Kiwi Flyer

Warsaw to Saint Petersburg menu

Appetizer

Ham with Podlaski cheese and pickled pumpkin

Hot entree

Omelette with green peas in bechamel sauce with sausage and brocolli

or

Pancake stuffed with apple served with cream and peach


Fruit salad

Prince Polo chocolate wafer bar

(not printed in menu but also bowl of mini easter eggs)

Red Wine

Beau Rivage AOC Bordeaux
Jenard Cabernet Sauvignon
Louis Montellier Merlot

Sparkling Wine

Codomiu Original (cava)

White Wine

Beau Rivage AOC Bordeaux
Jenard Chardonnay
Louis Montellier Sauvignon Blanc

Kiwi Flyer

Summary to date

• map
• 14,533 flown miles
• 10 flights
• 4 a/c types
  • 737-300
  • 767-300
  • 777-200ER
  • Embraer 170
• 4 airlines
  • NZ
  • QF
  • LH
  • LO
• 8 countries
  • New Zealand
  • Tonga
  • Western Samoa
  • United States of America
  • United Kingdom
  • Germany
  • Poland
  • Russia
• 8 airports
  • AKL
  • TBU
  • APW
  • LAX
  • LHR
  • HAM
  • WAW
  • LED
• personal firsts
  • 2 new routes on Air NZ TBU-APW and APW-LAX
  • 1 new country - Russia
  • 2 new airports - HAM and LED

AndDee

Sensational trip report !

jacob_m

Kiwi Flyer is on the move again... ^

And as always I'm really excited to see what crazy itinerary you've come up with this time! So far so good...

Thanks for the insight into the Air NZ options AKL-LAX. I didn't know there were that many options for that route!

I see you also got the free bus tour of Warsaw airport.
Not sure why they use a terminal which they haven't even finished yet, just creates lots of confusion. Stupidity!

Btw, do you travel only with hand luggage? How do you manage this with the liquid restrictions and the "one hand luggage only" rule which is quite strictly enforced in some countries nowadays?

yow777

Awesome trip report Kiwi Flyer^

Kiwi Flyer

What I forgot to mention was the flight to Saint Petersburg was parked at a remote stand way down by one end of the runway, and of course we taxiied the entire length to start the take off roll from the other end. Plenty of empty stands passed along the way.

Yes so far on this trip I have managed carry on only, with UK and one other place so far having issues.

This dial up is painfully slow, so the next update will need to wait a little longer.

Kiwi Flyer

I again have internet access for more than a few minutes, so will see how much more I can get posted.

Kiwi Flyer

SAINT PETERSBURG

The seasons are changing. While the hope of spring is in the air and seen by the lack of snow on the ground and first buds in sheltered gardens, winter has not yet relented it's grip as seen by the stark barren trees in the many parks throughout the centre of the city.

As for the seasons, also for the weather. Snow falling one minute and fine, if not particularly warm, the next.

Indeed this sums up my feelings of the city as well. Signs of the hard Soviet years are everywhere, and yet there is life and vibrancy in the historic centre.

I wont bore you, dear readers, with trivial details of places I visited and activities done in the few days I had here. I will, however, leave a few tidbits. The city is kind of walkable, although I was lucky in that the heaviest snow fell at night. The metro is very cheap and easy to use, once you have the hang of the cryllic alphabet (and you could get by even without that). Metro stations can be quite a distance apart. The metro stations have some amazing decorations - chandaliers, mosaics, stained glass picture windows, etc - each station different.

There are plenty of tourist signposts to sights and attractions, however I did not find them particularly useful in that they tended to be on the corner next to or 1 block away from the sight.

Some of the best places, in my view, were off the main roads.

I stayed at Best Western Neptun. This is located near the city centre but not easily walkable. It is a 5 minute walk across a park from the metro. Rooms were okay without being stunning. When searching for accommodation I found St Petersburg to be more expensive than I had expected.

Kiwi Flyer

SAINT PETERSBURG to WARSAW (LED-WAW) on LO Embraer 175

Sadly my time in Saint Petersburg was limited and I had to head off at least a few days earlier than I'd have liked. This is the first of several consecutive flights, carefully chosen to maximise mileage earning whilst not running too many risks for misconnections (ie there were backup flights, on different routings, I could take instead for most circumstances if needed).

The set-up at Pulkovo's international terminal is a little unusual so let me explain how it works. At the entrance there is a, fairly cursory, security check. Anyone can go through. Inside there are a few shops, cafes, money exchange, and a modest amount of seating. At 2 hours before departure, when check in for your flight opens, you are allowed to go to immigration. So there is no point in arriving at the airport too early.

Immigration was painless. Then check in. I had a disagreement with the contract check in agent. I wanted to take my 2 carry-ons onboard (without the hassle of collapsing them into one) as allowed in business class on LOT Polish Airlines. The agent wanted me to check on and carry on the other. When her colleague interceded on my behalf she then weighed the carry ons. 10.5kgs total between the 2 bags. Hardly going to cause a problem on a very lightly loaded flight (less than a quarter full). Finally she relented and made out she was doing a big favour to me. This is annoying, but at least I didn't need to check anything which would have been risky given a couple of short connections coming up.

