From here to there and everywhere, 100 hours mostly in the air before I get to my bed
Mar 2, 2012, 1:12 am
#31
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
Current Location: Arrival Flow, Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Cities of Pasay and Parañaque, Metro Manila, Philippines
Current Time: 1700h GMT+8, 50 hours after getting out of bed
MNL is an airport which I've come to know, mostly when I was a child. Since my father was from the Philippines, when I was younger we would go to the Philippines every year for a holiday to see my father's family. As we got older, of course this was much harder to achieve. Since I was young, Terminal 1 had undergone very little cosmetic change.
MNL has been purported as one of the worst major airports in the world, if not the worst. Several attempts to supersede Terminal 1 operations into new terminals commissioned and built have been held back by corruption, poor governance, mismanagement and litigation. It is nearly twenty years since Terminal 1 reached its capacity, and any efforts to move forward have been glacial, to put it nicely.
In saying all of this, the terminal itself is functional enough. You won't die because you went through MNL. It's probably comparable to having to endure arrivals at LHR - the same kind of "mental pain" but not necessarily "physical pain" or harm. I'd bet and double down that almost anyone would rather transit through MNL than fly an airline on the EU banned list.
You get the idea.
Aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnyyyyyyyyywwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaa ayyyyyyyyyyy.... *deep breath*
So now the challenge is to use international transit at MNL to get BPs back to HKG and ICN, then upstairs back to departures without having to go landside, which means no fiddling with passport, no weird explanations, no need to put up with long immigration lines (yes, they were long!), and no need to fill out the Philippine entry forms.
Mind you, I've never used international transit at MNL before, so this was going to be an interesting experience.
I walk through the SARS temperature check, then find the transit desk against the far wall opposite the immigration hall. It's a small set up with a couple of guys behind the counter (obviously practicing how to twiddle thumbs), and a couple of chicks with nothing better to do but gossip with the other fellows. Oh, and text like crazy on their mobiles (Filipinos are some of the best in the world when it comes to SMSing!) That is, until I came along.
First, I tell them I need a BP to go to HKG. So they ask which airline. "Dragonair".
The two of them look at each other and me like they think I'm on another planet. What the hell is Dragonair?
"Do you have your ticket?"
I hand them my printed e-ticket from Cathay Pacific. Printouts - a necessary evil at times...
One of the guys clicks into action and says he must find the Cathay Pacific representative. OK then, no problem. Wait about 10 minutes, and the Cathay rep appears. He studies my e-ticket printout, then says he needs my passport. I assume he'll go away, get my BPs sorted out, come back and I'm ready to go. I hand over my passport without much hesitation and he says he'll be back. He disappears past the immigration counters (using a special staff lane) and heads landside.
Then I get an odd epiphany. You fool, anat0l, you should know better than to have your passport out of sight in someone else's hands! What's going to happen to you now?
Well, this is the Philippines - anything could happen. You could have your passport being skimmed right now. Maybe that guy is in kahoots with some of the others, and they've got your passport now.
10 minutes go by.
Maybe I'm worrying too much. Filipinos are actually a nice bunch of people who are very welcoming to guests. No, I'm serious, they really are, despite what you might hear in the popular media about corruption or excessive bureaucracy.
Another 10 minutes go by. At this rate, might as well have been 10 hours (notwithstanding the timing of my next connection). All of the sudden, going through immigration and back in again almost sounded like a safer and quicker idea, even if I had to prop up PHP 550 for the departures tax.
What is taking the rep so long? I'm starting to sport an uncomfortable look on my face. I casually mention to the other transit desk fellows that the rep is taking quite some time. They sort of agree with me. I even joke that I hope my passport isn't being copied! They laugh, but they mention in no uncertain terms that I should be alright - everything's kosher here.
Finally, Pangaea split, forming two new super land masses - Laurasia and Gondwanaland..... errr, I mean, the rep made an appearance from beyond the immigration counters. He apologised to me for the delay, and I couldn't help joke with him that he was going to something funny with my passport! He laughed back - Filipinos are good like that, if you catch the right wave.
Anyway, I get lead to a small room which is a little walk behind the transit desk. In this small room is just enough room for a security screening machine and walk through metal detector, with a set of stairs leading back up to the departures concourse. I clear security, then set about finding the tranquility of an airline lounge.
Entrance to the CX lounge at MNL T1, hidden by the more apparent frontage of the QF lounge (operated by Pagstop)
Current Location: First Class Area, Cathay Pacific Lounge, Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Cities of Pasay and Parañaque, Metro Manila, Philippines
Current Time: 1810h GMT+8, 51 hours 10 minutes after getting out of bed
Cathay operates its own lounge in MNL T1, catering for both F and J passengers. The lounge is set up so that everyone enters the J area, with a further door leading to a separate area for F pax. The facilities in both are essentially identical, though the F area feels classier than the J area. Also, though still not spectacular, there are better views of the tarmac from the F area of the lounge.
The F area of the CX Lounge
Food and drink selection in the lounge is fairly rudimentary; just enough to keep anyone adequately nourished. Snacks were enough to offset the alcohol, with the only major foods being sandwiches and spaghetti (the latter a "novelty favourite" of the Philippines).
Small bar in the F area of the lounge
Not much to be had for eatin' here
Free wifi is available in the lounge, if it is just a little, little bit slow or unreliable at times. It was at least good enough for me to get some work done, and surf the net a little bit. I also managed to find a power socket so I could charge my laptop's almost-drained battery, though I did have to unplug one of the lamps in order to obtain said socket.
There weren't many people at all in the lounge, and it remained similarly quiet for the whole time I was in the lounge. I mainly kept up my water intake as I waited for my first flight on Dragonair and the second half of my status run.
Plane spotting: I know you!
Before long, my vessel docked into MNL airport. At least I knew I was going somewhere.
People who are hot on others' heels shouldn't be dragon their feet
At this point I was quite tired, so I was really looking forward to boarding time. It seems so odd - when you're going somewhere, you feel much more comfort on a plane in the air than you do on the ground. Normally, it's always the opposite. I could have no comfort whilst I was in the terminal, because I had a schedule which meant I needed to be in another terminal to meet another flight, so I couldn't stop worrying until I was on an aircraft and on my way to further fulfill my schedule.
I think I tugged on my laptop the wrong way, for it's telling me it's no longer plugged in. I check the connection and notice the flaky power point. Hmmmm.... better remove it before something deadly of the electric type happens. But I do make a note to plug the lamp back in.
A normal person probably would be finding the stiffest drink in the bar and sipping on that. I'm just having water and orange juice, following my formula of basic beverages when I'm tired but need to keep moving on.
My memory is failing me a little as to whether there was a boarding call or not. In any case, I do remember approaching the front desk (in the J part of the lounge) and asking whether we should be going to the gate. I think I remember her saying, "not quite yet and we'll call you", and seeing as it was a few minutes before this was to happen, I simply waited for the call in one of the chairs in the J part of the lounge. The white lights in the J lounge compared to the subtler lighting in the F lounge, combined with the lack of character in the lounge, definitely made this area feel like a bus terminal lounge (albeit quite a good one at that).
Eventually the call was made and we started towards the gate, which was fortunately only a few metres away from the lounge. The gate area is downstairs from the departures concourse (the gate area and arrivals flow are separated using glass panelling). It has seating, but not much else. Oh alright, there's toilets if you need it. Basically you only want to come here (a) if you need somewhere quieter than the main concourse and you don't have lounge access, and you don't need to access any amenities, and (b) as late as possible. When you enter the gate area, your BP details are checked.
Obviously, the call I got in the lounge was not the boarding call, for the ground staff were still sorting things out at the desk. Pre-boarding mashalling calls......I should learn to recognise them more often... then again, it was only about 5 more minutes before we got the call, <two-tone> "Ladies and gentlemen, Dragonair flight KA932... KA932 to Hong Kong is now ready for boarding. Passengers on this flight please proceed to gate 2.... gate 2. All aboard please."
Yes, the Filipinos do make a note of saying, "All aboard please," just like in the good ol' days of the steam engine trains. I kid, it's simply idiosyncratic. They also tend to say the entire PA without regards for the 'punctuation'. Think of a race track announcer, except adjusting a bit slower for the non-English background.
Current Time: 1700h GMT+8, 50 hours after getting out of bed
MNL is an airport which I've come to know, mostly when I was a child. Since my father was from the Philippines, when I was younger we would go to the Philippines every year for a holiday to see my father's family. As we got older, of course this was much harder to achieve. Since I was young, Terminal 1 had undergone very little cosmetic change.
MNL has been purported as one of the worst major airports in the world, if not the worst. Several attempts to supersede Terminal 1 operations into new terminals commissioned and built have been held back by corruption, poor governance, mismanagement and litigation. It is nearly twenty years since Terminal 1 reached its capacity, and any efforts to move forward have been glacial, to put it nicely.
