PresRDC

Thursday, August 22, 2002
Qantas Airways flight QF 412
Departs: Sydney (SYD) @ 9:25 AM
Arrives: Ayers Rock (AYQ) @ 12:20 PM
Boeing 737-400
Business Class Seat 2F (guess)

I was eager to sample Qantas’ domestic Business Class product and compare it to American’s domestic First Class product. Qantas does not pre-assign seats on domestic flights, even in Business Class, so I was unsure where I would be seating. I hoped that I would not get stuck in a convertible seat.

Check-in was quick and I was on my way to the Qantas Club. Apparently, domestic Business Class does not give access to the lounge, nor does Oneworld status when traveling on a domestic flight. Thankfully, my Admirals Club membership did the trick and I was admitted. I did not stay long as it was very crowded. It did have a nice breakfast offering, however.

There is not much to say about this flight. We were served a classic English-style breakfast but did not receive a menu. Interestingly, there is no bulkhead at all between Business Class and Coach on the 737. Flying over Australia is an interesting experience. You realize just how sparsely populated a country it is. About 25 minutes out of Sydney, there was no sign of life, just mile after mile of desert. Landing at AYQ was great as those of us on the right had a great view of the Rock as we landed. I rented a car from Hertz and was quickly on my way to Sails in the Desert.

Oh yeah, I qualified for Executive Platinum status on this flight! Kindof a random flight on which to qualify, don’t you think?

SAILS IN THE DESERT, AYERS ROCK RESORT

There is only one resort near the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, which contains Ayers Rock (Uluru, to the politically correct among us) and the Olgas. The Ayers Rock Resort bills itself as an eco friendly resort designed to blend into the desert landscape and offers a variety of accommodations ranging from five star luxury hotels, to rustic camp sites. Being a spoiled rotten prima donna, I stayed at Sails in the Desert, the five star accommodation. My room was adequate, but, frankly, not all that nice. I think I was unfairly comparing it to the Westin Sydney, but it really was nothing special. The bathroom was very basic and not at all “five star.” My advice, save your money and pick a less “upscale” option. The Desert Gardens Hotel is a four star property that is cheaper than Sails and some rooms offer a view of the Rock.

My first day, I drove out to the Olgas (Kate Tjuta in the local language), a rock formation not far from Ayers Rock. Cars entering the Park need to buy a permit, which was good for three days and was not very expensive. At the Olgas, I did the “Valley of the Winds” walk, which takes you on approximately a two hour journey among the rocks. It was a pleasant experience and a fairly easy walk. That night, I went on a star gazing tour led by the resident astronomer at the Ayers Rock Observatory, which is operated by the Resort. It was interesting, especially for someone like me who does not get to see the southern hemisphere sky very often. This, and other tours, can be arranged through the tour desks located in the lobbies of each hotel at the Ayers Rock Resort.

The next day, I took one of the guided tours of the Rock conducted by a member of the Anangu people, in my case, Impana Collins. The tour includes the visitors center and a narrated walk around the Rock led by Ms. Collins, the Anangu guide. This is a great way to get an introduction the Dreamtime stories that form the unwritten law of the Anangu people. The tour ends at the sunset viewing center. The rock is famous for changing colors as the sun sets. It was a wonderful and almost spiritual experience.

One of the most popular attractions at the Rock is the “Sounds of Silence” dinner, which is held outside under the stars by the Rock. As I was alone, I did not do this, as it seemed geared toward couples.

Saturday, August 24, 2002
Qantas Airways flight QF 1923
Departs: Ayers Rock (AYQ) @ 1:50 PM
Arrives: Perth (PER) @ 3:15 PM
British Airways BAe 146-200
Business Class Seat 2F (guess)

I spent two nights at Sails in the Desert, which I thought was adequate time to spend at the Rock. I had some time in the morning before my flight, so I bought an aboriginal painting at the gift shop in the visitors center (there is also a gallery in the Sails in the Desert lobby). This gallery features work by Anangu artists and the profits from the gallery go back to the Anangu people. They were very helpful and were perfectly willing to ship the canvas back home for me.

