And back to the regularly scheduled programming …
SQ 176
SIN-HAN
Boeing 777-200
Seat 14K, J
We entered the aircraft to see the old business class, and already my sister commented, “This looks old.” My first reaction as well in BKK, but I’m a fan. As long as it’s a day flight and you avoid the middle seat in the center section, you really can’t complain. The seats recline pretty far if you just want to relax for a 3-hour flight. With the requisite amazing service expected from SQ, it turned out to be a great flight. That’s the thing I’ve realized about flying SQ. They set their expectations so high that an amazing flight is almost always expected. Hell, I’m flying them 22000 miles in Y next month and am actually looking forward to it
. But only after having been matched to Star Gold from Skypeso Gold. See, you
can make something out of nothing!
Anyway … with 4 SQ J flights in less than 2 weeks, I’ve gotten used to the pre-flight routine. Magazines, newspapers, pre-departure beverage, confirmation of BTC order, orders for post-takeoff beverage, the entire gamut. Wonderful service, as usual.
For this 3h05m sector to HAN, service was bit more relaxed than the shorter service ex-BKK. It still blew US airlines out of the water. Too bad they don’t “give away” the forward cabin. Then again, methinks that those two things are related
.
Here’s the menu, though I kept with my BTC meal of Singapore Chicken Rice and my vegetarian sister stuck with the BTC Roasted Vegetables I had placed an order for.
And if you’re interested in the return sector …
Olive bread
Seafood salad. Starting a week of dragon fruit consumption.
Singapore Chicken Rice. Even better than the first time.
Roasted Vegetables. You can see my sister imitating the 'bon appetit' wave mentioned below.
Opera cake
Okay, I lied about no pics from the BOM-SIN flight. This was the dessert on that flight, so I'll just sneak this in ...
Small cheese plate. They ran a cart with selections, but I was already stuffed.
Chocolates. This is a 3-hour flight in Business!
Our Singapore Girl in the cabin was incredible throughout the flight. Even in a business class, our place settings were always prettied up just a bit between courses. After placing a dish down, she would perform a subtle wave of her wrist while saying, “Bon appetit” or “Enjoy.” It’s the little things that stand out.
After our meal service, we had about 75 minutes left until HAN. I dozed off in a food coma for a bit; upon awaking, my sister mentioned that they also ran a golf cart of ice cream and was tempted to partake. This is almost
too much food, but hey, who's complaining?
The FA came to talk with us about our upcoming trip for a while (we were the only non-business types or non-Vietnamese-origin passengers in the cabin, so our choice of destination made her quite curious). My sister explained how Ha Long Bay has been on her bucket list and how I got us her first J ticket.
“Well, sounds like you have quite a wonderful brother.”
Hear that, sis?
Now ditch that Discover card …
We were the first foreigners off the plane, so we were first in line for the Visa On Arrival. With an approval letter, the process was quick and we were through immigration within 10 minutes.
One thing about my sister is that she tries to act "budget traveler" as much as possible. While I travel with an actual suitcase (that was busting to the brim with gifts to/from family + airline amenity kits), she goes the backpacker route. It was a sight to see her pack with "business class" and "priority" stickers come off the belt.
A quick trip to the ATM made us instant Vietnamese Millionaires. If you take an adolescent male with you to Vietnam, prepare for giggles when you tell him the name of the currency.
Cabs from the airport to the city cost about US$18. Or 400,000 Vietnamese Dong.
Or you can take a mini-bus (with "bus" being a very generous description ... it's a van) for US$1.70 per person, which drops you off close to the city-center, where you can take a cab to wherever you need to go. After close to a week in Hanoi, I'll trust only one cab company - the green decaled Mai Linh company. Pretty much everyone else will try to rip you off...