Sitting in the airport this morning I have that feeling you get when you’ve forgotten something.  Last night, instead of packing, I went out for dinner and to see the new Terminator movie.  By the time I got home I was tired, grumpy, and had a dull throbbing headache.  I just hope my camera lead is the only thing I’ve forgotten.  (I do realise that very few things are essential for travel but I hate re-buying things because I was stupid and left them at home.)

The journey to the airport is more annoying than I expected it to be.  I like the fact that our new apartment is closer to the airport but it still involves at least 20 minutes of walking and a couple of trains.  Walking through a packed Ueno station with luggage is not a pleasant way to start the day.

Japanese trains are clean and air conditioned so once I hauled my luggage into the train I was looking forward to relaxing for an hour.  When I found my reserved seat someone was already sitting on it.  This lead to a strange conversation where I showed a Japanese man how to read his train ticket.  A year ago I would have assumed that I was in the wrong place but now I’m fairly sure I can read a ticket.

Everything went smoothly at the airport until I tried to find the ANA lounge.  I think I’m just tired as I had difficulty understanding the directions I was given.  I did find it eventually.   I should really aim to get more than 4 hours sleep the night before I travel.  Maybe then my brain would function better.