I got to the airport and returned the car, which was easy (so was driving on the left, a new experience for me – of course the roads in the Park were not exactly busy). There is a separate Business Class check-in, but no lounge. My flight was delayed for 30 minutes. There is not much to do at AYQ, so I don’t recommend arriving early, although the line for Coach check-in can be long as there are often tour busses dropping people off.

This flight was surprisingly comfortable. I did not think the BAe-146 would be comfortable, but the seats had pretty effective leg and foot rests. Imagine that, leg and foot rests on a BAe-146! The food offering on this flight was pretty meager, however. Only some poached chicken and a small pasta salad. As on the previous flight, there was no sign of life until a few minutes prior to landing. We were twenty minutes late on arrival at a rainy Perth.

THE SHERATON PERTH

This is typical Sheraton. It is fine, but nothing special. They were offering suites for A$175, which, at the time, was about $90, so I decided to splurge (as if any part of this trip was not a splurge). The suite was essentially two standard rooms put together. The first room was a large sitting room and the second was the bedroom. The bathroom was off the sitting room, which required one to go from the bedroom and through the living room. This would be a difficult trip in the night . . . or if intoxicated. The room did offer a nice view of the Perth skyline.

To be honest, Perth was kind of a let down (no offense to any of you who may live in Perth). There comes a point on a long trip where you loose your enthusiasm and need a break. This was that point for me. The fact that it rained almost the whole time did not help. I did, however, make it down the river to Fremantle, which was a pleasant day trip. Interestingly, my alma mata, the University of Notre Dame, has a sister school in Fremantle (called, creatively enough, the University of Notre Dame Australia) where many ND students go for a semester (it has a reputation as a party semester). There was no Golden Dome, but then again, one cannot walk from class to the Indian Ocean in South Bend!

Tuesday, August 27, 2002
Qantas Airways flight QF 566
Departs: Perth (PER) @ 4:25 PM
Arrives: Sydney (SYD) @ 10:25 PM
Boeing 767-300
Business Class Seat 5A (guess)

Since the Oneworld Explorer rules only allow one transcontinental flight in Australia, I figured this would be a special flight, akin to American’s AFS service. I would be disappointed.

The airport was empty and I was in the Qantas Club within minutes of arriving at the Perth Domestic Terminal. As our 767 arrived, I could tell by the Rolls Royce engines that it was one of the ex-British Airways 767s Qantas acquired. Upon boarding, I was surprised to see how cramped the seating was. I kid you not, I had more room on the BAe-146! When the person in front reclined, there was no room to cross my legs. Dinner was a one tray affair and featured a choice of steak or a salad. Thankfully, it was a short flight of only three hours.

I stayed again at the Westin Sydney.

PresRDC

Wednesday, August 28, 2002
Qantas Airways flight QF 321 (operated by Lan Chile as LA 800)
Departs: Sydney (SYD) @ 10:15 AM
Arrives: Auckland (AKL) @ 3:30 PM
Airbus A340-300
First Class Seat 1A

First, a caveat. In addition to being a HongKongaphile, I am a LanChileaphile. So, when it was announced that Lan Chile would start service to Auckland and Sydney from Santiago with the A340, I knew I had to arrange my route so that I could fly Lan Chile between Australia and New Zealand. Of course, I liked the randomness of flying a Chilean airline between two countries that are not Chile.

The only way to get a First Class seat on this flight is to book oneself under the Qantas flight number as Lan Chile only offers Business and Economy Class under its flight number. Apparently, Qantas offered three class service to Buenos Aires using its own metal, but pulled-out in favor of the codeshare with Lan Chile to SCL. I gather that Lan Chile did not see a market for First Class on this route, but Qantas wanted to continue three class service to South America. Incidentally, this is (or was, I don’t know if it has changed) the only three class service Qantas offers between SYD and AKL.

