(歐洲之旅) 大英, 蘇格蘭 +義大利 🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇮🇹 16天驚險之旅序章

早上登機門前發現冰淇淋車@FCO airport

" Life is just like an ice cream that surprises me everyday (I scream everyday!)"

臨時起意的UK, Scotland之旅, 終於在幾經波折後結束與順利回來了. 起因在3月初一次會議中, 提到兩周後會在蘇格蘭集合, 經過一番溝通與相關人等討論預算後, 我也終於有機會在有生之年踏上日不落國(大英國協!!) 

P.S. 台灣自來水之父是William K. Burton(Photos@自來水博館)

這個有著工程, 科學, 歷史, 音樂, 文化, 與富含冒險精神的國家, 從小就一直是工程師的夢想, 產出了各大百科全書與台灣動物鑑定者-斯文豪氏的家鄉 

P.S. 自來水博物館有Glasgow製造的量計, 而當年英國大使史文侯也命名了許許多多的台灣原生動物(ex.藍腹鷴,攀蜥....)

台北飛倫敦(TPE-LHR)的部分華航有直航, 所以只要15~16個小時就可以到了, 但是由於疫情後旅行大增, 歐洲線機票也直接暴衝到5.5w才有機會買到這種近期的票, 而還不保證有直航的座位....所以就只能認分的買了直航去, 轉機回的機票(中停Rome 14hrs ....還不能直掛行李 T.T)

接著就是持續的挑戰華航客服電話溝通...(P.S. 每次打華航客服電話都等超久到30~60mins XD. 然後總是獲得無法入境義大利的回覆) 終於在我抵達英國機場, 跟負責帶我從LHR-FCO的那段營運ITA航空地勤確認由於轉機中停時間過長, 他不保證可以把行李直掛回台北的陳述與email後一併丟給華航客服來處理, 得到(將)可以入境義大利的機票修正把問題搞定. 但那與之後3天也是我接受我的飯店房間只有冷水給我洗的事實, 就算持續客訴, 或是給他1星, 他也是沒房可換的情況(生意是有多好!! @#%$&) 洗到後來也習慣在0度洗冷水就是,尤其當一天結束後, 室外溫度低於水溫下洗起來還是會有溫暖的感覺! 但此時我還不知道我這趟出差會變成我持續衝刺邊帶尖叫的旅行

I scream....almost everyday...🐱‍🏍

攝於格林威治天文台 Royal Observatory, Greenwich 

這時候就有個不好的預感, 那是一路上經過的考驗, 將會是驗收所有適應力的技能的驚險之旅, 之後這個感覺也的確陪伴著我在這趟美麗又壯闊的旅程一一自我實現(What a Big Surprise!.....)

---- English Ver. as below ----

The impromptu trip to the UK and Scotland finally came to an end after some ups and downs, and I returned home safely. It all started at a meeting in early March where it was mentioned that we would gather in Scotland two weeks later. After some communication and budget discussions with the relevant parties, I finally had the chance to set foot in the land where the sun never sets (the United Kingdom) in my lifetime.

This country, which encompasses engineering, science, history, music, culture, and a spirit of adventure, has always been a dream for an engineer like me since I was young. It's also the homeland of the famous Taiwanese animal identifier, Svend Auken.

P.S. The Taipei Water Museum even has flow meters made in Glasgow, and the former British ambassador Robert Swinhoe also named many of Taiwan's native animals, such as the Collared Finchbill and the Taiwanese Grass Lizard.

Little did I know that this business trip would turn into a travel experience filled with non-stop excitement and screaming.

Part of China Airlines offers direct flights from Taipei to London (TPE-LHR), so it only takes about 15-16 hours to get there. However, due to the increase in travel after the epidemic, the price of European airline tickets has skyrocketed to as high as 55,000 TWD just to have a chance to buy tickets for recent dates, and there is no guarantee of direct flight seats. So I had to reluctantly buy a direct flight, with a layover of 14 hours in Rome (but luggage cannot be checked through T.T).

Then came the continuous challenge of communicating with China Airlines customer service by phone (P.S. every time I call China Airlines customer service, I have to wait for a long time, up to 30-60 minutes XD. And I always get the reply that I cannot enter Italy). Finally, when I arrived at the airport in the UK, the ITA airline staff responsible for taking me from LHR-FCO confirmed that due to the long layover time, he could not guarantee that he could check my luggage directly back to Taipei. After his statement and email, I forwarded the problem to China Airlines customer service to handle and got the problem fixed. But that, along with the fact that for the next three days, my hotel room only had cold water for me to shower, even if I continued to complain or give them a one-star rating, they had no other room available (how good is their business!! @#%$&). I eventually got used to showering with cold water, especially when the outdoor temperature was lower than the water temperature. It still gave me a warm feeling after a day.

At this moment, a sense of unease came over me. I realized that the challenges I had encountered on my journey so far were just the beginning of a thrilling adventure that would test all of my adaptability skills. As it turned out, this feeling would accompany me throughout the rest of my beautiful and epic journey, becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy along the way. (What a big surprise!...)