Last January, my birth month, I unexpectedly won in a raffle during Singapore Airlines' media event, which entailed one round-trip ticket to anywhere in Southeast Asia. I was bummed at first coz I just booked my Singapore airfare for the Coldplay concert, so I thought that maybe it is meant that I use this for another trip.
They gave away two passes during the event, and my co-winner is a fellow blogger and friend Ruth--now that I think of it, we used to sit down with our coffee in Figaro and talk about our different travel stories. We decided to avail our prizes together, pitching SE Asia countries we both haven't been to. We rocked back and forth in our Facebook messenger, deciding between Brunei and Myanmar.
I am game with any since both sounds so exotic and new, but we ended up with Myanmar. I Googled and realized it is the country formerly known as "Burma", and it is where you will witness the surreal view of hot air balloons flying over countless pagodas--much like Turkey's popular photogenic destination. I am hyped!
We were able to finalize our flight scheds with Singapore Air since last March, but only had the chance to plan for our the trip with just 2 to 3 weeks left. Time is tricky and just slipped by! It was all good for me since I had no expectations whatsoever about this trip. Before we knew it, we've booked our hotel rooms, listed "must-sees" in Yangon and Bagan thanks to Facebook friends and the few blog posts written about our destinations, and have packed our bags for departure.
Two nights before this flight, I was already out of the house and slept for a night in Marriott with my best friend who's getting married on that weekend. At the last minute, we helped prepare her wedding tokens, watched her dance practice with soon-to-be husband, and even had the honor to help her with her vows. Core memory level 💯! Wedding day flashed by, I retired in another suite (in Belmont this time) as soon as they ended the wedding reception. No after-parties na for me! I was so tired that I looked forward to our night flight.
Trying the comfortable head rest and foot rest with Ruth:
It has been a while since I had airplane food coz I always take budget airlines. It felt nice to have my dinner served with little waiting time, and my coffee cup refillable.
I also noticed at the airport that we didn't have to line up for the airport tax and just proceeded with check-in and immigration (fee was charged with the airfare already). Oh, the convenience of taking one of the world's best airlines!!
What was served: Green Mango Salad, Leche Flan-ish dessert, Coffee, Bread and Butter, Chicken & Pasta with Veggies:
Another in-flight perk is this entertainment system, yey! Last time I had this was when I had a long-haul flight to US... Manila to Singapore will only take about 3 hours but this is a welcomed treat!
New earplugs for every guest:
They have movies, TV shows, different music playlists, games, and even a few episodes of Game of Thrones!!
I ended up mindlessly watching a Doraemon movie, playing Tetris, and listening to the Kpop radio, before dozing off a little ............
Woke up abruptly and we were already landing to our long layover in Changi International Airport in Singapore. We have 7 hours here before our final flight to Yangon. Perfect time to stretch, eat, and even sleep!
We rode this Skytrain to Terminal 2, where we had the airport train all to ourselves!
Of course! Photo ops time!!!
Most probably the time when Ruth was posting an IG story on being inside the "Train to Busan", hehehe:
I JUST HAVE TO!!! Hahahaha! #CrazyGirls
Looked for a place to stay in Terminal 2:
We ended up in a pub called Harry's because they have free wifi and the lounge looks cozy I even thought that I can sleep here! We also can't seem to connect to Changi Airport's wifi, I can't imagine our long layover without internet! 😅 Give me internet and a nice lounge, 7 hours will just fly!
Wanted to use my SGD from my last trip, but kulang. Hehe.
It was almost midnight so they only serve drinks. We both had iced coffee:
We decided to bill out and walk around for any restaurant that's still open at past midnight. Changi Airport is almost deserted, except for a few fellows sleeping on chairs or even on the carpeted floors:
Ang daming areas where you can play and waste time! As Ruth puts it, I don't mind spending a night in an airport if it's like Changi!
We saw a 24-hour food court where you can pay with credit card. They serve international foods from Thai to Korean to Viet. I had the congee while Ruth ordered a bowl of noodles. Our way-past midnight snacks.
Clean comfort rooms and water fountains can be found everywhere, so again, I didn't think staying in an airport for a night wasn't a big deal till I got messages from my IG stories to take care or "hindi ko yan kaya!". Was talking to Ruth how the experience reminds me of the movie The Terminal.
All clean and ready to sleep! Kept a facial wash and tooth brush in my bag for this overnight:
Our bed for the night! I think it's a dining area for a closed cafe a few meters away from a smoking lounge and our boarding gate. I occupied two of these soft seats for my makeshift bed, and hugged my backpack till I dozed off to lalaland ......
...To be continued!
Watch my Day 1 IG Stories:
I have a stupid question haha. So when a long haul flight like yours (MNL to Myanmar) entails a layover, the airline will take care of your checked in baggage right? You only have to worry about your carry on baggage? :)
ReplyDeleteFortunately, YES! I only had to think about my carry on during the whole layover, luggage still with the airline!! :) Thanks for commenting!!
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