HIDDY

Thanks for keeping me right Moomba. ^

Well I have to say - your world travels pale into insignificance compared to your KOI report. (I may be being biased)
The pictures of Orkney are the best I have seen and shall no doubt help tourism on the Island - what brilliant weather you had. ^

Moomba

Ah thanks for inadvertently pointing out my omission of not providing much detail about Orkney. I have added a few more words but the pictures really do tell the story the best.

Yes the weather was fabulous although windy, which is the norm I expect. It seems like I picked the right weekend to escape London as I am told it was pretty dire down here on Saturday whilst we had glorious sunshine.

Steady-EDI

I'm looking forward to the Orkney Do more than ever after that ^ I hope the Do weather is as sunny.

I still don't know what to think of T5. The lounges look stunning ... shame about the shambles A week from now I'll have my own impressions. I hope I also have my suitcase

Jenbel

Love the photos ^

Moomba

The Photos

Bits & Bobs 2 involves no flying so look away now if this will cause you to get a case of the jitters. It does however involve copious amounts of champagne, fine food and good company.

This is the story of my trip to Reims in France to attend the Champagne Do.
When this Do was announced I was more that a little interested but was unable to commit straight away. As time wore on and my schedule for this year firmed up I decided I going to take the plunge and commit to the Do.

After making the decision I then needed to decide how to get there. I priced up flights to CDG and then the train and also decided to look at Eurostar prices. As it turns out I was able to travel Leisure Select (cheap First) on Eurostar with a connecting ticket to REH for less than the cost of a Club Europe flight on BA.
The added benefits of the train included:

• the ability to have a look at the new St Pancras station, which is easy to get to from my flat;
• I didn’t have to do the laborious trip to LHR and deal with delays and queues;
• I was able to buy through tickets to Reims on the Eurostar website;
• And best of all, given where I was going, no liquids problems at security.

So there we have it a FT trip report with no flying in it. What is the world coming to?

I started my journey in the all too familiar trek on the tube to get to St Pancras station which is a short 20 minute ride.

At St Pancras I walked into the shopping mall portion of the station and had a wander around to see what was there. I then made my way to ‘check-in’ which is really just a series of gates where you insert your ticket. After this I passed through security not having to worry about liquids. Then there was a short queue to go through UK border control and the French immigrations.

Inside I had a quick tour and then located the entrance to the Business Premier lounge. The Leisure Select fare does not include access to the lounge but a flash of my Amex Platinum card and I was welcomed inside at around 10:45. I was told that they would announce the boarding at 20 minutes prior to departure.

I grabbed a juice, coffee and a snack and read the paper for a while. The lounge had tea, coffee, wine, beer, soft drink and juices along with croissants, fruit, olives, nuts and biscuits to eat.

Boarding was announced at the prescribed time and I made my way out to the platform. There was a bit of a queue waiting to travel up to the platform. I made my way to my carriage and was greeted there and asked to stow my wheelie on the rack and my other bag could go overhead.

Eurostar Train No. 9022 London – Paris Nord Seat 21 Coach 12
Departure time: 11:32

I found my solo seat in the carriage which was laid out in a 2-1 configuration.

We pulled out of the station on time at exactly 11:32. Not long after leaving a round of drinks was offered by the crew, I of course had a glass of the Pannier champagne.

As we tumbled along I was curious to see where we would cross the Thames. On it’s old route the Eurostar didn’t need to worry about this as Waterloo is South of the River. St Pancras is North and hence we needed to pass over/under the river at some point. I recognised the QE II Bridge in Essex not long before we went into a tunnel and emerged on the south side of the Thames a little later.

We entered the chunnel at 12:04 at which time the lunch service began. For lunch was a salad, a choice of Chicken and Leek pie, Fish with Orange sauce or a Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli. A small panna cotta dessert was also on the tray with a chocolate from Jeff de Bruges to have with the coffee.

I chose the Chicken and Leek Pie which was quite tasty although it was odd they chose to do a pastry meal when the food is heated in a microwave.

I heard a most amusing comment from the passenger in the seat next to me. Upon unravelling the cutlery he announced to his wife ‘Oh these are much better that British Airways use’.

