Trip Reports - There and back again a not-quite Hobbits tale

There and Back Again – Not-quite a Hobbit’s Tale

In a house in the hills there lived not-quite a hobbit. Not a nasty cheap built house with too much roof on too little land nor a tiny little hole with barely space to do anything but sit down and eat: it was a not-quite hobbit hole and that means comfort.
It had a perfectly rectangular door (well we hadn’t checked the plumblines and based on the rest of the build quality it might not be safe to do so) that was white (not green as that isn’t in the strata plan) with an in-need of polishing brass knob just off to the side. The door opened on to a quite open (and horrendously time consuming to paint) hall; a very neat and tidy hall without smoke (I mean c’mon who has a wood fire in a bush fire at risk region?) with walls that were no longer painted lemon with wooden floors and a very comfortable sofa (that took 9 months to be delivered but that’s another story) and not many pegs for hats and coats – as we know the not-quite a hobbit was not fond of human interaction.

Waitaminute – isn’t that the start to The Hobbit (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hobbit) – ok let’s get back to the rock and see it on 440. You see this is what happens when you try to write after a couple of glasses of Veuve in the MEL F lounge.

But seriously this is just a story of there and back again – well for me anyway. As ever this opening salvo is a time to reflect on the journey I have taken to take my travels. I am sure that sometime soon the desire to write about these journeys will wane as the light of Laurelin wanes to welcome the silver of Telperion (ok I admit I am in somewhat of a Tolkienien vein today) but at the moment every journey is an adventure. I am still stretching my arms, reaching to see what I can do and what I can experience. I am also starting to get comfortable – knowing what seats I like, the fast way through the airport, where I can get what I want when I want it and how I can enjoy this experience more. I still have to share this with mrssimongr and when we do our trip in July that I think will take this to the next level.

As it stands travel does not bore me. Sometimes it is hard to travel alone (I am bored of that for definite) but now at least I am comfortable whilst travelling rather than seeing it is a chore.

So where do we go from here – and I mean that literally ;)

Well after some internal shenanigans and late changes (we miscalculated the timing of the Chinese public holidays around Chinese New Year – they are different in HKG to China) the itinerary is scheduled – it is not ideal for the work I want to do – but its this or miss mrssimongr’s birthday and valentines’ day (I am just missing valentines day so far – don’t worry flowers have been ordered).. So we have two days in HKG followed by three days in SHA flying home via NRT on the Saturday and getting home Sunday morning. Yeah – international business travel is all glamour – its not about spending your weekends flying…

The fare is a DAS13 which could have been designed for exactly this trip – we have

SYD-HKG on CX (although more on that later)
HKG-PVG on KA
PVG-NRT on JL
NRT-SYD on QF

I don’t think that there are more carriers in the region I could actually fly on :)

But going back to the start of this ramble (or is it perchance a pre-amble) why is this just a not-quite Hobbits tale? Well for me now this is just there and back again and really tells the story of how my travel has changed – a trip around Asia going to three cities is simple now – god help me when I start a difficult trip…

A tale of heartbreaking soup and human interaction

Journey – SYD-HKG
Flight no. – CX 162 – QF127
Class – Business
Seat – TBC

I have a slightly apprehensive day for some reason as I wake at 4AM for my 9AM collection. This is strange as I have not much to pack as I have opted for the hard core hand luggage only option of 1 rollaboard plus my laptop bag, The car arrives a little earlier than I expected so I leave a tad before my original plan – this should lead to a nice relaxing drive, or it would if half the roads had not been closed without associated detour signs indicating the way to go. So a slightly frazzled simongr struts up to the unimpressive SYD CX check in… and there the fun begins.

The check in queue is small but as ever people seem to be able to easily surpass my 30 second check in time average. I present my AA card and my QF card as I know that QF have put in my QF number and I plan to use AA for this trip (part of me is calling out to requalify for QF SG on a couple of flights but I hold out for a little while longer). There more than the expected number of quizzical looks and the service staff fail to make eye contact on the more than expected number of occasions… Eventually I am informed that although I was booked on this flight it was never ticketed and as J is full I can choose to fly whY or be rebooked on the later flight (given I don’t want to miss my appointment with the G&T master at the Conrad I need to be on the earlier flight) but I still need to speak to QF…

A slightly terse simongr calls the QF number to be told that although they took my money and sent me an itinerary they failed to ticket the flight – they can however (after more than the required hold music) book me onto QF127 and Eticket the rest of the itinerary. A slightly less than happy simongr wanders away from the CX desk to the QF desk for check in. It may seem a small thing but it is very annoying that QF can cock up a booking but then end up with the lion’s share of the revenue…

It is a very busy QF F check in which is not enhanced by the check in chick nicking off half way through the process for no apparent reason. I know that there are things that need to be done but how hard is it when checking in a OWE without luggage on a simple SYD-HKG itinerary not to vanish mid process? Anyway after what in reality compared to the whY and J queues is not a long time (however factoring in the change of carrier they has been serious erosion to my F lounge time) I am on my way to the lounge and a hard earned Veuve. I note that I was not offered an Epass out or inbound but given the lack of attention from the staffer I help myself – I could have grabbed more but as I intend for the foreseeable future to be entitled to these and we need to keep hand luggage weight down ;) I just take and out and an in.

