FlightNetwork 1054-331-325				stop		takeoff		arrive
MH610	21:20 Mo 3 Mar	T		22:30	KUL	00:40		7am Tu		5TURAL
MF8118	11:10 Th 6  Mar	T		2pm	XMN	17:50		22:15		NAMZCX

• S$340 by cimb ccard
• e-tickets: 2323471537609,,,,7312827678395

— priorities in PEK

— Thu timing

• C2703 8:23 ~ 8:51 ( seat 3-14D )

— in Sg

color copy death cert… less important than birth cert. Must bring back later.

mark on calendar .. icbc.sg USD maturity 5 Jun

 

— todo:

• plan when to cancel end Mar trip .. may fly again for 1) channel520 2) icbc>>hsbc transfer 3) time with gransparents, or wait till a flight change gives me a refund opportunity.

eTik 9997179282436/7/8/9				arrive	seats
CA976	9:30 Su 16 Mar	T1		15:45	54DEFH	4D AnnL + 1D Childcare booked
CA969	15:45 Sa 22 Mar	T3		21:55 Sat	56ABCD	1PC luggage
NTEPC7	$1874.32 by scsc					JetAbout ref: HNPZTO

• meal selected

— priorities in PEK

• #1 open new PSBC/CMB accounts with NRIC (+86 10 6833 4197 [M~F 9~17])
• #2 (when GP is still around) icbc >> Hsbc with birth cert + 派出所
• PSBC mobank set-up .. should be quick n optional
• set up ICBC::gm access on mobank
• withdraw 80k in advance

— SIM choices

• at airport, get wife a long-term SIM (if fast) or temp SIM
• at airport, get boy a 30D Unicom SIM (16 doable)…

— wife’s banking choices
#1 PSBC _despite_ NRIC
#2 CMB _but_ 1) long-term mobileNum is a problem 2) need another APP on my phone 3) fewer outlets
#3 ICBC [only if mobileNum hard] _but_ Rmb500/Y of additional ATM fees for one or two years. Tolerable amount to save a lot of stress + legwork. See buy stress-relief #ris`income

— bring SG>>PEK

• short birth cert, wife’s NRIC, my birth cert (color copy)
• money belts for Genn (and wife)

— todo:

	in	out		⮦订单编号	⮦guest		alipay/PSBC
	2pm	12		1128137346041975	ZhangLihui		Rmb 5017
	Sun 16/3	22/3 Sat		⮦酒店确认号:	⮦tel 24×7:
				904003	010-58585588

• email received with pdf 入住凭证
• SMS confirm received at …5241
• main guest need to show passport
• 取消收取 ¥864; 若未入住将收取您 ¥864; same info in email and pdf

 

eTik 999 2424379213				NTD4QV		arrive
CA826	19:20 23 Jan Th	T1		$495 by ICBC		23:20
MU545	16:20 11 Feb			$206.43 by scsc		22:00

 

rename this bpost of placeholder after receiving refund 12W after 3 Mar.

eTik 7841401366889		seat		CAN/SZX	seat	resume	arrive
CZ 354	13:30 Wd 26 Mar	34C	T1	17:40	40H	20:00	22:55		CZ 3161
CZ 3192	10:00 Su 30 Mar	38C	PKX	13:20 T3	80H	15:30	19:40		CZ 8047
NLWPSX	$339.5 by SCSC					b4Mon holiday

• checked luggage .. 23kg x 2
• .. all-the-way no check-in at SZX(T3)
• carry USD 6k enough (zero to 10k Rmb), considering layover
• meals all booked
• Jettzy booked 5 Jan 2025 +65 3158 9994 [09.30am-05.00pm NZ/AU time]
• +86 4008695539 +65 6223 3233
• cancellation fee SGD 34. I had to email/call Jettzy to get this quote.

 

— todo:

• seat selection
• meal

eDreams 20512212503			HK	seat	resume	arrive
CX 690	12:45 Su 19 Oct	T4	17:00		19:00	22:25		CX 344
CX 391	13:40 Sa 25 Oct	PEK	17:25		20:55	00:50 Su		CX 715
KPIVCR	SGD 420.96 by..	scsc	on			20241230

• 5D banking
• check-in .. 1-piece
• carry 20k Rmb), considering HK transfer
• 4D booked in workday and team calendar
• SGD 425.17 over charged to scsc. EDreams insists only $420.96 charged
• +44 207 660 8891 eDreams Schedule: 24 hours

— 19 Oct timing

• get up early to pack up
• 11:00 hit Changi

— 26 Oct timing

• taxi home, catch sleep, get up Sunday .. unpacking

— todo in PEK

— (historical hote) How I picked this flight. I compared at least 4 choices, among 10 search results. I liked the 4D AnnL and a full week spent with grandparents. On 30 Dec I was in a good, relaxed mood for this research. I felt ready to commit. If I had postponed the purchase by a few months, I may or may not see better choices, but “today’s lengthy research would be wasted”.