We popped out of the chunnel at 12:32 UK 13:32 France into some light rain.
There was no service to speak of once the lunch and coffee service were done with although people were asking for extra drinks along the way.

We arrive into Paris on time at 14:47. I collect my things and walked out of the front of Gare de Nord and turned left. According to my less than photographic memory I remembered that Gare de l’est was somewhere in that general direction. I kept walking in a straight line until I hit a brick wall, which was the edge of the railway lines heading into Gare de l’est. I turned right and down the road and a set of stairs and the station entrance was before me. It must have taken around 5-7 minutes to navigate between the two stations.

Once inside I had just over an hour to wait for my connecting train. I found a Virgin store and was able to purchase a CD in French that I had wanted for a while but was priced very stupidly on Amazon in the UK.

Eventually my train was announced and the boards showed me the platform to which I had to find. I walked up to my coach, on board and settled in for the short ride to Reims.

TGV Train No. 2743 Paris Est – Reims Seat 31 Coach 13
Departure time: 15:57

There was no service on this train as it was only a 45 minute journey. I was in the first class coach as the Leisure Select Eurostar books into First and so the onward journey did likewise. On this train the configuration was 1-2.

We arrived in Reims on time at 16:42. I had a rough idea of how to get to my hotel and walked the 10-15 minute journey.
I checked into my small but comfortable room at the Holiday Inn Garden Court and rested for a while before meeting the gang to head out to dinner.

We walked up to the restaurant which was only 15 minutes away. Dinner for this evening was at Le Millenaire a Michelin Star restaurant.
We started with aperitifs of champagne and some canapés.
The food and wine at the restaurant were absolutely superb, as one would expect and each course was a taste sensation. The wine and champagne we drank at our table were capably selected by Falco Peregrinus.

The amouse bouche was a savoury custard with lobster (I think) inside. The menu read as follows:
After a very long and delicious meal we all retreated to our rooms for some sleep.

After a lazy start I headed up to the Cathedral De Notre-Dame with some others of the FT family. As with most cathedrals I was blown away by the sheer size of these buildings and contemplating the effort that was put into building them. On the outside of the cathedral I noticed really interesting gargoyles. They were all in the shape of various different animals. We amused ourselves for a while identifying the different critters that adorned the exterior of the building.
After the cathedral we did a bit of a wander around the town and then out for lunch before meeting the gang for the next part of the DO.

We were bussed to Bouzy where M Paillard showed us his vineyards from a view point overlooking the valley. He spoke about the different grape varieties grown in the region and the process of growing and harvesting.

We then headed back to the town to his winery. We were taken down the Caves and M Paillard explained the method of making champagne.

On the surface again we were able to taste the ‘raw’ ingredients of champagne, that being some Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wine that would later become champagne in around 4 years.
We then tasted some of M Paillard’s excellent champagne.
Back on the bus to Reims and a chance to chill for a while until the dinner.

We met up again and walked down to Brasserie FLO for an aperitif of champagne of course taken on the terrace.
We sat down to the dinner at around 21:00. On the menu tonight was:

Just prior to the dessert course we all took part in a quiz on the subject of champagne. There were many prizes on offer including various airline pyjamas, some flyertalk merchandise and a magnum of Paillard champagne.

It seems this little bunch of ours weren’t as knowledgeable on the subject of champagne as we would have liked. There were 15 questions and the best any of us could muster was 9 correct answers. First place was a tie but the decider question was one that tipped the winning place in favour of some tinny Aussie guy.

How on earth could I let the Magnum go to someone else so I chose that as my winning prize. The rest of the prizes were selected by people in order of the number of correct answers.

In the midst of this fun we had a birthday to celebrate. As the clock had ticked over midnight it was now time to celebrate Jenbel’s birthday.

We sat down to our dessert followed by some coffee. We were the last to leave the restaurant at around 01:30 and wearily made our way back to the hotel.

A very lazy start to the next morning with most people staying in until it was time to catch some cabs up to Pommery.

