Introduction:
I’m currently studying in Istanbul, Turkey for one semester as I escape the academic rigour back in Singapore. Being an exchange student from the Far Far East, what better opportunity is there to take the time to travel around Europe? A few weeks back, the desire to travel crept in once again as I played around with OTA searches. After some discussion with friends, Georgia came up as an option and a quick search on the magical world of the Internet found a round trip ticket to Tbilisi on AtlasGlobal for about 78 Euros. Having flown with AtlasGlobal to Amsterdam previously, I found it to be a decent airline and snagged the ticket before prices rose. Off to Tbilisi, it is!
I rushed to the airport from a dinner gathering in Uskudar, a district on the Asian side of Istanbul. Thankfully, the metro was reliable as usual, and the journey took slightly less than an hour. However, it took some effort to obtain my boarding pass at the check-in counter, as the check-in crew was not sure if Singaporeans required a visa to visit Georgia. It seems like Georgia was not a popular destination for Singaporeans despite our 360 days visa-free entry to the beautiful country, or maybe we just aren't transiting to Georgia from Istanbul. Whatever the case, after some checks were done (including my efforts to google a reliable source about my visa-free eligibility), I was finally given my boarding pass, along with my preallocated seat, 26A. First hurdle, cleared.
For my first time, there was no queue at passport control in Ataturk Airport. However, being a foreign student, I was required to have my Residence Permit before I could leave the country but with the efficient (ahem) bureaucracy, all I could obtain was a piece of paper that says I have applied for it. A few checks, an exit stamp, and I were off to the airside! Second hurdle, cleared! For my first time, I could finally stroll around the duty free shops. As boarding time approached, I headed to my gate to commence boarding.
27th November 2015
Istanbul Ataturk Airport – Tbilisi International Airport
KK6794
Aircraft Type: A320-232
Aircraft Registration: TC-ATK
Departure: 0003H
Arrival: 0345H
Flight Time: 1:42
Seat 26A
My bird for the short hop to Tbilisi
Quite the pretty tail in my opinion, I was boarding from the rear since I chose a seat at the back
We were really far from the main terminal on a pretty foggy night
The plane was parked at a remote stand, which was a 10-minute shuttle ride away from the gates. My plane was a 9.7year old bird that was first delivered to Air Deccan, which later merged with Kingfisher. It is currently leased from AerCap. Boarding was smooth and fast, and as the next busload of passengers arrived, I was left delighted by the fact that I had the entire row to myself. Plane load for the day was probably about 70-80%.
Legroom was sufficient for me, no complaints!
Supper
Legroom was comfortable for me, and despite the short hop to Tbilisi (approx. 1:50 journey), AtlasGlobal served supper, which was pretty decent. A starter of canned fruits, a bread roll with butter, main of cold cuts, chicken breast, cheese, sarma (a Turkish vine leaf wrap), tomato, cucumber and olives, rounded off with a slice of cherry cake. A variety of drinks were also available, including Coke, Coke Zero, apple juice, orange juice, Aryan (a popular Turkish buttermilk beverage), water and some others, which I’ve forgotten. I took a Coke Zero for myself.