Tiff's 2026 Winter Olympic Italian adventure

My flight left as per schedule though oversold as people tried re-routing from their middle eastern flights through Asia. I scored the very back row aisle seat which was comfy enough. Full of a head cold but fortunately a stop at the chemist had provided some relief. 12hrs later I landed at Shanghai airport. My $700 return airfare meant a 14hr layover, and rather than stay at the airport and quite possibly go insane with boredom (😂) I opted to obtain the free visa offered to Australians for up to 144hrs layover, and so off I went full of false bravado to navigate transport and sightseeing and be back to the airport for my flight this evening. I had also downloaded the suggested Chinese payment app, and had an electronic Sim card. My payment app didn't work as it needed a 2FA from my home mobile number which I'm not using while away 🙄. Good news, i was able to purchase a day metro and high speed train combo ticket. The “Maglev” train ran just over 300kms per hour! ...

Last day of my European trip was spent in beautiful Geneva.  I said goodbye to Tim at the train station as he headed back to Paris for his flight out tonight via Singapore. Then off to explore for a while.  I wandered around enjoying the sunshine and historic sights and made my way to the lake.  I followed it to the Jet E'au which is a huge water spout that shoots water 150m into the air in the lake.  Such a relaxed vibe today as people all enjoyed their day off around the lake. I rented a 'Donkey bike' (city cycle) and squeezed in a 10km ride along the lake before my walking tour.  Snow capped mountains in the distance and crystal clear waters. My free walking tour guide was enthusiastic and passed on many facts about this city and its sights.   It is a very expensive place to visit and live and the minimum wage is equivalent to AUD$50 per hour....