In saying all of this, the terminal itself is functional enough. You won't die because you went through MNL. It's probably comparable to having to endure arrivals at LHR - the same kind of "mental pain" but not necessarily "physical pain" or harm. I'd bet and double down that almost anyone would rather transit through MNL than fly an airline on the EU banned list.
You get the idea.
Aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnyyyyyyyyywwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaa ayyyyyyyyyyy.... *deep breath*
So now the challenge is to use international transit at MNL to get BPs back to HKG and ICN, then upstairs back to departures without having to go landside, which means no fiddling with passport, no weird explanations, no need to put up with long immigration lines (yes, they were long!), and no need to fill out the Philippine entry forms.
Mind you, I've never used international transit at MNL before, so this was going to be an interesting experience.
I walk through the SARS temperature check, then find the transit desk against the far wall opposite the immigration hall. It's a small set up with a couple of guys behind the counter (obviously practicing how to twiddle thumbs), and a couple of chicks with nothing better to do but gossip with the other fellows. Oh, and text like crazy on their mobiles (Filipinos are some of the best in the world when it comes to SMSing!) That is, until I came along.
First, I tell them I need a BP to go to HKG. So they ask which airline. "Dragonair".
The two of them look at each other and me like they think I'm on another planet. What the hell is Dragonair?
"Do you have your ticket?"
I hand them my printed e-ticket from Cathay Pacific. Printouts - a necessary evil at times...
One of the guys clicks into action and says he must find the Cathay Pacific representative. OK then, no problem. Wait about 10 minutes, and the Cathay rep appears. He studies my e-ticket printout, then says he needs my passport. I assume he'll go away, get my BPs sorted out, come back and I'm ready to go. I hand over my passport without much hesitation and he says he'll be back. He disappears past the immigration counters (using a special staff lane) and heads landside.
Then I get an odd epiphany. You fool, anat0l, you should know better than to have your passport out of sight in someone else's hands! What's going to happen to you now?
Well, this is the Philippines - anything could happen. You could have your passport being skimmed right now. Maybe that guy is in kahoots with some of the others, and they've got your passport now.
10 minutes go by.
Maybe I'm worrying too much. Filipinos are actually a nice bunch of people who are very welcoming to guests. No, I'm serious, they really are, despite what you might hear in the popular media about corruption or excessive bureaucracy.
Another 10 minutes go by. At this rate, might as well have been 10 hours (notwithstanding the timing of my next connection). All of the sudden, going through immigration and back in again almost sounded like a safer and quicker idea, even if I had to prop up PHP 550 for the departures tax.
What is taking the rep so long? I'm starting to sport an uncomfortable look on my face. I casually mention to the other transit desk fellows that the rep is taking quite some time. They sort of agree with me. I even joke that I hope my passport isn't being copied! They laugh, but they mention in no uncertain terms that I should be alright - everything's kosher here.
Finally, Pangaea split, forming two new super land masses - Laurasia and Gondwanaland..... errr, I mean, the rep made an appearance from beyond the immigration counters. He apologised to me for the delay, and I couldn't help joke with him that he was going to something funny with my passport! He laughed back - Filipinos are good like that, if you catch the right wave.
Anyway, I get lead to a small room which is a little walk behind the transit desk. In this small room is just enough room for a security screening machine and walk through metal detector, with a set of stairs leading back up to the departures concourse. I clear security, then set about finding the tranquility of an airline lounge.
Entrance to the CX lounge at MNL T1, hidden by the more apparent frontage of the QF lounge (operated by Pagstop)
Current Location: First Class Area, Cathay Pacific Lounge, Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Cities of Pasay and Parañaque, Metro Manila, Philippines
Current Time: 1810h GMT+8, 51 hours 10 minutes after getting out of bed
Cathay operates its own lounge in MNL T1, catering for both F and J passengers. The lounge is set up so that everyone enters the J area, with a further door leading to a separate area for F pax. The facilities in both are essentially identical, though the F area feels classier than the J area. Also, though still not spectacular, there are better views of the tarmac from the F area of the lounge.
The F area of the CX Lounge
Food and drink selection in the lounge is fairly rudimentary; just enough to keep anyone adequately nourished. Snacks were enough to offset the alcohol, with the only major foods being sandwiches and spaghetti (the latter a "novelty favourite" of the Philippines).
Small bar in the F area of the lounge
Not much to be had for eatin' here
Free wifi is available in the lounge, if it is just a little, little bit slow or unreliable at times. It was at least good enough for me to get some work done, and surf the net a little bit. I also managed to find a power socket so I could charge my laptop's almost-drained battery, though I did have to unplug one of the lamps in order to obtain said socket.
There weren't many people at all in the lounge, and it remained similarly quiet for the whole time I was in the lounge. I mainly kept up my water intake as I waited for my first flight on Dragonair and the second half of my status run.
Plane spotting: I know you!
Before long, my vessel docked into MNL airport. At least I knew I was going somewhere.
People who are hot on others' heels shouldn't be dragon their feet
At this point I was quite tired, so I was really looking forward to boarding time. It seems so odd - when you're going somewhere, you feel much more comfort on a plane in the air than you do on the ground. Normally, it's always the opposite. I could have no comfort whilst I was in the terminal, because I had a schedule which meant I needed to be in another terminal to meet another flight, so I couldn't stop worrying until I was on an aircraft and on my way to further fulfill my schedule.
I think I tugged on my laptop the wrong way, for it's telling me it's no longer plugged in. I check the connection and notice the flaky power point. Hmmmm.... better remove it before something deadly of the electric type happens. But I do make a note to plug the lamp back in.
A normal person probably would be finding the stiffest drink in the bar and sipping on that. I'm just having water and orange juice, following my formula of basic beverages when I'm tired but need to keep moving on.
My memory is failing me a little as to whether there was a boarding call or not. In any case, I do remember approaching the front desk (in the J part of the lounge) and asking whether we should be going to the gate. I think I remember her saying, "not quite yet and we'll call you", and seeing as it was a few minutes before this was to happen, I simply waited for the call in one of the chairs in the J part of the lounge. The white lights in the J lounge compared to the subtler lighting in the F lounge, combined with the lack of character in the lounge, definitely made this area feel like a bus terminal lounge (albeit quite a good one at that).
Eventually the call was made and we started towards the gate, which was fortunately only a few metres away from the lounge. The gate area is downstairs from the departures concourse (the gate area and arrivals flow are separated using glass panelling). It has seating, but not much else. Oh alright, there's toilets if you need it. Basically you only want to come here (a) if you need somewhere quieter than the main concourse and you don't have lounge access, and you don't need to access any amenities, and (b) as late as possible. When you enter the gate area, your BP details are checked.
Obviously, the call I got in the lounge was not the boarding call, for the ground staff were still sorting things out at the desk. Pre-boarding mashalling calls......I should learn to recognise them more often... then again, it was only about 5 more minutes before we got the call, <two-tone> "Ladies and gentlemen, Dragonair flight KA932... KA932 to Hong Kong is now ready for boarding. Passengers on this flight please proceed to gate 2.... gate 2. All aboard please."
Yes, the Filipinos do make a note of saying, "All aboard please," just like in the good ol' days of the steam engine trains. I kid, it's simply idiosyncratic. They also tend to say the entire PA without regards for the 'punctuation'. Think of a race track announcer, except adjusting a bit slower for the non-English background.
Mar 2, 2012, 1:14 am
#32
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
Flight: Dragonair KA932 Manila (MNL T1) - Hong Kong (HKG)
Depart: Sched 2030h; Actual 2046h
Duration: 2 h 10 min
Distance: 712 mi (1,146 km)
Aircraft: B-THE Airbus A321-200
Class: Business
Seat: 11A
I think there was a further announcement explaining how they were going to board the aircraft systematically. Not that it would matter - don't they realise this is Asia (let alone the Philippines)? There appeared to be a line for priority and Business passengers, which enabled me to board earlier than most. I think "Business" or "First" is still highly regarded here, so a mention of your flying either of those classes will usually get you easier passage.
Dragonair, or more fully Hong Kong Dragon Airlines, is the little sister airline of Cathay Pacific. It used to be independent until 2006, where it was taken over by CX and effectively sustained itself as a regional "champion" in CX's portfolio. Most of the routes serviced by Dragonair are in mainland China, then plenty of short / medium haul destinations around the Hong Kong hub (key routes like Taiwan and some Japan), the furthest destination served by KA is Bengalaru, with Dhaka not far behind.
Anyway, I headed onto the aircraft, which is a two-cabin Business and Economy configured one. Dragonair do have First Class, but I suspect this isn't one of these routes or at least I didn't get lucky with the aircraft type. I think more of the China routes are served with First Class equipped planes. The narrow body A321 has quite a large Business section - six rows, making 24 seats. The FAs greeted me as I boarded and I took my seat. As it turns out, there were only two passengers in Business for this flight.
