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  M/T Ternvik
I got this picture from www.clydesights.com  Thursday 31st of March 2011 and I left Bangkok International 00:45 with Qantas flight to London.  I had seat 62K and I had 2 guys from Denmark between me and the aisle.
Yes, I was really looking forward to the 12 hours 10 minutes flight to London. And we were 30 minutes late leaving Bangkok. I took my seat and I was pleasantly surprised, my diet had done wonders. But after 15 minutes it was a pain in the arse. There is really not much space for the legs in monkey class. So I was feed up with my seat even before we had left Suvarnabhumi Airport. Luckily enough I was dead tired after 2  boxing sessions, first at Chakrit Muay Thai School and the Bangkok flight Club.
I had a sleeping pill after the dinner and I managed to sleep most of the time. I missed breakfast because I  was sleeping.
But even if I'm sleeping on the plane I'm dead tired when I'm arriving. It was so nice to get off the plane, but Heathrow must be the worst airport I have ever been on. Much worse than Brussels  airport. I really hate that airport, but Heathrow have been the worst airport so far. Walking and walking and I were lucky that I didn't have any tax free bags to carry. Not a sign of any luggage trolleys.
We arrived to Terminal 3 and my flight to Belfast was leaving from Terminal 1. Took me a very long time to walk to the bus taking us to Terminal 1 and when we reached Terminal 1 we had to walk for half an hour to reach the gate, motherf@cker!    The flight to Belfast took us just a little more than an hour. And darn, it was cold when I walked from the plane to the terminal. It was full storm and gloomy and grey, about +10°C. But in lee it was OK when the sun was shining. I was just dressed in shorts and a shirt so I didn't really wanted to stay outside and I was happy that my driver had his car close by. Full storm and it was uncertain if M/T Ternvik was coming alongside so the driver didn't know if we were going to the ship or to a hotel. The Agent called and he told us that the ship was coming inside and that they would take me to a hotel. Well, we decided to go to the Seaman's Mission instead. No need for a hotel for 90 minutes and I could go look for boxing shoes. He showed me where the Seaman's mission was and he dropped me at a shopping mall a few  hundred meters away.
- I pick you up at Seaman's Mission at 01:30 Well, I didn't found any boxing shoes and I walked back to the Seaman's Mission and darn, it was cold in the wind. Behind the buildings it was OK when the sun was shining. I ordered a cup of tea and I asked if I could  pay with card.
- Cash only! Darn, I didn't have any cash so I asked them to tell my driver when I came to pick me up to go pick me up at the mall instead. I stopped at a few places on the way to check if I could pay with card.
- Cash only! - Is there an ATM nearby? Well, the ATM was at the mall so I walked to the mall and as there were no exciting restaurants I used the ATM and I walked back to Benny's Sandwich & Bar next to the Seaman's mission. I had a pot of tea and a Sandwich, 4 £ so it was pretty cheap. I walked back to the Seaman's Mission and I ordered a pot of tea. - How much? - It is for free for seafarers  What the  ? The walk up and down to the mall in the cold was all for nothing. I left the rest  of my British money for the seaman's Mission when my driver came to pick me up.
We went in to BP's security check at the oil terminal and they told us that the there were some scaffolding that had felt down and that the ship had to turn around. We could see Ternvik when we left for my hotel. Nothing will happening until tomorrow so I was looking forward to a afternoon in the city center where I  hopefully will find boxing shoes.
I checked in to my hotel and I had to ask the reception for an adapter to my laptop. She looked  around in the reception, but she could only find an Australian to British adapter. She told me that I could buy one across the street
- Do you know where to buy boxing shoes? She told me to try the sport shop next to the electronic shop across the street. I bought the adapter and I walked to the sport shop. They didn't have any boxing shoes, but they gave me directions for another sport shop. They had boxing shoes, but only size 9. But I bought skipping ropes,  the one I have in leather is pretty useless and my new skipping rope is made of plastic, pretty much as the skipping rope I used back in the day. OK, the  skipping rope I bought today have roller bearings. I tried the skipping ropes in the shop and I was satisfied. I told him that I took  the skipping rope and I was about to charge my VISA card for the skipping rope.