At Pommery we were taken down the caves and were told about Louise Pommery who made a success in the champagne business which was until then a male domain. We toured the caves and were shown the various named areas where champagne destined for a certain market were stored in the past.
Louise Pommery was a great art lover and commissioned works of art to be carved into the chalk. This champagne and art marriage continues to today and there are various modern art pieces scattered about the caves.

At the end of the tour two of our party were able to try their hand at uncorking a bottle of champagne with a sabre. We all survived with no blood involved and more importantly little champagne was lost in the process. We had a tasting and some canapés down in the caves.

We then ascended the stairs to a lovely room to have a lunch of 1998 Grand Cru Pommery champagne, that just kept coming, and some finger foods.

After drinking several glasses of the Vintage champagne out came the Rose champagne with which we had some sweet treats.

Feeling very happy we all bid our farewell to the house of Pommery and at this point I made my way back to the hotel to wait until it was time for my train to Paris.

I walked down to the station with my extra heavy backpack that now contained a magnum of champagne.

The platform was announced just as I walked into the station and I walked over to the train and on board.

TGV Train No. 2738 Reims - Paris Est Seat 41 Coach 12
Departure time: 16:15

The train pulled out at exactly 16:15 and soon we were speeding along the track back to Paris. We pulled into Paris at 17:00 on time.

I walked back to Gare De Nord and made my way upstairs to the check-in area for Eurostar. The train prior to mine was due to leave in around 40 minutes and they were holding up the queue for my train until they got all of those passengers processed. I joined the queue at around 17:10 and didn’t make it to the lounge until 17:40. The same procedure was followed here in Paris whereby I was checked by French border control and then UK immigrations. After this I went through security and then on into the lounge.

The lounge had much the same on offer as the London lounge. I was able to have a quick drink before being called down to the train. On my way out of the lounge I noticed Pierce Brosnan was in there.

I made my way to my carriage and was welcomed on board again at the door.

Eurostar Train No. 9051 Paris Nord - London Seat 21 Coach 12
Departure time: 18:13

On board I stowed my bags and settled into my seat with camera, ipod and note book.
We pulled out at 18:14 and almost immediately the champagne / drinks run was done.
I had to have champagne again of course.
Dinner tonight was a salad, a choice of Chicken with Bulgur Wheat or Salmon with Rice. On the tray there was also some cheese and a dessert of a chocolate caramel tart. The food was nice, but not quite as tasty as on the way out.

I waived goodbye to France as we headed the chunnel at 19:39. We emerged in the UK at 19:59 (18:59 UK time) and proceeded to Ebbsfleet where this train made a short stop at 19:17. After a few minutes we were on our way again and soon enough were pulling into St Pancras at 19:34.
I made my way out and walked straight onto a tube that would have me home in 20 minutes and wondering just how many glasses of champagne did I drink in the last 48 hours?

This trip. Definitely a passion.

Next up another Bits and Bobs over the May long weekend.

The Photos

Jenbel

Excellent review

HIDDY

A refreshing addition to your bits and bobs Moomba. ^

Moomba

The Photos

OK it is time for another of my bits and bobs.

When originally planned this B&B had a purpose but somehow, although still fulfilling that purpose, morphed into 2 B&Bs and some other bits on the side.
Let me explain.

If you have been reading this epic tome you will note that I left the RTW in DFW a month or so ago. The next portion of the RTW will solely be a North American adventure following which I will end up in Hong Kong. “Yeah so what” I hear you say. What has that got to do with this B&B? Well patience my friends I will get there soon enough.

When planning the RTW there were 4 dates I had fixed and the rest of the flights were just plugged in around these. One of these dates required my being home in Melbourne in August for my Dad’s Birthday.

As noted above I managed to make it to HKG on the RTW but needed to get the last hop to OZ somehow. A nice J fare sale on CX fixed that problem. They were even kind enough to let me book a 105 day layover in HKG online. Why 105 days?
Well in the UK we have two long weekends in May, one at the start and one at the end. I booked my flight to HKG to take advantage of the first of these and not have to take any time off work. The 105 day layover them ties in nicely with the JFK-HKG sector of the RTW in August.