The Dragonair Business cabin on the A321-200
Leg room shot
The FAs came around in a timely fashion asking if I would like something to drink before take off. I asked only for a water. The FA obliged my request and provided a packeted moist cleansing towelette as well. I suppose hot towels aren't the thing here. Then again, it's so humid outside that a hot towel probably isn't appropriate. I could also tell that the FAs are usually used to flying the Chinese routes, as their English was quite good but sounded very much like it was limited in fluency only for the task at hand, i.e. their job. In saying that, for non-English speaking background people, they do quite a good job, especially when I compare that with some other people's reports when flying other Chinese carriers.
Pre-flight drink of water, with packeted moist towelette
The aircraft was fairly heavily boarded in Y, so it wasn't a lightly loaded flight overall. But we managed to get everyone on board without drama and we were soon pushed back from the gate. A fairly quick taxi to the runway and our little (or not so little) A321 was powering its way to HKG.
Dinner, or more accurately the "all day" meal, was being served on this flight. Once again, it seems the choices were one of Western and one of Eastern. I chose the 'Eastern' option this time, which was pork belly. Quite a respectable meal and should fill anyone up, though others might comment on the fattiness of the pork and very slight gluggy-sticky consistency of the sauce. For most people flying out of the Philippines, this is really good food. The decor on Dragonair is also subtly more plain compared to its parent airline.
KA Business meal tray with appetiser and dessert already in place
Pork belly main
After finishing that nice dinner, my plate was cleared away and I ended up reading a bit more before catching a few winks to offset my tiredness a little bit, or at least bridge me until I got to HKG and managed to have a shower.
Just feels like another BNE/MEL flight. 2 hours in the air seems to go quicker than 2 hours on the ground. Before long we were back in HKG and on the ground and taxiing to the satellite complex. I've never been to this little terminal before. For those not in the know, HKG has a small satellite complex (called the "North Satellite Concourse") with about ten or so gates (numbered gate 500 and onwards). These gates primarily cater for the needs of Dragonair only (I've never seen other flights pull up at these gates, though some Dragonair flights do pull up at the main terminal as well).
Depart: Sched 2030h; Actual 2046h
Duration: 2 h 10 min
Distance: 712 mi (1,146 km)
Aircraft: B-THE Airbus A321-200
Class: Business
Seat: 11A
I think there was a further announcement explaining how they were going to board the aircraft systematically. Not that it would matter - don't they realise this is Asia (let alone the Philippines)? There appeared to be a line for priority and Business passengers, which enabled me to board earlier than most. I think "Business" or "First" is still highly regarded here, so a mention of your flying either of those classes will usually get you easier passage.
Dragonair, or more fully Hong Kong Dragon Airlines, is the little sister airline of Cathay Pacific. It used to be independent until 2006, where it was taken over by CX and effectively sustained itself as a regional "champion" in CX's portfolio. Most of the routes serviced by Dragonair are in mainland China, then plenty of short / medium haul destinations around the Hong Kong hub (key routes like Taiwan and some Japan), the furthest destination served by KA is Bengalaru, with Dhaka not far behind.
Anyway, I headed onto the aircraft, which is a two-cabin Business and Economy configured one. Dragonair do have First Class, but I suspect this isn't one of these routes or at least I didn't get lucky with the aircraft type. I think more of the China routes are served with First Class equipped planes. The narrow body A321 has quite a large Business section - six rows, making 24 seats. The FAs greeted me as I boarded and I took my seat. As it turns out, there were only two passengers in Business for this flight.
The Dragonair Business cabin on the A321-200
Leg room shot
The FAs came around in a timely fashion asking if I would like something to drink before take off. I asked only for a water. The FA obliged my request and provided a packeted moist cleansing towelette as well. I suppose hot towels aren't the thing here. Then again, it's so humid outside that a hot towel probably isn't appropriate. I could also tell that the FAs are usually used to flying the Chinese routes, as their English was quite good but sounded very much like it was limited in fluency only for the task at hand, i.e. their job. In saying that, for non-English speaking background people, they do quite a good job, especially when I compare that with some other people's reports when flying other Chinese carriers.
Pre-flight drink of water, with packeted moist towelette
The aircraft was fairly heavily boarded in Y, so it wasn't a lightly loaded flight overall. But we managed to get everyone on board without drama and we were soon pushed back from the gate. A fairly quick taxi to the runway and our little (or not so little) A321 was powering its way to HKG.
Dinner, or more accurately the "all day" meal, was being served on this flight. Once again, it seems the choices were one of Western and one of Eastern. I chose the 'Eastern' option this time, which was pork belly. Quite a respectable meal and should fill anyone up, though others might comment on the fattiness of the pork and very slight gluggy-sticky consistency of the sauce. For most people flying out of the Philippines, this is really good food. The decor on Dragonair is also subtly more plain compared to its parent airline.
KA Business meal tray with appetiser and dessert already in place
Pork belly main
After finishing that nice dinner, my plate was cleared away and I ended up reading a bit more before catching a few winks to offset my tiredness a little bit, or at least bridge me until I got to HKG and managed to have a shower.
Just feels like another BNE/MEL flight. 2 hours in the air seems to go quicker than 2 hours on the ground. Before long we were back in HKG and on the ground and taxiing to the satellite complex. I've never been to this little terminal before. For those not in the know, HKG has a small satellite complex (called the "North Satellite Concourse") with about ten or so gates (numbered gate 500 and onwards). These gates primarily cater for the needs of Dragonair only (I've never seen other flights pull up at these gates, though some Dragonair flights do pull up at the main terminal as well).
Mar 2, 2012, 1:15 am
#33
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
MENU: KA932 MNL-HKG J (20 Jun 2011)
Dragonair KA932 Business Class Manila - Hong Kong
20 June 2011
Lunch / Dinner
Starter
Grilled scallop and prawn with mango salad
Main Courses
Braised pork belly with yams
Steamed rice and vegetables
Chicken with thyme and marjoram crust
Mashed potato and vegetables
Dessert
Cappuccino Gateau
Bread basket
Drinks List
Fook Ming Ting Tea Shop
Fujian First Class Oolong
Fuding Jasmine Silver Fur (mo li yin hao)
Other Tea
Ceylon
Japanese
Hong Kong Style Milk Tea (nai cha)
Coffee
Freshly brewed
Decaffeinated
KA Signature Drink
Dragon Sunrise
A refreshing combination of Gin with fresh guava and lemon juice
Aperitifs and Cocktails
Sweet or Dry Vermouth
Campari
Bloody Mary
Screwdriver
Sweet or Dry Martini
Manhattan
Bacardi Rum
Gordon's Gin
Smirnoff Vodka
Whiskies
Chivas Regal 12 Years
Jack Daniel's
Cognac and Liqueurs
Courvoisier XO Imperial
Baileys Irish Cream
Port
Graham's Port (2005)
Beer
International Selection
Juices
Fresh Orange Juice
Tomato Juice
Apple Juice
Soft Drinks
Coke Zero
Coke Light
Coke
Sprite
Tonic Water
Soda Water
Ginger Ale
Perrier Water
Mineral Water
Champagne
Piper-Heisieck Brut
White Wines
Revelation Coteaux du Languedoc Blanc (France) (2008)
Corner Stone Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (New Zealand) (2008)
Red Wines
Cellier Cotes du Rhone Red (France) (2009)
Jacob's Creek Reserve Shiraz (Australia) (2006)
20 June 2011
Lunch / Dinner
Starter
Grilled scallop and prawn with mango salad
Main Courses
Braised pork belly with yams
Steamed rice and vegetables
Chicken with thyme and marjoram crust
Mashed potato and vegetables
Dessert
Cappuccino Gateau
Bread basket
Drinks List
Fook Ming Ting Tea Shop
Fujian First Class Oolong
Fuding Jasmine Silver Fur (mo li yin hao)
Other Tea
Ceylon
Japanese
Hong Kong Style Milk Tea (nai cha)
Coffee
Freshly brewed
Decaffeinated
KA Signature Drink
Dragon Sunrise
A refreshing combination of Gin with fresh guava and lemon juice
Aperitifs and Cocktails
Sweet or Dry Vermouth
Campari
Bloody Mary
Screwdriver
Sweet or Dry Martini
Manhattan
Bacardi Rum
Gordon's Gin
Smirnoff Vodka
Whiskies
Chivas Regal 12 Years
Jack Daniel's
Cognac and Liqueurs
Courvoisier XO Imperial
Baileys Irish Cream
Port
Graham's Port (2005)
Beer
International Selection
Juices
Fresh Orange Juice
Tomato Juice
Apple Juice
Soft Drinks
Coke Zero
Coke Light
Coke
Sprite
Tonic Water
Soda Water
Ginger Ale
Perrier Water
Mineral Water
Champagne
Piper-Heisieck Brut
White Wines
Revelation Coteaux du Languedoc Blanc (France) (2008)
Corner Stone Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (New Zealand) (2008)
Red Wines
Cellier Cotes du Rhone Red (France) (2009)
Jacob's Creek Reserve Shiraz (Australia) (2006)
Mar 2, 2012, 1:18 am
#34
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
Current Location: Gate 504, North Satellite Concourse, Hong Kong Airport, Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong
Current Time: 2250h GMT+8, 55 hours 50 minutes after getting out of bed
Once we were docked into gate, the FAs made sure that both of us in the Business cabin disembarked before the Economy pax did. It didn't matter all that much, actually. We got out of the aircraft, proceeded along some corridors and down some stairs to the bus bay, which was the means of transiting between this satellite terminal and the main terminal. Of course, what kind of bus was going to take off with only two people on it? The other Y pax quickly followed behind us and squished up on the bus until it was just at burst capacity. Doors shut, our ride to the main terminal was thankfully short (really, because someone hadn't thought about something called air circulation or air conditioning on this bus!). The drop off point at the main terminal is near the immigration area (sort of directly under gate 15). Lucky for me, this also means two things: (a) it's near a transit area, and (b) it's near The Wing.