Immigration probably didn’t need an Epass again (a major change since my first few ex-SYD departures where the queues were horrendous) although it always helps at security. As I pass through the Duty Free I am horrified at the throng of people streaming up the escalators to the lounges – are we going to be overrun in our secluded enclaves? Thankfully as I begin to progress up the escalator they all troop back down having taken a wrong turning :)

In the lounge I head straight to a restaurant table, called mrssimongr to apprise he r of the check in ordeal (note I ordered my Veuve first) and proceed to have a slightly heated (more tepid than boiling I would guess) debate with the service staff about why I can’t have the non-breakfast menu when my phone clock clearly states it is past 11AM. Just a shame that my watch, her watch and the lounge clock all indicate that it is only 10:45AM…

After my “usual” of smokehouse bacon and poached eggs (officially 100% yum although missing the usual sourdough toast for some reason) and a couple of Veuves it is off to the gate. This is less than pleasant – I am a little early I admit (still [and this is a recurrent theme] a little burnt from my near disgorging experiences at HKG and NRT) but this is a confusing and confused process. There are frequent LOUD boarding calls for a JQ flight some gates away which have a two lanes for boarding left and right for “premium” and proles. However that flight also has a QF flight number so many people start to queue for our flight in the same way even though our premium/prole lines are right and left. No-one takes charge of this until the last possible moment before boarding.

Overall it is a slightly jaded simongr who reluctantly boards QF127 – I had been looking forward to being back on CX to HKG after the poor food efforts in J on QF recently.

As I board my enjoyment of the QF is already diminished as I see Sefton from my last QF flight in F on this route in charge of the F cabin – how I wish I was there. If you will recall the service was beyond immaculate on that flight so I know I would have been missing a treat if I had been on it. Again I am not happy that due to the reallocation to QF I am now in a lower deck window seat at the back – could QF have done anymore to annoy me today?

I take my seat and wait for the pre-flight drink and note there seems to sort of FEBO applied to the handing out of newspapers. After a while I am slightly bullish about having no-one sat next to me when someone sits down and then immediately tries to change seats to a more forward seat. The cabin crew say he can but they don’t know if the seat is already allocated (surely they should) but off he trots with nary a word to me (so not all bad then) only to reappear just before take off as required.

Frustratingly I have a talker. Now just for the record I do on occasions engage in human interaction. Generally this is through a three step process. Firstly we have the “meeting” where one actually meets the subject and determines if there are mutual associations that may be beneficial to either party, then the is the ”reoccurrence” which indicates whether the “meeting” may lead to the achievement of long or medium term goals. This is followed by ”mutual acknowledgement” – meaning that the “reoccurrence” of “meetings” has lead to mutually beneficial outcomes. So meeting some random on an aircraft frequently can fail to fit into even one of the above criteria. As a result I seek at all times to avoid the “talkers” and as a result enjoy the sanctity of my little flying isopod until the talker opens their mouth.

So let us set the scene – I boarded, and then the talker boarded, saw me, sort of took his seat and decided to move and NOW he spends the first 25 minutes of my journey yapping to me! As soon as the seat belt light is out he is offski so basically I have spent my time entertaining him until something better comes along – I am sadly too polite to say “listen mate I don’t care for you life or your business – why not just move along as there is nothing to see here”. Now this does put me into a different camp to QF009 but really when I fly I am there for my enjoyment (and my readers) and not to someone else’s time filler. And that I think is the crux of the matter – I am happy to engage in the odd bit of small talk but being grilled for 20 mins really is not on my list of to dos…
.
.
.
.
That was a rant wasn’t it? Sorry about that – we shall try to stay on topic where we can Guarantees of being on topic do not indicate any endeavour to ensure the thread will remain on topic and should not be considered as such

Anyway so after 25 minutes where were we? Oh yes we are about to be served “lunch”. For context I don’t have that much experience of QF J class food having upgraded a lot of my last QF J flights to F and my last was QF22 NRT-SYD where I had to instruct the crew as to whether the food barely matched the menu. Where do I start – well let’s start with the soup as that is where the food started bad and continued on with a lack of inspiration and enticement. I know that I am not expecting Michelin starred restaurant quality food but the airlines have a “top chef” designing their menu. Now I do have issues with Neil Perry generally – for a start there is the pony tail – he doesn’t work in marketing and it is not 1987. Secondly he is not asian and as such not every meal needs a pseudo asian influence. Thirdly he doesn’t need to ruin my first wedding anniversary with poor food and service at Rockpool.

