22 hour layover (unscheduled)

I just returned from a work trip to Asia. I love Asia! Hands down it is my favorite part of the world to visit...nothing beats the colorful culture, Asian hospitality, oh, and the food, I really like the food. The purpose of the trip was to provide some staff training in Result Based Management. We accomplished our purpose in two countries; Cambodia and Myanmar. We spent the weekends in Bangkok, Thailand for fun. That was the scheduled itinerary...the unscheduled itinerary included a 22 hour layover in Japan. Ugh!

When we were leaving Bangkok, about an hour in to the flight, there is an announcement on the PA system, "are there any doctor's on board?" That is never something you want to hear when flying, never. As a result of this man's poor health condition the flight was turned around and returned to Bangkok, inspected, restocked and returned to the air...three hours behind schedule. Over 200 people missed their connecting flights and were forced to spend the night in Narita, Japan. Thankfully the airline put us up in a hotel and provided three meals while we were stranded. We had never been out of the Tokyo airport before, so we decided to consider it an opportunity for unexpected adventure instead of an incredible travel inconvenience. I was traveling with Hallie from the training department. She is alot of fun to travel with (as if you can't tell from the picture below) and it was good to have a companion to share the adventure.

We did not have access to our baggage and since I was on my way home I didn't pack any extra clothes in my carry-on (as a seasoned traveler I should know better). I was wearing a long sleeve cotton shirt, cotton pants and flip flops...not exactly appropriate attire for winter in Japan. In my defense it was nearly 90 degrees in Bangkok when we left, some on the plane were only in shorts and a t-shirt. We only had a few hours, but decided to get out of the hotel and see the biggest tourist attraction in Narita - the budhist temple. Notice all the people in their winter coats with umbrellas...we didn't have those much needed things with us...so, what did we do? We got wet and cold, but we did it with a smile on our face.

Now I can say I've been to Japan...even if it did mean I got home two days later. After this delay there was a cancelled flight due to winter weather in North Carolina. Deep sigh!