I left the Westin at 7:30 AM and, despite the fact that it is a considerable distance further than the domestic terminal, had a quick trip to the international terminal. Lan Chile codeshares with Qantas on this flight and Qantas handles all ground services in SYD for Lan Chile. As such, I checked-in at the Qantas First Class counters. Qantas tries to make this a special experience by offering a little seating area in front of the check-in counters, but, in reality, it is just a check-in. Apparently, the Qantas check-in staff has a reputation for being a bit ornery and unhelpful. While the woman who checked me in was no Alice from the Brady Bunch, she was also no Rosanne Arnold either. Check-in complete, I headed through immigration to the Qantas First Class Lounge.

The lounge was nice, but nothing remarkable. It did feature a nice breakfast spread and the man in the yellow tie at the reception desk was quite helpful. I also appreciated the view of the tarmac from the lounge, including a view of my red, white and blue chariot readying for its journey across the southern half of the world.

Boarding started on time and I boarded right away. As has been discussed before, Lan Chile has one row of First Class in a 2-1-2 arrangement. The seats recline fully flat and are very similar (if not identical) to American’s First Class seats on the Pacific configured 777s.

http://www.airliners.net/open.file/199992/M/

As boarding completed, it became apparent that I was to be the only passenger in First Class to AKL. Perhaps this explains why Qantas does not offer First Class on this route using its own metal. To celebrate my first solo First experience, I had a glass of champagne while I perused the menu. Here is a transcript:

To be honest, I was a little disappointed with the menu. I was hoping that it would be the full lunch/dinner service that I love on Lan Chile. I thought there was precedent for this as Lan Chile serves a full dinner from Santiago to Lima on its LAX and JFK flights, a flight of a similar length to the SYD to AKL route. I guess the timing of the flight makes a difference. The SCL to LIM flights leave at dinner time while the SYD to AKL flight leaves in the mid-morning and the continuing flight operates, at least in part, in the daylight.

Once airborne, the service began. My personal flight attendants did not take my order, but rather just brought me the quiche. This is what I would have ordered, but I was surprised I wasn’t given a choice. Anyway, it was delicious. For the rest of the flight, I sampled Lan Chile’s entertainment options. Lan Chile offers an on demand audio and video system on the A340s and some of its 767s. Interestingly, the audio selections were the same as were on offer the previous March, when I flew from SCL to LAX. The movies were different, however.

Before our arrival, I asked to try the sandwich as I skipped it on the SCL to LAX flight when it was offered as the snack out of Lima. The flight attendant did not ask me which I wanted, but rather presented a plate of roast beef on a bagel and salmon on wheat bread. Frankly, neither were particularly good and I gather that the flight attendants knew that as well when they offered me the quiche.

Our approach into AKL was quite scenic and, being on the left of the plane, I had a nice view of downtown Auckland as we passed overhead before looping around to approach AKL. As we deplaned through the L2 door, I was not the first off the plane. While there was a fast track line at immigration, it was not open and I was forced to wait with all the non-Kiwis and Aussies. While this was not a long line, it took a while as there were only two immigration officers. By the time I got to the baggage belt, most of the passengers had left and there were only a few bags on the belt. Unfortunately, neither of my two checked bags were present (incidentally, I decided to be lazy on this flight and check both roll-ons). Instantly, I had visions of my bags winging their way to South America while I was in New Zealand. I was lazy and checked both bags, so I had no emergency supply of clothes and I knew that, with my tight schedule, there was no way my bags could get to SCL and back before I had to leave for Hong Kong, London and New York. Starting to panic, I approached the Air New Zealand baggage service desk (the handling agent for Lan Chile at AKL) with minutes to spare before the Lan Chile A340, complete with a new crew, was scheduled to depart for SCL. Thankfully, I was able to stop the plane and to get my bags, but not before I lost five years off my life!

PresRDC

In many ways I found Auckland to be a smaller Sydney. I had a similar experience with Krakow. I visited it after visiting Prague and found it to be a smaller version of the Czech capital. Krakow is a fine city on its own, but I could not help comparing it to Prague. After my first opinion of Auckland, I thought I was going to leave with the same feelings I have toward Krakow. That proved not to be the case. The excitement over the America’s Cup might have had something to do with this, but I ended-up really liking the City of Sails.

