| In my capacity as the UK Director of Operations for | | | | flight, I decided that visiting Alcatraz was not the worst |
| One World Tours Limited, I am often asked about the | | | | way to spend the day. Having just missed the |
| destinations I have been to and how it all began in the | | | | afternoon departure I decided that I would take the |
| first place. 10 years ago I embarked on my second trip | | | | three-hour evening tour. |
| around the world and I suppose you could say that this | | | | I was quite excited about the prospect of actually |
| is where it truly all began. | | | | visiting Alcatraz; it was to be an unexpected bonus to |
| I decided to visit the Seven Wonders of the world in | | | | say the least! None of the so -called Wonders had |
| eight days. Firstly I had to decide what actually | | | | given me such a rush. I had seen the Taj, Sydney |
| constituted the Seven Wonders of the World in the | | | | Opera House, The Great Wall, The Golden Gate |
| end came up with the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall of | | | | Bridge, but I could not believe that I was going to |
| China, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Golden Gate | | | | Alcatraz! |
| Bridge, The Empire State Building, Sydney Opera | | | | I was allowed to stand in the solitary confinement cells |
| House and the Pyramids of Egypt. This would notch | | | | and I found it to be an extremely eerie experience. |
| up a staggering 42,000 miles in 8 just days. The airlines | | | | You could still feel the history that the place was |
| and a chain of leading world-wide hotels thought that it | | | | seeped in. I saw the exercise yard and the dining hall |
| would be a great promotional stunt and sponsored the | | | | and for a grand finale heard the guards slam the cell |
| whole trip so all of the flights and accommodation was | | | | doors closed. It was dark when I left the island and |
| free. Sounds like a brilliant blag eh? However nothing | | | | San Francisco was truly magnificent by night. |
| was guaranteed and my fate was entirely in the | | | | I flew out of San Francisco at about 12.30am and |
| hands of the airlines. | | | | touched down in New York at 9pm. |
| So on the first leg of the trip (18th February) India and | | | | I got up early and traipsed the streets of New York |
| the Taj Mahal, I realized that I was on standby tickets | | | | looking for somewhere to have breakfast and then |
| and began to wonder if the trip would start at all. I think | | | | made my way to the Empire State BuildingI walked |
| that once I saw the very beautiful Indian stewardess | | | | down to Battery Park and caught a glimpse of the |
| wrapped elegantly in her red and gold sari, I knew my | | | | Statue of Liberty in the distance. |
| trip had begun. | | | | Then from JFK airport New York it was back to |
| Arriving at Delhi airport and in order to continue on to | | | | London. The flight to London was due to arrive at |
| the next stage of the journey I had to find out how | | | | 6.20am the next morning. It was 40 minutes late and |
| much a taxi would cost to take me to Agra and back | | | | arrived at 7am instead. I had to take a taxi form |
| to see the Taj Mahal. Eventually I was ushered | | | | Heathrow to Gatwick in order to catch the 10am flight |
| towards a driver willing to attempt to take me the 300 | | | | to Pisa. |
| miles in about 8 ½ hours for the price of | | | | It seemed very strange to be back in England, so |
| £130. I remember the name of the driver and the | | | | much had happened in such a short space of time. |
| journey to Agra very vividly. Ashok, drove like a | | | | I arrived in Italy at 2.45pm and I had a lovely view of |
| madman, honking his horn and driving towards | | | | the Swiss Alps as I had been sitting near the window |
| oncoming traffic on dual carriageways in order to help | | | | again on this flight. I left the airport and took a taxi to |
| me complete my mission. | | | | the hotel Granduca which was nestled in the Italian |
| On reaching the Taj Mahal, I was very impressed by | | | | countryside and was very pleasing to the eye after |
| the stunning creation of love that stood before me, | | | | New York. After a quick shower I took a cab to see |
| definitely the stuff that fairytales are made of! I did not | | | | the Leaning Tower of Pisa where I took the |
