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More Champagne, Sir? Life and times in BA's First Class ~ Australia to California

More Champagne, Sir? Life and times in BA's First Class ~ Australia to California

Old Feb 3, 2005, 9:00 am
  #1  
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More Champagne, Sir? Life and times in BA's First Class ~ Australia to California

After four weeks wandering about the southern and western regions of Australia, its is now time to return to the cooler climes of North America. Ive had a great time Down Under, visiting Alice Springs in the red center of the continent, Adelaide and the wine growing country on the south coast, Kalgoorlie and Norseman in the Western gold fields and the forested hills and beautiful coastlines to the south of Perth. For sure I could easily stay another three months down here because I feel like Im only just getting warmed up.

Warmed up, indeed! Its summer Down Under and temperatures in Western Australia have been typically torrid. Daily highs have been in the mid to high 30s (Thats 90 to 100 degrees for you aficionados of Fahrenheit) with occasional forays into the low 40s. Its been with no small amount of longing that Ive noted the weather reports back home in Alaska where a warm winter has high temperatures hovering in the 0 to -10 degree range. (Thats 18 to 25 for you devotees of the Centigrade scale).

In the face of my suffering, the locals have been incredibly kind. For example, many shop owners have allowed me to stand an extra few seconds in front of the open door of their refrigerated drink displays. A supermarket allowed me to spend almost an hour of undisturbed loitering in the freezer section. An especially big thank you goes out to the restaurant employee who offered to set up a small table for me in the walk-in cooler as I furiously fanned myself with the menu. Ill never forget their kindness and generosity!

So it is with mixed feelings that I now begin the long journey back to North America. I will surely miss Australia and her people, as fine a combination of beautiful landscape and fine folk as youll find anywhere on the planet. I will definitely not miss the searing tropical heat, accentuated by high humidity along the coastal regions.


*** ***** ***

As always, Im really looking forward to flying British Airways First Class once again. It is an experience I will never tire of and the prospect of flying into the sunset whilst enjoying a glass of fine wine and a quality meal high over the Gibson Desert takes much of the sting out of returning home so soon after this all too short journey to Australia.

Originally, I had planned to return from Perth to Melbourne on the train. However, Virgin Blue launched a new sales promotion called Happy Hour, wherein tickets purchased between 1:00pm and 2:00pm Sydney time could be had for as little as $1.00 each way! As tempted as I am to add a few more exclamation points to that price, it should be noted that those $1.00 fares are saddled with a minimum of $29.00 in taxes plus a $2.00 credit card fee if purchasing over the internet.

Sale markets varied daily and again, the fares were only offered between 1:00 and 2:00pm Sydney time, or 10-11AM Western Australia time. To be sure, the $1.00 fares were offered only on shorter markets like Melbourne to Canberra. On the third day of the sale, I found a $99.00 one-way fare from Perth to Melbourne that priced out at $131.00 all in. In near record time, I had a seat booked on DJ 288, the 6:00am departure.

Even though my rail ticket back to Melbourne was paid for via a RailPass, it was well worth the $100.00 USD extra paid for my air ticket to avoid going through the Hell that is Red Kangaroo Class travel on Great Southern Railways. The seats onboard the trains are comfortable enough but are not spaced sufficiently to allow a six footer like me to stretch my legs. Seat recline is minimal and on the ride out at least, the air conditioning couldnt keep up with the searing heat of the Nullabor. Then there are the drunks. Every train I rode had them at some point. They're fine in the lounge car entertaining even but when, in the dead of night, they loudly take their show back into the passenger cars after a long day of drinking, they become more than a bit tedious.

I returned to the Perth suburb of Fremantle for two final days at the excellent YHA hostel before bidding adieu to my new friends and heading off to the train station. The commuter train station. Half an hour later I was in Perth, and an hour after that I was at the Perth Domestic Terminal, eagerly anticipating the prospect of three hours of blissfully peaceful air travel above rather than across the Nullabor.

An early morning departure time of 6:00am coupled with poorly timed and/or expensive early morning transport out to the airport meant that Id be sleeping at the airport the night before my flight. In Perth as in most other Australian cities, Virgin Blue occupies the old Ansett Terminal. It was wonderfully air conditioned and looked to be a fine place to bed down for the night until I was informed by security that the terminal was closed at midnight and Id have to vacate the building. Aw, jeez Before leaving however, I checked at the ticket counter and managed to get myself assigned an exit row window for the next morning.

Outside the terminal, the night was hot and slightly breezy with just enough of a wind to stir up the thousands of starlings (I think they were) that call the trees across from the terminal their home. They all chattered noisily from their leafy perches and I was reminded of the soundtrack from Alfred Hitchcocks thriller The Birds.

Truth be known, if, as in Melbourne and Sydney, there had been a $69.00 AUD Formule 1 style motel available on the airport grounds, I would have gladly handed over the cash. Alas, the only airport hotel in Perth cost considerably more than $69.00 and did not offer complimentary early morning transfers. As I was scoping out the possibilities for a spot outside the terminal, a policeman strolled by and I asked him if he had any recommendations for one in my predicament. To my great surprise, he recommended I head over to the Qantas Terminal where I was informed I could stay inside but that Id need to check with Qantas first.

Moments later, I stepped into the somewhat less air-conditioned Qantas Terminal. A large crowd was queued at the check-in counters but I found a separate Qantas Service Center and asked the lady there about over-nighting in her terminal.

Absolutely Not! was her stern reply.
But, I sputtered, the police told me
Well they were incorrect. You must be out of the building at midnight!

Something in the ladys tone and demeanor told me that she was just a little too comfortable saying Absolutely Not! and so I grabbed my pack and waited for the line at the counter to die down. Later, I approached a group of three agents, one of whom appeared to be a supervisor based upon his uniform. I explained the situation, including the fact that I was flying with their competitor.

I wish you hadnt told me that lamented the supervisor.

I could sense however that he was really leaning towards letting me stay. I explained that in truth, my preference would have been to fly Qantas, especially since they were partners in Alaska Airs Mileage Plan. In fact, I even had two upcoming flights booked with Qantas and I was also a member of their Frequent Flyer Club, albeit a mere Bronze.

Well, alright then he relented. Where are you planning to sleep?

