A whopper of a travel ‘day’ totalling about 36 hours is taking me from Germany to my next destination in Uzbekistan. This is what it looks like when you have to be frugal and take the least expensive routing. 😂 I’ll be flying on two different airlines that are both new to me but have layovers in airports that are familiar. Here is my travel day Hamburg to Tashkent via Turkiye & Dubai.
Hamburg (HAM)
Leaving my darling baby girl, I say my goodbyes and head through security. Hamburg airport is boring but I don’t have much time to spare and before long its time to head to the gate. I am flying SunExpress for the first time, I have a window seat and it’s a sunny day.
Hamburg to Antalya
Departing Hamburg is beautiful, its mid afternoon and the skies are relatively clear. Onboard this Boeing 737 the seats are comfortable and the flight is 3.5 hours long. This is a budget airline; no food or drinks are served. I settle in and watch a movie and before long I am looking at the Turkish landscape at sunset.
Antalya (AYT)
I have been dreading returning to this airport if I am honest. Social media has been rampant with how bad the crowds and pricing are. Even though the terminal is large, it feels like one is in an amusement park, a very over priced one. Food options are limited and I notice that quite a number are closed down. The situation has gotten so ridiculous, that people just aren’t paying the prices.
Its way past dinner and I have scouted out every place to find what is cheapest. I settle on a pizza restaurant called Sbarro. Having a few hours to burn, I order two slices and a coke zero. Potato wedges end up on my tray even though I don’t think I ordered them, but perhaps I inadvertently asked for a meal deal. Cost $32 CAD. After I spend time wandering the duty free and shops just to see what is available and the current prices. Yikes.
Antalya to Dubai
Now for the second leg of the day, a night flight again on SunExpress and this time to Dubai. The Boeing 737 is full and this flight lasts just over four hours. No food or drink, the sky is dark the entire way. I decide to watch another movie as I cannot sleep on planes. Arriving into Dubai the air is not clear, no views of the Burj for me this time.
Dubai (DXB)
It is dark when I arrive and I have a six hour layover. My flight landed into Terminal I and I realize when I cannot find my check-in desk, that the next leg is departing from Terminal 3. Asking the information desk clerk how to transfer she informs me I can take a taxi or the metro.
Metro it is and I am a little surprised that you have to pay for it! I would have assumed in a country this wealthy that there would be a free way to transfer from terminal to terminal. A kind gent helps me obtain my ticket and the cost is 6 dirham or $2.30 CAD.
Arriving into Terminal 3 it appears to be completely dedicated to Emirates. I am taking FlyDubai, a subsidiary which also has counters here. Busy they are, I line up to check my bag. After security I visit the Ahlan Lounge as I have about three hours to kill. It’s a disappointing experience, crowded as can be and the food containers are low or empty. For the first time I leave a lounge earlier than my allotted time frame. Exploring the terminal, it’s the gold shops that catch my eye, that sparkling yellow is always alluring.
Dubai to Tashkent
My third and final leg of this journey, its now 24 hours later and I make my way towards my gate. Flying with FlyDubai is a first for me. The plane is only about one third full and I have the row to myself. Pure joy.
The skies are again full of sand, pollution or a mixture of the two and the scene is almost whitewashed. A hot meal is offered and its actually not too bad, chicken and potato. This flight is about four hours long, perfect for a movie and a few hands of solitaire.
Tashkent (TAS)
Arrival into Tashkent is much less anxiety ridden for me this time, as I haven’t just left a war zone. I know what to expect in this foreign land. The line for immigration is slow moving and once through it’s a wait for my luggage. Just like last time in March. Once my suitcase has arrived, I head past the phone registration, done that before, and towards the exit doors.
This time I am prepared for the onslaught of taxi piranhas and I don’t pay them any attention nor am I stressed by their barrage. Having my phone up in front of my face helps, they don’t like being photographed and are much less aggressive. This is a good tactic to remember.
I take a YandexGo to my hotel, one that I have stayed at before. It is near the Chorsu Bazaar and that is just the place I want to see. I only have a day here before I take another flight across the country to explore a city that I had dreamed of seeing. For now, I’ll settle in, have a little rest, get some sleep and have a slow wander of beautiful Tashkent.
