kreeft

One thing that I didn’t cover about our trip back to the airport was the incredible convenience of checking our luggage in at KL Sentral. Malaysia Airlines, Emirates and Cathay have check in counters before you get on the KLIA Ekspres. We showed our passports and told the check-in agent our flight number and we were free to hit the airport with only our hand luggage on us. It was pretty wonderful not having to worry about checking in and checking our luggage, even though the airport wasn’t particularly busy.

We got to the departure level and I was immediately drawn to the “Viewing Area” sign. I started heading that way and Fiancé was a little confused about where we were going when we passed the international departures sign. It old her where I was heading, and she, being the sweetheart that she is, appeased me and sat down while I walked around and took some pictures.


737 Rush Hour at the A Gates


Emirates 777

After a few minutes, I showed some restraint and we headed toward our gate. We again had the fast-track pass which was again completely unnecessary as there was no one at all going through our side of the huge immigration hall. Another passport stamp, another silent immigration officer and we headed through what was a lackluster security check at best. I realized after going through that I’d forgotten to take my liquids out. I’m pretty sure that the guy watching the screen didn’t even look up from his cell phone while I was going through.

We headed to the Regional Golden Lounge. This is what I’d wanted Fiancé to experience, since so far she’d only seen it as a way to get a nap at DCA as well as escape ThirdWorld Terminal at JFK and TBIT at LAX. This was definitely a Lounge (Big “L”) as opposed to a lounge (little “l”).

Her eyes were immediately drawn to the self-serve champagne bar and the food offerings. We indulged in both, as we’d only eaten a smaller breakfast earlier that day. The food offerings included sandwiches, a salad bar, some rice and beef dishes, as well as a full-service area with a few different choices.

I had the Prawn Mee – noodles and seafood in a spicy prawn broth -


Bar and Snack area


More Food Service


Self-Service Bar


Seating Area


Lunch with a view

The lounge also has great views of the tarmac, showers, and a pay-for massage area. We didn’t have enough time to check into massages – I’m pretty sure we wouldn’t have paid those prices anyway – but we each had a couple plates full of food and a few glasses of champagne. Add to that a comfortable lounge chair, and Fiancé informed me that we’d be making it to the airport a couple hours earlier the next time we were passing through…which conveniently was going to be in about a week.

After a much too quick experience, boarding for our flight was called and we headed to gate H2.

Malaysia 853, KUL-DPS, 737-400, 9M-MMM
Depart: 3:20PM
Arrive: 6:20PM
Seats: 2A, 2C

We got to H2 and settled in for another security screening – this one a bit more attentive but not by much. Boarding had started when we got there and immigration forms were distributed at the gate. We got on the plane and were the first people in Business Class. I realized that this was the first time since DCA that we’d actually had coach passengers file past us to get to their seats. Suckers… I filled out the Indonesian immigration forms and a very friendly flight attendant addressed us by our names and asked if we’d care for any juice. I went with mango this time. Again, champagne would be in the air. Maybe it’s a MH thing? Just before the door closed, 2 other business passengers boarded and took 1D and 1F. 2 FAs for 4 passengers? I like that ratio!


Legroom


Seats 2D and 2F

Menus were handed out after the door was closed.

Menu:
LIGHT MEAL

APPETIZER

Prawn Cocktail
With mango salad and a wedge of lemon

BAKERY SELECTION

With unsalted butter or extra virgin olive oil on request

MAIN COURSE

Chicken Korma
Malaysian style braised chicken with coriander, herbs and spices served with tomato rice and vegetable pickles

or

Sarawak Black Pepper Beef Tenderloin
With sautéed potatoes and seasoned vegetables

or

Igan Masak Asam Pedas
Malaysian style fish in spicy lemongrass gravy with sautéed vegetables

DESSERT

Bingka Kimboca
With vanilla cream

Some light meal huh?