I pointed out a small area of seats in the distant corner of the building, where people apparently waited for the shuttle busses into Perth. I said Id set my alarm clock for 4:45am and would be off the floor soon thereafter, i.e. before lots of passengers started arriving. He bid me a good night and I headed off to set up camp, hoping that the old biddy from the Service Counter wouldnt see me and make a fuss. She didnt and thats the story of my night at the Perth Airport. I put it in this Trip Report to hopefully add balance for those of you who just cant stand the prospect of reading about another Suite upgrade in a Starwood property.
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Last edited by Seat 2A; Dec 31, 2005 at 7:46 pm
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 9:01 am
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January 26, 2005
Perth to Melbourne
Virgin Blue Economy Class
737-800 VH-VOF Seat 15F
600a-1230p Flight time: 3:22


After a good wash up and a change of cloths, I presented myself at Virgin Blues ticket counter at 5:20am. Only two people were ahead of me in line and I was on my way up to the gates moments later. Perhaps because today was Australia Day, there werent that many people traveling. I bought a fruit salad at the tiny food concession and made a final attempt, via Alaskas Partner Desk, to move my Melbourne to London flight up a day to the 27th. Alas, it was not to be. As such, I plugged $2.00 into the Internet kiosk and Pricelined me a room at Heathrow Airport for the night of the 27th.

The final boarding announcement was made about ten minutes out, but as I handed my boarding coupon to the gate agent and entered the jetway, I was surprised to find a sizable crowd of people backed up almost to the entryway. I usually try to be amongst the last to board precisely to avoid situations like this!

The aircraft for todays flight was a 737-800 sporting the new winglets. This was my first ever flight aboard a winglet equipped 737 and from my excellent vantage point over the wing, I could see that the winglets were quite tall relative to the wing about six or seven feet, Id say. If a 747-400 had similarly proportioned winglets, itd look like a Klingon Starfighter!

Its just plain weird sitting in a single class jetliner, especially one as large as a 737-800. Theres a certain comfort in knowing that theres a First Class cabin up front, even if my lot is behind the curtain. The seats on this aircraft were upholstered in dark green and beige rather than the usual blue leather. While they were comfortable enough, the recline was minimal. But hey - whaddaya want for $100.00 on a 1,680 mile flight?! I slept most of the way to Melbourne, thoroughly enjoying all the extra legroom of the exit row.

After about two hours, I awoke to bright sun reflecting off the engine cowling into my eyes. The skies beneath us were unfortunately cloudy. Meanwhile, both my seatmates were gathering up their coinage in preparation for the imminent arrival of the beverage cart. I quickly looked over the menu card and decided to get a coffee and a packet of chocolate chip cookies. Thatll be $4.00 please.

And what of Virgin Blues onboard service? Its called you get what you pay for. In each seatback pocket is a menu detailing the food and beverage offerings. These prices are in Australian currency, so just subtract 25% to get the equivalent price in US currency, or add 50% to get the price in Euros.

Although Ive only flown Virgin Blue twice so far, Ive noticed that the Flight Attendants have all been young, female, and quite fit and trim no prison matron types here (yet). Also, they made frequent forays through the cabin selling beverages, food, souvenirs and collecting trash. Just before landing, passengers were exhorted to dig deep into those seat back pockets in search of any rubbish that could be disposed of. Assuming that most, if not all of the passengers comply with this request, it would certainly help in reducing cleaning time and, by extension, turnaround time between flights.


MELBOURNE

In Melbourne, my backpack was, by my count, the fourth from the last bag to be unloaded. Grrrrrrr! Still, somebody's gotta be fourth from the last and today was my turn, I guess. I headed straightaway to the International Terminal where I grabbed a refreshing shower and a change of clothing before heading over to the domestic Qantas Club to meet fellow FTer mwenenzi. For those of you who may not know, mwenenzi means Traveler in Swahili. Although mwenenzi, a.k.a. Allan, is not one to write Trip Reports (How many of us really are?) his FT handle is most appropriate. Easter Island, Africa, Alaska and much, much more the man has done some serious globe trotting. We had a nice chat over sandwiches and Hahns Premiums the Official Beer of the FT Qantas Qrew.

The Melbourne Qantas Club is huge amongst the largest lounges Ive seen anywhere. Its got a wonderful buffet area offering a variety of small sandwiches, cold cuts, salads and the usual array of snack items. There was also a tureen of hot soup. A service bar provided a nice variety of beers and a couple of wines. I didnt notice if there was harder liquor available, though I wouldnt be surprised if there were. Allan and I took our food and beers and found a seating area over by the windows.

Ah the windows one of the nicest aspects of the Melbourne Qantas Club. Besides flooding the club with plenty of good, natural light, they provide an excellent view of both Qantas Concourses along with a good line of sight to what appears to be the main runway at Tullamarine. I watched as a Malaysian Airlines 747 Freighter climbed into the afternoon sky. Out at the end of the International or D Concourse, we could clearly see the tails of another Malaysian 747 and a Thai MD-11. My British Airways 747 was out there as well, but parked in such a way that it was not easily visible.

Time flies when youre having fun, but soon I had to bid adieu to mwenenzi and head on over to British Airways for check-in. It was 3:45pm and my flight was scheduled for a 5:25pm departure. Although I could have probably stayed and chatted longer, its always been important to me to enjoy every aspect of International First Class. Amongst the finest airlines, the service truly starts on the ground and so a visit to the lounge is an integral part of the First Class experience as a whole.
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Last edited by Seat 2A; Feb 4, 2005 at 5:44 am
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 9:04 am
  #3  
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Melbourne to Singapore
British Airways First Class * Dinner - Refreshments
747-400 G-BNLB Seat 1A
525p-940p Flight time: 7:01


Pictures can be found HERE
Start with picture number 22

First Class check-in never takes long and by 4:15pm I was through immigration and on my way down to the International Departures Qantas Club. Ive described this facility in numerous previous Trip Reports so this time I will simply say that its a miniature version of Qantas larger domestic club but with no windows and somewhat higher end food offerings. For example, whereas the domestic Qantas Club offered basic ham and cheese sandwiches on sliced rolls, the First Class facility offered an enticing array of little finger sandwiches along with larger salmon and asparagus sandwiches rolled up in a slice of white bread. There were also hot miniature beef pies along with some nice looking pastries.

Finger foods are a real weakness of mine and Id like to think that I exhibited admirable discipline in refraining from all but a single asparagus/salmon wrap. After all, thered be plenty to eat over the next 24 hours aboard BA 18.

When the boarding call went out for QF 009, a 5:10pm departure also serving Singapore and London, about 15-20 people got up and headed for the door. How big is that Qantas First Class Cabin, anyway? Fare bucket searches done earlier in the week showed plenty of First Class seats available on this flight, so I suspect that some of these passengers may have been riff raff from thats right Business Class.

By now the lounge was fairly deserted so when the call finally went out for BA 18, I was the only one to spring into action. I soon found out why. Upon entering the aircraft, I discovered that I would be the only passenger in First at least for the initial flight into Singapore. Personally, I dont particularly care for this scenario because above all else, I've always found it a bit strange to have an entire cabin to yourself. Like drinking alone. Theres also the potential for some cabin crews to over-indulge you. I enjoy a good First Class service but I dont enjoy being fawned over.