Right are you still with me? I have now made it to HKG with a 105 day layover but needed to get back to LHR to work. Originally I was going to use my BMI miles to book J on NZ to come back but addiction took control and why use award flight when return J fares ex HKG to LHR on NZ are so temptingly affordable ( hey I can justify just about anything when it comes to purchasing tickets ).

Low and behold my trip with a purpose has become a BD mileage run with my returning to HKG for the second May long weekend. If you want to know how I get back from there you will have to wait until B&B 4 is published. Of course you do know in which end of an aircraft it will be though.

Speaking of mileage runs, some of you may remember my I’m A Nut trip report from last year where I did a weekend in HKG with a day trip to BKK on TG in J. Well this year I have gone one better. A day trip to BKK on TG in F.

Enough of the explanations get on with the bloody report will ya! Alright, alright I am about to start so sit back and fasten your seat belts for the next instalment in my passion or addiction epic.

I had planned the first flight of the CX ticket to depart on the midday flight from LHR on the Saturday of the long weekend. This was because the seat maps at the time showed this flight having the new CX kit which I wanted to try.
I checked in 48 online 48 hours out and changed my seat to the exit row ( which is supposed to have more storage space over head according to Seat Guru ). The next morning on EF I noticed that CX had done the old switcheroo and an old J 747 was going to be making the journey. This meant I was now in the last row upstairs. Checking the seat maps before I left for the airport I noticed that 83A was still available which is a window seat but further forward. I thought I might try and get that at check in.

I grabbed my usual 2 tube and HEX to get to LHR T3 and walked up to an empty J check in desk. Unfortunately I was out of luck and decided to keep my 88K window upstairs, which as it turns out was a good move on my part.

I looked at my BP and lounge invite and with some sadness realised this was the first time flying with CX when I didn’t have a OW Emerald FF status. Although my addiction is severe it is not so bad that I was able to, of my own free will and volition, drop down to Sapphire on my AA FF account last year.

I know it is sad and I should be ashamed to show my face on FT but there it is. I humbly beg your forgiveness and assure you plans are almost all in place to secure that double Emerald status by the end of this year.

Oh god I have digressed already and I haven’t made it past security yet. Well don’t dally too long as I have already been there and done that in a flash. No passport control today at T3. I managed, by judicious monitoring of the shoe queue guy, walk toward him at a time when his queues were full and I was waived past without having to have my shoes x-rayed.

As is usual at LHR I walked straight past the madding crowd of civilians and headed up to the CX lounge. Unfortunately this means having to weave ones way in and out of the throngs to the other end of the building. I survived unscathed and walked into the calm of the CX lounge. Here I was greeted and directed to the left. No, no please don’t make me go there that is the Business class lounge. I whipped out my BA Gold card and said can I get BA to pay my way into the other side? He said of course and directed me to the right. Safe at last in the small but adequate F lounge for my 1.5 hour wait until boarding.
In the lounge were 5 computers in small booths, some general lounge seating and food and beverage stand. Dim Sum could be had along with sandwiches, cereals and pastries. You could also order hot noodle soup with wonton or risotto or a salad.
The usual red and white wine and other spirits were available along with non alcoholic beverages of various shapes and sizes. Now you would never guess it but I managed to spy the bottle of Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin in the refrigerator and poured myself a glass. I also grabbed some of the dim sum. I surfed a bit and read a while and decided it was time to head down to the gate.

For the first time for me I needed to head out to the gates to the left after leaving the shopping mall. I hadn’t been down that way for at least 7 years when IIRC a SAS flight I was taking left from there. CX usually hangs out at the other end of the terminal but I am sure they put this flight down this was so that I could get up close and personal with the guppie. Yep at the gate next to ours was that behemoth of an aircraft the SQ A380.

As I walked into my gate area the agent that swiped my BP said to head over to the boarding are as they would be boarding soon and J and F would get to go on first.
I walked up to the gate and hovered for a few minutes when soon enough the boarding announcements began. Folks with small children and special assistance passengers were invited on board first and soon after F, J and OW elites were invited to board.