As we weren’t moving yet, I hoped up to quickly grab something out of my bag. As I was fishing around, the plane started its pushback. The FA saw me, and I apologized. She responded, “It’s ok. You’re in business class. Just be sure to sit down before takeoff.” Sure thing. That probably would have been a huge deal in the US, but this is Malaysia.

We took off about 1/3 of the way down runway 32R – after a few AirAsia flights and made our way to the clouds. FAs came around as soon as the bell dinged and offered us drinks. Fiancé and I were heading to Bali for the first time. Bubbles time! It was brought to us with a chocolate covered, almond stuffed date that was quite tasty and actually paired halfway decently with the champagne. She took our order and asked if we would like lunch in about 10 minutes. That’ll work.


Glass half empty or half full? Half full in this case – that’s as low as it ever got

Right on schedule, our card game was interrupted by the FA asking if she could “dress the table.” I said that we shouldn’t do that until the Fiancé went to the lav. Fiancé hit me; FA looked at me quite confused. I pulled out the tray table and she placed a lenin on it followed by a tray with our meals on it.


Meal was served with all the covers on. Another rookie mistake – forgot to take a picture after I took them off

The fish was good with a little spice, but Fiance chicken was delicious. The sun dried tomato and garlic breads were also delightful, but the Binka Kimboca dessert (it reminded me of a pistachio tapioca with a cinnamon vanilla yogurt) was shockingly good. The FAs were around the whole meal asking if we needed anything else and refilling our champagne. This flight, MH truly stood for Malaysian Hospitality.


Champagne and extra chocolates


Heading to Indonesia

We were asked about our trip and she gave us some advice about what to do in Malaysia besides just spend time in KL. She even made a list on Malaysia Airlines stationary for when we come back. “You are coming back, right?”


Indonesian volcanoes

The three hour flight went quickly – as did 2 bottles of champagne. The glasses rarely were empty and we both truly enjoyed this flight and the service. We touched down on Runway 9 as the sun was setting. Fiancé and I both thanked the two wonderful FAs and said that we’d had a bit more time in the air. Although I’m not so sure there was a third bottle of champagne…

After reaching gate 5, the FA closed the curtain between C and Y and only opened it after the 4 of us up front were walking off the plane. I’d heard that the visa-on-arrival in Indonesia – particularly in Bali – could be terrible; maybe she was trying to give us a head start…

kreeft

We hustled off the plane at DPS to be among the first in line at the Visa-on-Arrival that I’d heard so many terrible things about. I guess we were the only international flight that landed right then, as – much to my surprise – there was no line. None at all. We buy two visas for $50 and head through immigration. We were called up by a very friendly immigration officer who asks us how we’re doing and welcomes us to Indonesia. He said he hoped we had a great time on his “beautiful island” as he stamped our passports.

Being in business class, our luggage was waiting by the belts under a Malaysia Airlines Priority Service sign and two porters. We hit the ATM and man did I feel pretty awesome pulling out multiple millions from my account. It was the first time I’ve felt really cool pulling out $200 from an ATM.

I went to retrieve my bags from the porters. They grabbed the bags that we said were ours and headed to customs. There was one guy “working” the customs area, and he was talking with a couple of airport employees. He saw us and then went back to talking. So the porters started walking and we followed. We were hit up by a barrage of money changers, but our porters briskly walked past.

Blame the champagne, but it never occurred to me that these guys weren’t wearing anything on them that said “Malaysia Airlines.” After the tip shakedown, we got our taxi voucher and the driver grabbed our bags. Two more porters magically appeared as he handed one of our bags to each. A couple more dollars handed out and we were finally in our cab – none too happy at all. I understand that they’re trying to make a living, but it all soured me a bit. It’s ok, I’m in Bali…

I had pictured Bali to a beautiful, quiet island oasis with gold laden streets and beautiful people from all corners of the world. What I got was busy, crowded city streets with motorbikes buzzing like mosquitoes passing unique Balinese places such as the Hard Rock Café. A 20-25 minute drive later and we arrived at The Haven. I wasn’t too big on Bali at this point.