Pass through HKG security for the second time today - a long day! I wanted to try a sneak a peek at The Cabin - Cathay's newest lounge intended to handle capacity fluctuations due to constructions in the other lounges - but when I got there they said there were no showers. That's not going to work for me, so with not enough time to experience The Cabin and have a shower (2 hour transit only), I left the lounge immediately and made my way quickly back up to The Wing First section. My tiredness is not helped by the droning of the same trilingual warning messages that are heard every time someone steps onto an escalator or walkalator! The Wing entrance to the First section is kind of hidden in a way, because it's down a narrow hallway located around the corner from the security screening from the check-in area.
Entrance down to The Cabin
For those who haven't been to The Wing First section before, I've included photos below from a previous trip. These photos on this trip was when I was travelling in December 2009, so yes there are Christmas decorations all over the place. And yes it was still daylight hours. Obviously, none of these are applicable for this trip.
The Wing lounge - a calming collection of timber and stone (tile, actually). (Previous trip photos)
I immediately headed to the shower area and asked if a cabana was available - and it was! Yes! There are only five cabanas, but they are a sanctuary for getting refreshed and cleaned up. The regular showers in The Wing and The Pier are also good enough for purpose, but they are more compact in space and not as open feeling as the cabanas, and much more so in the case of The Wing showers (The Pier shower rooms are actually pretty spacious). Some more old photos coming up...
Entering a cabana in The Wing First section. (Previous trip photo)
Full sized bath tubs feature in every cabana. (Previous trip photo)
Overhead shower with decent pressure and hand held shower unit, if that's your thing. (Previous trip photo)
Stone-like vanity basin. (Previous trip photo)
Amenity set provided alongside the vanity, with products by Dermalogica. Do order anything else from the attendants if you need it - they will be very glad to oblige (though sometimes do make a note to point out what you want from the list if necessary). (Previous trip photo)
A recliner and sitting bench are provided at the back of each cabana. Each has a firm foam mattress on top, which works out OK if you're used to sleeping on a bed suited for the Hong Kong people. (Previous trip photo)
A tranquil river at the back of the cabanas provides a soothing environment. Unfortunately, it also acoustically links the other cabanas to you, so you'd better keep it down. Couples, you know what I mean!
(Previous trip photo)
I immediately hung up my clothes and hopped into the shower. Aaaah.... that's so much better! Flying may not be a physically demanding task, but the humidity and lack of humidity and so on seems to take a toll on your hygiene, if but a bit. A good wash later and taking out a new set of clothes, unfortunately there just wasn't enough time to relax in my bathrobe. So I got dressed and headed out to the lounge. My flight was once again boarding from a gate in the "neck", so that would require a good hike from The Wing. I decided not to eat anything from the lounge F section restaurant (called The Haven), which was still doing quite well despite being late at night. Obviously, that food supplied from The Peninsula Hotel doesn't fail to bring in the customers, especially when it is complimentary!
For those who haven't been to The Haven, here are, again, a few old pics showing off the great selection that's possible here. It really is a hotel quality buffet.
A salad selection and build-your-own-salad. To the right would be the several bain maries with lots of different hot foods available, most quite delicious. (Previous trip photo)
This mainstay always seems to be here each time I come to this lounge - chilled soba noodles. (Previous trip photo)
A dessert selection of many cakes, fresh cut fruits and chocolate pralines. Yes, you heard me right - chocolates. (Previous trip photo)
A couple more old photos to show a bit more of the lounge:
Some relaxation couches. The Wing is different to many lounges in that the "work" and "relaxation" area division is almost indistinguishable. (Previous trip photo)
The "Long Bar", possibly the world's longest airport lounge bar offering a view of the tarmac. (Previous trip photo)
Alright, enough old photos.... back to the present...
I waited the rest of the time before the boarding call for my flight just relaxing and checking a few messages (and getting some charge into my laptop which was running almost on empty for the last few hours or so). It's rather nice to be in a "fully functioning" lounge again, if you know what I mean. A bottle of water, some ice cream and a milk tea tided me until my flight was called.
Current Time: 2250h GMT+8, 55 hours 50 minutes after getting out of bed
Once we were docked into gate, the FAs made sure that both of us in the Business cabin disembarked before the Economy pax did. It didn't matter all that much, actually. We got out of the aircraft, proceeded along some corridors and down some stairs to the bus bay, which was the means of transiting between this satellite terminal and the main terminal. Of course, what kind of bus was going to take off with only two people on it? The other Y pax quickly followed behind us and squished up on the bus until it was just at burst capacity. Doors shut, our ride to the main terminal was thankfully short (really, because someone hadn't thought about something called air circulation or air conditioning on this bus!). The drop off point at the main terminal is near the immigration area (sort of directly under gate 15). Lucky for me, this also means two things: (a) it's near a transit area, and (b) it's near The Wing.
Pass through HKG security for the second time today - a long day! I wanted to try a sneak a peek at The Cabin - Cathay's newest lounge intended to handle capacity fluctuations due to constructions in the other lounges - but when I got there they said there were no showers. That's not going to work for me, so with not enough time to experience The Cabin and have a shower (2 hour transit only), I left the lounge immediately and made my way quickly back up to The Wing First section. My tiredness is not helped by the droning of the same trilingual warning messages that are heard every time someone steps onto an escalator or walkalator! The Wing entrance to the First section is kind of hidden in a way, because it's down a narrow hallway located around the corner from the security screening from the check-in area.
Entrance down to The Cabin
For those who haven't been to The Wing First section before, I've included photos below from a previous trip. These photos on this trip was when I was travelling in December 2009, so yes there are Christmas decorations all over the place. And yes it was still daylight hours. Obviously, none of these are applicable for this trip.
The Wing lounge - a calming collection of timber and stone (tile, actually). (Previous trip photos)
I immediately headed to the shower area and asked if a cabana was available - and it was! Yes! There are only five cabanas, but they are a sanctuary for getting refreshed and cleaned up. The regular showers in The Wing and The Pier are also good enough for purpose, but they are more compact in space and not as open feeling as the cabanas, and much more so in the case of The Wing showers (The Pier shower rooms are actually pretty spacious). Some more old photos coming up...
Entering a cabana in The Wing First section. (Previous trip photo)
Full sized bath tubs feature in every cabana. (Previous trip photo)
Overhead shower with decent pressure and hand held shower unit, if that's your thing. (Previous trip photo)
Stone-like vanity basin. (Previous trip photo)
Amenity set provided alongside the vanity, with products by Dermalogica. Do order anything else from the attendants if you need it - they will be very glad to oblige (though sometimes do make a note to point out what you want from the list if necessary). (Previous trip photo)
A recliner and sitting bench are provided at the back of each cabana. Each has a firm foam mattress on top, which works out OK if you're used to sleeping on a bed suited for the Hong Kong people. (Previous trip photo)
A tranquil river at the back of the cabanas provides a soothing environment. Unfortunately, it also acoustically links the other cabanas to you, so you'd better keep it down. Couples, you know what I mean!
(Previous trip photo)I immediately hung up my clothes and hopped into the shower. Aaaah.... that's so much better! Flying may not be a physically demanding task, but the humidity and lack of humidity and so on seems to take a toll on your hygiene, if but a bit. A good wash later and taking out a new set of clothes, unfortunately there just wasn't enough time to relax in my bathrobe. So I got dressed and headed out to the lounge. My flight was once again boarding from a gate in the "neck", so that would require a good hike from The Wing. I decided not to eat anything from the lounge F section restaurant (called The Haven), which was still doing quite well despite being late at night. Obviously, that food supplied from The Peninsula Hotel doesn't fail to bring in the customers, especially when it is complimentary!
