With a 7am departure, my plan was to walk around Singapore until midnight or so, then return to the airport and catch a nap on the couches of the Business or First Class lounges, as I knew TPR closes around 2am.
So, I walked around the Chinatown and Little India, happily frittering away 6 hours or so, finally ending up playing a few card games at the Marina Bay Sands (and making a few SGD in the process.)
Arriving back at SIN at around 11pm or so, I decided to check out the First Class Lounge at Terminal 2 first. The lounge, for all practical purposes, is pretty much the same as the one in T3, but I did like the ambiance a little more, and I enjoyed a plate of fruit before heading over to T3 (and hopefully stuffing my face a little more at TPR.)
Back at Terminal 3, I was informed (politely) by the dragon that I would not be allowed access to TPR, as my connecting flight to HKG was on the next day. She was about to escort me over to the Business Class side (which was jam packed), but she noticed I was eligible for FCL access on my boarding pass. So, I was dropped off there.
It wasn't too bad - but I found the lounge really cold. The food selection at the time was decent, but I was still relatively stuffed from eating at a hawker stall that night. Also, the lounge was rather noisy from the boarding gates downstairs, as I watched numerous A380 departures to JFK, SYD, LHR and ZRH board.
I took a shower (which wasn't all that different from the ones in TPR), then headed over to the business class section where there were pillows and blankets, so I pulled 2 chairs together and got some sleep until 5:30am or so.
Well, I realized I wasn't feeling too well at this time, and chose not to eat from the breakfast buffet, even though it looked decent.
SQ890 SIN-HKG
January 4, 2014
Boeing 777-200ER (Retrofitted)
Scheduled: 07:35-11:20
Actual: 07:52-11:22
Seat 11A
Thankfully, the line for security wasn't too bad, but there was a huge queue for Economy passengers to board. I boarded quickly with my Business Class boarding pass.
First impressions of the Business Class cabin were very good. Obviously the cabin wasn't as spacious as the First Class cabin, but the bulkhead seat felt almost identical to the "new" First Class seat. It was almost just as wide, and my legs weren't touching the ottoman.
Maybe my gripe with the bulkhead seat was that the screen was a little too high.
As I continued to snap away at the cabin, an attendant came to offer me a PDB. I opted for the orange juice, and decided to grab a few magazines from the selection she also brought along. Another two attendants came along to introduce themselves, and wished me a pleasant flight. One of them confirmed that my BTC Nasi Lemak was loaded on board, and that I could choose to have breakfast at any time I wanted. This was a welcome change from the service I got the previous day in First Class.
Today's light in Business Class was very light, with only 6 people occupying the entire cabin, while Economy looked to be full to the brim. If that's one thing I appreciate about SQ, is that they don't give upgrades out for the sake of giving upgrades, keeping the exclusive feel of the cabin.
Shortly after takeoff, an attendant came by to set up my table, and also took my drink order. I was the only one having breakfast in the cabin, as everyone else turned down their seats into beds.
First, the fruit starter:
The attendant then drew my attention to the extensive tea list in the back of the menu, and did her best to convince me to take something from there. I don't remember exactly what tea I opted for, but it was pretty good. Then came the yogurt course (I declined the cereal)
The BTC Nasi Lemak was actually quite good. Maybe it's because I've been deprived of Nasi Lemak for a few good years, but it was a filling and satisfying dish. The sambal sauce and the fried fishes were great, and the prawns on the side were also very good. I finished most of it, but was starting not to feel too well.
I then asked for my bed to be turned down, which was done promptly.
Tour of the cabin:
I was able to catch a solid 2 hour nap, and when I woke up, I chose to watch another episode or two of Two and a Half Men. Again, I must say that SQ's entertainment system was one of the best I've ever experienced, and this was on an (apparently) older version.
The seats were also quite comfortable for sleeping, but I can see how taller people would have problems with the layout. The one thing I like about the bulkhead is there's no restrictive cubby for your feet.
I slept pretty much all the way to landing in HKG (I noticed on the way to the washroom that most people chose to have breakfast just before landing.)
I passed through immigration quickly using the e-channel as a HKID holder, and waited for just about 5 minutes at the carousel. The thing I love about HKG is how fast luggage handling is, even without priority tags. I made it from the jetway, all the way to the Airport Express in under 15 minutes flat.
Verdict: Singapore Airlines long-haul J product is phenomenal. I found it spacious and comfortable enough and comparable to F products, aside from food and drink. The service was also very good and definitely better than what I received in First Class from CGK. Maybe the loading was light, but I'm fine with not having to have an attendant hover over me every 5 minutes. I wouldn't hesitate to fly SQ J again, and I hope to try it on the A380 someday. In fact, I'm almost baffled why anyone would pay for F on SQ when the J product is that good, as it pretty much feels the same, except you're missing the Dom and Krug.