Now some here on FT may yell at me for staying at place where I cannot get points, but this place was near where my friend told me I wanted to stay and less than $100 per night with excellent reviews on Trip Advisor. We didn’t know it when we entered the hotel, but we were the lucky winners. The hotel staffer congratulated us on being the lucky ones that the computer chooses once a day to upgrade to the suites and if we wouldn’t mind being shown to the suites and villa check-in area. Fine…thanks.

We walked what seemed like forever (about 3 minutes really) to get to the other side of the hotel and were again greeted by someone telling us that we’re the “lucky winners” to get an upgrade. Now I appreciate an upgrade to a suite. I really do. Just tell me that you upgraded me and don’t make such a huge production of it. I know you’re trying to make me feel good about being at your hotel and you don’t know that I’m a little annoyed at the world, but just get me to my room.

A few minutes later, we were up to our suite on the 4th floor. At this point it was about 8PM, and jetlag was really setting in. Fiancé wanted a nap, but I was bound and determined to stay awake until after dinner – not that I was really hungry after the club and airplane meals.


Kitchen


A terrible picture of the Sitting Area


Bathroom only separated by opaque glass from the bedroom


Outdoor bed area off of bedroom – can be made up for you by calling housekeeping


Other side of the balcony – off sitting area


View from the balcony

The suite was nice and I started making notes for this trip report while she napped. Then I made the mistake of lying down on the bed. Fiancé and I both woke up around 6AM. We lazed around a bit and then headed to the hotel’s free breakfast in their restaurant. Everything except for the rooms was open air, including the restaurant that was right along the main street that was so crowded the night before.

It was a completely different scene than it was when we arrived. The street, while not completely quiet, was serene and relatively orderly. We were seated overlooking the street and enjoyed our buffet breakfast. It had everything from sausage and eggs (omelet station) to noodles to miso soup. After breakfast, we walked around the area near the hotel window shopping and just taking in what Seminyak had to offer. After walking around, I was back on the Bali bandwagon.

At a drug store, Fiancé talked me into doing a thing where little fish eat dead skin off your feet for 100,000 rupiah (about $11) per person. She said it would cost $50 at least to do this at home. What a deal! It actually felt kind of cool. Like lots of little bubbles around your feet. I didn’t notice my feet looking any better, but it was kind of a cool experience. We made a spa appointment for the next day (only 100,000 IDR for an hour massage!) and decided to head to the pool in the early afternoon.


Skin eating fish


Lounging poolside

That evening, we decided to head down to Jimbaran Bay for a sunset dinner. Our taxi driver talked us into going to Dewata Café. I was ok with it since I’d read about it and remembered some pretty good reviews. I’m sure he got some sort of kickback, but this view made it all worth it:



After picking out which of our waterlogged brethren would be killed and grilled for us, we enjoyed a gorgeous sunset conveniently right next to the airport.


Our flight from the day before coming in for landing

The next morning we had arranged for FT’s favorite Bali driver, Marco Dewa of Discover Bali Tour. Marco took us around the island to Monkey Forest, Rice Terraces, Ubud and Tanah Lot – a temple built right on the ocean. Marco was a great tour guide, and we loved talking to him. We learned a lot about Balinese culture and history. He also told us about his family. He dropped us off at the hotel around 3:45 and we headed to our massage appointment with mixed emotions. On the one hand, we were looking forward to our cheap massage. On the other hand, we really enjoyed our time with Marco. I highly recommend him for anyone heading to Bali that wants to see the island.


Monkey Forest – he soon traded the stick for a banana


Mama and Baby


Rice Terraces


Tanah Lot

We woke up the next morning, hit the breakfast buffet and headed to the pool – this time with a laptop. I was chastised for not being on Bali time by a nice Australian couple, but I was in fact seeing if we were leaving Bali that evening or the next morning. We decided to fly out that evening, but the Garuda website doesn’t accept US credit cards and prices on the Expedias of the world were 4 times as much as they were from the Garuda directly.

