She Sells Seashells.......

When asked where you are going on holiday, to respond "the Seychelles" does not illicit the response of "did you get a deal". In fact, you generally say the location in a mumble whilst looking at your feet and shuffling side to side a little embarrassed at the impression of decadence the name conjures up. However, if you swiftly follow this up with "we got cheap flights with Ethiopian Airways" the potential ponce factor seems to dissipate, with a snigger and "best of luck with that" and "do you take your own food", especially when the most recent press coverage includes the fire of an Ethiopian Airlines Dreamliner at Heathrow and Bob Geldoff, Midge Ure and the lyrics "feed the world" are firmly printed in the minds of anyone born before the 1980's.

£600.00 gets you a flight on a carbon fibre (basically plastic) plane, with 30% less emissions, and all battery related items for the plane now moved into fire proof boxes. In fact, it reminds me of a joke about how the black box flight recorder is the only part of a plane ever recovered so perhaps they should just build the plane as a very large version of it! Although, I think we may have found the problem and I might write to Honeywell when we return. There are no window blinds just a little button that turns the glass window from light to dark. Yes, very clever, but with 80 economy windows (40 either side) being turned light to dark with repeated pushing of said button, no wonder the electrics spontaneously combust.

I have to say the flight is fine, although the cabin crew feed themselves before any of the passengers and they don't serve gin! Ethiopia was a complete surprise, lush and green, with acres of arable land and what appears to be a complex irrigation system, it appears the government subsidies and Christmas number one royalties of 1984 have been put to good use and Bob is probably feeling a bit smug.

A three hour lay over is bearable in Addis Ababa, although $13 for two coffees somewhat painful and the return 6 hours might be more arduous. The connecting flight all on time and the luggage booked through and delivered to what we are now calling, "the Seashells", as this is how the captain kept pronouncing it, all was remarkably uneventful and easy for long haul travel with an airline described by someone we know as "spit and sawdust, but that was in 1982".

So we are here with Doris and Mick, having been picked up from the airport a little confused as to our location,given its uncanny resemblance to the Caribbean. Renting one of their apartments for £65.00 per night for the first 6 days (which if you have children would also sleep them on the sofa bed), on a hill 900m from the beach. Admittedly trip advisor indicated a hill, it did not describe the near vertical 900m incline, which already has our knees creaking. There was also no warning of feeling like you are under firearm attack in the middle of the night only to realise that it is in fact torrential rain on the tin roof!!

The aim is to see if you can come to the Seychelles for something like a sensible price. It will not be the five star, cocktail waiter bubble that you think of but a slightly harder work affair, including a trip to the supermarket for lunch provisions and cheap local beer and seeking out eating like a local. I must confess we failed dismally on the latter for our first outing, as tired and hungry we found the nearest tourist haunt and dinner for two with drinks, on the waters edge, set us back £65.00 and with the US Navy on shore leave, we spent rather too long talking with one of the Marine Corps at the bar. On reflection this was less to do with being engaged by tales of war and Marine training and more to do with the length of time each sentence took given the West Virginian drawl. Imagine Forest Gump on slow and you have the idea.