Setting aside my own personal bias I am served the “soup”. Again I need to set some criteria for how I am assessing the food. For example this weekend when mrssimongr was away I rewatched an episode of Heston Blumenthal’s (owner of one of the top 5 restaurants in the world) “In search of perfection” to work out how to cook great Fish and Chips which was not a simple process – so I do have high standards. So I have high standards – but all I want is good ingredients cooked well – what I don’t is a soup which achieves something that was not was possible – a flavour that was both bland and unpleasant. Normally food can bland and disappointing but to be bland and be inedible is a feat that QF and Neil Perry should on some levels be proud of. I mean it is important to create new flavours – whether the pax enjoy them is a matter of “interpretation” – at least that I assume is what is driving the QF kitchens.

Hmm – I reckon that mayhap needed tags…but then the fact that the only wine choices were Riesling and chardonnay (I never realised that we were matching wines with the chef’s hairstyle) should also be factored into that soapbox. I think you are getting a “flavour” of my QF127 experience – the only redeeming feature being the staff who managed to make a not quite a silk purse out of a sows ear.

Frankly the after food, drink, AVOD (surprisingly it actually worked but after 60 mins of Superbad I felt soiled and we will never mention Invasion again – Nicole Kidman needs and agent that can get her roles that match her beauty and skill rather than suck every skerrick of brain matter from my … well from my brain – dear god Nicole please give me a reason to watch your movies that isn’t just the red hair) it is a very relieved simongr that steps off the aircraft and into the cool of Hong Kong. Few flights have ended in less joy recently – it felt like getting on a bus – a very expensive bus with a big sign saying “don’t speak to the driver”.

I hold in my hand the joy of flying – it has been sucked out of me and put in a less than 1L bag and decanted into 100ml bottles.

In Xandadu did Kubla Khan a Pleasure Dome decree

Ok so the Conrad in Hong is not quite a pleasure dome but how do we compare chalk and to be honest soy-cheese at best. After I disembark the “flight of disappointment” the HKIA FV card does a grand job of getting me back on track and on to my second home – the Conrad Hong Kong.

As usual I am whizzed up to the Exec floor for check in and as it is just 6:55PM I manage to sneak a G&T and again I am given my preferred mountain view rather than harbour view. Now this may seem strange to many of you but it is all about context. I grew up in Birmingham in England which is pretty much as far from the sea as anywhere in England. I then lived in Germany in a place called Gutersloh which again was as land bound as they come – so being close to water is not ingrained in me. What I do look out on from the Conrad is a beautiful green landscape where eagles (or perhaps some form of falcons but to me they are relatives of Gwaihir. – I told you I was in a Tolkienesque mood) fly past my window rather than looking over a six+ lane highway and the clouds obscuring Kowloon.

At breakfast my little chap welcomes me back (only been here three time previously so this is impressive) and I am set for a couple of days turgid work. I have one eye on my trip to SHA and really the HKG visit is unpleasant from a work point of view. It is not enhanced by my boss in US calling me at 5:45AM

On the Tuesday I have a fairly busy day but have chance to check expertflyer and see the Y and J availability reducing so joke with Tscharke that I am in line for an op-up – but it’s a tired sim (aka simongr – changed for ease of typing) that is off again to the airport train (y’know serfty I am going to take issue with this – if you didn’t bleat on about this I would probably have a pre-booked Merc driving me there and back again – the fact that the train is faster, cooler and very comfortable is neither here nor there…)

Superb.

Already a classic TP and barely started ...

A trip report worthy of the great Victor Meldrew! Excellent stuff, simongr. Really looking forward to the bilious climax to this "not-quite-a-Hobbit's-tale."

Happy happy joy joy

Journey – HKG-PVG
Flight no. – KA794
Class – Business AND First
Seat – 12G or even 1D

So today we are flying KA – not that there is anything wrong with that. It is straight from check in to the Ralph Lauren store to pick up a thin jumper so that I can tell the concerned staff in HKG I wont freeze in SHA.

Its off to the Wing and I am a little disappointed compared to other experiences – there is a happy medium between being harassed for more booze and being ignored and this time they were a tad on the edge of ignoring me – and I mean a tad – enough for me to see a difference between that and the normal exemplary service.

I do fall into a weird time there though between “lunch” and “dinner” service between 5PM and 5:30PM when there is no food at the restaurant – something I need to keep an eye on for the future. When the restaurant “eventually” opens I snarf down some food and cheese (for the record cheese in my consideration Cheese is beyond food and should be food group in and of itself) although the cheese selection is not quite as good as in the recent past. Bizarrely after the earlier lack of wine refills I am now harassed by the wine police for not drinking quickly enough!

Eventually though I have to board the flight so its off to KA…thankfully that is at gate 4 which is “just there”. Annoyingly my BP is rejected at the gate – annoying only if you don’t like sitting in first class!!!