I was able to call a ticket office in Kuta and make the reservations. However, we had to show up in person to actually purchase the tickets. This was the first time I’ve done that since the late 80s when my dad took me to the Delta ticket office in Knoxville to buy tickets to Hawaii. I was a little giddy and enjoyed the experience much more than Fiancé, but boy it’s so much easier to just do it over the Internet. I did appreciate the $50 plane tickets bought about 7 hours before takeoff.

One note about Kuta. I know it’s one of the most popular areas with tourists, but it seemed really terrible to me. I thought Seminyak was crowded…Kuta was 10 times worse and we were hit up by a lot of people trying to sell us things at least once a block. After buying our tickets and walking around a bit, we hopped in a cab back to Seminyak.

We had to check out of our suite around 2PM, but were able to get massage appointments in the hotel spa for 4PM, so we lazed by the pool until our appointments. The hotel gave us another room just before we left to shower and change. A few thoughts about the hotel… All in all, I feel like it was great bang for your buck. While it was slightly awkwardly spread out, I found it to be a comfortable hotel with beautiful pools. I appreciated that breakfast came with the room. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how helpful and friendly the staff were. Everyone greeted you with a genuine smile and they went above and beyond to answer any questions or cater to any need. I’d definitely stay at the Haven again.

Check out was a cinch, and a few minutes later a cab arrived to whisk us off to the airport…

kreeft

After a short cab ride that was as uneventful as driving in Bali goes, we arrived at the domestic terminal in Denpasar. Fiancé was a little hungry, but none of the food offerings outside the airport intrigued her. So we entered the airport went through “security” which entailed of us putting bags through a scanner that was monitored by someone texting on their cell phone and a group of other security officers talking while we walked through a magnetometer that I’m not even sure was plugged in.


Check-In Area



When we bought our tickets, the agent checked us in for exit row seats, so all we had to do was drop our bags off. No charge to check bags, although we did have to pay an inexpensive departure tax when we walked up the stairs to the boarding area. We grabbed a beer and a small dinner in the restaurant. It was a pretty busy time with quite a few flights taking off. Fiancé and I laughed every time a flight to Jakarta (and there were plenty) was announced because the PA system screamed “JAKARTA!” during the English translation.


Boarding Area

Just as we were about to get a 20 minute foot reflexology massage, they called boarding for our flight. Boarding at the domestic terminal is on airstairs, so we walked through Gate H2, crossed the apron and walked up the rear air set of stairs to head to our seats.

Garuda Indonesia 255, DPS-JOG, 737-800, PK-GMN
Depart: 6:50PM
Arrive: 7:05PM
Seats: 14B, 14C

What I didn’t realize when I asked for exit row seats earlier is that I didn’t specifically ask for exit row seats that recline. Who cares though? It’s an hour flight. I had been told specifically when crossing the tarmac not to take photos and I forgot to get a cabin shot, but it’s a standard 737 that we’ve all been on about 1000 times. Though, I was pleasantly surprised to see that each seat had an IFE screen in the seatback in front of it.

We pushed back right on time and held short for a moment. We waited for a Jakarta 737 to land before taking our position on runway 9 and rocketing off on a pretty much brand new aircraft. The FAs dived into action as soon as we were high enough for them to get up. Everyone got their choice of drinks and a box with a small sandwich and some sort of fruit cup that I didn’t recognize. It was nothing to write home about and frankly lacked flavor, but it was a meal on a flight short enough that that on some comparable routes in the US wouldn’t even have a drink service.

I quickly dived into the IFE and saw that there were some movies and shows – most of which I actually knew. I stuck to the trivia and games section until I got up to use the lav. I came back and Fiancé had taken over my screen to watch an episode of “Glee” because hers froze. I pulled out a book and let her use my shoulder as a pillow while she giggled to a ridiculous show.

The flight was quick and the service was pleasant. We touched down on Runway 9 and the brakes were slammed with full reverse thrust. We missed the mid-field taxiway and had to turn around on the runway before the short taxi to the arrivals.