Flight CX 252 LHR - HKG Seat 88K
Aircraft: B747-400
Departure time: 12:30

I walked on and headed up the stairs to startled crew who were not quite ready for me. I stashed my back pack into the side bins and settled in. As I did so I realised it had been well over a year since I last flew J on CX.
I have, over the years of my living in the UK, developed quite a soft spot for CX. I have done many a J trip home to Oz with this carrier and CX in J feels like home. I even started to get a bit teary eyed thinking of having to endure another flight with this superb carrier.

Right from the first interaction with the upstairs purser I knew it was going to be another great flight. She was very friendly and apologised for not being ready to take me to my seat when I boarded. As more people boarded the crew went about their business taking coats, handing out pre take off drinks. You’ll never guess what I chose. Oh bugger you did.

As I noted earlier, if you were paying attention, my decision to stay with 88K was a good one because, after we were all on board and doors closed, the seat next to me was still vacant. There were two other vacant seats upstairs on this flight. The other 88 aisle seat and the one in front of that in 87.
In all I had two glasses of champagne and hot towels were handed out prior to our taking off. The menus and amenity kits were also handed out on the ground.

We had a small dilemma on the ground as both the purser and FA from upstairs could not engage the automatic switch on the upper right door. The Cabin Manager came up and used her brute strength to make the door play ball. Phew. Of all trips this is not one that could tolerate too much in the way of delays.

We push back at 12:35 and join the queue for take off. We taxi down to the end of the runway past T5 with BA tail fins lined up in the sun. Finally it is our turn and at 12:58 the crew send the kerosene hurtling through the rolls and they do their part in sending us nose first down the runway towards the West. On the way we sail past T4 with oh so many BA tail fins still there when they should no longer be. Oh well the best laid plans of mice and Willie.

We take off into a surprisingly clear day over London and bank left in order to turn around to head to the East. Just after passing over the Millennium dome the gong went that meant the crew could start about their business.

First up today was a round of drinks, yes OK I had champagne, so what. This was accompanied by a small bowl of olives or almonds. I chose olives. My glass was filled one, or two, fine it was three more times and the purser brought me another bowl of nuts this time to help soak everything up.

The lunch service then began with the tables being set with the usual CX J assortment of goodies. The lovely pebble shaped salt and pepper shakers, the cutlery nicely wrapped in the napkin and a small peg. The peg is a nice touch as it enables you to peg your napkin to your shirt to avoid the “Oh flippen heck I have spilt sauce down my shirt and we have hardly gone anywhere yet” syndrome.

The menu for lunch today:


Lunch
Starters:
Prosciutto and salami with tomato salad, feta and kalamata olives

Mixed salad served with balsamic vinaigrette dressing

Main Courses:
Grilled beef tenderloin with herb roasted potatoes balsamic glazed tomatoes and French beans

Braised cod and beancurd stick in oyster sauce steamed rice and stir-fried vegetables

Stir-fried sweet and sour pork egg fried rice, Chinese broccoli and black mushrooms

Lamb nilgiri with saffron basmati and bhindi masala

Cheese and Dessert:

Quickies Cheddar, Blue d’Avengne, Goat log

Fresh seasonal fruit

Strawberry vanilla delice

Tea and Coffee

Pralines

Snacks:

Selected Sandwiches

Chicken with black mushrooms and pak choy in noodle soup

Ice cream

Wine List:
Champagne:
Billecart-Salmon Brut Champagne

White Wines:
Aujoux Vire Clesse 2006

Allan Scott Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2007

Red Wines:
Vieux Chateau Landon Cru Bourgeois 2004

Peter Lehmann Barossa Cabernet Sauvignon 2005

Port:
Dow’s Late Bottled Vintage Port 2003

Bottles of water were placed in the holders in the seats just before lunch was served.

The salad and starter were delivered on a tray and I grabbed a top up of the champagne to go along with these.
The starter was made just for me I am sure. I love, rocket, feta, olives and salami so I was in seventh heaven, especially washing it all down with the beautiful Billecart-Salmon. Not to mention the scrummy garlic bread, although it is not as good as the bread in F. But hey I am not complaining.

When the main course came along I decided to go for the curry which was delicious and teamed this with the Cabernet Sauvignon which was also delicious. I particularly liked the masala with the main and the curry was just bordering on hic up inducing hot – which I loved.