| have too much time, 15 minutes, so I quickly set about | | | | appropriate photos. It didn't seem possible that I was |
| taking photographs of the beauty before me that was | | | | now in Pisa when hours before I had been in New |
| intended for the publicity for the sponsors. I took | | | | York. It was very difficult to take in those last few |
| enough photographs to prove that I had been there, | | | | days. |
| along with a duplicate set in case the first ones did not | | | | I had to be up at 6am to catch a flight back to |
| come out and then one more lot for luck! The sun was | | | | Gatwick. It was roughly 6.30pm when I dropped off to |
| beginning to set and it gave everything around that | | | | sleep. The malaria tablets that I had to take had to be |
| wonderful orange glow, a fitting end to a brief but | | | | taken at the right time and once a week I had to take |
| memorable experience.Well the high speed car ride | | | | an extra one. Can you imagine how difficult it was with |
| back was even more hair-raising as we did the whole | | | | all the different times I had been through to make sure |
| thing over again but in the dark this time! | | | | when I had to take them? I had to set my alarm to |
| Day two of the trip was to be mostly taken up with | | | | make sure that I took them at the correct time. I |
| flights. I left Bombay after 6am to arrive in Hong Kong | | | | awoke at 12pm with a start, took my tablet and I |
| (stopping off at Bangkok) at around 3.15pm. I then had | | | | remember telling myself that I shouldn't have gone to |
| to take another flight to Beijing to arrive at 9pm that | | | | bed so early as I would never get back to sleep now! |
| evening. | | | | Next thing I knew it was 5.30am the following morning. |
| I was fortunate enough to experience the beauty of | | | | That was definitely the most sleep I had had in one go |
| flying into Beijing at night with the added bonus of the | | | | since I had left home. |
| magnificent fireworks in celebration of their New Year. | | | | I was a bit disappointed that I had slept my time away |
| The hotel, the Tianlun Dynasty Hotel was very grand | | | | in Italy yet I had needed the sleep to revitalise myself. |
| affair with staff spoke limited making it almost | | | | When I arrived at Gatwick I took the speed bus back |
| impossible to try and organise for a taxi to pick me up | | | | to Heathrow, the place where for me the trip had |
| at 4am the next morning, to take me to the Great | | | | begun. It became apparent that I had got a four and a |
| Wall, my next destination. I then had to catch a flight | | | | half-hour wait until the flight to Cairo. It was the longest |
| from Beijing to go to Sydney at 11.30am! With the | | | | four hours of the trip. |
| limited communications it was very difficult to get | | | | Finally the gate number came up and I rushed up to |
| across exactly what it was that I wanted and I had to | | | | where I expected I would be leaving from for the most |
| do drawings in order to communicate. To be honest I | | | | exciting part of the trip, the only bit that I was really |
| did not see much of the Great wall as it was still dark | | | | looking forward to. I discovered that I was on standby |
| being so early in the morning! | | | | tickets and that the flight had been oversold by 50 |
| Back to Beijing airport on to Shanghai instead of | | | | tickets. I had resigned myself to the fact that I was not |
| directly on to Sydney as I had expected . The | | | | going to go another step further. |
| Quantas crew were very lively, and I assumed that it | | | | There was only a handful of people left to board the |
| was because there was hardly anyone else on the | | | | plane and about ten more minutes to go until the plane |
| flight so they could let their hair down a little. I was | | | | was due to leave. I had been waiting for over four |
| even invited to sit in the flight deck as we came in to | | | | hours and was not even sure if there was anything to |
| land at Shanghai. | | | | wait for! I even wondered if I should ring someone to |
| I arrived at Sydney airport at about 6.30am on the 21st | | | | come and collect me to take me home. |
| of February. It was all too obvious that I would not be | | | | I touched down at the scheduled time of 11.15am on |
| using a hotel until the next day in San Francisco, so I | | | | the 26th February. I wouldn't get a proper look at |