Professional bunch that they are, BAs cabin staff did an excellent job of providing everything that I could possibly need or want without hovering around my seat in search of purpose. Cabin Service Director Leslie Beasley stopped by to introduce herself, followed shortly thereafter by Purser John Hale who hung my jacket and took my drink order. That drink, a glass of Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle Champagne, was delivered with the traditional plate of cashews by the beautiful and charming Jill. She returned moments later with the amenity kit and pajamas. Then John presented me with the menu for tonights flight. Soon, another crewmember arrived with a hot towel. It was truly a team effort!

Captain Steve Hill offered a congenial welcome aboard and informed us that flight time up to Singapore would be a short six hours and fifty-three minutes. Outside my window a cloud of black smoke wafted skyward as the tractor beneath us revved its substantial engine and began to push our 800,000-pound aircraft back from the gate.

Following the safety demonstration, Purser John returned to inquire as to my drink choice once we got airborne. Hmmm lets have a look at that wine list:


WINE LIST

CHAMPAGNE

Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle Champagne

A stunning Champagne with a classic toasty aroma and creamy, fresh lemon flavours the finish is long and stylish

Alfred Gratien Cuve Paradis
A remarkably luxurious deluxe cuvee Champagne produced from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes from, exclusively, grande cru vineyards. This was a big favorite in the Concorde Cellar

WHITE WINES

Chassagne-Montrachet 2002, Marie-Louise Parisot

The wines of Chassagne have a mineral complexity, not always apparent in other appellations, that combines well with the richness and depth of great Burgundy

Cullen Margaret River Smillon Sauvignon Blanc 2003
The beautifully fresh and aromatic blend of Smillon and Sauvignon Blanc grapes has become the hallmark of the Margaret River region of West Australia and a benchmark for the world!

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 2001
Recently described in Wine Spectator magazine as the greatest white wine Australia has ever produced, this wine is utterly seamless, harmonious and seductive with a finish that just goes on and on

RED WINES

Domaine de Chevalier 1995, Grand Cru Class, Graves

A deep garnet colour and a fine, soft fruit bouquet lead into an all enveloping, mouth filling black fruit flavour or great length and power

Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2001, Domaine du Pre Pape
You can almost taste the warmth of the southern Rhone Valley in this ripe, full-bodied, luscious and mouth filling red wine

Heartland Directors Cut Shiraz 2001, Limestone Coast
This is an intense, black Shiraz with a minty white pepper aroma and chocolate and blackberry flavours


DESSERT WINES

Opitz Goldackerl Trockenbeerenauslese 2002, Austria

Austria makes some of the finest sweet wines in the world. The effervescent Willi Opitz, from his tiny vineyards in Illmitz near the Hungarian border, produces some of the very best in the country

Warres 1988 Colheita Port
Complex, sweet nutty flavours offer an admirable after dinner glass



As we taxied out to the runway, I noticed that all the mothballed Ansett aircraft appear to have been sold, or at least moved elsewhere. I was personally happy to see this as I always looked upon those mothballed aircraft as a sad reminder of the untimely fate that befell a once great airline.

Following a surprisingly long takeoff roll, we climbed swiftly into the late afternoon sky and reached 35,000 feet right over the border between Victoria and South Australia. The SkyMap indicated an agreeable temperature of 52C and as we leveled out, I reclined my seat a bit and began the trip with a glass of Grolsch beer. Alas, it wasnt all that cold and so I traded it in for a glass of nicely chilled Sauvignon Blanc from Margaret River, one of the prime wine growing regions of Western Australia. As I sipped the flavorful wine and munched on the accompanying plate of canaps, I reminisced over the fine day Id spent in Margaret River only last week. As both my wine glass and canap plate were replenished, I resolved to return to South Western Australia as soon as possible.

Despite the 5:25pm departure out of Melbourne, the menu indicated that wed be served a luncheon rather than a dinner for this flight into Singapore. Here is the menu transcript:


Melbourne to Singapore

LUNCHEON

Appetizers

Smoked salmon and seared scallops with watercress crme fraiche
Salad of vine-ripened tomato with Goat cheese


Soup
Chilled Vichyssoise with smoked haddock

Salad
Fresh salad leaves with your choice of Balsamic olive oil or lemon zest mayonnaise

MAIN COURSE

Roast Fillet of Veal

Presented with wild mushrooms and potato gnocchi

Pan-Fried Snapper
Served with saffron mash, garlic mashed potatoes and sauted cabbage with chorizo

Fricase of Chicken
Topped with mushroom duxelles and rosti potatoes with cepe cream sauce

Confit of Duck Salad
Duck confit, foie gras and fresh beans with lemon olive oil

LIGHTER FARE

Bacon Roll served with tomato ketchup
Beef Satay
Chilled Vichyssoise with smoked haddock and a side salad
Fresh Pasta topped with your choice of lemon olive oil and cracked pepper sauce or tomato bolognaise sauce
A selection of sandwiches
A selection of cheese and fruit
Duchy of Cornwall biscuits


** ***** **

DESSERT AND CHEESE

White Chocolate Mousse

Complimented with raspberries and pistachio crme Anglaise

Prune and Armanac Tart

A Selection of Classic Cheeses

A Basket of Fresh Fruit

Chocolates


Your choice of:
Espresso, Cappuccino, Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee, Tea or Herbal Tea





While I certainly enjoy and appreciate the space and comfort afforded me whilst sitting in the forward cabin, I especially look forward to and enjoy the meal service for this is where the best airlines shine and the pretenders fall behind. British Airways is unquestionably one of the finest practitioners of the art of fine dining aloft and I always look forward to the presentation of its First Class menus with considerable anticipation. Imagine then my surprise at being presented a menu offering exactly the same foods that I received on last years flight along this same route.

Like most airlines, Im sure BAs menus are cyclical and I just had the misfortune of hitting the same menu twice. On a positive note, BA does offer a good variety of foods up front and I now had an opportunity to try some dishes that I had bypassed on the last flight.

So, with a renewed sense of culinary adventure, I began with the smoked salmon and seared scallops, just like last year. Frankly, Im not sure that Ill ever be able to get too excited about a plateful of goat cheese and tomatoes. Besides, I had fond memories of my salmon appetizer from last years flight and looked forward to reacquainting myself with it once again. While I love Vichyssoise, I wasnt that keen on the addition of the haddock flavor so this time I went with a sensible salad. As for the main course Hmm chicken or snapper snapper or chicken make it the snapper, please, with a glass of the Montrachet.

The salmon and scallops appetizer was delicious as always, plated with generous portions of salmon accompanied by two large dollops of herbed cream cheese and three plump scallops. A fine beginning to any meal!