I decided to go with the cheese and sweets in order that I may give you a most complete report on this flight. Needless to say I was quite stuffed by the end of all this food.

After the meal I decided to watch some of the extensive array of AVOD entertainment CX have on board. I started to watch a movie but passed out around two thirds of the way through. I woke up around 4 hours out of Hong Kong. I decided to watch the last third of my movie and then started to watch another. Around 2 hours out the lights came on and hot towels were brought around to wake us up.

Breakfast Menu:
Starters:
Orange or Grapefruit Juice

Cranberry and raspberry smoothie

Fresh seasonal fruit

Fruit yoghurt

Assorted Cereals

Main Courses:
Cheese and spinach soufflé with streaky bacon, pork sausage, sautéed mushroom and frilled roma tomatoes

Apple pancake with apple and cinnamon compote and grilled back bacon

Assorted Chinese dim sum with stir-fried noodles and vegetables served with chilli sauce

Bread Basket
Tea and Coffee

I decided to go light (hah) and only had a smoothie, the fruit and some egg dish which wasn’t on the menu. The choices for breakfast did not match those on the menu for this flight. Whatever it was I had was tasty though.

After breakfast I finished watching my movie and listened to some music and was asked, yet again, to fill out a CX questionnaire.

We landed at around 07:00 and taxied for quite a long time until we got to our gate.

I walked off the aircraft and contemplated the insanity of what I was about to do all in the interests of my passion or is it addiction?

The Photos

Jenbel

^ thanks for keeping us informed of where you were this weekend

HIDDY

No, I lost the plot somewhere on your fourth or was it your fifth LHR visit? Phileas Fogg had it easy compared to this RTW, but what the hell.

I'm still thoroughly enjoying it. ^

Moomba

Thankyou to my two person fan club for the encouraging comments.

Moomba

The Photos

As I mentioned in the previous missive my plan for today was to do a turn around from HKG-BKK on Thai International in First.

From the point that I booked my ticket until around a week ago the TG website and check my trip showed these flights as being operated by 747-400 aircraft with the new suites. This all changed a week ago when the dreaded 747-400 All Passenger Series showed up as the operating aircraft. During the old switcheroonie they managed to keep me in my originally requested seat of 1A. Oh well at least the flights weren’t switched to 2 class aircraft.

Now as you remember I was wandering around the arrivals level at HKG wondering what form of insanity lead me to my current state.

I wandered up to the transit area up near the low gate numbers. Wrong. I looked for a TG transit desk and found none. I then spied the boards suggesting I needed to be in the other transit area near the 40’s gates. I turned tail and went back past my gate on the long trek down the spine of the airport to get to the other transit area.

Once at the TG desk I had to wait for a couple to finish up whatever the hell they were doing and after around 5 minutes presented myself before the agent. She confirmed my odd itinerary and was able to print both boarding passes for me and wrote out the lounge invitation to the Royal Orchid lounge.

I turned around and proceeded to the transfers security section. I was done within 5 minutes and headed up to the departures level. I wandered up to the Red Carpet lounge and used my BD *G credentials to get myself inside. The agent informed me that they did not announce the TG flights and I would have to keep an eye on the monitor.

As a good little FTer I had done my homework and found that the showers in the UA Red Carpet were better than the TG lounge, hence I went there first.

I had a shower and changed, but not too much, before doing a tour of the Red Carpet. It was very nice for a US based airline lounge.
There were plenty of seats, booze, beer on tap, snacks, dim sum, cereal, toast, yoghurt, fruit, crisps, nuts, cheese, crackers etc etc. Of course juices, tea, coffee and other non alcoholic beverages were also available. There were 3 pc’s down the far end, which was where I headed after showering. I checked mail, FT etc and then grabbed some juice to sip on.

I decided to perch myself on the edge of the lounge overlooking the long departures concourse that was home to the 60’s gates. People watching is one of my favourite past times and I was able to do plenty of that as the morning wore on.