I was decisive about 00:35 landing in Changi… a minor imperfection in the big picture. Better than 10am take-off which entails 6am taxi.

I was decisive about layover (rather than nonstop).. a minor imperfection in the big picture.

 

— todo:

• select back seats to lie down
• book HSR ticket from PKX

	effectively Sat night ↴	CSG-6255300
SQ 810	00:30 Su 11 May 2025	T3	PKX	06:35
SQ 805	08:55 Sa 17 May 2025	PEK	T3	15:05(was 20)
6IFTNV	eT:618245611948	!!PKX

• SGD 394 / 2163.81 RMB
• 25kg check-in
• CheapTick 65-3139-1398 Live support : Mon-Fri, 9am – 7pm
• passport .. not required by SIA
• I booked a short (4D 👍) leave, following my “frequent short trips” strategy.
• I evaluated the 100% refund “package” but I feel it is too conditional and may create rather than reduce stress.
• carry RMB 20k

— Sat 10 May timing

• sleep after lunch
• get up 8.30pm .. to maximize sleep
• 9 pm catch MRT
• 10.30 pm hit T3

— Sat 17 May timing

• get up early in DJDJ
• 5.15 am catch taxi
• 6 am reach PEK airport, not PKX

 

eTick 2325826888495			KL	seat	resume	arrive
MH 610	21:20 Wd 1 Jan	T2	22:30	43F->	00:40	07:00 Jan2		MH 318
MH 319	09:30 Th 9 Jan	PKX	16:00	<-11A[a]	17:20	18:35 Thu		MH 613
6RFP2K	CSG-6243174					next day]ff

• 2062.77 RMB/SGD_378 (.. market SGD/CNY =5.44)
• all meals selected.
• [a] 80-min layover is considered sufficient according MAS and booking agent. Decisively, I p aid MYR55 (SCSC) for a quick-exit seat 11A, as stress reduction
• 6723 1009 MAS .. not so reliable… 70min hold
• CheapTick 65-3139-1398 Live support : Mon-Fri, 9am – 7pm
• 5D AnnL + 1D carryOver booked … a bit too long but shorter would mean busier afterwards and at banks
• carry USD 6k enough (zero to 10k Rmb), considering KL stressful transfer

— 9 Jan timing

• 6 get on taxi
• 25 min in advance: arrive at railway station
• HSR [2025-01-09       06:56 开] gate closing 0651. R21 paid by wcpay. 3车01D号 seat
• taxi from Changi .. precious few hours to /unload/ before next day 上班
• Friday is hopefully light-duty but you never know. Friday will be stressful for other reasons
• .. LGpp: cash deposit
• .. unpacking

— well done
mlphone proved valuable, though with 99% SLA. I need it to call China, Singapore ..
spare charging cables + adapters proved useful.
conservation of plastic
PSBC::GP .. I made all the efforts to make use of it
buttons strengthened

adequate sleep, despite multiple challenges
I motivated myself to exercise every single day
kept weight to 65.5kg
avoided fried food
minimal creamy food
lots of quiet time, far better than Korean trip
medications .. taken daily without fail

— nice surprises
Meimei was nice to me throughout, cooperative with everyone. She helped me calm down and restrain myself at critical moments.
PSBC::GP .. worked in Japan!
eye drop reimbursed

— reflections
I want control on costs
I don’t want to feel regret (as in Seoul) for time wasted in “meaningless places”. I would rather stay in hotel and read and blog
I don’t mind missing “memorable” sight seeing and good foods, but I want my famiy to have a good rmSelf experience

rail maps: https://www.nomadicnotes.com/tokyo-subway-maps/

+65 6329 7537 Agoda

+81 3 5767 9333, +1 866 656 8207

— agoda payment policies

prepay with any card.. refundable? 100% by 20 Nov

JPY amount is locked down as per confirmation email.

Before scheduled payment date (19 Nov 2024), you can call in to pre-pay in full. This way you can lock down the forex rate.

— UnionPay .. is elusive and LG-n2h It may require a lot of trying, calling. A worthwhile learning journey.

I guess Agoda only accepts UnionPay cards issued outside China. Agoda supports 16-digit UPC (rare in China). If issued from China, then card holder’s national ID is required.

Trip.com and Ctrip.com may accept China Unionpay cards. They seem to recognize the “Tawaramachi” hotel, but actually I can’t find it. (Trip.com actually has APA hotel restaurants.)

— アパホテル 浅草 田原町駅前 (APA Hotel Asakusa Tawaramachi Ekimae)

		check-in	check-out	Agoda booking#		main guest	scsc charged
		3pm 22/11	10am 30/11	1372482485		Bin TAN	$2,248.09+1%