Given that so many airlines now offer salmon as a First Class starter, I couldnt help but wonder if perhaps salmon is becoming the new caviar at least in terms of First Class inflight service?

The main course of Snapper was excellent as well. The saffron mash added a nice warm flavor to the fish, though the cabbage with chorizo tasted more like just cabbage. Perhaps chorizo with cabbage next time A basket of warmed rolls including garlic bread made a nice accompaniment to this meal.

Plates were cleared, my water glass was replenished and it was now time to consider the dessert options. Now where did I put that menu, anyway? Ah, there it is, behind the High Life magazine.

Twenty years ago, I would have eaten the appetizer, soup, salad, entre, cheese and dessert. I might have even had seconds on the entre. These days however, my metabolism no longer requires much less effectively deals with such large amounts of food. Quite frankly, I was just about full.

But not entirely full. I looked over the menu and chose to go with a plate of cheese along with a glass of port. In years past, the question would have followed - what kind of cheese would you like? Anything in particular or a bit of each? For this flight, what I received was a plate bearing wedges of English Stilton Blue Cheese, Brie and I think Fountains Gold. While all the cheeses were delicious, I discovered later that this cheese course is now pre-plated. Additionally, there was no selection of crackers from which to choose. What I was offered instead was somewhat of a cross between a hard bread and a cracker. It was good, but not as good as a proper cracker. Even so, all three cheeses were delicious especially the Brie which was much more flavorful than most Bries Ive had in the past. Even the new port tasted a little better than I remember it from my flight out. But then, it was another month older now, wasnt it

Im sure this new lite cheese service is the result of cutbacks and Id love to know just how much savings BA might realize over the course of a year. After all, American Airlines once saved over $40,000.00 per year simply by removing a single olive from its salads.

Out my window, the sun shone brightly still high above the western horizon. In recent years, Ive flown this flight a couple of months later in the year, in April, and the sun has always been setting just as I finished dinner. I noted on the SkyMap that we were about 300 miles southwest of Alice Springs. For the most part, the skies were clear and I reminded myself to raise my window shade every now and then in case we were treated to a particularly gorgeous sunset.

Turning my attention to the movie selections, I decided to watch that sordid tale of military discipline gone awry A Few Good Men. Alas, the selected channel, 10, was instead showing a documentary on golf and great Cricketeers of yesteryear. Boring. The rest of that months IFE movie selections Id already seen or had no interest in. Alright, wheres that personal movie selections list?

In addition to the nine or ten movies offered via its standard IFE system, BA also offer First Class passengers an additional twenty-five movies in mini-cassette format. A list of these movies is presented at the beginning of the flight and, once Id located it, I spent the next ten minutes hemming and hawing over what to watch. Perhaps all that wine and port had rendered me indecisive. Interestingly, all four movies based upon Tom Clancys books were available. Ive always liked Harrison Fords portrayal of lead man Jack Ryan the best. Ben Affleck was just too young (not to mention irreverently hip in his interpretation of the role) and Alec Baldwin was just too arrogant. I finally decided on Patriot Day and spent the next two hours comfortably reclined while enjoying a second glass of port as well as the movie.

For many, the best inflight entertainment can be found on the SkyMap, augmented by occasional glances out the window just to see what it all looks like. Our route of flight took us on a northwesterly track across Australia, crossing the northern coastline at a point about 300 miles west of Darwin. It was at this point that the sun finally set, and while the sunset itself was nothing special, the lingering afterglow was quite pretty. Continuing on a northwesterly heading, we passed almost directly over Denpasar and were treated to a spectacular display of distant lightning over the South Java Sea.

Our descent into Singapore was routine, though as always I quite enjoyed the view of the city, the harbor and all the ships as we turned for our final approach into Changi. After a nice landing, we braked with surprising vigor before turning towards our stand at C-23. The time was 9:40pm and the temperature was listed as 32 degrees with high humidity. I was thankful for the air-conditioned jetway as well as the nice, cool terminal building.

In a perfect world, I would exit the flight here and head into Singapore for the evening. Awaiting me would be a comfortable bed in a nice hotel. After a leisurely couple of days in Singapore, I would then continue on to London preferably aboard a daytime departure.

The reality of it however is that I faced an hour and a half layover in Singapore, with BA 18 scheduled for an 11:20pm departure to London. BA award travel, as per Alaska Airlines earned awards, allows but one stopover. On this trip, that stopover would be London. Resolving to make Singapore the stopover on my next BA award, I headed for the sanctuary of the First Class lounge where a hot shower and a cold beer awaited.
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Last edited by Seat 2A; Feb 4, 2005 at 5:46 am
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 9:07 am
  #4  
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January 26, 2005
Singapore to London
British Airways First Class * Dinner - Breakfast
747-400 G-BNLB Seat 2A
1120p-555a Flight time: 13:21


Although the gate lounge was empty, I arrived back in the First Class cabin to find ten out of the fourteen suites occupied. Good. Itll be nice to have some company. Hopefully some of those seats will also be filled with full fare paying passengers whose money might someday contribute to an upgrade in BAs inflight entertainment system. With airlines like Cathay Pacific and Singapore setting the standard, BAs small screens and lack of an on-demand system are sorely in need of an upgrade.

As much as Id prefer a daytime departure for this marathon flight across some of Asias most exotic locales, the late night departure is well timed to reduce jetlag. Over the course of this thirteen-hour flight, most passengers choose to start with a full dinner, followed by a good nights sleep, awaking in time for a leisurely breakfast before landing in Heathrow at the start of the day.

I think this sounds fine if youre originating in Singapore. For those of us originating out of Melbourne however, its difficult to get up for a big meal when your time zone says its almost 3:00am, which it will be by the time the aircraft has leveled off and service begins. Thankfully, BAs First Class meal service is tailored to meet your demands. If you want your dinner at 4:00am local time, the crew will be happy to serve you then. So it was that I reclined my seat soon after take off and slept quite soundly for the next six and a half hours.

When I awoke, we were somewhere over India or Pakistan I couldnt tell for sure because every time I looked at the SkyMap, the figures were in Chinese. Oh well, it wasnt that important. After all, it was totally black out my window with daylight still many hours away. From my watch I noticed that wed been in flight for almost seven hours so there were still about six and a half to go. It was time for dinner.

