Alarm was all set for 6am, but of course I woke up before it! Not really what I wanted on a day of all day travel, however, it's a good thing I did. At 6.05am I was called by a number from Russia, half awake, I answered the phone to be met by a Russian automated voice telling me that my flight at Amsterdam to Moscow was delayed by 1 hour. 

Now most days a delayed flight wouldn't bother me; more time for shopping and wine, the problem with this flight was that I was getting a connecting flight in Moscow to Ulaanbaatar (hereto referred as UB or Narnia). 

Upon booking my flights a few months back, I was told that I would have a terminal transfer in Moscow. This didn't bother me as a knew that it would be signposted and I can follow a sign. Started to get slightly worried when I read the instructions for changing between the two terminals I needed to change between, "allow 1 hour 10 minutes transfer time". I have 1 hour 45 minutes, plenty time to find my gate within the terminal and maybe even a quick toilet stop. However, my flight to Moscow was now running 1 hour late leaving me with 45 minutes to complete a 1 hour 10 minute transfer, not including finding my gate...safe to say I was a little anxious but there wasn't exactly anything I could do about it.

So it's finally 7.15am, I've already had this stress, but I made it to Aberdeen airport, checked my bags in only to find out I'm 10kgs under, said an emotional goodbye to my mum, little sister Emily and little brother Harry. To be honest, I tried to say "goodbye" as quick as possible to prevent me from crying too much...which it did. Through security nice and quick with plenty time to grab a Costa coffee and snacks from Boots. It was time to board and I think the reality of what I was about to do hit me like a truck. I walked along to the plane door in tears. Things didn't get much better on the flight when the book I'm reading had 2 deaths in the first 10 minutes of me continuing to read it. But apart from my emotional instability, the KLM flight from Aberdeen to Amsterdam was pretty good, little bit of a wobbly on ascent and descent but nothing too major. Schipol airport was insane! It was HUGE there was people and shops EVERYWHERE and a severe lack of air con. Sweating doesn't cover what was going on with me. 

My flight to Moscow was still definitely delayed, but from doing some eavesdropping I heard that there were quite a few other passengers who had to get the connecting flight to Narnia, including the guy sat beside me on the plane who I'd met previously at the embassy in London when I'd gone to get my visa and who is also a teacher in the school I am going to! (It's a small world).

The Aeroflot flight to Moscow, I mean turbulent may not be a strong enough word to describe how it began and how it was for the first hour. Thankfully it calmed enough for them to be able to deliver us wine and food. The wine was fine I mean I didn't expect much from airplane wine...the food on the other hand was exactly what is was on the menu.

I opted for the beef option. My starter was "turkey, salad greens, cherry tomato" I had 3 slices of thick sandwich turkey, some VERY soggy iceberg lettuce that was exceptional salty and one, very small cherry tomato. So the foods not started out well. My main course "Caucasian style beef with bell pepper and pasta". Firstly I did not even realise that "Caucasian style" was even a thing!! To clear things up it was kinda beef in a Chinese style gravy sauce (ish) the bell peppers, well they were cubes of pepper on the side and the pasta. I mean imagine school dinner pasta, then boil that pasta for another hour and you're almost at the same textur

e of pasta I received. It was a bit like putting bland slime in my mouth...it was not eaten! Dessert consisted of a "fruit bar" and on the whole this was pretty good. It was apricot and coconut flavour and was just one of these healthy fruit bars you can buy in most supermarkets. And of course it came with the compulsory bread roll with butter and olive oil(?) I wish I had taken a photo of the food on this flight because I don't think my description does the meal justice. But I ate it, because I was starving by this point. 

So my flight to Narnia was due to depart at 7pm, it was now 6.30pm and we were still in the air above Moscow airport. Eventually we landed, taxied to our parking spot and the doors opened to let us off the plane at 7.01pm at Terminal F. My flight was from Terminal D...so I legged it, with my school buddy. We made it to Terminal D by 7.20pm...the flight was gone!!! We took a look at the board for any other flights to UB...the next one was leaving in 15 minutes and was leaving from Terminal F (obviously) so we legged it through the airport, reached the gate with one minute to spare and got on this other flight to Narnia. BEST THING EVER!!

So instead of flying Aeroflot again, I was on a MIAT Mongolian flight. Instead of being on a Boeing 737-800 I was on a Boeing 767-300ER. There was on flight entertainment, blankets, spare seats meaning I had 2 to myself at a window and aisle. And the food was AMAZING compared to the Aeroflot food from earlier! No menu so it was pot luck of beef or fish...I chose fish since I had beef for lunch. Starter: lettuce, cucumber, olive and radish salad; Main: coal fish with mustard sauce, steamed spinach and tagliatelle cooked properly; Dessert: fresh fruit salad; and obviously the compulsory bread roll and cup of wine.

Arrived intact, although extremely sleep deprived, luggage-less but ready to enjoy my first day in UB.