The Sheraton Auckland was a fine hotel. It was a typical Sheraton with standard (and small) rooms and typical hotel beds. There is nothing wrong with this, it just was not anything special. The location also was not ideal as it was far from the waterfront and the walk back from the waterfront required walking up some very steep hills. If I go back to Auckland, I would be hard pressed to chose between the Sheraton and the Hilton, which is located on a pier on the waterfront in an ideal location.

During my time in Auckland, I visited the America’s Cup site, watching the teams prepare their vessels for the competition. I took a tour of the harbor on a boat sponsored by American Express for the Cup and visited the Auckland Maritime Museum.

PresRDC

Friday, August 30, 2002
Cathay Pacific flight CX 108
Departs: Auckland (AKL) @ 12:50 PM
Arrives: Hong Kong (HKG) @ 8:30 PM
Airbus A340-300
First Class Seat 1K

I was apprehensive about this flight. I had heard that Cathay frequently operates this route with the old A340 equipment, featuring the twelve lounge chair style First Class seats. When I booked this segment, the RTW AAgent indicated that the configuration in First Class was 1-2-1, which indicates the new configuration. Nevertheless, I was nervous. As it turns out, there was no reason to worry and this ended-up being the best flight of the trip.

I left the Sheraton Auckland for the airport at 9:45 AM and arrived at AKL’s International Terminal by 10:20 AM. I am amazed that there is no highway connecting downtown Auckland to the airport. For much of the trip, the taxi navigated through suburban neighborhoods. While this undoubtedly made the journey to the airport longer, it provided a glimpse into the ordinary life of Kiwis that one would not see from a highway.

Cathay Pacific uses Qantas’ check-in facilities for its Business and First Class passengers in Auckland. Check-in is accomplished in a separate room with four check-in stations located to the left of the main check-in desks. Cathay used two of these desks, one for Business and one for First, and they were staffed with Cathay-uniformed employees. There was a bit of wait to reach the counter (it would have been faster to use the Business Class desk), but soon I was on my way armed with a boarding pass, a lounge invitation and permission to use fact track immigration.

Cathay uses Qantas’ lounge at AKL and, upon my entrance, I was directed to the relatively empty First Class side. It was comfortable and featured a selection of light snacks and finger sandwiches, as well as the usual assortment of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. There appeared to be showers available.

Boarding began at 12:20 PM and I boarded right away and settled into Seat 1K. I was pleasantly surprised to see that not only did the aircraft feature the new First Class, it also had the new Business Class and, of course, StudioCX. I was immediately offered a drink (I chose a Perrier) and a savory. As boarding continued, the First Class cabin filled 2/3 of the way to capacity (six of eight seats taken). We pushed on time and were airborne without a wait.

Once reaching cruising altitude, the FAs offered menus and took lunch orders. Here is a transcript of the lunch menu:

I ordered the soup and the chicken and awaited the caviar and salmon cart. Being in Seat 1K guaranteed that I would be served first (not that it matters), and I enjoyed a nice plate of caviar and salmon served with the warm potatoes, toast points, crème fraiche, onions and egg. There must have been a sale on capsicum this month, because almost every airline meal featured capsicum in some way. The soup was quite good and went perfectly with the warm garlic bread. The stir-fry chicken was great, as had been all the Chinese cuisine I had sampled on CX. I had the cheese plate and the chocolate cake for dessert. Both were excellent.

The A340 tracked northwest from Auckland and skirted the Gold Coast of Queensland before overflying the island of New Guinea. After New Guinea, we overflew some of the eastern islands in the Indonesian archipelago and passed between Borneo and the Philippines before entering the South China Sea.

For the rest of the eleven hour flight, I played with StudioCX and watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Having done so much flying on CX already this month, I was running-out of new things to watch (things interesting to me, that is). While all the CX flight attendants I encountered on this trip were excellent, this crew stood out as the best of the best. Perhaps it was the relatively empty cabin, but this crew ensured that my every need was satisfied. I spent over an hour talking with the head First Class flight attendant (the one in the purple uniform). I also tried a plate of assorted sandwiches.