Couple month old 737

Our bags came quickly and we headed to the prepaid cab section. There weren’t the same people scheming for tips like in Bali, and we were sent to find a specific cab number. He pulled up in no time and we started out on our hour long drive to the Manohara Resort Hotel near Borobudur. Fiancé napped and I was nodding in and out. By the time we arrived around 8:30PM, we were both pretty exhausted. Maybe we weren’t completely over the time change after all…

Manohara Resort Hotel and Borobudur

We chose to make the drive up the night we arrived because we decided we wanted to do the sunrise tour of Borobudur. By staying at the Manohara, we were able to start heading up the temple at 4:30AM and watch the sun rise from behind Mt. Merapi

After a simple – if somewhat arcane since they still used paper records – check-in, we were asked to sit in the outdoor lobby area and offered some tea. We were given a cool towel, which was delightful after having my face up against the window of an Indonesian taxi. We were shown to our room. I’d read reviews that had complained about the hotel. It wasn’t fancy, but we weren’t going to this hotel to be fancy…we were going to have access to an incredible temple.

The rooms were small but comfortable and fit our needs. We read through the book they provided on Borobudur before hitting the sack by around 10PM. Neither of us had any trouble falling asleep and 4AM came quickly. We splashed water on our face and headed to the lobby where we were provided flash lights and a guide to take us to the temple grounds. We were in the first group to get up there and walked around a bit before staking our claim near the top.


First hints of light


Smoke coming from Mt. Merapi with twilight behind it


Sun’s almost up


Hello Buddha


Sun’s finally up






Borobudur

We spent a few hours up there and then took the 5 minute walk back to the hotel. Breakfast was included with our room, and we sat down to a pretty good meal. There weren’t a ton of options, but all of it was tasty – particularly with the chili sauce. We then walked around the hotel a bit so we could see what it looked like in the day time.


View from the Lobby


Sitting Area Outside the Rooms


Hotel Grounds

We took a nap and woke up around 11AM and walked around a little more. Check out was simple and straight forward. Our ride arrived and we hopped in our car on our way to Yogyakarta.

kreeft

Being able to see Yogyakarta during the day, I was surprised by how big of a city it was. While it wasn’t anything like Kuala Lumpur, the city just seemed to go for miles and people were everywhere. We arrived at the Sheraton Mustika and our car had to go through a security checkpoint. We pulled up to the front desk where we were welcomed by walking through a magnetometer. At least they’re putting up the guise of running a safe hotel.

The hotel was largely open air, which was fine as the heat/humidity really wasn’t bad compared to DC. And there seemed to be a nice breeze blowing through the lobby constantly. One strange thing about this hotel is that the lobby is on the 7th floor, although it wasn’t a problem at all since that’s where you drive up.


Lobby


From Lobby looking down

Check-in was a cinch, and we were shown to our room with our luggage being delivered shortly thereafter. The room was plenty spacious and had a beautiful view overlooking the pool.


Room


View from the room overlooking the pool

I asked Fiancé what she wanted to do for the rest of the day. She decided that relaxing by the pool and a massage should be the plan for the afternoon. We wandered around to acquaint ourselves with the hotel, and something was bothering me about it. I finally realized that we hadn’t seen any other guests since we got there. It was a little eerie walking around only seeing the occasional hotel worker.

We headed upstairs to the hotel restaurant and ordered local food. The prices were expensive for the area but really quite reasonable compared to what we’re used to hotel restaurants in the US costing. The restaurant overlooked the pool, and we got excited when we saw what we thought was another guest sitting by the pool; we later found out that it was an employee though. It was strange having 6 workers in the restaurant for just the two of us. The service was, however, spectacular.

Before heading to the pool, we went to make a massage appointment. Again, while it was expensive for the area, it had phenomenal prices for a hotel. So we decided to each get a massage right then and then head to the pool. We also made an appointment for the following day. Yes, that’s right folks…that would make 4 massages in 4 days. Gotta love it!