For those who haven't been to The Haven, here are, again, a few old pics showing off the great selection that's possible here. It really is a hotel quality buffet.
A salad selection and build-your-own-salad. To the right would be the several bain maries with lots of different hot foods available, most quite delicious. (Previous trip photo)
This mainstay always seems to be here each time I come to this lounge - chilled soba noodles. (Previous trip photo)
A dessert selection of many cakes, fresh cut fruits and chocolate pralines. Yes, you heard me right - chocolates. (Previous trip photo)
A couple more old photos to show a bit more of the lounge:
Some relaxation couches. The Wing is different to many lounges in that the "work" and "relaxation" area division is almost indistinguishable. (Previous trip photo)
The "Long Bar", possibly the world's longest airport lounge bar offering a view of the tarmac. (Previous trip photo)
Alright, enough old photos.... back to the present...
I waited the rest of the time before the boarding call for my flight just relaxing and checking a few messages (and getting some charge into my laptop which was running almost on empty for the last few hours or so). It's rather nice to be in a "fully functioning" lounge again, if you know what I mean. A bottle of water, some ice cream and a milk tea tided me until my flight was called.
Mar 2, 2012, 1:20 am
#35
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
Tuesday 21 June 2011
Current Location: First Class Section, The Wing Lounge by Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong Airport, Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong
Current Time: 0000h GMT+8, 57 hours after getting out of bed
The boarding call came and I started packing up my belongings, doing a careful double check (you never know in one's fatigued state), and one last swig of water before I was out of the lounge. Given that my flight was in the "neck" and I had to walk there, I didn't want to rush so I left early (unlike a couple of times that I've been in this lounge!).
Flight: Cathay Pacific CX412 Hong Kong (HKG) - Seoul-Incheon (ICN)
Depart: Sched 0040h; Actual 0056h
Duration: 3 h 35 min
Distance: 1,287 mi (2,071 km)
Aircraft: B-HLO Airbus A330-300
Class: Business
Seat: 14A
Last flight of my status run, and yet another regional J aircraft. The red-eye flight to ICN was not heavily loaded, definitely not as packed as my TG flight the other day.
As we got on board, we were quickly given pre-flight drinks, hot towels and menus. I studied the menu and noticed that there was going to be a supper service and nothing else (though quite a substantial supper at that).
The FAs came around again to check on the few of us who were fortunate to fly this red-eye in J, when I called for her attention.
"Excuse me, I notice we have supper on the menu tonight."
"Yes."
"Would it be alright if.... you see, I'm really tired and I want to sleep as soon as I can. Could I please have my meal before we land rather than after take-off?"
"Yes, that would be fine. Which course would you like - I'll set this aside for you."
That's wonderful service and works well with me. I grabbed a blanket in preparation to doze off.
Passengers boarded. Front door closed. Devices off. Push back. Safety video. Then.... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Current Location: anat0l's Dream
Current Time: Unknown
...................
"...Sir....sir. Would you like to have your meal now?"
I'm still seeing black - what the, I'm not in a restaurant, why would I want to eat?
"Wha... what? What meal?"
"The meal set aside for you, sir."
Well, I guess if they're offering...
"Oh, ah, alright. Well, I guess, yeah, I'll have it now."
"Alright sir, I'll be right back."
Someone should invent an automatic pinching machine.... open your eyes, dim wit!
Current Location: Seat 14A on board B-HLO, CX412 from Hong Kong in transit to Seoul-Incheon, approximately 45 minutes from arrival
Current Time: 0340h GMT+8 or 0440h GMT+9, 59 hours 40 minutes after getting out of bed
I awoke to find myself on an aircraft. Well, at least the seat is in Business Class.
Wait a minute - what am I doing here? I look around - OK this is Cathay Pacific. Where am I going (half a dozen questions possible here, including, 'was I just drugged and dumped onto an aircraft'), is that my passport.... it takes me about a solid minute before it all clicks together. Now I know why I'm here, where I am, and I'm so good that I even work out what day it is today.
The FA returns with my meal tray and I profusely apologise for being out of it. She oddly enough reassures me that it's OK, as if this is far from the first time something like this has happened. My meal tray even has a preset bread selection - obviously she's picked one of each for me. The main course is soon placed on the tray, of which I'd selected the fish. For some reason even though my concentration equilibrium is off-centre at the moment (or perhaps the reason), that fish looked and tasted delicious.
CX J meal tray for supper, with appetiser and bread selection.
Main course of salmon with prosciutto crust.
I asked the FA how much time there was to landing and she replied less than 40 minutes. Wow - I had to eat fast. Or quick-ish anyway. The whole meal went down a treat. I was asked if there was anything I wanted after the meal. I asked for a milk tea, Cathay Delight and some water. What I hadn't reckoned on was that when the FA returned with my drinks, she also presented dessert to me! Even though we easily had only 20-25 minutes left before landing, she said to me to take my time and enjoy.
Cheese plate and Haagen-Dasz ice cream to finish off supper... a rather large supper if you ask me!
I think I finished what I had within about 5-7 minutes of us landing, the FA managing to collect my things as she was doing the final checks before taking her seat. We touched down again in fine Incheon and docked up at the Concourse. Same disembarkation onto the rail shuttle, and same looking scrum at immigration, though it seemed a bit less this morning than the previous one. No one at immigration raised an eye brow about me having entered South Korea yesterday, left it, and now re-entering it again. Without any checked bags, I walked straight out to the arrivals hall.
That was the end of my CX status run... 280 QF status credits into the coffers. Now.... it was time to go home.
Current Location: First Class Section, The Wing Lounge by Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong Airport, Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong
Current Time: 0000h GMT+8, 57 hours after getting out of bed
The boarding call came and I started packing up my belongings, doing a careful double check (you never know in one's fatigued state), and one last swig of water before I was out of the lounge. Given that my flight was in the "neck" and I had to walk there, I didn't want to rush so I left early (unlike a couple of times that I've been in this lounge!).
Flight: Cathay Pacific CX412 Hong Kong (HKG) - Seoul-Incheon (ICN)
Depart: Sched 0040h; Actual 0056h
Duration: 3 h 35 min
Distance: 1,287 mi (2,071 km)
Aircraft: B-HLO Airbus A330-300
Class: Business
Seat: 14A
Last flight of my status run, and yet another regional J aircraft. The red-eye flight to ICN was not heavily loaded, definitely not as packed as my TG flight the other day.
As we got on board, we were quickly given pre-flight drinks, hot towels and menus. I studied the menu and noticed that there was going to be a supper service and nothing else (though quite a substantial supper at that).
The FAs came around again to check on the few of us who were fortunate to fly this red-eye in J, when I called for her attention.
"Excuse me, I notice we have supper on the menu tonight."
"Yes."
"Would it be alright if.... you see, I'm really tired and I want to sleep as soon as I can. Could I please have my meal before we land rather than after take-off?"
"Yes, that would be fine. Which course would you like - I'll set this aside for you."
That's wonderful service and works well with me. I grabbed a blanket in preparation to doze off.
Passengers boarded. Front door closed. Devices off. Push back. Safety video. Then.... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Current Location: anat0l's Dream
Current Time: Unknown
...................
"...Sir....sir. Would you like to have your meal now?"
I'm still seeing black - what the, I'm not in a restaurant, why would I want to eat?
"Wha... what? What meal?"
"The meal set aside for you, sir."
Well, I guess if they're offering...
"Oh, ah, alright. Well, I guess, yeah, I'll have it now."
"Alright sir, I'll be right back."
Someone should invent an automatic pinching machine.... open your eyes, dim wit!
Current Location: Seat 14A on board B-HLO, CX412 from Hong Kong in transit to Seoul-Incheon, approximately 45 minutes from arrival
Current Time: 0340h GMT+8 or 0440h GMT+9, 59 hours 40 minutes after getting out of bed
I awoke to find myself on an aircraft. Well, at least the seat is in Business Class.
Wait a minute - what am I doing here? I look around - OK this is Cathay Pacific. Where am I going (half a dozen questions possible here, including, 'was I just drugged and dumped onto an aircraft'), is that my passport.... it takes me about a solid minute before it all clicks together. Now I know why I'm here, where I am, and I'm so good that I even work out what day it is today.
The FA returns with my meal tray and I profusely apologise for being out of it. She oddly enough reassures me that it's OK, as if this is far from the first time something like this has happened. My meal tray even has a preset bread selection - obviously she's picked one of each for me. The main course is soon placed on the tray, of which I'd selected the fish. For some reason even though my concentration equilibrium is off-centre at the moment (or perhaps the reason), that fish looked and tasted delicious.