About ninety minutes out of HKG, while overflying the South China Sea, a refreshment service was offered. Here is the transcript:

I selected the lamb satay, which was excellent. It was even better when followed-up with an ice cream sundae with hot fudge, whipped cream and nuts. The sundae service was done from the cart with all the panache of the initial caviar service.

We landed just after sunset and made our way to Gate 70, which as far from immigration as you get (I guess CX wanted me to burn-off all the food I had been eating). As a parting gift, the flight attendants gave me a bottle of Krug for the road. I was touched by their generosity. If there was any doubt about my affection for CX, this gesture erased it. I don’t want to be too corny, but this crew really personified CX’s “service from the heart.” Unfortunately, some of the pleasantness of the experience was lost with the long trek (and train ride) to immigration, where I was faced with the same long line I experienced when arriving from Osaka and Bali. Once again, I can only hope to be confronted with such lines when I next transit HKG.

I again stayed at the Sheraton Hong Kong and was pleasantly surprised to be upgraded to a suite on the executive floor. Unlike the suite at the Sheraton Perth, this hotel had a full bathroom off the bedroom and a half bath off the living room. As a Starwood Gold at the time, such an upgrade was much unexpected. That the room featured an uninterrupted view of the Hong Kong skyline was a bonus. What a great way to cap off a great travel day!

PresRDC

Saturday, August 31, 2002
Cathay Pacific flight CX 253
Departs: Hong Kong (HKG) @ 3:05 PM
Arrives: London (LHR) @ 9:05 PM
Airbus A340-300
First Class Seat 1A

I woke-up early resolved not to waste my final day in Hong Kong. I got-up and took the Star Ferry over to Hong Kong Island where I proceeded to Hollywood Road for a little window shopping. One day, I hope to be able to afford some of the exquisite Chinese antiques on display in these stores, but this day, window shopping proved sufficient.

I returned to the Sheraton via the Star Ferry and took a quick shower and did my final packing. I left for HKG at 12:30 PM. As with my trip from HKG to BKK, I initially planned to take a taxi to the Kowloon Airport Express Station and then the train to HKG, but the cabbie convinced me to let him drive me to HKG. This was fine as it was a nice day and I would have a great view from the Tsing Ma Bridge.

I initially planned on taking one of CX’s overnight flights to London, but when CX announced that it was going to start a daylight flight with A340s, I decided to give it a try. I am not a fan of overnight flights as the service is always more rushed and there is less to see from the window. So, I was excited to have a chance to take this flight. To my knowledge, this is the first trip report to discuss the First Class service on the CX 253.

I arrived at HKG at a little after 1:00 PM and proceeded strait to the CX First Class check-in kiosks. I was helped immediately and was on my way to immigration and security, which took about twenty minutes. Although my flight was leaving from Gate 46, which is closer to The Pier than The Wing, I decided to stop in at The Wing for a brief farewell tour. I hadn’t eaten anything that day, so being hungry, I helped myself to some food at The Haven, which, as you may know, is prepared by the Peninsula Hotel. I then headed to The Pier, choosing to walk as opposed to taking the train. I spent some time in one of the Daybreak Rooms which feature a brown leather recliner and a full slate of audio-visual options and then took a shower as I was sweaty from the long walk down the concourse. By the time I was done, it was time to go to the gate for boarding the New Business Class equipped A340.

We began boarding at 2:35 PM and I was one of the first to board. I settled into Seat 1A and ordered a Perrier to accompany the salmon canapé that was offered. Gradually, all eight First Class seats filled and I chatted with the man across the aisle from me. He had flown in from Manila and he said he commutes to London at least once a month using CX First. Can I have your life?

We pushed exactly on time and had a minimal wait to take off from Runway 25L. We made a series of turns as we proceeded through multiple cloud layers before reaching our cruising altitude. Our route took us almost due north out of HKG on course to Beijing, where we made a turn to the west and proceeded across China, Mongolia and most of Russia before crossing the Urals and entering European airspace. In Europe, we overflew the rest of Russia, Latvia, Sweden and Denmark before skirting the north shore of The Netherlands and the East Coast of the United Kingdom.