MY FIRST OP-UP – WOO TO THE HOO

Ok it’s only a couple of hours on KA but this is a first for me and I am filled with joyous joyiety. This I assume is linked to my having changed to include my AA EXP status at check in rather than my QF status as it was originally.

On board the service ok – it just seems to be a mad swarm of activity. It almost is unnerving in that people almost seem to be rushing for the sake of it. The crew all seem to be about 19 years old – which linked to the recruitment template of slim attractive asian women is not necessarily a detriment to the onboard ambience.

I opt for the western meal on this flight which in retrospect may have been a mistake. An unremarkable starter is followed by a dubious main course of beef. I note that F is completely full to the gills and given it was J4/F4 at 3PM I reckon a good number of these seats are Op-Ups.

The IFE seems not to be working or not switched on but given I have a few things to watch on the laptop so it is no loss to me.



Now here’s the rub. On QF I rant and rave if the IFE is not working almost on take off and if it has to be rebooted more than once and bitca and moan if the movie selection is not all the new releases that I want to see at the cinemas. However, here I am sat on a flight with no IFE and I shrug it off. Some people may accuse me of double standards…



OK I see from my notes that “the flight is short, the lights are bright and they use the second door for disembarking”. I really have to wonder how I can sometimes stretch check in to 2 pages and a whole to three clauses. I guess if there is a need to be verbose then I could expand the commentary on the seats themselves to indicate that they were red. I am really reaching here and feel a little pressure to come up with something.
.
.
.
Nup I am dry as the Gobi, bereft of muse and musing and probably a little short on the amusing at this point. But hark what light through yonder window breaks (I went to see some Shakespeare last week – deal with it) is that a Bus I see before me? It is – sadly it is off through the second door (so J disembarks before F) down the stairs and onto the waiting bus :(

Although a little less smooth than the dual aerobridges of HKG (probably more akin to the wooden bridges of Maddison Country) we are after a short break into the terminal with the sprint for immigration. Everyone knows that Chinese immigration is a massive pain so the fact that I am through in about 30 seconds after having had my inbound immigration card corrected for me (I guessed the KA flight number as I was on a CX codeshare) with a pleasant smile by the Immigration officer (imagine if I had done that with some of the jobsworths when you arrive into LAX) and it is off to find the Hotel car. SYD, LHR and LAX (and every other US port I have flown into) could take some notes from the Chinese!

The hotel staff are waiting for me and I am swept into the Lexus for the llong drive to the city. After a few minutes using the in-seat power (QF take note that I can get in-seat power in a car but not on a 763 flying to Japan…) and a 5:30AM wake up I am fast asleep in the car as I get the Hilton Shanghai and my first experience of the new Hilton Shanghai Exec lounge.

I just enjoyed a lovely bottle of 2005 Michelle Chiarlo Moscato d'Asti while reading this...my favorite $10 wine, and a classic TR. A perfect Monday evening:cool:

Such an enjoyable read. And yes, stick to Chinese dishes on Hongkong - Mainland flights. :)

Once you score your first op-up it is never the same again wandering up to the BP reader, wondering just a little even though the voice in your head says it is too rare to even think about. At least it is that way flying non-US based airlines (and when not already in the highest cabin).

Sigh.

Have you finished yet?

So we are back to the Hilton Shanghai. My last visit here was a mix – I was travelling then as a Diamond for the first time and although I was personally greeted at the door and taken to the fake Exec Lounge checkin (they were refurbing the lounge at that time) I was initially given an awful small room but then moved to an un-refurbished larger room (not a suite). This after they wake me up I am again greeted by a western member of staff but this time I taken to the new Lounge. WOW – what a difference. The lounge they were using was actually a bar previously and it had been very dim and dark. This was bright and airy with great views over SHA. My initial impressions are good although why they offer me a drink and then say I can’t take it back to my room is beyond me (at the Conrad on Sunday they carried my welcome drink to my room for me).

I am then taken to my new room which has been refurbished – not quite as stunning as my first stay there but very nice. The one annoying feature is that they have installed a glass desk. Now this looks stunning but I would estimate that the majority of people have optical mice nowadays rather than rollerball mice – and a glass desk does not work well with an optical mouse. Now you might think this is nitpicking and slightly hypercritical – but (bear with me on this) – it is all about meeting the needs of your market and this just shows they haven’t thought about people like me who cart and optical mouse around with me everywhere…

The room is nice though – the standard plasma TV and the large (but very hard) bed and possibly one of the best showers (more power arf arft) I have had outside of my house.

On a slightly disappointing note there are no chocolates or wine unlike my other stays :(



So a little more about me – a topic I know is dear to all of your hearts. I used to sleep well. I really mean that. I lived as a child on an air force base and would sleep through my father being summoned out of the house by an alarm sounded on the base (500m away) that could be heard 8KM away. I really really slept well.

