It all works out in the end....

So after finding out that my flight to Bangkok was canceled and being moved to a flight about 9 hours later, I was very close to taking a motor bike back to the city and waste the day with Josh and Lou. I negotiated a price of 100k doung with a driver to take me to the royal hotel, buckel a helmet on, give him my big bag for the front and we start to go. He goes to the other end of the terminal and asks other drivers where Royal hotel is. One guy does not know and then I scream near the lake and the second guy starts to write a number on his hand with no pen. Then the motorbike taxi pulls out 150k doung and I say no, thats not what we agreed. I take my bags and head back to the terminal, ignoring the guy that is trying to talk to me.

After thinking about it for a bit, I decide to just spend the time at the airport. I first go back to the AirAsia office and get my Thursday flight from Bangkok to Chiang Mai flight confirmed, cause if this flight gets canceled then I am stuck in Bangkok, which would be much better then being stuck in Hanoi. While waiting in line, I start chatting with a girl from Sydney about her issues and travels and after getting food vouchers from AirAsia and confirming my flight, we decide to kill time together. After killing a few hours chatting and reading, we had food at the food court and run into two girls from Canada, also supposed to be on the flight. We all hang out and trade travel stories.

As 4pm rolls around, I check my email and see that I accidently took Josh's computer power plug and since he would have no computer and internet for his last day, he moved his flights up a day and suggested I do the same since my plans to have one last big night out in Bangkok got ruined with the canceled flight. I quickly run over to China Airlines and see if there is room. Luckily it sounds like both flights are open and she instructs me to go to the ticketing office for China Airlines. After finding the ticketing office, I discuss with the guy my options and he tells me I can buy a ticket to Taipei that leaves in less then an hour (the one Josh is on), try to get the credit when I return to the states for my flight from Chiang Mai to Taipei (the one I would now be missing), and he can move me up a day on the flight from Taipei to SF. I tell him lets do it! One small issue, no credit cards, he did not have change for my large bills, and I was 15 short of what I had in small bills. I tell him my friend on the same flight should have the 15 I am short and I still needed to grab my bags that I left with the Canadiens and Ozzy. So he runs to the ticketing to start the check in process and I run to the food court to grab my stuff and say my good byes and head to the ticket counter. Get checked in and have them check if Josh has checked in yet, which he has. Migrate through customs and security and head to the gate to look for Josh so I can pay for the rest of the ticket. Josh is not at the gate and we look everwhere including yelling his name in the bathroom since he was having stomach issues. Then as I pass a restaurant, Josh see's me and yells my name. I get the extra money from him and pay the guy for the ticket!

So now I am in Taipei and will be catching the flight to SF that leaves in about two hours, arriving into SF a day early. No last night in bangkok with Charly, which I was REALLLY looking forward to but with the flight getting in at 11pm and having to leave at 7am does not really give me much time to really enjoy myself. Next time.

So as I always say to myself "Everything Happens for a reason", so many variables to getting me on an early flight back home!

Hopefully Jenn's see's this and/or her email so we have a ride when we arrive!