Great TR! Very well written and entertaining. Travelling on the The Indian Pacific and The Ghan are on my bucket list. Food sounds fantastic and great to hear alcohol is now included in the price.
Originally Posted by
Amelorn
Before this meeting though, I went down to the legendary Bondi beach. At a frigid 21 C (70F), the beach was relatively empty. There were only a few sunbathers, and those in the water were exclusively surfers. As a native New Yorker, I went for a swim, local custom be damned. I found the water temp more pleasant than the Atlantic during a Long Island summer, to be honest. ..............
.................... With 20 degree highs, I donned a sleeveless shirt and shorts (someone fetch Yahilwe's smelling salts) and went to Cottesloe beach.
I think you've spent far too much time in the UK!
Originally Posted by
Amelorn
As I write this, we are 30 minutes outside of Adelaide.
The Indian Pacific train features three classes of service: red, gold, and platinum. These are roughly analogous with Y, J, and F. In red, one gets a spacious recliner seat with an expansive pitch similar to DL’s int’l J recliner seats. Food is however sold a la carte. Gold service is subdivided into superior with a ¾ double bed, twinette bunk beds, or single cabins. I occupy a single cabin. Platinum cabins include proper double beds or a pair of twins. Pricing is fairly straightforward, though with a 1/3 concession for seniors. That said, everyone here in gold is on a fare less than 1/3 of $2100 (single), 3k (twinette), 4k (superior ¾). Platinum cabins are 6k.
Are you referring to all the passengers being seniors and paying 1/3 less as a result?
Originally Posted by
Amelorn
Given the discounting at the Myer and its sister store David Jones .............
............. I trotted off to David Jones for some sundries such as appropriate underwear (my boxer shorts are useless for running) and a shirt. Fortunately, being under the same ownership, they are running the same sale as the Myer, meaning the prices are indentical on shared inventory, despite David Jones being the decidedly more upmarket store. Many, many brands are stocked in common. However, DJ is much more civilised.
Myer (it's just Myer, or Myers as many incorrectly call it, rather than The Myer) and David Jones are actually not under the same ownership - they are competitors with separate ownership. Myer was previously owned by the Coles-Myer Group (now just Coles Group, which is owned by listed entity, Wesfarmers) and is now owned by private equity or possibly the Myer family. David Jones is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.
Originally Posted by
Amelorn
While this demographic was decidedly "blokey," I did pass one very petite young Asian woman in the standard outfit, but clean. Somehow, I doubt that all 80kgs of her is down in the hole with a pickaxe.
Do you mean 80lbs? 80kgs isn't very petite!
Originally Posted by
Amelorn
Boarding began at 8:22 for an 8:45 departure (15 minute delay). I am not sure if this was an elite-heavy flight, but the premium boarding lane seemed to fill indiscriminately as if it were just a second regular lane.
Priority boarding is an area Qantas consistently receives criticism for on here and also Australian Frequent Flyer, primarily because it doesn't work as it's not enforced by staff.
Looking forward to your next installment!