I was awake since 5am to pack my 30kg luggage and 10kg hand luggage, too excited to be sleeping obviously. Boiled the last of my eggs and packed them to bring to the airport, booked a taxi an doff I go. I arrived at the Newcastle International Airport with ample time to check-in only to realise that my hand luggage was 13kg, 3kg overweight and I was dumbstruck as the lady on the counter told me that I'd have to either pay an extra £169 for the 3kg or repack my luggage.

Being annoyed by myself, I knew at once what I'd have to throw away- the bunch of pamphlets and copies of city maps from my travels that I've saved up for my travel collage (I'm still mourning over it). The flight on Emirates to Dubai international airport was a great one. The lady sitting beside me on the plane was a friendly Arabian lady who's going to Qatar and to make my journey home even more pleasant than it was already, I made a new taiwanese friend-Qian Ru during my 10hours layover in Dubai! This made the long 10 hours alone in the airport more bearable than it would have been. Travelling solo has its merits eh ...