View from the spa


One side of the pool

We relaxed by the pool and took advantage of the swim-up bar. It is strange hearing the call to prayer as you’re sitting next to a pool drinking a beer. Maybe that’s why the terrorists hate us? That evening, we spent some time in the piano bar, which had a sax and a piano duet going. It was enjoyable and we even saw some more guests. The two of us were, by far, the most into the music and the staff enjoyed our presence.

The hotel provides a shuttle in the mornings into the town center. We were the only two on it, and a small tip got us a ride straight to the Sultan’s Palace, where we wanted to start the day. We used a becak (pronounced bay-chak) to get around to the different sites we wanted to see, including the Water Castle, batik shops, and chariot museum among other sites. We rather enjoyed Yogyakarta but were slightly turned off how everything – even the museums – was geared toward selling to tourists.


Becak


Water Castle


Sultan’s Palace

We headed back to the hotel in time for our spa appointments, spent some more time by the pool and headed out to a restaurant recommended by the concierge. Gajah Wong has both western and traditional Indonesian food coupled with Indonesian music from multiple time periods. The food was good, the service attentive, and prices reasonable in spite of its touristy slant.

The next morning, we checked out of the hotel. We enjoyed the Sheraton Mustika. The employees went above and beyond to make sure we had everything we needed (which is good since there were hardly any guests), and the hotel was beautiful. It was a bit rough around the edges with certain finishes not quite there to put it over the top, which was a little disappointing given all of the work that recently went into the hotel.

The hotel provided transportation to the airport from the hotel. Less than 5 minutes after we left, we arrived at the Departure area. I had checked us in and paid for a checked bag the day before, so we just needed to drop off our bag.



AirAsia 595, JOG-KUL, Airbus 320-200, 9M-AFF
Depart: 9:50AM
Arrive: 1:40PM
Seats: 1A, 1C

We arrived at the airport around 7:45 for our 9AM flight. We dropped our bags and were given smaller boarding passes and told to head directly to the departure lounge. We obliged and paid our departure tax, got our passports stamped and went through security. The international departure lounge consisted of one room with probably 100 chairs. We played a game called “Find the White People.” We were it.

9AM came and went with no aircraft. We played some cards and plane watched a little bit. Finally, our aircraft landed around 9:25AM. We boarded shortly thereafter took our seats in the front of the aircraft. I’d paid to get seat assignments after we’d each been put in middle seats. It wasn’t much money, but our flight was so empty that we could have easily moved around. Either way, we were comfortable and both of our one-way flights with all fees cost $100 combined. Not complaints there. We left the gate at 9:50 and headed to the end of runway 9 after a bit of an apron delay. Just a moment later, we turned around on the runway and were heading back to Malaysia.


Boarding


Last person boarding

The FAs were set free at altitude and they jumped into action. We were encouraged to look at the offerings in the handouts in front of our seats, and they actually had quite a range of food. Neither of us were particularly hungry, but the pizza that was heating up smelled really good, so we split that and each got a drink.


Not bad for $5

It’s almost Pavlovian, but Fiancé sleeps on planes really well and this flight was no different. I chatted with a couple of the FAs and read a little bit while she napped. We played some more cards after she woke up, and the flight went really quickly. This flight was a lot like a Southwest Airlines flight. Nothing particularly notable but it got us there cheaply. Frankly, I wouldn’t hesitate to fly AirAsia again for a shorter flight. I’m not sure I would fly them to London, but it did the trick and got us to KL safely. Before we knew it, we were descending toward Runway 14L.

We arrived almost an hour late at Gate F64 in the LCCT. I’d heard that immigration can be kind of crazy there, but we must have been the only flight coming in at the time as there was no line. Being the first ones off the plane, we were also the first to get to baggage claim where the belt was already running. Our bags came out a few minutes later, and we decided on a taxi directly to the hotel rather than the lengthy bus to Sentral and then transfer to the monorail. Before long, we were seeing the familiar skyline heading to the Sheraton Imperial.