- HOLD IT!! I take 2! The staff gave me directions to a boxing shop called IMPACT. A boxing shop,  hmm, maybe I'm lucky after all. I walked there just to discover that the door was locked. But according to the note it should be open until 5 o'clock. DARN! I was just leaving when the owner came.
- We don't have boxing shoes!  - DARN! 
But he told me that they had boxing shoes at the boxing shop around the corner. YES! 
I bought two pairs, 130£, but it was worth the money. I tried the shoes and it was a good quality shoe. He didn't accept any card so I had to go to an ATM. When I left he dived down a big  paper box.
- I have something for you to bring back to Bangkok! He gave me 3 pairs of mini boxing gloves. - What is this?
- Gloves to put on your bag or in your car. With an Irish sign, he  said pointing at an emblem on the gloves.
OK, I can give a pair to the Light Designer at Bangkok Fight Club for her handbag. A hug requires  MINI gloves for her handbag. Well, anyway, I was in a very good mood when I left the shop walking back to my hotel. Coming out from the place and I realised that I had lost the direction to my hotel.
Well, it was nice weather and I had changed to long pants at my hotel so it was quite nice walking around Belfast. It is not a very big town, at least not the city centre so it didn't take me very long to find my hotel. I returned to my room and I wanted to try my boxing shoes just to make sure they were OK before I left Belfast. Just because they were OK in the shop doesn't mean they are OK.   What the is this. I could hardly get on the left shoe. The right shoe was OK. I decided to  walk around with the shoes trying to walk in the shoes. DARN! It was painful and I decided to remove the left shoe. DARN! DARN!
I took off my left shoe and I discovered a cubic ton of paper in the shoe. Yes, the shoe fitted me just fine. I was in a good mood again. The phone rang and it was our Agent. Now the ship will arrive at 21:00 and they will come to pick me up at my hotel for transportation to the ship. Yes, now it is about time to get onboard. A night at the hotel is OK, but I prefer to get onboard. I left my room 10 minutes before 9 and at 9 there were still no sight of my driver. I was standing outside the hotel when a taxi arrived. He stopped outside the front door. Is he here to pick me up? I don't know. After 15 minutes the driver got out of the  car and I ran in to him at the reception.
- Are you going to Ternvik? - Yes - I'm here to pick you up. So why didn't he left his car to go find me at 9? How do I suppose to know that he is there to pick me up. For sure, I'm not asking every taxi passing if they are here to pick me up. Of course, they have to go ask for me in the reception. Well, never mind, we did the security check at BP and I was onboard just before 10 o'clock in the evening. They were just start discharging when I came onboard. I put my bags in my temporary cabin before I went to see the off signing Chief  Officer. I had been here 10 years ago when Ternvik was M/T Tärnvik. I have actually been onboard here 2 times before, both as 2nd Officer and Chief Officer, and I was on M/T Tärnvåg 2 years ago. She is a sister ship so I recognised everything.
We had a chat  about the good ol' times while I checked out the supply of tea and milk. Tea machine and entertainment checked and as I had been on the go for a very long time I returned to my temporary cabin for some sleep. And of course, all the way from Bangkok, my scale. So I had to set up the darn thing before going to bed.
Well, this is pretty much it for March 2011. And you can continue reading about Aladdin's adventure onboard M/T Ternvik by clicking on one of the following months: April 2011 April 2011 - Part 2 May 2011 May 2011 - Part 2 June 2011 June 2011 - Part 2 July 2011 And of course, Aladdin's adventure at Bangkok Fight Club July 2011  We did the following voyages before I signed off in Brofjorden 7th of July 2011:
    
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