Times change, people change (certainly their girth does – but that is a story for the next next TR) and now sleep is not my friend. The problem I have is that if I doze even for a few minutes my body reacts as if I have had a full night’s sleep – so a brief nap in the early evening or afternoon will mean I wont sleep most of the night… you can perhaps see where this is going…



So after my power nap in the Lexus I knew I was not in for an early night. Sadly what I was not prepared for Mila Jovavich in Ultraviolet – if I felt soiled by Superbad, betrayed by Invasion then this my friends was the point at which I wanted rip my eyes out. As a result I spend a restless night half sleeping half waiting until a reasonable time to wake up would appear – as a result it is a slightly groggy sim that makes it to the office for what turned out to be a very productive day.

The day is nicely broken by a post Chinese New Year lunch banquet with the finance team where again my constitution is tested by the menu selections – I manage to dodge the Jelly Fish completely and side step the “soft” chicken bones (they weren’t soft and they didn’t taste like chicken) after the first mouthful – but overall semi-adventurous. Not as adventurous as the team would like me to be – but it is all about baby steps ;)

That evening it is back to the Hotel for my first experience cocktails in the new lounge. After being overwhelmed last night I am tad underwhelmed tonight. The big disappointment are the wine options – Chinese White or Red. Now the Chinese are renowned for many cultural and culinary achievements – wine making is not one of them. Let us never mention the wines again. Similarly the food is a little disappointing – I guess on reflection my benchmark is the Conrad in Hong Kong where I am paying twice or three times the price.

Ok – you all need to prepare yourselves for a shock. I have not been entirely honest with you. I may seem to be a debonair sophisticate but deep down (well not that deep really) I have a dark secret and that is time to reveal that. It is time for the mask to be removed and the true sim is revealed.
.
.
.
I like simple cold beer – most often something like a Budweiser or an Amstel or Asahi – I am not a posh micro-brewery type – I drink when I am thirsty and need to be refreshed not to be drawn in rich nutty under-currents of tar and smoke – I leave that for the Shiraz (aka Syrah). So at times all I want is a ice cold bud from the bottle!!!!

So having outed myself I should continue on with the story. The story of a quest, not for truth or justice not for gold ring to cast into the firey pits nor even for a blonde haired princess to rescue from the evil styep-mother (are there any other sort?). No this is much more important than that – this is a quest… for cold beer. I mean for chrissakes how hard can it be?

My first night needing (now that’s a bad word to use in reference to alcomohol) a beer and I initially served something at a temperature akin to tepid water that you would dissolve yeast in while making bread. As I request a second I plan ahead and ask if I could just hold the bottle to see if cold really does mean cold – sadly it doesn’t. Given my options are the unmentionables or a slightly warmer than hoped for beer then we will stick with the beer :)

Now I said this was a quest – and I thought at first it was my heroic efforts battling overwhelming odds for the love of beer (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=BMX-pmV2yiM) but in reality this was a quest for REDMEPTION! Having seen my puppy dogs broken hearted face at the warmth of the beer the floor supervisor comes to me as I am leaving to introduce me to Nancy. As the supervisor is not working tomorrow she has instructed Nancy to put up to 5 (I only asked for 2) beers in cold storage for me and Nancy will ensure my cold beer requirements are addressed.

The next night (my last in SHA) Nancy dutifully hunts me down and plies me with beer that is colder than the previous night – I guess they just don’t make those ice boxes as cold in China as the ones they are shipping to the rest of the world… However I will certainly give 10 for effort rating scale to be determined at a future date, all rating subject to change and no expectation of repetition of events leading to ratings should be assumed or relied upon when considering future cold beer requirement options.

Given my general levels of exhaustion on this trip a quiet night in the room is called for again. I decide after my couple of beers to have just a small glass of wine with dinner *cough* so it is a slightly seedier sim that awakes ready for his long travels ahead.



Sorry about this but it is time to rant again (bet that didn’t catch you by surprise). Now despite shocking behaviour and taste in beer I am quite a foodie and as such pretty much every room service meal is not going to be any good. Tonight however there was an exception – a Bolognese that was pretty much edible.

There was one slight problem though – carrots. Now I know that there is no “real” Bolognese recipe. It is I believe a Ragout sauce and often has none or few of the ingredients that non-italians dump into their “SpagBol” but nowhere and never should carrots make it into a Bolognese sauce. It’s not 1942 and I am not fighting German pilots with my enhanced eyesight (http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/BeautySecrets/story?id=1845980&page=1) so please take your carrots and well just take them ... please



The matter of the carrots is now put to rest and we shall move on in peace and serenity. Breakfast is the usual delightful fare and I am advised that the car is being brought round for me – this statement could be considered to not be as accurate as it might have been as I am waiting for a few minutes for the car to come round. The time lost there is more than made up for as we get to PVG in 43 minutes!!!!!

