South America bound

The start of the day isn't too rushed. My flight isn't until 13:00.

The airport is quite busy. The normal security queue is pretty long. Thankfully, I don’t have to go through that. Rather surprisingly, there's no queue at all at passport control. I breeze straight through. 

Once airside, I go to the duty free and get the cheapest malt whisky I can find: Jura white oak cask. Then it's on to the KLM lounge.

The good news is that they're serving doubles today.  Hooray. Soon I have a pair of doubles. The warm food looks a bit crap. It really is a total lottery, really, what warm food they’ll have I just get some cheese, French bread and bits and bobs.

The lounge is packed and I have trouble finding a seat. Then, 30 minutes later, almost everyone has left. How odd. I have a few more whiskies then head to the gate. Where I don't have to wait long.

The first meal isn't too bad. Chicken and mashed spuds. Along with some red wine. I also grab a couple of extra red wines from the galley. Just to keep myself hydrated, you know.

I watch a few films, as usual. Nothing particularly earth-shattering. Just stuff to pass the time. The Mandelorian and Gogu, Am I OK. And finish off with some Simpson’s episodes.

Despite leaving 10 minutes late, we arrive in Panama City about 20 minutes early. I've about two hours until my connecting flight to Medellin. Most of which I spend walking from terminal 1 to terminal 2. At least it’s well air-conditioned.

I don’t bother looking for a lounge. I haven’t that long to wait. I’m not hungry, either. And I don’t really need any more booze. What have I become?

At the gate, it’s pretty crowded. Though I do manage to find a seat. Thankfully. I really couldn’t be doing with standing up for too long. That’s what being an oldie does to you. I read some Private Eye to entertain myself.

It’s only a short hop to Medellin. Just an hour. The formalities go pretty quickly after landing. When I realise that priority bags have been stacked next to the carousel. And I get into the oldie person queue for immigration.

Landside, I bump into Claudia from Uruguay. We've judged together a couple of times before. We're getting the same lift to the judges’ hotel.

It's quite a drive, a lot of it through long tunnels. When we do emerge, we can gaze down on the bowl of Medellin and its lights. An impressive sight. I wonder what it looks like in daylight?

Once checked in, I go to my room. Which is quite noisy as there seems to be a disco going on just outside my window. It’s also weirdly laid out. With all the lighting close to one of the walls. And no TV. Or air-conditioning.

The disco outside lasts until after 2:00.  Luckily, I'm so knacked that I sleep anyway. A Jura nightcap helps.