Upon reaching cruising altitude, the flight attendants distributed menus and took orders for our “late lunch.” Here is a lunch menu transcript:

I elected to partake in the caviar and salmon service and chose the soup and the Poon Choi. The caviar and salmon were excellent, as always. The soup was great accompanied by a fresh, hot loaf of garlic bread. I chose the Poon Choi because I was having such good luck with CX’s Chinese offerings and I was in the mood for goose. This course was served in what looked to be a wooden bucket with a smaller metal plate inside. The dish was essentially a mixed seafood and goose entrée and was excellent, although it contained squid, which, as previously mentioned, I detest. I followed this up with the cheese course and a ice cream sundae with hot fudge, whipped cream and nuts. It was, of course, excellent.

Fortunately, CX had loaded the September StudioCX selections for our flight, so I had something new to watch. I selected About a Boy, which I fell in love with (I’ve seen it six times since this flight). I also watched some short subject programming, read and napped and then watched Spiderman. Despite this being a day flight, we were given duvets, which, on the A340, are stored in the lockers between the window seats and the wall. We also received pajamas. This flight also featured a separate snack menu. Here is a transcript:

Over the course of the flight, I tried the sandwiches and the Shanghai Noodle dish. The soup was wonderful and the sandwiches were okay. Almost everyone tried at least one snack item. It was light for most of the flight, but got dark as we overflew Scandinavia. Supper was served as the lights of Copenhagen slipped by 37,000 feet below. Here is a menu transcript:

I decided to have the pasta, as I was not too hungry and had not yet tried CX’s pasta dishes. The prawn and scallop appetizer was great as was the pasta, although they didn’t offer any garlic bread to go with it. The pie was a nice ending, especially after I charmed the flight attendant into to rustling-up some of the left-over ice cream from lunch to go with it!

We made a fast descent into LHR and touched down on Runway 27L on schedule. We had a lengthy taxi to reach our gate at the new circular wing off the Terminal 3 concourse closest to immigration. Unfortunately, Fast Track was closed and there was a bit of a wait at immigration as we arrived after AA’s day flight from JFK. Despite Fast Track being closed, the flight attendants had handed-out Fast Track cards, which I happily accepted and am looking forward to using the next time I arrive at LHR as a coach passenger.

I took the Heathrow Express to Paddington and a taxi from Paddington to the Sheraton Park Lane. This hotel has been a frequent topic of conversation on the Starwood board. It is my Starwood of choice in London, mostly owing to its location on Piccadilly across from Green Park. While it is a nice hotel and the staff is great, the hotel is in dire need of a renovation. Most important, the hotel desperately needs new beds. I’ve had better beds at youth hostels for God’s sake! Despite my late arrival and my lowly Starwood Gold status, I was upgraded to a junior suite. This is essentially a large room with a king size bed, a living area and a large white marble bathroom with a tub and a walk-in shower. In the middle of the night, there was commotion outside as the Fire Brigade arrived. I do not know what the problem was, but we didn’t burn down!

PresRDC

I woke-up early and had a room service breakfast. This hotel has an excellent breakfast, which, although pricy, is massive. In addition to the usual English breakfast of eggs, bacon rashers, sausage, mushrooms, fried potato and tomato, it includes a pastry basket, toast, fresh fruit, orange juice and warm beverages. Seriously, it is enough for two . . . or fifteen.

As I was not scheduled to depart for JFK until the evening, I took advantage of the day in London to revisit my old stomping grounds (I studied in London from September 2000 to June 2001). It was a gloriously sunny and warm day in London and I walked down Piccadilly to Trafalgar Square, down Whitehall and along the River Thames from Westminster to Blackfriars. I then walked-up Fleet Street and The Strand past the Royal Courts of Justice back to Trafalgar Square where I stopped in the National Gallery to see Van Eyck’s Arnolfini Wedding. I then stopped by Notre Dame’s London building (on Suffolk Street across from the Sainsbury Wing of the National Gallery). Finally, I hopped the Jubilee Line at Green Park to Willesden Green, where I lived while in London. I had lunch at Shish, a Middle Eastern restaurant across from the Willesden Green Tube Station. I then headed back to the Sheraton to take a shower before heading for the airport.

