Day 21: Tue 25 & 26 Nov 25 - Mumbai to Singapore to Melbourne to Canberra

November 27, 2025

Tue 25 & 26 Nov 25 - Mumbai to Singapore to Melbourne to Canberra

Better late than never I suppose....Despite the very good standard of the hotel room, I had a very restless sleep - possibly due to the excitement of returning home. After getting ourselves organised early by 6.00am Greg and I ventured out for a cup of tea and a bit of fruit in the hotel dining room, then waited around for the check in counter to open before heading up to level 4 to check in for our flights. Check-in was a super smooth process, and after passing through immigration, we were soon sitting in the Adani Business lounge having breakfast and waiting to board our flight. Singapore Airlines don’t have a Business Lounge in Mumbai, but they have a partner lounge - Adani which while modest in appearance, had a good array of food available. Our flight boarded on time at 11.20am and we were soon airborne for the 5h 30m flight to Singapore. After a welcome mango lassi and hot towel, the waitress took orders for post take-off drinks and meals. Being on Singapore Airlines, I opted for a classic Singapore Sling. The waitress convinced to also try the airlines version - a SilverKris Sling, so I ended up with one of each cocktail - both very nice. Not what I would normally do at 12.30pm, but I thought what the heck - why not. Another wonderful benefit of Business Class (with Singapore Airlines at least), is the ability to connect to WiFi. As it was Nathan’s birthday today, I was able to message with Noel, Nathan and Chris while they were at dinner and I was flying somewhere over the Indian Ocean - it was so cool. The flight, service and the food were all great, and I even managed to grab a bit of sleep (the two cocktails may have helped). We landed in Singapore on time at 7.40pm, and made our way to the lounge where we waited for our next flights - Greg to Brisbane, and me to Melbourne. Unfortunately, we both had long waits - 5 hours for me and 4 hours for Greg. While there, I noticed that my mate Kingsley from WA was on his way back from the Phillipines, so I messaged him, and lo and behold, he happened to be in the same Terminal (3), a short walk away from the business lounge, so we caught up for a chat. Back in the lounge, I had a hot shower and freshened up before eventually boarding my flight to Melbourne at 01.45am. On the flight, I managed to get a good 4.5hrs sleep, and arrived in Melbourne on time and feeling fairly fresh. Unfortunately, I had another 4h 30m wait in Melbourne, thankfully waiting in the Virgin Business Lounge for my 5.00pm flight to Canberra. After a bit of a bumpy landing in Canberra due to the strong winds, I landed on schedule, and was met by Noel and Olli to take me home. After 3 weeks in India, what stood out most for me at the airport, was the lack of noise and crowding, and on the way home, the beautifully kept public spaces and nature strips, and no litter or smog. It's great to travel and experience life in other countries, but returning home is always nice.