CX J meal tray for supper, with appetiser and bread selection.
Main course of salmon with prosciutto crust.
I asked the FA how much time there was to landing and she replied less than 40 minutes. Wow - I had to eat fast. Or quick-ish anyway. The whole meal went down a treat. I was asked if there was anything I wanted after the meal. I asked for a milk tea, Cathay Delight and some water. What I hadn't reckoned on was that when the FA returned with my drinks, she also presented dessert to me! Even though we easily had only 20-25 minutes left before landing, she said to me to take my time and enjoy.
Cheese plate and Haagen-Dasz ice cream to finish off supper... a rather large supper if you ask me!
I think I finished what I had within about 5-7 minutes of us landing, the FA managing to collect my things as she was doing the final checks before taking her seat. We touched down again in fine Incheon and docked up at the Concourse. Same disembarkation onto the rail shuttle, and same looking scrum at immigration, though it seemed a bit less this morning than the previous one. No one at immigration raised an eye brow about me having entered South Korea yesterday, left it, and now re-entering it again. Without any checked bags, I walked straight out to the arrivals hall.
That was the end of my CX status run... 280 QF status credits into the coffers. Now.... it was time to go home.
Mar 2, 2012, 1:22 am
#36
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
MENU: CX412 HKG-ICN J (21 Jun 2011)
Cathay Pacific CX412 Business Class Hong Kong - Seoul-Incheon
21 June 2011
Supper
Starter
Prawn with mixed salad, dried bean curd and sesame dressing
Main Courses
Sauteed chicken in black bean sauce, steamed jasmine rice and stir-fried choy sum
Salmon with Parmesan and prosciutto crust, clam chowder sauce, grilled zucchini and capsicum
Saffron fettuccini with back bacon and sauteed portobello mushrooms
Cheese and Dessert
Cheese selection
Fresh seasonal fruit
Ice cream by Haagen-Dasz
Tea and coffee
Pralines
Drinks List
Champagne
Billecart-Salmon Brut Champagne
White Wines
Domaine des Malandes Chablis (Chablis, France) (2009)
Next of Kin Margaret River Chardonnay (Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia) (2008)
Red Wines
Moonvine McLaren Vale Shiraz Cabernet Merlot (McLaren Vale, South Australia, Australia) (2007)
L'Esperance du Retout Haut Medoc (Bordeaux, France) (2009)
Port
Dow's Late Bottled Vintage Port (2005)
Aperitifs and Cocktails
Gin
Rum
Vodka
Martini Rosso
Martini Extra Dry
Campari
Sweet and Dry Sherry
Bloody Mary
Screwdriver
Whiskies
Chivas Regal 12 Years Old
Johnnie Walker Gold Label
Jack Daniel's
Canadian Club
Cognac
Hine 'Rare and Delicate' Fine Champagne
Liqueurs
Drambuie
Cointreau
Bailey's Irish Cream
Beer
International Selection
CX Signature Drinks
Cathay Delight
A kiwifruit based non-alcoholic drink with coconut juice and a touch of fresh mint
Pacific Sunrise
A refreshing combination of champagne and Drambuie with the zest of orange and lemon
Juices
Orange
Apple
Tomato
Soft Drinks
Coke Zero (selected flights)
Coke
Coke Light
Sprite
Perrier water
Tonic water
Soda water
Ginger Ale
Coffee
Freshly brewed coffee
Teas
Hong Kong style milk tea (nai cha)
Ceylon
Japanese
Jasmine
Organic Selection by Clipper
Camomile, Earl Grey and Peppermint
Hot Chocolate
21 June 2011
Supper
Starter
Prawn with mixed salad, dried bean curd and sesame dressing
Main Courses
Sauteed chicken in black bean sauce, steamed jasmine rice and stir-fried choy sum
Salmon with Parmesan and prosciutto crust, clam chowder sauce, grilled zucchini and capsicum
Saffron fettuccini with back bacon and sauteed portobello mushrooms
Cheese and Dessert
Cheese selection
Fresh seasonal fruit
Ice cream by Haagen-Dasz
Tea and coffee
Pralines
Drinks List
Champagne
Billecart-Salmon Brut Champagne
White Wines
Domaine des Malandes Chablis (Chablis, France) (2009)
Next of Kin Margaret River Chardonnay (Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia) (2008)
Red Wines
Moonvine McLaren Vale Shiraz Cabernet Merlot (McLaren Vale, South Australia, Australia) (2007)
L'Esperance du Retout Haut Medoc (Bordeaux, France) (2009)
Port
Dow's Late Bottled Vintage Port (2005)
Aperitifs and Cocktails
Gin
Rum
Vodka
Martini Rosso
Martini Extra Dry
Campari
Sweet and Dry Sherry
Bloody Mary
Screwdriver
Whiskies
Chivas Regal 12 Years Old
Johnnie Walker Gold Label
Jack Daniel's
Canadian Club
Cognac
Hine 'Rare and Delicate' Fine Champagne
Liqueurs
Drambuie
Cointreau
Bailey's Irish Cream
Beer
International Selection
CX Signature Drinks
Cathay Delight
A kiwifruit based non-alcoholic drink with coconut juice and a touch of fresh mint
Pacific Sunrise
A refreshing combination of champagne and Drambuie with the zest of orange and lemon
Juices
Orange
Apple
Tomato
Soft Drinks
Coke Zero (selected flights)
Coke
Coke Light
Sprite
Perrier water
Tonic water
Soda water
Ginger Ale
Coffee
Freshly brewed coffee
Teas
Hong Kong style milk tea (nai cha)
Ceylon
Japanese
Jasmine
Organic Selection by Clipper
Camomile, Earl Grey and Peppermint
Hot Chocolate
Mar 2, 2012, 4:57 am
#39
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
Mar 2, 2012, 6:44 am
#40
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Iver
Programs: BA GOLD/OWE BA Amex Prem Plus Tesco Airmiles Qantas Bronze IHG SPG Eithad
Posts: 2,902
I have just spent the last 4 hours reading your fantastic TR and what a report, thank you so much for spending the time and effort to put it together, i was absolutely exhausted after the end of it, so can imagine you must have been whacked. The photos in LH FCT were beyond belief, what a selection of food, snacks and drinks, it blew my mind away. I could go on for ages, but thanks again for a most enjoyable read and visits to all the lounges, and hope at the end of the trip you fell into bed and had a good long sleep. When will be the next TR, or are you on strike for a long while. I notice you are based in BNE, how long have you been there, and how often do you get back home to the East^
Mar 2, 2012, 8:40 am
#41
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
Current Location: Arrivals Hall (Landside), Seoul-Incheon Airport, Incheon, South Korea
Current Time: 0550h GMT+9, 61 hours 50 minutes after getting out of bed
I took a breath after finishing my status run and started to figure out what else had to be done. Well, for starters I needed to get my bag back, repack it a little, then get ready for my flights to go home.
I figured that I didn't find time to take photos of Incheon airport (at least landside) the last time I was here, so I'd better get them now. So now, I present to you, faithful readers, Incheon Airport from landside...
Arrivals Level at ICN
Lots of plants and water around here
Some taller shrubbery, very much juxtaposed against the quite business-building like airport
More calming accessorising in the check-in area
Check-in hall at ICN
Shot of the check-in hall from a higher vantage point (the level where I am taking this shot is where all the restaurants are)
ICN check-in hall L for OZ premium classes. Pretty plain; perhaps all the accessories aren't out yet, but that'd be quite unusual.
I returned to the left luggage service and handed in my receipt, which was promptly exchanged for my bag. Found a bench, unzip the bag, repack it a little to get a new set of clothes and change my reading material. My bag is burgeoning with amenity kits...oh well, hope it survives all the way home.
Whilst this is happening, I'm watching a set of desks open up for (if I remember correctly) an Asiana flight. I notice the staff setting up their desks and just as they are about to start, all of the staff in the row of desks stand in front of their counters. A message starts to play over the PA in Korean, and the staff bow just as the message finishes. They then return to their counters and invite people to come forward.
I finish repacking and start moving towards the check-in desks handling my TG flight. The counters are already open and there is a dedicated desk just for Business Class and Star Alliance Gold. Fits both of my bills. TG contract the staff from OZ to handle their check-in, and with an offer of my CheckMyTrip itinerary, the check-in agent hands me two boarding passes for my flights today, a bag tag for my checked bag that will be also enjoying the long journey, and a lounge pass for the Boarding Gate Lounge operated by OZ.
My BPs taking me home, and lounge invitation
Once again, I cleared outbound security at ICN and once again (and for the last time for a while!) passed through immigration. I got four stamps (two inbound and two outbound) from Korean immigration and no one asked a single question. After this, I had the now-familiar task of heading to the Concourse via the rail shuttle.
