Part 2 -- SFO-NRT-TPE (NH C)
We were both very excited to begin our honeymoon! I called the car service I typically use for business travel to pick us up. We rode in comfort to SFO in a nice Lincoln Towncar:
We stopped by the Silver Kris lounge at the International terminal. It was small, but quiet -- especially compared to the zoo that is the United Club. We must have arrived too late for breakfast as the trays for food were empty. I had some cheese and fruit.
Our 777-300ER parked at the gate:
Unfortunately, the plane had mechanical issues and we were parked at the gate for almost two hours. I passed the time by watching a movie and playing some games.
Legroom shot:
Being my first trip report, I was a little shy taking pictures in the cabin. It did not help that my crappy Blackberry camera makes a noisy fake-shutter sound when taking pictures. I later learned the trick of covering the speaker with my finger while taking pictures. It still does not help with the quality though!
Unfortunately, I didn't get any good shots of the staggered seating in business class. I would not have minded a wider seat in lieu of the privacy afforded by the staggered seating. It was a little narrow for my taste. Also, at 6'0, I barely fit when lying completely flat.
Here is a shot of the IFE.
The video selection was extremely limited. There were 50 movies listed, but many of the listings merely repeated movie selections in various languages. There weren't many movies either of us wanted to watch. I watched Forrest Gump, Jack the Giant Slayer, and the new Die Hard movie.
ANA provides a set of noise canceling headphones, which I found to be ineffective at reducing noise and very uncomfortable, as they sit directly on the ears instead of over them. After an hour, I went back to using my awesome set of Audio Technica ATH-ANC23 QuietPoint active noise-cancelling in-ear headphones. They also provide a set of slippers and a very comfy blanket and pillow.
For my meal, I chose the Japanese option. The FA was pretty insistent that I order the international option for some reason. She didn't even ask what I wanted and just said she recommended the international option for me. They were probably worried about not having enough for the Japanese passengers on the flight. Oh well.
The zensai consisting of vinegared rice rolled with salmon and lotus root, grilled squid with egg yolk, and salt-boiled green soybeans is on the bottom. The kobachi (deep-fried summer vegetables soaked in seafood stock) is in the upper right. The sunomono (grilled freshwater eel with sweet vinegar flavored with bonito shavings, kelp sugar and soy) is in the upper left.
For the next course, they served simmered red rockfish in soy-based sauce, along with steamed rice, miso soup and assorted Japanese pickles:
The meal was finished with vanilla ice cream and mango sherbet:
They also offered a light meal about an hour or two before landing in Tokyo. I opted again for the Japanese meal, which included spanish mackerel grilled in salt, simmered semi-dried daikon radish in soy-based sauce, simmered beans with syrup, steamed rice, miso soup and assorted Japanese pickles, and dessert:
We landed in Tokyo just in time for us to make our connecting flight. On the whole, the flight was enjoyable. I found the service to be much better than on U.S.-based carriers, but while courteous, I didn't find the FAs to be that welcoming.
The next leg of our flight was NRT-TPE. We had a 767. The seats were decent and business class was not crowded at all.
We got a great view of Mount Fuji.
The in-flight meal was pretty good. I opted for the international meal, consisting of chicken and foie gras pate with yellow peach, yuzu-citron marinated summer vegetables, sauteed Isaki, grunt fish and Provence-style summer vegetables, Graham bread, and lychee jelly and Champagne mousse.
A nice sunset at 34,000 feet.
