple of floors dedicated to airline crew rooms (no longer the case)... It was my first stay there... my home away from home was only a few blocks away... there were now 6 of us who were on this part of the adventure together... a couple from San Diego who were on their round-the-world honeymoon, a woman from Chicago who was on her round-the-world divorce celebration tour (she was quiet about this fact around the honeymooners who we hardly spent any time with until later in the trip) and a recently widowed man... who had planned to take the trip with his late wife.. and the two of us.
We ran into the divorcee I'll call her Monique (because that was her name) and the widower I'll call Charles... (because that was his name) at the pool and made plans for the afternoon and evening...We took them over to the Ala Moana Shopping Center to check it out and picked up a bento box from Shirokiya (sadly no longer there & Liberty House is a Macy's) to take to Ala Moana Beach Park for a picnic...
One of the benefactors (there were three) who made the whole trip possible in the first place... took the four of us on a sunset sailing trip and dinner at the Honolulu Yacht Club
One of the things about getting to Hawaii from the mainland is your body is still on mainland time so you wake up very early... the four of us ran into a few people from the flight crew and we told them about our day and night and invited them to join us on what I had planned for the day..in that moment we cemented our travel friendship for the rest of the journey... I had a car... and we borrowed another one... so that the seven of us could set out on our day trip... that took the whole day...and we let everyone curate the day and did everything they wanted to do like it was the first time for us too...We started at what turns out what most people want to visit...Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial...
I've taken so many people to so many places in Hawaii so many times... I could give the tour... but what was special about this whole day... I just sat back and let someone else do the talking and keeping everyone entertained.
The next stop was the Dole Pineapple Plantation tour...
One of the things that everyone hears about and wants to do is the Polynesian Cultural Center... it's very family oriented... and it really takes the whole day to experience...we vetoed this due to time and cost... it's rather expensive but the immersive cultural experiences from six different villages, a luau and an evening show are worth it if you have at least a day or two to devote to it... we had our own luau to return to in Waikiki later so we went to lunch on the North Shore, stopped for shave ice and spent the rest of the day at Makapuu Beach... I can't say the same now..., but in those days you did not see a lot of tourists there during the week.
Monique and Charles were very happy with us as impromptu tour guides and our new crew friends confessed that they usually just slept, stayed by the pool and ate in the hotel whenever they had a layover in Honolulu and were delighted to actually see the island and people... when we got back to the hotel we had just enough time for a quick nap, shower and change for a luau and hula show... everyone had a good time... the next morning at the pool a couple of other crew members heard about what a great time we put together for our short stay in Hawaii and we made a decision to have everyone (with experience in that city) plan our activities... I was off the hook until London... spent the rest of the morning lounging by the pool and packed up and went back to the airport for our next leg to Tokyo.
Flying time from Honolulu to Narita International Airport NRT is about nine hours...so we ate a lot of delicious food, drank more fabulous Champagne and nibbled on caviar... watched a movie, played cards and brushed up on easy Japanese dialogue, slept... and we still had four hours flying time so we ate again, indulged in more Champagne and caviar... and I did a quick freshening up in with an electric shave and splash of soap and water in the lavatory ( a must for me before ending a long flight)... Narita has changed and grown over the years... but it's alway been easy to navigate... we made it through customs and met the crew at a designated spot to catch a shuttle to Tokyo... In about an hours time we arrived at the Tokyo Palace Hotel...
We left Honolulu around 1:00 pm on Monday (Tokyo is 19 hours ahead of Honolulu) so it was already about 8:00 am Tuesday morning in Tokyo... so... by the time we got from the airport to the hotel and checked in... it was already about 7:00 in the evening... we were all feeling like it was midnight... but common sense prevailed and we met and went out to eat
and took a stroll for about an hour round trip and returned to the hotel at what would be 11:00 pm and we were all sure we would wake up rested and refreshed (we were wrong) but we started our Tokyo adventure after a leisurely breakfast... I'm a really big believer of "When In Rome" but there are just some things I can't eat for breakfast as a rule... so I had a boring traditional western breakfast... I was a little more adventurous the next day... and a good thing too... because our little group learned how to navigate the Tokyo subway system thanks to our trusted co-pilot.