More ICN airside at the main terminal
ICN airside at the Concourse
The Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge is located near the Cathay Pacific one. It is also likewise signposted once you take the escalators up from the rail shuttle, so finding it was a piece of cake.
The level above the main departures concourse where some lounges are located. There's also some space up here if you want to escape the main hubbub down below.
A large bell as an exhibit in the airport's Korean museum of culture
Entrance to the Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge
Current Time: 0550h GMT+9, 61 hours 50 minutes after getting out of bed
I took a breath after finishing my status run and started to figure out what else had to be done. Well, for starters I needed to get my bag back, repack it a little, then get ready for my flights to go home.
I figured that I didn't find time to take photos of Incheon airport (at least landside) the last time I was here, so I'd better get them now. So now, I present to you, faithful readers, Incheon Airport from landside...
Arrivals Level at ICN
Lots of plants and water around here
Some taller shrubbery, very much juxtaposed against the quite business-building like airport
More calming accessorising in the check-in area
Check-in hall at ICN
Shot of the check-in hall from a higher vantage point (the level where I am taking this shot is where all the restaurants are)
ICN check-in hall L for OZ premium classes. Pretty plain; perhaps all the accessories aren't out yet, but that'd be quite unusual.
I returned to the left luggage service and handed in my receipt, which was promptly exchanged for my bag. Found a bench, unzip the bag, repack it a little to get a new set of clothes and change my reading material. My bag is burgeoning with amenity kits...oh well, hope it survives all the way home.
Whilst this is happening, I'm watching a set of desks open up for (if I remember correctly) an Asiana flight. I notice the staff setting up their desks and just as they are about to start, all of the staff in the row of desks stand in front of their counters. A message starts to play over the PA in Korean, and the staff bow just as the message finishes. They then return to their counters and invite people to come forward.
I finish repacking and start moving towards the check-in desks handling my TG flight. The counters are already open and there is a dedicated desk just for Business Class and Star Alliance Gold. Fits both of my bills. TG contract the staff from OZ to handle their check-in, and with an offer of my CheckMyTrip itinerary, the check-in agent hands me two boarding passes for my flights today, a bag tag for my checked bag that will be also enjoying the long journey, and a lounge pass for the Boarding Gate Lounge operated by OZ.
My BPs taking me home, and lounge invitation
Once again, I cleared outbound security at ICN and once again (and for the last time for a while!) passed through immigration. I got four stamps (two inbound and two outbound) from Korean immigration and no one asked a single question. After this, I had the now-familiar task of heading to the Concourse via the rail shuttle.
More ICN airside at the main terminal
ICN airside at the Concourse
The Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge is located near the Cathay Pacific one. It is also likewise signposted once you take the escalators up from the rail shuttle, so finding it was a piece of cake.
The level above the main departures concourse where some lounges are located. There's also some space up here if you want to escape the main hubbub down below.
A large bell as an exhibit in the airport's Korean museum of culture
Entrance to the Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge
Mar 2, 2012, 8:42 am
#42
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
I went inside the lounge to the reception where my lounge pass was requested and taken. The lounge was still rather quiet when I went in, though there were quite a few people inside. There are no windows in this lounge, but the lighting and environment is kept calm and tranquil (save for the food area, perhaps).
Inside the Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge. Here are just rows and rows and rows of lounge chairs.
A library themed corner of the lounge.
Current Location: Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge, Concourse A, Seoul-Incheon Airport, Incheon, South Korea
Current Time: 0650h GMT+9, 62 hours 50 minutes after getting out of bed
Once I was inside, my first thoughts were, "I want a shower," probably closely related to the thought, "I need a shower". Luckily, this lounge does have showers, and pretty good ones at that. The shower rooms are rather compact and there is no toilet in them, so don't expect to take care of all your morning needs in the same room.
Slumber rooms to the left, shower rooms to the right.
One of the slumber rooms, presumably with a massage chair. No Asian home can do without one..... just kidding.
Lounge shower room.
Vanity bric-a-brac for pretty much every need. It is not intended that you take these bottles away.
The shower had good pressure and the supplied amenities were not too bad; well and truly sufficient for the purpose at hand. One disadvantage I suppose is that because the shower room is small and I had a fairly hot (read: warm) shower, all the steam became trapped in the room and the ventilation wasn't all that great. Nevertheless, a shower, teeth brushing and a shave almost always makes you feel like a new person. Almost.
After my shower, I thought that I had to have a look at the food selection, and perhaps sample it. The servery was set with breakfast, mostly of the continental kind. There was a mini salad bar (don't ask why), pastries, cereal selection, lots of biscuits and instant noodle cups available.
Food servery and dining area.
Salad bar.
I took a plate of salad and a cup of hot noodles (after adding in the requisite boiling water, of course). These noodles were hot in both senses - the Koreans are not messing around when you see a red cup of noodles, it will be spicy! Makes the average Australian feel very wimpy in comparison.
A morning sampling of the servery.
Having finished my meal, I found a quiet part of the lounge to relax and finish my bottle of water. My body needed a bit of rest so I didn't bother firing up my laptop to check messages or read some papers. This managed to tie me over until it was time to board.
Inside the Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge. Here are just rows and rows and rows of lounge chairs.
A library themed corner of the lounge.
Current Location: Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge, Concourse A, Seoul-Incheon Airport, Incheon, South Korea
Current Time: 0650h GMT+9, 62 hours 50 minutes after getting out of bed
Once I was inside, my first thoughts were, "I want a shower," probably closely related to the thought, "I need a shower". Luckily, this lounge does have showers, and pretty good ones at that. The shower rooms are rather compact and there is no toilet in them, so don't expect to take care of all your morning needs in the same room.
Slumber rooms to the left, shower rooms to the right.
One of the slumber rooms, presumably with a massage chair. No Asian home can do without one..... just kidding.
Lounge shower room.
Vanity bric-a-brac for pretty much every need. It is not intended that you take these bottles away.
The shower had good pressure and the supplied amenities were not too bad; well and truly sufficient for the purpose at hand. One disadvantage I suppose is that because the shower room is small and I had a fairly hot (read: warm) shower, all the steam became trapped in the room and the ventilation wasn't all that great. Nevertheless, a shower, teeth brushing and a shave almost always makes you feel like a new person. Almost.
After my shower, I thought that I had to have a look at the food selection, and perhaps sample it. The servery was set with breakfast, mostly of the continental kind. There was a mini salad bar (don't ask why), pastries, cereal selection, lots of biscuits and instant noodle cups available.
Food servery and dining area.
Salad bar.
I took a plate of salad and a cup of hot noodles (after adding in the requisite boiling water, of course). These noodles were hot in both senses - the Koreans are not messing around when you see a red cup of noodles, it will be spicy! Makes the average Australian feel very wimpy in comparison.
A morning sampling of the servery.
Having finished my meal, I found a quiet part of the lounge to relax and finish my bottle of water. My body needed a bit of rest so I didn't bother firing up my laptop to check messages or read some papers. This managed to tie me over until it was time to board.
Mar 2, 2012, 8:47 am
#44
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
Flight: Thai Airways TG659 Seoul-Incheon (ICN) - Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi (BKK)
Depart: Sched 0935h; Actual 0933h
Duration: 5 h 50 min
Distance: 2,282 mi (3,673 km)
Aircraft: HS-TKA "Sriwanna" Boeing 777-300
Class: Business
Seat: 12K
Once again I found myself in a regional J seat and aircraft. The flight to BKK was more than half full in J, but still not as packed as the red eye I flew to ICN the other day. Once again, we all received amenity kits, which were exactly the same as last time except this time we got a more stylish bag designed by Aigner (Etienne Aigner).
We pushed back and I said goodbye to ICN, at least for a while.
Once in the air and the seat belt signs turned off, the crew got moving to serve lunch. Lunch was prefaced with a hot appetiser and aperitifs.
Hot appetiser of fried prawn balls. The resemblance of the served plate to a Paul Frank creation is purely coincidental!
The appetiser plates were cleared, and then the meal trays were offered with the entree. The smoked salmon in this course was OK, but the salad tasted a bit left for dead. And of course, with every meal to and from Korea, you'd be wise to supply some kimchi, if even a little bit.
J Lunch trays with the entree of smoked salmon with salad.
The entree was followed by my selected main, the Korean traditional Bibimbap. If you think what was presented to me looks a little dead, you'd be right. I was rather disappointed with this dish. Yes, I know it's not dolsot bibimbap (which some of you are probably used to ordering at a typical Korean restaurant; the 'dolsot' part denotes the hot stone bowl the bibimbap is served in), but I'd expect that at least the ingredients of this dish were tasty, and they were not. Not sure what is it today with the rather dead tasting ingredients. The rice was also a bit sticky.
