The Wenzel’s Big Adventure

On April 7th, we began our life-changing expedition!

The days leading up to our departure were a flurry of activity in Maple Creek. We caught up with loved ones, celebrated Hadley’s milestone of learning to ride a bike without training wheels, and meticulously packed and repacked our backpacks, discovering forgotten items like swimming suits for Jack. Thankfully, these were the only major oversights, and we managed to grab them before setting off.
Our travel day, Sunday, April 7th, was filled with a mix of nerves and excitement. Even our trusty ‘exploder’ (Corey’s truck) seemed to be feeling the energy. On the drive to Calgary, a part of the facia covering the windshield decided to take flight. Luckily, we’re not superstitious, or this could have been a bad omen…
Arriving at Calgary airport, we ran into a slight delay checking in due to a visa requirement for the Philippines. Even though we were only laying over in the country for a few hours, a Visa was still required. However, we quickly adapted to the situation. The Visa was free, and the government had a downloadable app for completing the application, which made the process fairly straightforward. With the visa applications submitted, bags checked, and tickets in hand, we said goodbye to Corey’s parents, and off we went.
The first of our three flights was to Vancouver. Here, we linked up with Corey’s sister and hung out at an airport lounge. The kids could eat, sprawl out and chill while we enjoyed a few preflight cocktails. Most travel credit cards offer a couple of “free entries” to these, and I highly suggest using these for extended layovers.
The highlight of our journey was the 14-hour flight from Vancouver to Manila. We had booked an entire row in the plane’s center (four seats) to create our own little camp. Leading up to the trip, Corey had spent hours researching the best ways and devices for making a ‘travel bed’ out of the seats. Equipped with ‘Seat to Sleeps’ (inflatable taco-shaped beds), an inflatable footstool, blankets, and painter’s tape (used to attach the blankets to the seat), we transformed our seats into cozy forts for the kids. Despite sleeping on and off for only 4-5 hours, the kids did remarkably well. They enjoyed the inflight food (Jack even managed to eat a piece of toast), snacked, and watched a few movies.
Arriving in Manila, we were met with the glorious wall of heat and humidity each Canadian relishes when arriving at a tropical destination. We gathered our bags, found a taxi and went to the hotel we had booked for the day. Our layover was 17 hours, and we did not want to spend it at the airport. The hotel we booked was near the airport and restaurants and had a pool the kids could play in. We attempted to sleep, but the thrill of a new place and tropical heat drew us to explore the pool and the hotel’s surrounding area. Our day passed rather quickly, and we were back at the airport before we knew it. Somehow, the kids still had energy to burn, so we literally let them run around the massive entranceway of the airport terminal. With the kids’ zoomies out, we got ready for our next flight. Corey played a few games of “Guess Who” with Hadley, and I played “Ice Road Rescue” with Jack, a game based on his favourite TV show and future career.
The kids rocked the four-hour flight from Manila to Bali. Hadley and I had the pleasure of being sat by a “cougher/sniffler” who missed the memo on how to cough into one’s elbow properly. At one point, Hadley asked, “Dad, why does that guy keep coughing on you?” Fortunately, we didn’t catch his sickness, but it was a good reminder that even though we went through a pandemic where personal hygiene was scrutinized, airplanes are still slightly disgusting cans of sickness.
Finally, at midnight on April 9th, after approximately 44 hours of traveling, we arrived in Bali, Indonesia and were once again welcomed by a wall of heat and humidity. One of the upsides of travelling with kids is bypassing all of the long security and customs queues. This is especially handy after a few long travel days with a couple of exhausted preschoolers. After making our way through security and customs, we picked up our bags, hailed a taxi and made our way to our villa at the world-famous Legian beach, just outside of Denpasar. In true Dwight fashion, I managed to lose my debit card upon arrival in Bali. I pulled money from an ATM but must have forgotten the card in the machine, as the machines don’t all prompt you to draw your card before dispensing money. No worries, though; Corey has said she will be my sugar momma for the duration of our trip.
Corey’s sister arrived in Bali a few hours before we had got the villa all set up and ready for our arrival. She had ventured out and purchased groceries, so we had snacks for our arrival and food for the next morning; what a lifesaver! After unpacking our bags and settling in, we all passed out, fatigued from the long couple of days of travel.