It's really much easier than it appears... and you can go everywhere at a fraction of the price of taking a cab... the key is you just need to know where you are... and where you want to go...
Our hotel was in the Marunouchi District... the first place we visited was the Shinjuku District and it took about a half hour... after a few hours of shopping and lunch and admiring that part of the city we ventured to Shibuya... (15 minutes by subway)for more shopping and a little bar hopping (it was 5:00 somewhere) and walked around...
From here we ventured off to Ginza about 25 minutes by subway... for more shopping... I was getting worn out and I had cashed a couple hundred dollars worth of travels cheques converted to yen... and it was burning a hole in my pocket... so at Ginza Mitsukoshi...
I bought with a brand new American Express card (one of the few things I purchased on the trip) a beautiful traditional silk brocade kimono (think red, black, gold thread and dragons and Japanese symbols) it became my robe and my cover up on cold aircraft for the rest of the trip... and it folded up perfectly in my overnight bag... the foodcourt left me in awe... I'm surprised I'm not still there tasting everything... needless to say we ruined ourselves for any thought of dinner and stopped for a drink before heading back to the hotel for a night cap and a truly blissful nights sleep... we needed it because the next day we boarded two trains to get to Hakone from Tokyo station (about an hour)
We had a democratic vote on how we wanted to spend our last full day and night in Japan and all agreed that it would be good to see something less urban and crowded... and the lure of a hot spring spa resort had us all in agreement... because well it was really hot from the time we got to Honolulu and between the laundry service, and rinsing things out in the bathroom... staying fresh was challenging...
There is an underground passageway form the hotel to the Tokyo station and we took a train to the Odawara Station and another to the Hakone-Yumoto Station (a little over an hour)
We had reservations for a day at the Miyanoshita's Fujiya Hotel and enjoyed then open air hot springs and massages and spa treatments... and had a delightful restful and rejuvenating day... At this point in my life I was no stranger to to manicures and pedicures but this experience sold me for the recuperative powers of spa treatments... the calm, casual tone and energy of the the town was a welcome relief from the fast paced life of Tokyo and we all realized here that we had finally recovered from our jet lag.
We arrived back at our hotel early in the evening blissful, rested and ready to conquer the world... We met for an early dinner in one the hotels restaurants and went to bed early... ready for the next leg of our trip to Hong Kong.
This was my first of several experiences landing at the old Hong Kong Kai-Tak Airport HKG... to say it was a harrowing experience is an understatement... I said to someone once... "Oh look at that family having dinner... whatever they are having looks delicious" What made this airport so dramatic was you took off and landed so close to where people were living careening between the narrow passage of apartment buildings toward the runway... doing it at night and during bad weather only added to the drama of the experience. The new Hong Kong International Airport HKG opened in 1998 and very modern and about 20 miles from Hong Kong.
It's only about a four and a half hour flight from Tokyo and only an hours time difference... so we were landing with both feet on the ground and more or less focused and thinking clearly... I congratulated myself again for not checking bags and able to proceed directly to customs and immigration... easy-peasy... since the length of our stay was going to be so brief and we were not going on to mainland China we did not need any special travel visas... and I had the paperwork for all this completed before I left LA... While I was waiting for the others... it dawned on me that I had only been gone a week and had made to almost halfway around the world.
When everyone was ready we went to a passenger pickup area to the Peninsula Hotel... well our group got into 4 chauffeur driven Rolls Royce dispatched from the hotel to pick us up... Up until now we had stayed at beautiful luxurious hotels... The Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong was the jewel in the crown to almost all the hotels I've experienced before this... and since...
I could write for hours about this hotel and the experiences we had... and those that I had upon returning over the years...but I won't... I'll just say this... when I got to the room and got freshened up I looked out the window and and looked though the materials of the hotel amenities ... I thought to myself... "Maybe I'll just stay in the hotel the whole time we're here!" Im glad I didn't because another flight attendant who joined our happy group and the pilot had been to Hong Kong dozens of times and had an itinerary planned for the next two day. We met for a drink at one of the bars and made our plans...
We had a light bite to fortify ourselves and took Rickshaws (I hate these but everyone wanted to to it... I've gotten to the point that I will do it if it's drawn by a bicycle instead of a man on foot)
We took the Hong Kong Peak Tram to Victoria Point... one of the biggest tourists destinations in Hong Kong... but the experience if just for the view was amazing...
