Today was a day of traveling. Left desert at 5 am and arrived at Abu Dhabi airport to temps of 29 degC. Got to check in desk to find out that flight had closed 30 mins earlier (I was there at 6:50) even though the flight was 08:40. The staff told me to wait (I did for 1.5 hours at the check in desk)and eventually got the last seat on the plane - in business class!! Apparently, the Moscow flight had been downgraded - eventually I took this to mean "we have overbooked again but we are going to tell you that a smaller plane was sent to us"! Great flight although a bit windy and bumpy due to the strong winds we have been getting from Iraq and beyond.
Got to Moscow on time. My 'meet and greet' didn't show so had to get a cab. Had a 1.5 hour trip into the city. The half hour was the taxi driver trying to find the hotel. Credit it where it is due - he was very patient, very polite and we got there in the end. Was weird seeing well known brands in Cyrillic writing. Maltesers will never be the same again! Went to supermarket close by to get some supplies. Sat in bed wondering what to do on my first evening in town and woke up 3 hours later. Went to bed!!