Prior to calling it a night out of Singapore, Id given my menu preferences to the purser, a wonderfully engaging lady named Marie. She informed me that the entree would take about a half-hour to prepare so when I awoke, just let the crew know and theyd get right on it. Following is the menu transcript. If this doesnt get some of you late night readers feeling like a midnight snack, I dont know what will


Singapore to London

DINNER

Appetizers

Blue crab and mango salad with chermoula dressing
Smoked meats with Parmesan cheese


Soup
Roast Tomato Soup

Salad
Fresh salad leaves with your choice of Balsamic Vinaigrette or Caesar dressing

MAIN COURSE

Roast Loin of Lamb

Presented with Lyonnaise potatoes and white beans au gratin

Sauted Chicken
Served with braised peas, caramelized bacon and potatoes au gratin

Szechuan Prawns
Served atop fried rice and accompanied by Chinese Cabbage

Peppered Smoked Salmon
Offered with a grilled vegetable salad served with crme fraiche and herbs

LIGHTER FARE

Bacon Roll served with tomato ketchup
Stuffed potato skins
Roast tomato soup with a side salad
Fresh Pasta topped with your choice of chilli, fennel and tomato sauce or green pesto
A selection of finger sandwiches
A selection of cheese and fruit


** ***** **

DESSERT AND CHEESE

Lemon and Raspberry Sorbet

Presented with tuile biscuits

Ginger Cheesecake
Served with marmalade coulis

A Selection of Classic Cheeses

Selection of Fresh Fruit


Chocolates




When my order was initially being taken on the ground in Singapore, Id asked about the contents of the meat and cheese appetizer, whereupon Purser Marie quickly visited the galley and returned with a pre-plated example. It was basically a large portion of sliced pork accompanied by a small amount of Parmesan cheese shavings.

I decided to start with the crab and mango appetizer, an excellent choice as it turned out. The crab was presented in a delicious mayonnaise based salad and was augmented quite nicely by little squares of sweet mango. The Chermoula dressing was as delicious as it was subtle and I think I could have easily had another two or three servings of it and left the meal at that.

Its worth noting that I also had this appetizer on last years flight out of Singapore and it was nowhere near as nicely presented. The crab was served raw and presented in a pile in the middle of the plate.

As much as I enjoyed the crab appetizer, the highlight of this meal was the sauted chicken. The chicken was moist and tender, surrounded by peas and mushrooms in the most delicious sauce. It was without question one of the finest meals Ive ever had with BA.

Dessert was the Lemon and Raspberry Sorbet, presented with tuile biscuits. I had the ginger cheesecake last year and I wanted to try something a bit lighter. Also, I was curious what in tarnation is a tuile biscuit?! Well, its a light and crispy pastry bowl with a layer of chocolate in the bottom. Inside each shell were scoops of sorbet. This, as well as the meal, I washed down copious quantities of coffee and water.

Later, I fired up the trusty laptop, tossed in Philip Aabergs excellent CD High Plains, and set to work composing this Flight Report. Before long, we were over Austria and one of the Flight Attendants appeared to inquire whether or not Id like to have breakfast. I looked at my watch and was shocked to see that it had been almost five hours since Id finished dinner! Wherever did the time get to? Meanwhile, the FA stood patiently at my seat, his professionalism preventing him from drumming his fingers or otherwise disturbing my little reverie. Oh, right! Breakfast! Uh, yeah, sure! How about a smoothie and a plate with the works. Would that be the English Breakfast then, Sir? Thats the one. Oh and some more coffee too, please.

BAs Classic British Breakfast plate is a full plate of food, highlighted by a nice sized serving of scrambled eggs, a rasher of bacon, two big sausages, a pile of mushroom caps, a broiled tomato half and a portion of hashed browns. Add to this the bottomless cup of BAs excellent coffee and a nice variety of warmed breakfast breads (including flaky croissants) and youve got one of the finest egg breakfasts served aloft.

By the way, for those of you jonesin for the breakfast menu transcript here it is:


BREAKFAST

Starters

Chilled fruit juice
An energizing fruit smoothie
A selection of fruit, plain yogurts and cereals
Fresh seasonal fruit plate


From The Baker
A wide selection of breakfast pastries and rolls

MAIN COURSE

The Classic British Breakfast

Scrambled eggs, mushrooms, tomato, sausage and bacon

Chive Omelet

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes


Served with your choice of:
Espresso, cappuccino, coffee, decaffeinated coffee, tea or herbal tea




Soon, the Captain came on over the PA system to wish us all a good morning and inform us that we were now three hundred miles and forty minutes from landing at Heathrow. I looked at my watch again. 5:15am London time. 4:15pm in Melbourne. Amazing It had been twenty-three hours since wed taken off from Melbourne. Not counting the hour and forty minutes on the ground in Singapore, Id been sitting in this aircraft for over twenty-one hours!

Usually, I think of long flights in terms of nine to thirteen hours. Then you get off that flight and perhaps connect to a shorter flight. Barring around the world flight numbers, when you consider the distance traveled on a single flight number, these Australia to London flights have to be amongst the very longest in the world. Ten thousand, five hundred and ten miles. I wonder if Singapore's EWR-SIN nonstop keeps the same flight number and continues on to somewhere beyond Singapore?

The lack of daylight reminded me once again that its the middle of winter up here in the Northern Hemisphere. Flying on this same flight in April, you get to enjoy dawns early light over the last hour and a half of the flight. This time however, the entire thirteen-hour flight was made in complete darkness. Only the far northern and southern extremes of the planet suffer that much continuous darkness in a day, and then only during the winter months. As consolation however, we were treated to the lights of London as we made a long, sweeping turn around the city before lining up and touching down softly on one of Heathrows many runways.

One of the nicer benefits of flying First Class with British Airways into London is the Fast Track service through Immigration and the Arrivals Lounge. Because there was not even one person in line ahead of me at Immigration, I breezed through there like Aeolus and was on my way to a refreshing shower at the Arrivals Lounge moments later.

When it comes to shower facilities, The Terminal 4 Arrivals Lounge is very well equipped to deal with the glut of early morning arrivals from North America and the rest of the world. The lounge provides over thirty private shower rooms, each of them equipped with the fabulous Pharo-Hansrohe Body Jet Hydrotherapy Shower. As advertised, these remarkable showers will wash off the day and give your muscles and mind the benefits of an intense cleansing and toning aqua-massage. Adjustable body jets pummel you from all angles and combine with the aromatic lather of Molton Brown Travel Reviving Shampoo & Shower Gel to leave you fully revitalized and with a sense of total wellbeing.

Well I did try out the adjustable body jets, and while I wouldnt really say I was pummeled, I did get good and wet. As for the Molton Brown Travel Reviving Shampoo & Shower Gel, I felt more cleaned than revived, but then perhaps the shampoo was designed only to truly revive people whod flown in on the shorter, trans-Atlantic flights. In all fairness to Molton-Brown, I dont believe theres a shampoo made that can fully revive anyone from the twenty four-hour marathon that is BA 18. In any event, I emerged into the lounge with a yawn but a reasonably improved sense of well being as well. A couple of cups of coffee helped immensely and by the time I left at 9:00am, I was feeling pretty good about life in general.