Sunday, September 1, 2002
American Airlines flight AA 107
Departs: London (LHR) @ 6:30 PM
Arrives: New York (JFK) @ 9:15 PM
Boeing 777-200ER
Business Class Seat 14J … First Class Seat 4J


I was not looking forward to this flight as it would mean going back to Business Class after being spoiled rotten all month. I decided to sooth my pain by skipping the Heathrow Express and taking a taxi to LHR. Expensive, but easier. I used AA’s Park Lane facility and collected my Business Class boarding pass and took the elevator and the sky bridge that leads directly to the Fast Track security entrance. After clearing security, I headed through the waiting area to the Flagship Lounge, where, owing to my newly minted EXP status I was welcoming despite my lowly Business Class boarding pass. This lounge is no Wing or Pier, but is a significant improvement over the Admirals Club. I helped myself to some finger sandwiches and mini quiches and waited for my flight to be called.

I went to the Gate when my flight was called and quickly passed the final security hurdle. Just before boarding commenced, I was called to the podium where I was informed that I would not be traveling in 14J as I had expected, but rather in 4J. Oh yeah, my first AA flight as an EXP and a double upgrade! Talk about raising expectations. It was a very pleasant surprise and a nice cap to a great month.

We boarded on time and our Pacific configured 777 pushed on schedule. A quick taxi and takeoff from Runway 9R, and we were on our way back to JFK. Once airborne, the purser took drink and dinner orders. Here is a menu transcript:

I ordered the Yankee Pot Roast and a Diet Coke with lime to accompany my warm nuts and crudities. I had the salmon and a salad with the chicken and all the vegetables. The ginger orange dressing is very bland, though. The pot roast was fine and the ice cream sundae was, as always, wonderful with hot fudge, whipped cream and nuts. For the rest of the flight, I slept and just veged as I began mentally preparing myself for life in the working world.

A light meal was offered just before we landed. As this was not a long flight and I was not hungry, I skipped it. Here is a transcript:

I did have a chocolate chip cookie, however! By the time we began our descent into JFK, it was dark. We touched-down on Runway 31L on time and were at the gate within minutes. Immigration and customs were non issues, although I was expecting some kind of search owing to the large number of countries I had visited on this trip. I met my limo driver in the terminal and was on my home to Westchester for a new life as a junior associate in a corporate law firm.

PresRDC

Over the month of August 2002, I logged 42,398 miles in the air and spent twenty-two nights in hotels. I crossed twenty-four time zones and crossed the Equator four times. I experienced the heat of an East Asian summer and the coolness of an Australian winter. I loved every minute of it (expect, perhaps, the wait at immigration in HKG and DPS).

I earned enough AAdvantage miles for two First Class tickets to pretty much anywhere I wanted to go. I redeemed 125,000 miles for a Lan Chile First Class award to EZE in February and 145,000 for a Cathay Pacific First Class award to JNB in October.

CMK10

An absolutly excellent report! As someone who plans to go to law school himself, I will use your report as a reference report for how to reward myself after the bar exam. By the way which firm do you work at? My dad is a Senior Partner (also a corporate lawyer) at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher and Flom.

stichris

Excellent report, I read it straight through! Sounds like it was wonderful.

BA Loyal

Awesome report, well done!

Kiwi Flyer

Fantastic report PresRDC ^^^^^

Unfortunately the links to your other trip reports no longer work.

Miami_Flyer

I'm still confused as to why someone would post a 2+ year old trip report....

QF WP

Brilliant report, PresRDC, the type that I love to read (full of humour, detail and personal experiences shared). I hadn't the chance to read it the first time around (before I joined FT), so thanks for the digital remastering.

As for Miami_Flyer, well, the original report has obviously been updated if you read it closely enough (there are enough clues, including PresRDC's first post).