It takes about 10 minutes to get to the peak tower that had restaurants, shops and wonderful viewing platforms... I suppose now is as good a time as any to talk about drinking water while you travel... The water in Hawaii is as far as I'm concerned... the best in the world... the water in Japan is good... the water in Hong Kong supposed to be fine... but it's the pipes that carry it that are a problem particularly in older buildings... I bought bottled water at the hotel for my room and did not drink anything that did not come out of a can or bottle while we were there... the same was not true for Charles and Monique who became violently ill at this juncture of our trip.(we learned they foolishly drank tap water at the airport)... well if this happens to you in your travels the best thing you can do is rest... be close to a bathroom and drink flat Coca Cola and nibble on crackers.... Refer to this chart when you travel...
When we got Charles and Monique settled back at the hotel we had just enough time to meet our guide to take a three hour walking tour that ended in a fashionable shopping district... where I managed to find a little something to wear out for dinner that night and after some finagling could fit in to my two pieces of luggage... ( I still had the Pan Am bag with amenities and such but I did not want to rely on using that this early in the trip.
Lane Crawford was founded in 1850 and continues to be Hong Kong's premier luxury retailer... and they take American Express...
I'm really not that big of a fan or going to churches and temples while traveling... but I make an exception in Asian countries... with a guided tour and explanations of the the history and meaning of the fundamental principles behind them.
Man Mo Temple Sheung Wan Hong Kong
I enjoyed the day... the shopping districts in Kowloon are more authentically local... and when I was there... if you were staying at least 4-5 days you could have a suit custom tailored... alas we were not but I did have a few made on later trips.
So after we got back to the hotel and checked on the patients... who made a pretty remarkable recovery... they were not up to dinner on the Jumbo Floating Restaurant and stayed behind...
We dined on Cantonese delights prepared mostly from freshly caught seafood... sadly it no longer exists it closed during covid and was towed out of the Harbor and capsized in the China sea during bad weather.
We wound up in the Wan Chai District on the Northern shore... in those days was synonymous with prostitution and vice and exotic nightlife for US Servicemen on leave from Vietnam... we made a promise to stick together like glue... and we had an interesting time... pro-tip... drink scotch with no ice. (As a side note to this... I went back many times with Pan Am... and had a friend who lived there and he could not believe we went there... c'est la vie)
I'm glad we went...but I could not wait to get back to the hotel to take a long shower and wash the evening off of me. A few hours of hard sleep and we were off on an all day adventure for our last full day and night in Hong Kong.
After a traditional breakfast... we took a ferry to Lantau Island...
We were there long before Hong Kong Disney was built... or The Big Buddha...
We spent a better part of the day at Lower Cheung-Sha Beach... we had a light picnic snack and spent the day sunning and frolicking in the water... I promise not to dwell on this too much... but it was so freaking hot in Hong Kong (and I have spent a lifetime not complaining about heat) it was nice to be someplace relaxing again to cool off.
Later in the afternoon we took a couple of taxis to the Tai O Fishing Village and had a sumptuous lunch before taking the ferry and going back to the hotel...
It dawned on me when we met up at the bar before dinner that we were so lucky that we all hooked up... or many of these adventures might not have been realized... and I learned the importance of expressing gratitude to my new traveling friends.
We all had dinner at one of the many fine restaurants at the hotel... having an extraordinary meal with delightful company... and my second chance to dress up and wear a neck tie.
The next morning on the way back to the airport I said I was a little intimidated about going to Bangkok for the first time... based on what I had been told and read... and the Captain of our merry but somewhat travel wary group laughed and said... you survived a crazy fun filled night in the Wan Chai district here... you can go anywhere in the world now and you'll be fine... you have no idea what it meant for me to hear this at this point in my life... Soon we boarded our 3 hour flight to Bangkok...
A new state of the art modern airport was built servicing Bangkok that opened in 2006 Suvrnabhumi Airport BKK... but that first trip was the Don Meuang International Airport DMK... and as airports go... it was kind of a pain in the you-know-what! It still exists as a maintenance center and for charter and low budget regional flights... After you get your luggage... I was still hand carrying... you proceeded to Visa On Arrival before you dealt with Customs And Immigration. You need your paperwork (we filled this out in advance with Pam Am ages ago) and the two extra photos that are that same as your passport (that's why I told you to get a new passport and a bunch of duplicate photos for the visa issues)... and then you wait in line...