After a couple of hours I moved over to the TG Royal Orchid lounge to wait out the rest of my stay at HKG airport. I was greeted and escorted into the F section of the lounge where I was offered a drink. I decided to go for a Bloody Mary to get the ball rolling. I was told that there was a breakfast buffet the other side of the wall that I could take advantage of or if I liked I could order from the ala carte lunch menu but that wouldn’t be available until 11:00.

I wandered over to the buffet and there to be had was cereals, fruit, salads, dim sum, bacon, eggs, noodles of some kind and other bits and pieces along with alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.
I grabbed a couple of dim sum items and went back to the F side.

From my saet I could see a UA flight to SFO boarding. They had this interesting ritual where they selected x number of passengers and had them step on a set of scales with their hand baggage. The weight was recorded and the passenger sent on their way down to the plane. Most odd.

At around 10:50 a lounge attendant came and asked me if I wanted something from the menu.

On offer:
Daily Soup

Assorted Dim Sum

Pan Roasted Chicken Breast wrapped with bacon on mashed potato served on
spinach cream sauce

Deep fried Vietnamese Spring Rolls with Sweet and Sour sauce

Penne pasta served with onion / fresh mushrooms and herbs tomato sauce

Home made cream cake

Pappagallo Premium Ice Cream

I declined any more food remembering that I would be eating two First class meals in the next few hours.
I noticed that a good few people arrived into the F section of the lounge along with a few wannabes that were swiftly deported to the J section by the astute staff.

At around 12:20 I headed down to the aircraft which was only a few minutes walk away at gate 42.
Soon after I got to the gate the agents announced that they would be boarding soon. I headed over to the F/J boarding queue and lined up where an agent checked my passport against the BP.

Flight TG 601 HKG - BKK Seat 1A
Aircraft: B747-400
Departure time: 12:45

There were a couple of people in front of me in the queue but they turned right on boarding and I turned left and headed to Seat 1A.

After sitting down I was offered a glass of Dom Perignon vintage 2000. I was given a wine list and menu and a hot towel was delivered. The first cabin filled until all but 1 seat were occupied. No wonder they wanted to switch in the 14 seat variation as opposed to the 9 seat configuration.

Lunch orders were taken prior to pushing back which was at 12:51.

The menu:
Lunch:
Canapés

First Course:
Pan-fried Butterfly Prawnm Hot Smoked Creole Salmon, Smoked Tuna Fillet

Main Course:
Stir-fried Scallop and Prawn with Mixed Capsicum, Oriental X.O. Sauce Steamed Thai Hom Mali Rice, Pak-choy, Black Mushroom in Oyster Sauce

Seared Duck Breast with Apricot Jam, Hazelnut Crust, Raspberry Brown Sauce with Wine, Lyonnaise Potatoes, Sauteed Vegetables

Beef Curry “Kiew-wan”, Steamed Thai Hom Rice, Stir-fried Vegetables


Assorted Breads, Crackers, Butter, Cheese and Fresh Fruits Plate

Dessert:
Macadamia Nut Ice Cream

Mixed Fresh Fruit Salad in Syrup

Tea, Coffee, Espresso, Cappuccino

Wine List:
White Wines:
Mercurey Domaine Michel Juillot 2001 Chardonnay

Le Divinus De Chateau Bonnet 2006

Chateau Millet Cuvee Henri 2005

Red Wines:
Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse De Lalande 2001

Santenay 1er Cru, Passentemps 2001

Champagne:
Dom Perignon Vintage 2000

Once in the air I had some more Dom and some canapés were delivered to my seat. Top ups of the Dom were plentiful throughout the flight but the crew were not overly warm in making you feel welcome.

My table was set and the starter delivered along with some fabulous garlic bread. The starter was very ordinary as the prawn was tough as leather with the salmon not far behind. By way of some small saving grace the tuna was delicious.

Between courses the bread basket was once again offered and I took the opportunity to grab some more garlic bread.

I went for the Beef Curry for my main which was very nice but not spectacular. I had read on FT that the meals on TG in F were nothing special. It seems I was finding this out for myself.

I opted to have the cheese and fruit platter with some crackers but knocked back the dessert as I was full up to pussies bow.