Next we have the PVG experience – and I have to warn you that is not a short story and it all comes down to a lack of those barrier tapes at the gate entrances…

Have you finished yet?

There was one slight problem though – carrots. Now I know that there is no “real” Bolognese recipe. It is I believe a Ragout sauce and often has none or few of the ingredients that non-italians dump into their “SpagBol” but nowhere and never should carrots make it into a Bolognese sauce. It’s not 1942 and I am not fighting German pilots with my [url=”http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/BeautySecrets/story?id=1845980&page=1]enhanced eyesight[/url so please take your carrots and well just take them ... please

[/aside]





Well, I'm so sorry to tell you this... but here in Italy many people makes their Bolognese sauce (let's use it's real name... it's a " PASTA AL RAGU' " :)) using carrots. Obiously not too many carrots or you'll get a too much sweet tast ;)

Btw, I really enjoy reading your trip reports!!! ^

I stand corrected - I normally don't let facts get in the way of my prose but when it comes to food I can handle the truth.

Why China is like a juggler with a chicken and a chainsaw

Journey – PVG-NRT
Flight no. – JL622
Class – Business
Seat – 2D

After my hyperspeed drive to the Airport it is a slightly lengthy walk to the JL check in – at which point I am a tad concerned as to whether the flight is actually flying today given the complete absence of pax checking in. Although there is some bemusement and confusion they are able to check me through to SYD but are unable to change my FF number on my NRT-SYD flight (good to see the OW seamless integration of IT systems at work again).



Barely a paragraph in and I am off again. I booked this through QF so they default to putting in my QF number. For some reason I still feel like a naughty schoolboy using my AA number. I don’t know why though – I actually fly almost as many segments on AA as I do QF and more of them in F.

I can’t past it though for some reason – and I really should. I now have the rigmarole of changing at the airport and then checking as to whether the change has been done ok and then the lottery of whether the flights will post.

The other risk is that part of me is still yearning to retain QF SG (only for the better chance at upgrades to F using QFF points) so I run the risk of just letting it slide to credit to QF and get SG status.

So much in that regard depends on what the next few months hold for me. I could change jobs and that could mean more or less flying on QF or not on QF – it might mean not enough flying to achieve EXP but enough to get QF WP – too many variables for a simple accountant like me



So where was I – ah yes check in at the JL counter. So after stepping over the tumble weed it is off to customs and immigration. There have been some changes in customs regs so that you don’t need to fill in a form of some kind but still need to have an outbound passenger card. I found out at the entrance to customs these are held at the check in desks. So back I troop to the other end of the airport to get one from the JL desk – realising afterwards that this could have been avoided if I had asked for one at check in, picked one up myself or grabbed one from a check in desk near the customs entrance.

There is the usual milling throng and PVG’s own variety of gate lice (http://www.gadling.com/2008/01/28/gate-lice-how-not-to-board-an-airplane/). This is the crowd that mill around the entrance to customs either seeing people off or asking people to carry bags through for them etc. A few deft kicks and I am through the throng (or perhaps given it is by nature a blockage it might better be called a thromb). Customs is a much easier process given the lack of forms to supply so next it is immigration. This is not quite as quick as inbound but is pretty quick still (even without an APEC card).

However at security I miss (or ignored perhaps) the 2x1RMB in my pocket which sets of the WTMD. Unlike our friends in Oz or in the US this does not require me to remove shoes, belt, watch or the iron in my blood but simply necessitates a quick wanding with beeps in the right places – belt buckle, shoes, watch and I am on my way. How much easier it would be if they did this elsewhere – people wouldn’t get away with just being wanded and fill their pockets with metal – it would just mean that they could see where the metal was. The only potential downside to this was that the young lady was slightly over-friendly with the wand :shock: - mind you given the nature of the young lady some people may not object to such treatment ;)

After that it is straight off to the JL lounge which to my bitter disappointment is not much of an improvement over the KA lounge I have used before. I fail to be able to connect to the internet wirelessly or via an Ethernet point so for the first time in a while I am cut off from the web – some palpitations need to be calmed through the application of a cold beer – so this is where they were hiding!

The downside to my speedy (and surprisingly smooth I should add) drive to the airport and a minor delay to departure is that I now have quite a long time at the airport. At least I think there is a delay to departure as there is a single slightly muffled announcement with no other indication after that.

I leave before boarding is called I don’t want a repeat of my NRT experience aka mr wearetakingyourbagsoffnow…

Now PVG is a weird airport (well I think so and it’s my story so it’s my rules). There are escalators down from the main concourse to the gates themselves. The lounges are on the same level as the gates. So far so not weird. However there is nothing to stop anyone wandering down from the concourse to the gates so anyone can go anywhere. There aren’t even the little tapes that separate the special people from the others in boarding queues.