| decided to leave my luggage in storage at the airport. I | | | | Egypt until the following day. Once booked in to our |
| had a whole day to kill in Sydney and the first thing | | | | hotel it proved very difficult for me to sleep that |
| that I did was to catch a bus to Sydney harbour. I took | | | | evening as it was like being a kid on Christmas eve, |
| a whole bunch of photographs of the Opera House | | | | trying to force myself to go to sleep but being too |
| and its surroundings | | | | excited to achieve it. The young hotel porter had |
| To waste a bit of time I went on a cruise of the | | | | asked if I had stayed at this particular hotel before. |
| harbour. I found it very hard to stay awake, the | | | | When I answered no, he pulled open the long curtains |
| travelling around over the last few days finally catching | | | | in the manner of a minor star unveiling a plaque. The |
| up with me. | | | | modern city of Cairo stood beyond in all of its glory as |
| I left Sydney airport about 40 minutes later than | | | | beautiful as any city by nightfall. The opened curtains |
| scheduled. This was a little worrying because I was | | | | exposed a long balcony onto which I was offered to |
| supposed to be making a connecting flight in Los | | | | step. The young man seemed proud to show me the |
| Angeles an hour and a half after I arrived! | | | | magnificent view of the river Nile. I could have enjoyed |
| There was a problem with the next part of the trip. | | | | the stunning view for the entire night but knew that if I |
| When I had originally planned the trip, I remembered | | | | didn't get a good nights sleep I wouldn't be able to |
| that the international dateline would be crossed, | | | | enjoy my time in Egypt to the full the following day. I |
| meaning that although having left Sydney on the | | | | felt saddened to see the advertisement for coke |
| evening of the 21st of Feb, I would be arriving in San | | | | lighting up the evening sky of a country steeped in so |
| Francisco on the afternoon of 21st of Feb! The people | | | | much magical history. It seemed too commercial and |
| that had rearranged the original schedule had not taken | | | | somehow disrespectful. |
| this into account. In effect it meant that I would be | | | | I photographed the stunning sphinx. |
| arriving one day earlier than was planned, it also meant | | | | The pyramids were absolutely breathtaking. I could not |
| that I did not have anywhere to stay that night, as I | | | | believe that I was only a few feet away from them. I |
| was not booked into the hotel until the following | | | | had imagined of this moment so many times in the |
| evening! It actually turned out to be a blessing in | | | | past. It was everything that I ever dreamed of and |
| disguise because I had missed the connecting flight | | | | more. |
| anyway. I eventually arrived in San Francisco in the | | | | I wanted to go to the museum to see Tutankhamen's |
| early part of the evening and took a taxi to the | | | | mask and after entering the museum, I was totally |
| intercontinental hotel. | | | | blown away by the exhibits that up until then I had only |
| Having topped up my sleep on the flight over and now | | | | seen in reference books. |
| feeling refreshed from the shower I felt alert enough to | | | | As I lay my eyes on the mask I found it was more |
| experience San Francisco by night. Thee streets were | | | | breathtaking than I could ever have imagined. |
| incredibly steep and I wondered how on earth the | | | | In the evening I went back to the pyramids to see the |
| parked cars managed to stay in place. | | | | sound and light show and I have to say it was the |
| After having a good night's sleep I got up early and | | | | perfect ending to an amazing trip. A dream come true. |
| took a cab to the Golden Gate Bridge. I took the | | | | I had to be up early to catch the 8.45am flight back to |
| necessary photographs and treated myself to an ice | | | | London. |
| cream. As I sat admiring the scenery I overheard | | | | And there you have it. I had caught the travel bug |
| someone mention that they could see Alcatraz in the | | | | good and proper and I wanted other people to share it |
| distance. I had no idea until then that Alcatraz was so | | | | too! |
| close and as I had a whole day to waste until my next | | | | |