Once again, British Airways had delivered a stellar service, from check-in at Melbourne to a post flight shower at the Molton-Brown Spa. From a First Class perspective, other airlines may offer wider seats, more extensive menus or better lounges. BAs real strength, I think, lies in the quality of their crew. I cant imagine a better trained, more dedicated, capable and caring group of people. Theyve all been just great so far and contribute mightily to BAs maintaining its perennial status amongst the worlds best airlines.


HOLIDAY INN M4

Although Id planned to visit friends out in Bracknell Forest, they were out of town until the next day. As such, Id reserved a room at the Holiday Inn out on M4. As booked via Priceline.com, this room cost me $72.00 USD, quite a savings over the advertised rack rate of over 102.00 or about $190.00 USD.

Id read somewhere that single travelers are often accommodated in comparatively tiny rooms at British Hotels, so I informed the front desk clerk that Seat 2B would be joining me later this evening, that is if she didnt miss her flight from Khartoom. I was subsequently assigned a nice sized room up on the fifth floor highlighted by a huge King sized bed and a large, modern bathroom that included a real bath. Out my window, I had a decent, if distant view of Heathrow that included a view of Terminal 5, the new 8 Billion-dollar home to British Airways beginning in 2008. Read all about this new terminal HERE.

Also worth of note was the in-room mini-bar, conveniently stocked with a variety of beverages and snack foods. Like all mini-bars, their convenience came at an exorbitantly high cost. A small bottle of water cost 3.00, beers 5.00-6.00, etc. Just double those figures for US costs. I reckon these mini-bars are fine for the Russell Crowes of the world who can afford to blow $14,000.00 a night on exclusive Beverly Hills bungalows during the Academy Awards but for a budget traveler like myself, they are little more than an expensive room decoration.

Outside my window, light drizzle was the hallmark of a typical winter day in London. Oh well, itd be a good day to relax in the hotel, catch up on this report and, above all else, get a good nights sleep.

Early in the afternoon, I ventured down to main floor to check out the dining and entertainment options. There was a good looking Irish Pub that didnt open until 6:00pm. Next to it was an equally nice looking restaurant that similarly wouldnt open until later. That left the Rotisserie Restaurant and the bar/lounge. A large sign outside The Rotisserie touted a luncheon buffet for only 14.65. Lets see now, thats $28.00!! For a lunch buffet?! Wheres a Royal Fork when you need one?! I did a quick about face and headed over to the bar/lounge where I purchased a cheeseburger for the comparatively bargain basement price of just 9.00. To be sure, it was a pretty good burger but a $17.00 burger it wasnt.

Following an exciting BBC special about moss formations in New Guinea or something like that, I lapsed into blissful unconsciousness that lasted from about 5:00pm until 6:00am the next morning.
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 9:10 am
  #5  
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January 30, 2005
London to San Francisco
British Airways First Class * Luncheon - Snack
747-400 G-CIVM Seat 2A
140p-425p Flight time: 10:21


The shuttle bus dropped me off at Heathrow’s Terminal 1 at 11:30am, two hours in advance of my flight. After checking in at BA’s dedicated First Class check-in area, I sped through security (no annoying laptop, shoe and jacket removal like the U.S.) (no line, either) and headed straight for the First Class Lounge.

I’m not a big fan of Terminal 1. The central commons or waiting area is old, cluttered and claustrophobic – and that’s on a good day. BA’s First Class Lounge in T1 is comparable to the Concorde Room in terms of facilities, but since the only windows are in the bar area, it lacks the bright ambience of the Concorde Room. It does however offer an excellent buffet area featuring a nice selection of sandwiches, crudités, dips, salads and beverages. Like the Concorde Room, this lounge also offers a menu of light meals made to order.

The call for boarding came at 1:15pm and San Francisco bound passengers were advised that the gate was a good ten minute walk away. I gathered up my gear and, after stopping to post some last minute cards, arrived at the gate to find our 747 adorned with a big colorful Unicef Change For Good sticker above the forward windows. I also noticed two aircraft – a 767-300 and an A320 – still sporting the colorful old Tails of The World livery. Sights like this are increasingly rare however. The current corporate makeover is almost complete.

I was greeted cordially at the door of the aircraft and escorted to my suite. There I was presented with a plate of Macadamia nuts and offered something to drink. A glass of red wine might be nice, thanks. Soon I was sipping from a glass of tasty Chivite Coleccion 125 Reserva 1997, Navarra. There were only six of us in the forward cabin and the atmosphere was casual and relaxed. An all-male cabin crew was at our service this afternoon and I would guess the youngest of them to be about forty. A senior crew. I commented on the welcome return of the Macadamia nuts and was told that they only seem to be offered on the California flights. Ah well, California here I come! Aloha!

As we sped down the runway on a lengthy take off roll, the SkyMap just happened to show our speed as we rotated and leapt into the heavens. 186 mph. We climbed quickly through broken clouds and as we emerged into bright sunlight moments later, I reclined my seat, pulled out the menu and perused the wine list. Hmm… so many nice choices today…


WINE LIST

CHAMPAGNE

Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle Champagne

A stunning Champagne with a classic toasty aroma and creamy, fresh lemon flavours – the finish is long and stylish

Alfred Gratien Cuvée Paradis
A remarkably luxurious deluxe cuvee Champagne produced from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes from, exclusively, grande cru vineyards. This was a big favorite in the Concorde Cellar

WHITE WINES

Chassagne-Montrachet 2002, Marie-Louise Parisot

The wines of Chassagne have a mineral complexity, not always apparent in other appellations, that combines well with the richness and depth of great Burgundy

Steenberg Sauvignon Blanc 2004 – Constantia
Steenburg Vineyards make one of the finest Sauvignon Blanc wines in South Africa – scintillatingly fresh and vibrant with a hint of tropical succulence and a long finish

Calera Central Coast Chardonnay 2000
The isolated, high elevation vineyards of Calera and their lime rich soils produce superb Chardonnay of astonishing depth of flavour and great freshness

RED WINES

Domaine de Chevalier 1995, Grand Cru Classé, Graves

A deep garnet colour and a fine, soft fruit bouquet lead into an all enveloping, mouth filling black fruit flavour or great length and power

Chivite Coleccion 125 Reserva 1997, Navarra
Complex and well developed with ripe, mouth-filling plum and black cherry flavours

Rodney Strong Symmetry 1999, Alexander Valley
A harmonious blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc grapes from the northern end of California’s delightful Sonoma Valley

DESSERT WINES

Opitz Goldackerl Trockenbeerenauslese 2002, Austria

Austria makes some of the finest sweet wines in the world. The effervescent Willi Opitz, from his tiny vineyards in Illmitz near the Hungarian border, produces some of the very best in the country

Warre’s 1988 Colheita Port
Complex, sweet nutty flavours offer an admirable after dinner glass

*** ***** ***

SPIRITS, DIGESTIFS AND LIQUEURS

We offer a complete range of classic and timeless spirits, digestifs and liqueurs including Gonzalez Byass Sherries, Johnnie Walker Blue Label Scotch Whiskey, Tanqueray No. Ten Gin, The Glenlivet 18-Year Old Single Malt Whiskey, Smirnoff Black Label Vodka, Camus XO Cognac and Woodford Reserve Kentucky Whiskey.