Bibimbap main.
After the trays for the mains were cleared, the cheese board and dessert cart were wheeled out to round out the meal. The presentation of the cheese and dessert cart was excellent, but the more I looked the more I started to realise that Thai seemed to have some things "just for the sake of having them". The cheese board was a great example - whilst Thai realises that it's a very Western thing to have cheese after a meal and thus provide a cheese selection, the cheese looked like simple off-the-shelf cheese representing the major groups - cheddar, soft creamy and blue cheese. Nothing spectacular about the cheese that has been given - it's "cheese for cheese sake". The other parts of Thai's service seemed similar.
Cheese and dessert being served from the cart.
I wanted to save my stomach for whatever laid ahead of me (First and more First service to come), so I asked for only a bit of cheese and fruit, but I did make a note to have the dessert, albeit it was a humble slice of cake.
A piece of cheese and some grapes.
Blueberry cake dessert.
When my dessert plates were cleared away, I went to the bathroom for a quick freshen up before dozing. The Thai J bathrooms are equipped with accessories from Salvatore Ferragamo, which I find quite interesting seeing as that is what they also provide for the F passengers too. The accessories were well positioned in the bathroom. You can also get better toothbrush / toothpaste sets in the bathroom compared to the amenity kit. The bathroom's dental kits come in a durable soft plastic container with a closeable cap on top. It's a much sturdier way to carry your toothbrush around and protect it from whatever elements that may be around it.
Inside the TG J bathrooms, featuring accessories by Salvatore Ferragamo.
After finishing in the bathroom, I reclined my seat into the angle-flat sleeping position and dozed pretty much up until we had to prepare for landing. That was a nice solid rest and put a bit back into me in preparation for my long layover in the TG BKK F Lounge.
Before long, we touched down in BKK - an airport I was getting to know all too well - and we docked up at the gate. Now the rest of the day was First service all the way......
Depart: Sched 0935h; Actual 0933h
Duration: 5 h 50 min
Distance: 2,282 mi (3,673 km)
Aircraft: HS-TKA "Sriwanna" Boeing 777-300
Class: Business
Seat: 12K
Once again I found myself in a regional J seat and aircraft. The flight to BKK was more than half full in J, but still not as packed as the red eye I flew to ICN the other day. Once again, we all received amenity kits, which were exactly the same as last time except this time we got a more stylish bag designed by Aigner (Etienne Aigner).
We pushed back and I said goodbye to ICN, at least for a while.
Once in the air and the seat belt signs turned off, the crew got moving to serve lunch. Lunch was prefaced with a hot appetiser and aperitifs.
Hot appetiser of fried prawn balls. The resemblance of the served plate to a Paul Frank creation is purely coincidental!
The appetiser plates were cleared, and then the meal trays were offered with the entree. The smoked salmon in this course was OK, but the salad tasted a bit left for dead. And of course, with every meal to and from Korea, you'd be wise to supply some kimchi, if even a little bit.
J Lunch trays with the entree of smoked salmon with salad.
The entree was followed by my selected main, the Korean traditional Bibimbap. If you think what was presented to me looks a little dead, you'd be right. I was rather disappointed with this dish. Yes, I know it's not dolsot bibimbap (which some of you are probably used to ordering at a typical Korean restaurant; the 'dolsot' part denotes the hot stone bowl the bibimbap is served in), but I'd expect that at least the ingredients of this dish were tasty, and they were not. Not sure what is it today with the rather dead tasting ingredients. The rice was also a bit sticky.
Bibimbap main.
After the trays for the mains were cleared, the cheese board and dessert cart were wheeled out to round out the meal. The presentation of the cheese and dessert cart was excellent, but the more I looked the more I started to realise that Thai seemed to have some things "just for the sake of having them". The cheese board was a great example - whilst Thai realises that it's a very Western thing to have cheese after a meal and thus provide a cheese selection, the cheese looked like simple off-the-shelf cheese representing the major groups - cheddar, soft creamy and blue cheese. Nothing spectacular about the cheese that has been given - it's "cheese for cheese sake". The other parts of Thai's service seemed similar.
Cheese and dessert being served from the cart.
I wanted to save my stomach for whatever laid ahead of me (First and more First service to come), so I asked for only a bit of cheese and fruit, but I did make a note to have the dessert, albeit it was a humble slice of cake.
A piece of cheese and some grapes.
Blueberry cake dessert.
When my dessert plates were cleared away, I went to the bathroom for a quick freshen up before dozing. The Thai J bathrooms are equipped with accessories from Salvatore Ferragamo, which I find quite interesting seeing as that is what they also provide for the F passengers too. The accessories were well positioned in the bathroom. You can also get better toothbrush / toothpaste sets in the bathroom compared to the amenity kit. The bathroom's dental kits come in a durable soft plastic container with a closeable cap on top. It's a much sturdier way to carry your toothbrush around and protect it from whatever elements that may be around it.
Inside the TG J bathrooms, featuring accessories by Salvatore Ferragamo.
After finishing in the bathroom, I reclined my seat into the angle-flat sleeping position and dozed pretty much up until we had to prepare for landing. That was a nice solid rest and put a bit back into me in preparation for my long layover in the TG BKK F Lounge.
Before long, we touched down in BKK - an airport I was getting to know all too well - and we docked up at the gate. Now the rest of the day was First service all the way......
Mar 2, 2012, 8:48 am
#45
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
MENU: TG659 ICN-BKK J (21 Jun 2011)
Thai Airways TG659 Royal Silk Class Seoul-Incheon - Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi
21 June 2011
First Serving (Lunch)
Hot Savoury
Prawn balls
First Course
Smoked salmon
Mixed green salad with balsamic vinegar dressing
Main Course
Deep-fried chicken breast with Doo Ban Jang sauce
Steamed Thai Hom Mali rice
Grilled Promfret with Champagne mushroom sauce
Ducheese potatoes, carrot, baby zucchini
Bibimbap
Pork in red curry with eggplant
Steamed Thai Hom Mali rice, green bean
Assorted bread
Crackers
Butter
Cheese and fresh fruits
Dessert
Blueberry Walnut Cake
Tea, coffee, espresso, cappuccino
Second Serving (Pre-landing Snack)
Sandwiches
Drinks
Champagne
Piper Heidsieck Brut Champagne
Red Wine
Domaine Vincent Giradin (2008)
Chateau Fourcas Hosten (Listrac) (2006)
White Wine
Bourgogne Blanc Chardonnay Maximum (2009)
Chateau Guiraud (2009)
Aperitifs
Campari
Gin Martini
Screwdriver
Bloody Mary
Black Russian
Vodka Martini
Warre's Warrior Port
Spirits
Rum
Gin
Bourbon Whiskey
Whiskey
Vodka
Cognac and Liqueurs
Remy Martin XO
Kahlua
Drambuie
Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge
Beers
Heineken
Chang
Singha
Soft Drinks
Fruit juices
A range of soft drinks and diet soft drinks
Beverages
Espresso
Cappuccino
Instant Coffee
Decaffeinated Coffee
Special Blended Coffee
Oolong Tea
Ceylon High Tea
Japanese Green Tea
Chocolate Malt 3 in 1
21 June 2011
First Serving (Lunch)
Hot Savoury
Prawn balls
First Course
Smoked salmon
Mixed green salad with balsamic vinegar dressing
Main Course
Deep-fried chicken breast with Doo Ban Jang sauce
Steamed Thai Hom Mali rice
Grilled Promfret with Champagne mushroom sauce
Ducheese potatoes, carrot, baby zucchini
Bibimbap
Pork in red curry with eggplant
Steamed Thai Hom Mali rice, green bean
Assorted bread
Crackers
Butter
Cheese and fresh fruits
Dessert
Blueberry Walnut Cake
Tea, coffee, espresso, cappuccino
Second Serving (Pre-landing Snack)
Sandwiches
Drinks
Champagne
Piper Heidsieck Brut Champagne
Red Wine
Domaine Vincent Giradin (2008)
Chateau Fourcas Hosten (Listrac) (2006)
White Wine
Bourgogne Blanc Chardonnay Maximum (2009)
Chateau Guiraud (2009)
Aperitifs
Campari
Gin Martini
Screwdriver
Bloody Mary
Black Russian
Vodka Martini
Warre's Warrior Port
Spirits
Rum
Gin
Bourbon Whiskey
Whiskey
Vodka
Cognac and Liqueurs
Remy Martin XO
Kahlua
Drambuie
Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge
Beers
Heineken
Chang
Singha
Soft Drinks
Fruit juices
A range of soft drinks and diet soft drinks
Beverages
Espresso
Cappuccino
Instant Coffee
Decaffeinated Coffee
Special Blended Coffee
Oolong Tea
Ceylon High Tea
Japanese Green Tea
Chocolate Malt 3 in 1