And this for me is why China is a juxtaposition of perceptions and realities. When I grew up China was just out of the cultural revolution, there were no cars in China, everyone wore blue overalls and rode bikes to work – and there was that thing where people made lots of noise to keep sparrows flying (”http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C02E0DB103AF930A35757C0A9649C8B 63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all”). When I was at uni it was the time of Tiananmen so people had moved out of overalls and into shirts and pants, but at the same time this meant for me - as some with no real experience of China – that when being here one would be watched over and the people controlled by some Orwellian Ministry of Truth – with restrictions on where you walk, how you talk and how you move. I have said it before and I am sure I will say it again – China a consumer mecca blended with a modern dance interpretation of a frog in a blender – juts with a little less Kermit.

It is incredibly hard for me to really write what I see when I look at China and by China I mean how I see the Chinese people move around like – well lets try an analogy. Imagine a juggler. Your average juggler will maybe do a flaming sticks, or bowling balls and if you’re lucky maybe a chainsaw and an egg – amusingly he drops the egg to build up the tension as you hope for once you are the person uploading to YouTube the video of the guy losing an arm that gets more hits than lonelygirl15 (” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lonelygirl15 “).

Anyway that aside let’s get back to your juggler. Sure he has the bowling ball and the flaming stick and the chainsaw and the obligatory bowling pins (probably a 7 and a 10 just for irony) and four fried chickens and some dry white toast and just to top it off – a pig. These are all being thrown a different speeds and heights and angles, behind his back and through his legs, sometimes in defiance of the laws of physics and logic itself. But when you look at it – it is a ballet and opera in harmony and an amazing thing to see – but it is a brave man that steps into the maelstrom. And that is why they need more effective barriers at the gates at PVG airport!*

So anyway – where were we? Ah yes boarding JL622 to NRT. Just for the record I am writing this a couple of weeks after the trip so how much of the account below is fact an dhow much is how I would like the flight to have gone is up for debate.

On board I have a nice row 2 seat – much like the QF Dreamtime seats except with AVOD. As is custom my seat buddy ignores me and I spend the flight in blissful ignorance of his existence – a pleasant occurrence after the seat moving limpet up to HKG. We are given our menus just after take so I again opt for the Japanese meal. Overall there are some challenging items but the starter of lobster goo is just superb.

There is a slight champagne incident to report. They serve Piper Heidseck in mini-bottles – so far so good – at least it isn’t Monopoo (” http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=785917 “). However the FA fills the glass too quickly so the glass overflows and we lose half the bottle. Not the end of the world so far – but when she returns with a fresh glass she leaves me the same half empty bottle – no top up!!!!!! Yes I know I could have asked for another bottle but I still felt gypped!

Now I said above that we had AVOD – at least I think it was AVOD. It started as loop but could be paused and rewound so it was weird. The AVOD guide was all in Japanese so it was tough to work out how to work the system and what channel things were on and I am challenged by the language options until I find the LANG button (blame the Asahi in the lounge).

After the disasters of the SYD-HKG flight I opt for Mr Magorium’s Magic Emporium – amazing that a movie of such schmaltz and cutesy fluff could be done so well. It even brings the hint of a tear to the eye of this jaded road warrior – just a shame that I rush the ending as my 2 ½ hour flight barely takes 2 hours!

After a smooth landing and a rapid exit I am quickly into the JL F lounge for a semi long transit.

It’s all about Hartley (” http://www.thechestnut.com/pipkins.htm”) not the Hare but the Hair

Journey – NRT-SYD
Flight no. – QF22
Class – Business
Seat – 1D

So here we are at NRT again – I have about 3 ½ hours so I plan to have a snooze as I am feeling a little tired and emotional after [redacted due to movie spoilage that would not have been appreciated by QF009]. I connect to the free wi-fi in the lounge and call mrssimongr although by the end of the call I am almost asleep. The alarm is set so as to not to be mr wearetakingyourbagsoffnow and I get an hour’s kippage.

After I wake before the alarm goes off I decide to chance the food again. As you will have memorised my prior trip reports you will know that I was slightly flummoxed by the food last time in NRT but today I stumble on the delightful curry beef thing (which I plan to sample again on my next transit in a couple of weeks).

After beef I decide to head to the QF lounge to get my FF number changed. That is done with plenty of time to spare for another play with the automated beer pouring machine :) The only challenge is finding somewhere to park my butt in the QP zoo :(

The only free seat is next to a family with a small child in tow who is being fed – could we count the number of risks we are facing here? To my great relief Hartley (see I do think about the titles of each segment – I am not just making it up as I go along) is impeccably well behaved – not just for the lack of screeching and caterwauling (man I am getting in the words today flummoxed AND caterwauling) but also for the highly nutritious meal he is eating – he is demanding (politely) additional fruit and vegetables. In retrospect maybe he is in fact one of the Children of the Damned (” http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054443/”) and is only masquerading as a good child… he does need a haircut though so maybe not a damned child – maybe just another damn child ;)