This may or may not be the last time I talk about heat and humidity on this trip... but It was so hot and uncomfortable going through this and customs... I wanted to scream... but I didn't. Pan Am was very esteemed and respected here and was told that preference was given to Pan Am passengers and crew... I pity the people who did not get special fast (ish) treatment... So from the hot muggy terminal to the really hot and sweltering heat outside we boarded a really hot and steamy van...for a blistering 20 minute ride to the hotel... my mood immediately improved when we arrived at the Siam Intercontinental Hotel...
The hotel and grounds were splendid in every sense of the word; Designed by someone who had studied with Frank Lloyd Wright... the service, amenities and staff were equally out of this world over-the-top... so far... I have loved everyplace we stayed for different reasons... but photos and my descriptions can't do it justice...It was amazing at night all lit up like a Christmas tree... (Sadly when their land lease expired it was torn down and a shopping center was built)... I had to make do with the Oriental Hotel on subsequent visits. So the first thing everyone did was go to their rooms settle in get cleaned up and send our sweat soaked clothing to be cleaned and laundered... I don't even want to try to explain how they looked and smelled. ( I don't know if this is too much information for you, but it was at this point of the trip and my life when I started going commando regularly)... and then we met at the pool...to relax and make our plans...
Of all the people in our little group the pilot, co-pilot and one stewardess had been to Bangkok several times and we listened to hear our options... oh and the honeymooners finally came out of their room for a breath of air and were anxious to join in the fun...Michael and Susan... they looked so happy like they just finished... well you know.
We decided to have lunch at the hotel and discuss our plans for the next few days... it was here that I learned the hotels we were staying at were the kitchens that were catering our flights to the next destination... Up to this point everything I ate on the flights and off were scrumptious.
We went into the city center to see the sights and sounds... everyone except me wanted to buy post cards and souvenirs... but there were interesting open air markets restaurants and bars... I was genuinely amazed at how friendly everyone was. I often tell people that I grew up while I was in Bangkok... I soon learned that most locals think Americans are all rich and famous and during a brief encounter.. a young (not that much younger than I was at the time) boy explained what he could do for me for a price... With my B-Movie mentality I did not know that there was an alternate meaning to "A-Happy-Ending"... the same for "A-Trip-Around-The World"... I still kind of blush if just on the inside of how red my face was with embarrassment when the co-pilot explained it to me back at the hotel... so a rather extravagant dinner at the hotel and an early night for our next days adventure...
We really should have had more time for this one but we all agreed it would be worth it based on the description... and it was... we took a one hour flight and quick ferry ride to Ko Chang
...and rented a small bungalow for the night that we all shared at Klong Kloi Beach
We had a marvelous time and sunned and snorkeled, and ate and drank and laughed... and really got to know each other on a deeper level than just what we show people on the surface... and appreciating and understanding the miles people have walked to get to where they are in life... this is the flip side of the coin of of me growing up on this trip... The Pan Am employees were obviously world travelers and had wonderful stories about their experiences... at this point it my life the only places I had been were Hawaii, California, New York, London, Paris, Switzerland, Spain and Israel... in the eyes and hearts of my traveling companions... I was a sophisticated world traveller... even if I had to have the alternate meaning of a "trip- around- the- world" explained to me... the next morning early back on a ferry, another hour flight back to Bangkok and the hotel... I spent big portion of this trip showering and washing my sweaty, dirty hair.
We took another day trip about a 2 hour by train to the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market it was a lot of fun and I recommend it highly... it's become a bit more touristy than it was at the time... Good food (and I've always been suspect of open air food markets)... and no one had any digestion problems...cold bottled beer, great company.
We got back to our hotel... late afternoon bordering on early evening, but there was still sun and we met at the pool for a swim and later dinner and another early night (we were all exhausted) and off to the airport late tomorrow morning for our flight to Kolkata... we were approaching the halfway mark of our trip... but were all enjoying ourselves too much to think about it.
Thanks for reading... I'll pick this up where I left off next month.
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