I head upstairs to the contract Pulokovo lounge. There are other contract lounges in the terminal, but this is the one used by LO. The lounge is moderate sized. There is a reasonable selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, but very limited food options (all junk food). The designated smoking section is open plan thus the whole lounge gets smokey. No bathroom in the lounge. No computers. A handful of newspapers.

The flight is called. There is screening at the gate. Liquids are allowed but no sprays. Belt & shoes off. The gate lounge is tiny - don't head here any earlier than you must. Boarding is a rush, but with so few passengers it doesn't take long to get to my seat, a bulkhead again.

The door remains open for an unusually long time. Someone in a uniform boards the a/c and heads back some rows (not sure how far) for a couple of minutes before leaving. The door is then closed and the safety announcements are made. Then I hear a knocking on the door, and it is opened. Several burly uniformed people and several plainclothes but clearly some people with authority enter the aircraft and head behind me. A couple of minutes later a young couple are hauled off the aircraft and escorted goodness knows where.

More shortly.

Kiwi Flyer

Now I'm rehydrated I'll continue.

This incident has delayed us by over half an hour. Fortunately my onward connection is the only one today that can easily take such a delay. While I waited I noticed an medium sized jet aircraft on the tarmac undergoing some kind of repairs. It was supported by plenty of scaffolding as they tested the front wheel being raised and lowered repeatedly.

Finally we taxi past the various aircraft and helicopters, wait for several aircraft ahead of us to take off in between landings on the runway and then it is our turn. We take off heading away from the city, which is a pity, but get views of the outer suburbs as we make a couple of turns.

Soon the landscape is blotted out by cloud so no views until very close to Warsaw when we descend below the cloud cover. Again we get a remote gate at a far corner of the airport. This time immigration is open at the same terminal as is used for international transits so everyone gets out at the same spot.

Kiwi Flyer

Saint Petersburg to Warsaw menu

Apologies - the FA handed out the menu for the flight to Saint Petersburg by mistake so there is less detail here than there should be.


Appetizer

Turkey, cranberry and lettuce

Hot entree

Turkey (!) in creamy sauce

or

Pork

Fruit salad

(not printed in menu but also bowl of mini easter eggs)

Red Wine

Beau Rivage AOC Bordeaux
Jenard Cabernet Sauvignon
Louis Montellier Merlot

Sparkling Wine

Codomiu Original (cava)

White Wine

Beau Rivage AOC Bordeaux
Jenard Chardonnay
Louis Montellier Sauvignon Blanc

Kiwi Flyer

Before I forget, I do have to comment on the food for the flight to Warsaw. My previous several LO flights (all in business class) I found the food to be reasonable for short duration flight and making up for the lack of good food in the lounges. However on this flight the food was inedible. The roll was stale, the turkey appetizer looked off and the turkey main was a couple of lumps of unidentifiable meat/gristle smothered in a tasteless sauce.



WARSAW to BERLIN TEGEL (WAW-TXL) on LO ATR 42-500

Up the stairs to transit desk to check in for the next few flights, which somehow Saint Petersburg were unable to check me in for. As a bonus they gave me the boarding pass for a flight the following day as well. One less thing to remember to do later on. Last time I used transit at Warsaw they screened bags before being allowed to enter the terminal, despite each gate area having screening stations. This time no need for screening at transit.

The agent at transit gave me the onward gate and advised the lounge was next to that gate. Once through, however, I checked the monitors and decided most upcoming flights use nearby gates and I'd be better off heading to the other lounge, which I do so. Sure enough that lounge is empty so no problems for me to hog the computer for the 45 minutes or so until my next flight is called. While there, the transit agent bursts in having tracked me down to check whether or not there was a mistake. For he had noticed one of my boarding passes was first class and yet the ticket coupons were all in business class. I assured him there was no mistake (as if someone would complain they had been incorrectly put in first class!) and he left.

The flight is called so off to the gate down the other end of the terminal (a 2 minute walk away) and through security. Again liquids rules apply, belt off but shoes stay on. At the gate lounge I can see the load is extremely light.

When I booked this flight it was scheduled to be on an Embraer 175 aircraft, so I was naturally puzzled by the relatively high row number of my assigned seat. Surely there can't be that many business passengers on this secondary route? Maybe it is a balance issue?

At the gate I get given a tag for my rollaboard to be checked at the aircraft, which I remove once around the corner in the jetway. I know my rollaboard fits almost all overhead bins, and as the load seems to be extremely light (10 passengers total) there should be plenty of room onboard.

We take a bus tour of the, by now quite familiar, airport aprons. Ahh, the equipment has been changed to an ATR. And not just any ATR but the smaller ATR 42-500. This is like the reverse of a flight I took a few months ago that got upgauged from a Beech 1900D to an ATR 72-500, a proportionately massive change in capacity.