Back to KL

kreeft

Our taxi arrived at the Sheraton for our second stay in a week. All the Sheraton stays on this trip were using cash and points, and this one was costing us $30 and 1,500 points per night. Particularly since we each had just signed up for the 30,000 SPG Amex, using this option was a no brainer.

We arrived and two bellhops immediately opened our doors while another was pulling our luggage from the trunk. Doors were opened by two more employees and we were pointed toward the check-in desk. Both times we checked in, the desk was busy. And both times we checked in, someone came from behind the desk to get our passports and credit card and asked us to sit down in the lobby while they checked us in. The first time, we were checked in by the general manager. When I saw him on our second stay, he asked me why he hadn’t seen me recently, but remembered my name.


Lobby

Both times, we were given a room with a Twin Tower view; although the second stay we were not on a preferred floor in spite of my Gold status with Starwood. Not that it mattered much, as we were still on a high floor and no one could access any floor without using their room key first. We were shown to our room (which was pretty much identical to our first room) and our luggage arrived a few minutes later.

The rooms were pretty nice. The beds were incredibly comfortable – as they usually are at Sheratons – with large flat panel TVs, a sitting area and a desk with wall to wall window with a nice view. The bathrooms were large and had a nice décor. There was both a tub and a shower.


Room




Bathroom Shots

We explored the area around our hotel a little bit and then decided to hit the pool for the last afternoon of our trip. The pool wasn’t large and didn’t have a ton of seating, but it wasn’t busy while we tried to go. It did have a nice view of KL Tower and the weather was perfect for lounging by the pool.

Pool

That night we headed to a restaurant called Top Hat near the KL Convention Center. The food was really good, and the service was as good as I’ve had at any great restaurant. After dinner, we walked around the area and decided to hit up Havana Club for delicious rum and cigars that we can’t have in our home country before heading to a KL night club.


I really like these towers


Havana Club

The next morning was spent leisurely after the late night and we hopped on the monorail to get the KLIA Ekspres. By this time, we were experts on how to do it and made it to the airport in a little under an hour.


Monorail

We were again able to check in at KL Sentral and this time headed straight for the Satellite Terminal. We walked through the KLIA Jungle Boardwalk, which was kind of a cool thing for the middle of an airport. I expected it to be longer, as we were in and out in just a couple minutes. From there, we headed to the Golden Lounge.


Jungle in an Airport


Golden Lounge Satellite

We showed our boarding passes and were gestured toward the Business Class side. I liked the last Golden Lounge we were in, and this one was as good if not better and considerably larger. Everything that was in the previous lounge was in this one with larger food offerings and more staff.






Some of the food offerings


Bubbly Bar


Mmmm…lunch

Fiancé and I hadn’t eaten yet, so we grabbed something to tide us over until the flight, with of course the requisite glass or six of champagne. I spent a little time in the Putting Room and when I went to return the putter, no one was there to stop me from checking out the First Class side. Frankly, it was pretty much the same with perhaps a few more food offerings, but it was deserted. Granted we weren’t there for the prime international flight time, but no one was in there.


Putting Room

When I came back from my adventure, Fiancé informed me that we would be heading to the Relaxation Room. They had a small dark area with a few different massage chairs in it. One of them, which I nicknamed Helga, beat the crap out of me, but damn did it feel good.


Helga

Once I’d had enough, I went to get another glass of champagne before we headed to the gate. When boarding was called, I had to wake up Fiancé in one of the chairs. This was all really nice, but the room wasn’t sealed off from the rest of the club and was near where a bunch of employees were loudly gossiping. It wasn’t a big problem, as I got plenty relaxed (particularly with the champagne kicking in), but could see where someone could get annoyed with the noise.

The time in the lounge flew by and we boarding was announced. We headed down the departure hall toward our gate to begin our trip home…

Gajan

Nice trip report! Looking forward to the final part!

Gajan

restlessinRNO

kreeft - I enjoyed reading your trip report. Great pix!

snowymt

great trip report! the hello kitty gate is hilarious and the fish/feet thing is awesome!