My note taking ability has taken a dive at this point either through extreme tiredness or too much Dom. As a result timing of arrivals and such seem to have to forgotten in my notes. So if you like that sort of detail – tough!

We pulled up to our D gate and as expected I saw a lovely Thai girl holding a card with my name on it. She confirmed I was in an idiot, err sorry, that I was flying back to Hong Kong and then took another couple and I to her golf cart.
We zoomed down the corridor to the immigrations area where the other couple were offloaded. She then took me further along towards the lounges. She escorted me upstairs to the F lounge and handed me over to the lounge agents. She said someone would collect me later to take me back to the same gate and same plane to head back to Hong Kong.

In the lounge I was escorted to a seat and offered a drink. I decided sparkling water would be the go for my stay in the lounge. I didn’t really do much in the way of reconnoitring in the lounge apart from finding the loo. It was a haven of calm though with a few people scattered here and there and very attentive staff offering food and drinks.

Soon enough my time in the Royal Orchid F lounge was at an end and the Hong Kong bound customers were herded down to the waiting throng of golf carts. We shot down the long walkway past our gate to a transit point further down the terminal. Here we were escorted back upstairs and walked back toward the gate, stopping briefly to go through an empty security check point.

The agent led me (we had lost my golf caring companion somewhere along the way) to the front of the queue of people having their BPs swiped and then onto the plane and handed me over to the waiting crew.

Flight TG 606 BKK - HKG Seat 1A
Aircraft: B747-400
Departure time: 16:00

I went back to my now familiar purple velvet home for the next couple of hours. A small box of chocolates was on the armrest of the seat. Out came the Dom, macadamia nuts and menus but this time a much more personable and friendly crew were on hand. A cold towel was delivered which was a quite refreshing beginning to the flight.

Dinner orders were taken on the ground again and I was offered a second glass of bubbles.

For Dinner tonight:
Hot Savouries:
Fried Spring Roll Hong Kong Style, Deep Fried Crab Claw

Soup:
Lobster Bisque

Five Colour Balls (Mixed Vegetable Soup)

Main Course:
Crab Claw and Vermicelli Chinese Style, Egg Fried Rice, Cucumber, Tomato

Grilled Beef Tenderloin, Chanterelle Sauce with Pink Peppercorn, Parsley
Potatoes, Buttered Broccoli, Turned Carrot

Grilled Salmon Teriyaki, Steamed Japanese Rice with Black Sesame Seeds, Simmered Vegetables Japanese Style and Asparagus


Assorted Breads, Crackers, Butter, Cheese and Fresh Fruits Tray

Dessert:
Banana and Chocolate Ice Cream

Tea, Coffee, Espresso, Cappuccino

Wine List:
Same as above

The lovely crew swung into action after the seat belt signs were switched off.
The savouries were quite nice when washed down with the Dom that just kept flowing.
The soup was nice but had lumps of concentrate in it that hadn’t blended in too well. There were big chunks of lobster sitting in the soup.

The main was dire to say the least. I ordered the crab claw but was really not nice and had two small claws with lots of very dry vermicelli and some rice.

I opted out of the cheese this time and went with the very delicious ice cream.

After all that lot I took part in what turned out to be the front row ritual of coffee and cognac.

We landed a touch late and the first class passengers were met at the end of the ramp and loaded onto buggies to be taken to immigration way, way, way up the other end of the airport.

Immigrations only had a couple of people in front of me and I through in a flash. No bags so straight out to the Airport Express train that pulled into the station as I walked up. All up pulling in at gate to train was a little over 15 minutes.

24 minutes later I exited at Kowloon station where I had to wait for 10 minutes for the shuttle bus to the Sheraton.

I checked into my upgrade harbour view room and was having a lovely hot shower by 20:30

I had survived the very long day pandering to my addiction or is it passion?

Now could I get some sleep given my body clock was completely messed up?


The Photos

Jenbel

It's not the quantity, it's the quality which counts

Gatwick Alan

Well i'm a fan too, but after reading what you get up to, i feel wholly inadequate!!

Moomba

Thanks Gatwick Alan. Perhaps you are just not addicted, passionate or as insane as I am.