I didn’t quite realise it had actually been five years since I last traveled, but finally I now start to write in the BA lounge at Heathrow while waiting for my target gate to open (which it is about to do) before I wander down to catch my flight to Prague.

It’s odd that I thought I would finally be using the airport lounge perk which comes with my bank account (actually I managed to do so on the return from Hong Kong but there was no lounge availability heading out), but I did not expect to be paying for my flight primarily with AVIOS points, something I’ve been collecting for years and previously found to be useless due to a lack of available seats to book. How odd that on this occasion I was able to book business class (as no other seats were available) for less points than if I’d tried to use them with booking directly through BA for cattle class with hold luggage. Net result the BA lounge became available for me and it’s not as bad as I expected from reviews. Being breakfast time has meant a good spread of food (I’m not expecting anything on the flight) and a relaxed atmosphere. Only catch is it is hot in here. I’m flying from a cold UK to a colder country, yet it feels like I’m almost in a sauna due to the manner of my dress.

Time to wrap this up for now as my gate is now open.

Edit time. Due to the number of things I had to do and attend yesterday I’ve found I forgot to pack headphones. Fortunately only a minor omission.