I decided to try a glass of the Rodney Strong Symmetry. This was presented with BA’s traditional plate of canapés, today featuring roasted spicy halibut on toast, salmon and cream cheese on fois gras and, for the vegetarians, asparagus and red pepper on toast. As for the wine, it was delicious and full-bodied, perfect for sipping with a second plate of different canapés as we headed toward our initial cruising altitude of 34,000 feet.

Four years ago, I had the good fortune to fly out of London on a fine, spring day. It was sunny and warm and as we climbed westward through clear blue skies, I was exhilarated by the stunningly beautiful views of England and Ireland, all emerald green against the brilliant indigo blue of the Atlantic Ocean. It’s a beautiful planet we live on and I do so love the views from above it! Today unfortunately, a large cold front had blanketed the entire eastern Atlantic with a thick cloud cover and so I had to content myself with enjoying the bright sunlight flooding through my window. I hadn’t seen the sun since leaving Australia, so it was nice to bask in its warmth.

I love the first forty minutes or so of a long flight in First Class. Now that you’re finally airborne, you’ve adjusted your seat to a comfortable position, gratefully accepted that first glass of your favorite libation and can now begin to truly relax and unwind. As your First Class cabin crew moves unobtrusively about the cabin delivering drinks and taking meal orders, from the galley come the faint clinks of glass and cutlery as the promise of the wonderful inflight service ahead begins to be realized. Taking another sip from your drink, you gaze out the window and revel in the wonder of it all… Ah… it’s a good life, indeed.

David, the Flight Attendant serving my side of the cabin, was simply excellent. Polite, courteous and efficient, I think the best word to describe him would be “polished”. He stopped by my seat now to inquire as to my luncheon choices. Let’s have a look at that menu, shall we?


London to San Francisco

LUNCHEON

Appetizers

Lobster and crayfish with pink grapefruit
Gruyere cheese and red onion timbale with red pepper coulis


Soup
Wild mushroom soup with truffled gnocchi

Salad
Fresh salad leaves with your choice of roast garlic vinaigrette or Pommery mustard dressing

MAIN COURSE

Michel Roux’s Grilled Fillet of Beef

Marinated in red wine and served with garlic mashed potatoes and green beans

Vineet Bhatia’s Southern Indian Chicken
With pureed coconut and served with spiced noodles

Duchy of Cornwall Free Range Pork Sausages
Served with creamed mashed potatoes and roast red onion gravy

Poached Salmon
Presented with cucumber and potato salad

LIGHTER FARE

Bacon roll served with tomato ketchup
Wild mushroom soup with truffled gnocchi with a side salad
Fresh Pasta topped with your choice of tomato, artichoke and smoked paprika or roast mushroom and thyme cream sauce
Duchy of Cornwall biscuits
A selection of cheese and fruit


** ***** **

DESSERT AND CHEESE

Pineapple Tarte Tatin

Served with vanilla ice cream

Bitter Chocolate and Orange Delice

Cheese Plate featuring:

Shropshire Blue
Shropshire Blue contains an underlying hint of rich, buttery caramel while maintaining a smooth, Blue taste

Worcester GoldThis rich Jersey cow’s milk cheese has a long piquant taste that leads to a clean finish

St. NectaireSt. Nectaire features a soft, supple texture and earthy, fruity flavour

A Basket of Fresh Fruit

Chocolates




I had a light breakfast this morning in anticipation of the feast to follow aboard this flight. Even in the First Class lounge, I once again exhibited admirable discipline in limiting myself to only a small fruit salad and a cup of coffee. As a result, I was now, at two in the afternoon, well and truly famished.

I decided to begin with the lobster appetizer, followed by both the soup and the salad. Dressing? I’ll have the Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette, please. For the main course, I decided upon the Southern Indian Chicken. I’d seen this entrée served on a previous trip and thought it looked pretty good. How fortuitous that it should show up once again on today’s flight.

Everybody knows that First Class offers more space and better food. What a lot of people may not appreciate however is how relaxed and unhurried a proper International caliber service is. Whereas back in Economy and even in many Business Classes the meals are served all on one tray, in the best First Class cabins the meals are served course by course with the pace dictated by the passenger, not the airline.

For those who’ve never flown a quality International First Class before, I decided to note the timing of each aspect of my luncheon service. Although I chose to dine right away, remember that the crew would have been happy to serve me this meal at any time. Following is the breakdown of the meal presentation timed in minutes from the moment we took to the air:


:13 Drink order taken

:17 Wine and Canapés delivered

:35 Luncheon order taken

:46 Table Set

:52 Bread presented

:53 Appetizer served

1:09 Soup served

1:23 Salad served

1:35 Entrée presented

1:56 Table cleared

2:03 Coffee and chocolates served




The lobster and crayfish appetizer was delicious. The grapefruit made an interesting accompaniment but what I really liked was the light pesto dressing that accompanied the greens. By the time my plate was cleared, I’d practically licked it clean! The mushroom soup was also quite nice, though exceptionally rich. I was served quite a large portion and decided to only eat about half, given that I still had the salad and main entrée to look forward to.

When my entrée was presented, I was amazed at how large a portion of food it was. It included a good six to eight ounces of chicken in a wonderfully spicy sauce atop a big plateful of noodles. It was one of the biggest plates of food I’ve ever been served on an airplane and I couldn’t help but wonder if this were a pre-plated entrée or if the crew had just decided that I looked hungry! Regardless, it was quite good and should any of you be offered this dish while flying BA’s First, I highly recommend it!

After such a large meal, it was clear that the cheese and dessert courses would have to wait until later in the flight. Much later. The SkyMap indicated that we were perhaps three hundred miles east of Iceland and with a little over eight hours to go in the flight, I decided to check out the entertainment options.

With thirty-five movies to choose from, I selected the 1953 WWII classic From Here to Eternity. I’d never seen this movie before and was amazed at how closely parts of the story line were later duplicated in the movie Cool Hand Luke. It made for enjoyable viewing though and by the time the final credits rolled, we were over the Davis Straits just off the western coast of Greenland. I raised my window shade to a frozen world of gray and white clouds. The outside air temperature was a frosty –81 degrees Fahrenheit but we were making good time, speeding westward at 573 mph against a 24 mph headwind. In San Francisco, conditions were listed as sunny and 64 degrees.