Given the heaving lounge I decide the board early as always and avoid the scramble for seats. Even on boarding the crew are a significant improvement on the prior NRT-SYD crew. PJs are handed out and I am one of the few people to get changed into them – not as subtle as the F PJs but hey – clothes I can theoretically spill soup on are better than clothes I wish to wear when I get home. One niggle is that they have give us PJs but it seems that didn’t realise that as a result we will need somewhere to hang out clothes – no hanger is forthcoming so my clothes end up in a heap at the foot of my seat…

So if we have all been following my complaint to QF thread here (” http://www.frequentflyer.com.au/community/qantas-frequent-flyer/is-this-worthy-complaint-11600.html”) we have already surpassed the prior flight and horror of horrors the soup HAS been loaded and it is very nice. It has flavour for start – which is an improvement on the last flight on QF. The temperature could be enhanced – sitting somewhere between magma and lava on service and due to some stickiness on the tray a small portion lands on my newly donned PJs – a fortuitous change of clothes indeed.

The soup is followed by the same chicken as last time – but this time it is served with the Tzatziki sauce without a reminder – it would seem that we have cabin crew that actually give a damn. The downside is that the corn relish is drowning in a sea of canola oil – nice try Ponytailboy but better luck next time!

It is then that the “incident” occurs. Let me first pose a question to you – how many arms does the average person have? The answer is a little less than two. Many people have less than two but no-one has three. I perhaps should have been cognisant of that anatomical fact when trying to watch Las Vegas on the laptop (keyboard tucked under the tray table), drink a glass of wine and eat the chicken (a task that perhaps should have been avoided in retrospect) – it is only when the laws of physics realise what I am trying to do that my lack of additional arms becomes an issue, an issue for my laptop – it really is never a good sign when everything goes black and you can pour almost a full glass of wine out of the keyboard. I have to say that this little D410 has been through the wringer with me – what a trooper.

After I try a few more times to get the little fella going again I decide that discretion is the better part of valour and sleep mayhap be called for. It is not easy with the two young chaps in seats 1AC nattering like old women – even I resort to eyeshades and ear plugs to get some sleep.

Eventually I do get some sleep and wake about 90mins from landing There is the usual dire QF J long haul breakfast of a slice of MDF (” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medium-density_fibreboard”) with some fruit salad and “tea”.

Not too much later we land over the greatest city on earth – well except for Bath and maybe Amargetti (which is I guess more of a village than a city) – and we have fantastic city of the great city, the Bridge and the Opera House and it is not quite so quick through immigration – despite the Epass but it is almost through Quarantine expect for the fact that the peeps in front of me forget to declare the MASSIVE amount of horse tackle that they have brought from the US (remembering that in NSW we were only declared Equine Flu free recently) and the chick wont get off her phone despite a few reminders of the $1,000 fine. So although I can see my one bag to collect I am still standing waiting for five minutes…

My driver is waiting for me as usual and finally I am home on a Sunday morning safe in the knowledge that soon I will be off again. All that remains is the epilogue – the chance for the players to take a bow and make sure that no-one has missed the point through inelegant prose and lack of literary skills so I will be back for one more shot – but remember the last shot is the rambler – so get that glass of wine ready, light the cigar and wait – prose needs time or it doesn’t – depending on how the muse has taken me :)

Very entertaining report simongr

Looking forward to the next one. :)

Alls well that ends better

So that is it. Just a simple there and back again – or so it seems now. I am writing this whilst back at the Conrad in Hong Kong my way to the US and again to Cyprus so it really does seem like it was a simple trip. But it still staggers me that this is simple to me now (repetition much?).

I know this is being written in the company of people who travel a great more than the average Joe and in reality probably a great deal more than the unaverage Joe but it is amazing what we take for granted.

Today I arrived at HKG airport and was through immigration within 10 mins of arriving – whilst some people were still fumbling for their passports. I guess it is true that on some levels for me taking a flight really is no different to getting on a bus (well in fact given my passionate dislike for travelling by bus [bab experiences as a kid] getting on a plane is a lot les stressful than getting on a bus). I reflected in my last trip report that some of the excitement of travelling might be waning but the more that I reflect and the more that I travel I think the more I enjoy some aspects of it. I am now relaxed when I travel. I don’t have to rush to the CX F lounge in HKG as I know it will be there next time I fly and no matter how short my time there – there will always be time for just one more glass of bubbles.

Well it’s not every trip I turn into a 16 page essay but I hope you enjoyed it. See you next time (which might be soon as there is a suspicion of a lost trip report that was uncovered recently hidden in the depths of a glass of Sauvignon Blanc) – this is Chocka Bloke checking out!

I did try to close as I opened but the ending of the Hobbit is a bit of a preamble into the Lord of the Rings – the ending of that book would have been much more appropriate but alas that would not have been appropriate… at this stage