There was a 15:something BA flight to London and for an hour or so prior to that the lounge was more reminiscent of a crèche than an airline lounge. Several families with up to 5 kids managed to all get into the lounge.
After that flight was called the lounge went back to being an airline lounge and peace descended yet again. Around 40 minutes prior to my flight time I went down to the gate and my BP and PP were checked and I made my way into a cordoned off section of the gate area that was for Business pax only. Some staff even kicked some non-business interlopers out of the area whilst I was there.
Boarding was announced and a staff member directed me to board.
Flight CX0746 DXB-HKG Seat 14K (Business)
Aircraft: B333
Departure time: 17:55
On board I was welcomed at the door and escorted to my seat. An amenity kit was delivered along with a choice of Champagne or Orange juice. I went with the former of course.
Pre-takeoff Bubbly CX J
The kit was an agnès b. pouch that contained Jurlique Moisture Replenishing Day Cream, Jurlique Citrus Hand Cream, Jurlique Lip Care Balm, toothbrush and paste, eyeshade, socks, earplugs and shoe horn.
A proper thick hot towel was delivered on the ground before we pushed back. The captain announced another quick flight time of only 6 hours and 36 minutes. That would have us in Hong Kong and 04:40 in the morning 20 minutes ahead of schedule.
We pushed back to 17:58 and took to the air some 15 minutes later. Once the belt signs were extinguished the crew dropped by with menus and the ISM came by to welcome me on board.
Menu
The seat on these 330s is a little different from the ones I had flown in on the 777s. There was less storage for personal items, but on slightly smaller. As usual the shoe compartment was useless as my size 10.5 didn’t fit inside.
CX J Seat
CX J Seat
My table was set with a cloth and then the drinks round was done along with a small bowl of almonds. I asked for my first scotch and dry of the trip.
Scotch & Almonds
The meal trays were delivered shortly afterwards with the salad and start pre-plated. I asked for some of the Sauvignon Blanc that was the usual Marlborough standard, no complaints here. The breadbasket was offered and I elected some of the delicious garlic bread.
Dinner Starter – Chicken Terrine
I opted for the kung po chicken and some of the Guilin chilli sauce. Yummo. The serving was quite small though, which was my only complaint. I switched to the Shiraz for this course and this was also quite palatable. CX seems to have gotten stingier over the years, gone are the days of seconds on the nuts and coming back around with the bread again. Or perhaps it was just because this was a short flight?
Dinner Main – Kung Po Chicken
After the main meal the cheese cart went down the A aisle and back up the K side followed by the dessert cart in similar fashion. I opted for the cheese with more of my red wine but declined dessert.
Dinner Cheese
After I had finished it was time for some more sleep. It had been a long, long day and sleep was well and truly needed. I got some pretty good sleep until around 90 minutes out of Hong Kong when the lights came on low and hot towels were passed around. The breakfast service then began. I couldn’t really believe they did a full breakfast service including juice, breads, fruit and yoghurt.
Breakfast Tray
This was followed with a choice of congee or poached eggs with chicken sausage and hash browns.
Breakfast Poached Eggs
The eggs weren’t runny inside, which I sort of expected but the hash browns were lovely.
After the meal the ISM dropped by and asked me to fill in a survey form. I have yet another CX pen to add to my not insubstantial collection.
We touched down at 04:37 and taxied up to Gate 25. I thanked the crew and the ISM thanked me by name on the way out.
I walked up to an empty immigrations area but this time I was able to try out my new frequent visitor bio entry. I scanned the barcode on the back of my passport and the machine let me in. I then had to have my fingerprint read. This all worked a treat. I was issued with a slip stating how long I could stay in Hong Kong and I was done and walking into the baggage claim area. I only wish the country I lived in and paid taxes to could offer me as good an arrivals experience.
I had to wait 5 or so minutes before the carousel started into life. My case was the third one down the chute.
I made my down to the CX arrivals lounge and requested a shower. After freshening up I went back into the lounge and grabbed an OJ. The lounge had juices, milk, tea, coffee, fruit, cereal, toast and pastries, congee, chicken sausage, eggs and potatoes.
CX Arrivals Lounge
CX Arrivals Lounge
CX Arrivals Lounge
After spending an hour or so in the lounge surfing and watching the news on the TV I decided to make my way into Hong Kong. I had one pit stop to make on the way though. I decided to re-pack so that I could check my case here and only take a backpack to the hotel in Hong Kong. Upstairs I approached the F check-in area and an agent was able to check my bag for the flight the following day and issue me with a BP and lounge invite.
I caught the AEX into Kowloon and the bus over to the Sheraton Towers for a night and hopefully some sleep.