This is a long flight and many passengers choose to sleep through the bulk of it. Were it a nighttime flight, I would have joined them. I wasn’t really that tired however, and so after the movie I decided on a small plate of Shropshire Blue cheese and crackers with a glass of the Warre’s 1988 Colheita Port. Pure decadence!

I read for a bit and the next time I checked the SkyMap, we’d skirted the northern end of Hudson Bay before banking slightly to the south and over flying Canada’s newest territory, Nunavut. Opening my window shade, I was thrilled to see that the clouds had disappeared. Beneath us was the bleak expanse of the Canadian Arctic. I briefly watched for caribou in hopes that a 70,000 strong herd might be able to be seen from 34,000 feet, but alas, my efforts went for not. Oh well. Back to the book.

About two hundred miles northeast of Edmonton, we encountered an impressive patch of turbulence. You could hear as well as feel the winds buffeting the aircraft. Up in the nose of the 747 it was quite an exciting sound, if not a bit scary as well. Interestingly, despite our southwesterly heading we were now being propelled along by an 89 mph tailwind, bringing our ground speed to 615 mph. The map indicated that our planned routing would take us directly over Banff National Park. Further inspection of the map revealed that if we’d just keep this heading for another six hours, we could continue all the way to Maui. Maui no ka oi!

We entered American airspace just north and a tad east of Spokane, Washington. There was only an hour and forty minutes left in the flight and the crew could be heard back in the galley preparing the Afternoon Tea service. Here’s what was offered:


AFTERNOON TEA

Sandwiches

A selection of sandwiches featuring lemon pepper chicken, smoked salmon with cucumber, roast beef with horseradish and Cheddar cheese

Patisserie
Farmhouse fruit cake, lemon meringue pie and coffee choux bun

Warm fruit scones with clotted cream and strawberry preserve





Despite the long flight and the fact that I’d finished lunch almost seven hours ago, I found I wasn’t all that hungry. Even so, this would be my last go round with BA’s First Class cuisine for a good long while so I requested a plate of the sandwiches. Rather than indulge in the pastry selections, I asked for a serving of the Bitter Chocolate and Orange Delice dessert from the luncheon service. Served with a cup of cappuccino, this second meal made a delicious ending to yet another wonderful culinary experience courtesy of British Airways.

Our approach into San Francisco brought us down to the west of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Marin Headlands. The views of the bridge, the bay and the city were absolutely spectacular for those sat on the left side of the airplane. We made a big U-turn over Palo Alto and, after gliding over the South Bay, the San Leandro Bridge and past Foster City, touched down lightly on a beautiful afternoon at sunny San Francisco International.

As I left the aircraft, I took a moment to thank the crew for yet another excellent First Class experience with British Airways. I’ve flown over one hundred and ten different airlines and BA is, without a doubt, my favourite way to fly. Well done, BA!
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Last edited by Seat 2A; Jan 23, 2008 at 4:05 pm
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 9:42 am
  #6  
 
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Originally Posted by Seat 2A
Although Ive only flown Virgin Blue twice so far, Ive noticed that the Flight Attendants have all been young, female, and quite fit and trim no prison matron types here (yet).
I've noticed them to be always White.
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 9:56 am
  #7  
 
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Awesome as Always

Your trip reports are truly a joy. You have inspired me to accumulate miles for a dream trip with Mrs. Western one day from PHX to Oz, going the "wrong way" of course on BA.

Keep up the good work, you are truly a gifted writer.
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 11:04 am
  #8  
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Another fine report Seat 2A ^^^

Originally Posted by Seat 2A
Usually, I think of long flights in terms of nine to thirteen hours. Then you get off that flight and perhaps connect to a shorter flight. Barring around the world flight numbers, when you consider the distance traveled on a single flight number, these Australia to London flights have to be amongst the very longest in the world. Ten thousand, five hundred and ten miles. I wonder if Singapore's EWR-SIN nonstop keeps the same flight number and continues on to somewhere beyond Singapore?
SQ's SIN-EWR doesnt continue at either end. But one of the SIN-FRA flights continues to JFK.

NZ 1/2 AKL-LHR is longer than the Australia-London flights but both are seriously long haul if not stopping over en route.
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 11:08 am
  #9  
 
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Wow, I really enjoy reading this trip report. I especially liked the justaposition of some of your ground experiences (YHA Youth Hostel in Perth, Priceline hotels in London, sleeping in the terminal, etc) with the descriptions of First Class travel on BA.....

I still can't decide if you have a lot of money, but enjoy the atmosphere of less expensive accomodations, or something completely the opposite...

Either way, it sure was fun reading.
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 12:27 pm
  #10  
 
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Interesting read!

- RightD
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 1:39 pm
  #11  
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I loved your report except for this comment;
".......Fare bucket searches done earlier in the week showed plenty of First Class seats available on this flight, so I suspect that some of these passengers may have been riff raff from thats right Business Class".
Come on we have to appreciate all people.
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 1:46 pm
  #12  
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The riff raff most likely OW Emeralds.
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 7:24 pm
  #13  
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Great report as always Elton, I wish I could say my trip to California had compared but alas, it did not. Speaking of which, did you get a chance to read it?
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Old Feb 3, 2005, 9:42 pm
  #14  
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Originally Posted by djjaguar64
I loved your report except for this comment;
".......Fare bucket searches done earlier in the week showed plenty of First Class seats available on this flight, so I suspect that some of these passengers may have been riff raff from thats right Business Class".
Come on we have to appreciate all people.
Regarding the riff raff from back in... well, you know... the "B" word ~ I assure you my comment was purely facetious rather than malicious in spirit. As one who's spent far more time in Economy than First Class, sleeps in airports, buys his "good" clothes at thrift shops and is presently homeless, living out of the back of my truck or with kindly friends, you can just call me "King of the Riff Raff".

Seriously though, I do employ the occasional facetious comment in my reports and am totally nonrepentant about it. I know that probably sounds a bit hard, but it's my nature to be a bit of a joker and I just don't have it in me to be warm, fuzzy and/or politically correct throughout my writing. I'd like to think that anyone who's read many of my TRs would know that given my life and background, I'd hardly consider myself in a position to look down my nose at anyone. Even OW Emeralds!

Last edited by Seat 2A; Feb 5, 2005 at 10:41 am
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Old Feb 4, 2005, 2:28 am
  #15  
 
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Welcome back home 2A. Once again another fantastic report. The details, tone and general layout is quite simply the best. Kudos. I hope you find adequate accomodations piror to your summer in Denali.
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