As we board the passenger in front of me argues with the FA about not wanting to put his rollaboard in the hold. While they argue I waltz up the stairs with my two carryons and promptly stow them before she has a chance to notice Of course they easily fit in the overhead bins. It was fortunate that I did so, for my next connection is much shorter and the bags that were checked at the aircraft were not delivered on the tarmac but instead delivered at baggage claim - I nicely avoided that delay.

Here the skies are still cloudy and so only (very nice) views of Warsaw on departure and Berlin on arrival.

For the second flight in a row, the meal was a disgrace. I am not sure if they missed loading hot food (and other meal components) in business or it is planned this way, but again nothing edible and very little actual food. Indeed the snack box in economy looked to have more and better food

With the substitution of prop aircraft for much faster jet scheduled, we arrive rather later than I'd planned and so the onward connection is very short.

Being a prop aircraft we naturally have a bus gate at Tegel airport. I have a small delay at immigration while the agent leisurely browses my passport out of boredom, after already having stamped it and before handing back to me.

Kiwi Flyer

BERLIN TEGEL to FRANKFURT (TXL-FRA) on LH 737-500

Despite having a very short connection I decide I have enough time for a fast visit to the LH lounge here, to sample their wares and in the interests of reporting the results here of course. The lounge is upstairs and as expected has a FTL/Business class side and a SEN/HON/First class/*G side (which I used).

The lounge is very nice. It really only lacks showers and computers. Plenty of good food and drink, newspapers and magazines. Lots of space, although I guess would be crowded at peak times. I just have enough time for a quick sample and it is off to the gate, which happens to be the far side of the "O". This is my first time to Berlin Tegel airport and I'm struck by the unusual terminal layout (reminds me a bit of San Francisco) - an "O" shape. Anyway at the gate there is screening (of course). Liquids out but belt and shoes can stay on - get the idea how inconsistent the security rules and implementation is?

The flight is about half full. We depart slightly late but make up time en route. I watch the sun set and the cloud and land below descend into darkness.

The meal is typical Lufthansa intra-europe business meal. So typical I forget all the details Rolls. Salad. Cheese. Some meat (fish?). A sweet desert thing. Drinks. Again, being Easter there are chocolates.

We arrive on time despite a long taxi.

Kiwi Flyer

Summary to date

• map
• 15,767 flown miles
• 13 flights
• 7 a/c types
  • 737-300
  • 767-300
  • 777-200ER
  • Embraer 170
  • Embraer 175
  • ATR 42-500
  • 737-500
• 4 airlines
  • NZ
  • QF
  • LH
  • LO
• 8 countries
  • New Zealand
  • Tonga
  • Western Samoa
  • United States of America
  • United Kingdom
  • Germany
  • Poland
  • Russia
• 10 airports
  • AKL
  • TBU
  • APW
  • LAX
  • LHR
  • HAM
  • WAW
  • LED
  • TXL
  • FRA
• personal firsts
  • 2 new routes on Air NZ TBU-APW and APW-LAX
  • 1 new country - Russia
  • 3 new airports - HAM, LED and TXL

Kiwi Flyer

FRANKFURT transit

A few weeks ago, upset at the changes being made by Singapore Airlines to the PPS program, I switched my onward flight to Lufthansa and upgraded to first by use of some upgrade vouchers, which was confirmed immediately.

Fortunately the flight timings on Lufthansa are similar to Singapore, but it had the effect of making a 23 hour connection almost an illegal stopover, and also shortened my transit in Frankfurt. This means I won't have long enough to properly enjoy the first class terminal. Indeed I was unsure whether I'd even have time to visit the first class lounge.

As luck would have it we arrived at the very end gate on A pier. So a long, long walk for me. Decisions, decisions. I could walk at a leisurely pace to immigration into non-schengen zone and our gate in B part of the terminal, probably arriving just about as boarding starts. Or I could walk fast to the first class lounge along A pier, have a very fast shower, and proceed to B part of the terminal and immigration to non-schengen zone with boarding nearly complete by the time I arrive, probably sweaty despite having just showered. Or I could sprint to the first class terminal (considerably further distance), grab a quick shower and make use of the extra time provided due to being driven to the gate at the end of boarding.

Naturally, after already a long day (and a couple of hours gained by time zones) of exploring Saint Petersburg and travelling, I chose the latter. I ran from the end of the pier outside and along to the first class terminal.

Hand over passport and boarding pass. Through security. Liquids out. Belt off. Shoes on. Get alarmed by the WTMD and again by the hand wand. Even my pocket sets off the alarm despite only having a handkerchief in it So get the usual FRA massage.

Decline the tour of the terminal - I've been here before and my priority is first to shower. A quick shower (with cold water running afterwards to avoid sweating up again) and change of clothes and I feel much better and start to relax. I have fun sampling several of the wines while I wait for boarding.