Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, HK & Thailand w/ BA, LH, KC, HY, OZ, TG & CX in F, C & Y
Apr 25, 2011, 11:39 am
#16
Join Date: Dec 2007
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lufthansa business meal
I also had those cheesecake lollipops from FRA-DXB flight---I have to admit..I was a bit disappointed with LH's business class meal....the red snapper was awful and tasted like boiled fish--no flavor, no spice...just bland.
Great report on Kazakhstan.....I know some Kazakhs personally, and they always tell me, its not exactly a place to go vacation hehee..
Great report on Kazakhstan.....I know some Kazakhs personally, and they always tell me, its not exactly a place to go vacation hehee..
Apr 25, 2011, 3:03 pm
#17
Join Date: Feb 2008
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Great start on the report. ALA is actually a place I'd like to go back too if only to see if it's changed.
Looking forward to your impressions from TAS, and am keen to see if you used the Metro there. I did and got an opportunity to see a back room together with a couple of police officers.
Looking forward to your impressions from TAS, and am keen to see if you used the Metro there. I did and got an opportunity to see a back room together with a couple of police officers.
Apr 26, 2011, 1:35 pm
#19
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Excellent so far.
I am backpacking the 'stans and Iran this summer.
Unfortunately my domestic Uzbekistan flight is on an A320.
But I'll try to squeeze in a flight on an Antonov or Ilyushin somewhere
I am backpacking the 'stans and Iran this summer.
Unfortunately my domestic Uzbekistan flight is on an A320.
But I'll try to squeeze in a flight on an Antonov or Ilyushin somewhere
Apr 26, 2011, 1:41 pm
#20
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 950
Please make sure to do a photo TR
Apr 27, 2011, 2:41 pm
#21
Join Date: Sep 2005
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Great report so far. Thanks for sharing!
I´m sure you´ll have a great time in Uzbekistan. It´s a great country with inviting and charming people. I traveled the country two years ago and it was simply fascinating - only the food is a little bit simple and difficult for western bodies
(reason for that is that they cook very much with oil from cotton plants)
If you have a change to visit Chiwa too - do it. More traditional and atmospheric than Buchara - wich is of course also a nice place for 2 or 3 days.
Have fun!
I´m sure you´ll have a great time in Uzbekistan. It´s a great country with inviting and charming people. I traveled the country two years ago and it was simply fascinating - only the food is a little bit simple and difficult for western bodies
(reason for that is that they cook very much with oil from cotton plants)If you have a change to visit Chiwa too - do it. More traditional and atmospheric than Buchara - wich is of course also a nice place for 2 or 3 days.
Have fun!
May 3, 2011, 6:57 am
#22
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May 3, 2011, 12:39 pm
#23
Join Date: Mar 2010
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Perhaps he's been arrested for taking photos at the airport - that happened to some plane spotters in India, or was it Greece, a while back.Some of these foreign police forces can be a bit 'awkward' to deal with if you are far from home and don't speak the lingo. Will make the Trip Report even more interesting though wouldn't it? Hopefully he'll comment on the Food and Beverage quality at the 'Almaty Hilton', comfort of the beds, torture options (Chinese Burn, Waterboarding etc).
Its important to go the extra mile and get all the details, although demanding photographic evidence might be a big 'ask'.
Keep safe, we're missing you
May 4, 2011, 2:47 am
#25
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Join Date: Jul 2002
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I hate mornings. I hate mornings even more when my body thinks it is the middle of the night and I have to get up. Staggering out of the hotel and into a taxi a blast of cool fresh air perked me up a little before arriving back at Almaty airport. The main terminal is pretty small but also modern. Next door is the old Soviet era terminal, engagingly Stalinist in architecture with a fine spire that no doubt once sported a gleaming red star..
I'd rate the departure experience as medium complex. Lacking some of the Byzantine twists and shoving crowds you once experienced at DEL, it isn't the easiest place either. Customs, a baggage scan and document check before check in. Air Astana have a separate Business class counter but the subtlety of this may be lost on your fellow travellers. An opportunity to roll out my fluent Russian
" Nyet, biznes class. Eknomi class ( insert image of me shoeing someone away with a rather patronising waving gesture) "
Check in staff looked on, disinterested. Can't say I blame them as no blows were exchanged but the queue jumper was less than impressed with me.
Two bags were exchanged for a boarding pass, lounge invite and a small scribbled piece of paper for 'refreshment'. Hmmm. Immigration was a breeze after a little difficulty with the Kazakh only counters that are only labelled in Kazakh and Russian. Dumb stuff like that makes me wonder if this is all part of an elaborate ruse to wind people up, surely no-one can be so stupid as to think English signs wouldn't be useful at this point? No queue at security and after another document inspection - and a couple more stamps on my boarding pass - we were airside..
Small. And the business 'lounge' is, well, here are some pics
No wifi, no Internet, no real food and NO COFFEE. As I said, I hate mornings. But I REALLY HATE mornings with no coffee. Only 1h30 until departure.
KC ALA-TAS
A321
Business class 5A
7 rows of Business class greeted me, arranged 2-2 with about a 38" pitch.
More than enough for the load of 6 for the 2 hour flight west from Almaty to the Uzbek capital Tashkent. OJ, water and champagne were offered before push back, before a short taxi took us to the active runway and a swift take off. we curved 180 degrees after take off and headed ease south east with the Pamir mountains to our left. A clear day gave some great views south into Kyrgystan.
The service was simple. A hot towel followed by a tray with it all.
Spinach lasagne, salmon shaslik, mushrooms were all pretty tasty. The salad was fresh but the dessert looked nasty so I passed. Diet coke, was, well diet coke! Lasagne seemed a bit of a heavy choice for a mid-morning flight though.
Oh, and they had coffee so my day got much better.
Service on board was pleasant enough with a mixed Kazakh and Russian crew. Like most former Soviet republics there is a substantial minority Russian population ( around 25% ) and Air Astana represented this well. They weren't amazing but polite, fairly efficient and with a decent standard of English. Compared to other regional carriers...well you can see how they have a decent reputation!
Frankly there isn't much more to report on KC. Apart from playing some moronic Just for Laughs clip (a great reason to hate Montreal) we kept on flying and swept down into Tashkent airport with some great views of the large spawling city. No ATC delays here!
A little view down the back
Mountains fringing the Fergana Valley on the approach to TAS
And here is where the real travelling begins. What do I mean by real? Well in a homogenised world where you can wave your Amex at any problem before strolling off for an espresso machiato, it is interesting to experience.
* A hushed airport with a strong sense of menace
* Petty minded bureaucracy that requires you to fill in a Customs declaration twice...then stamps one copy for you to keep and hand in on return
*...and expects you to keep little registration forms for each night spent in a hotel
* Has a proper currency black Market with a 30% premium
* Propaganda everywhere
* Dire warnings in every guidebook of corrupt policeman always out for a bribe.
OK this isn't an overland trip through the Congo persued by Kalashnikov toting gunmen. Uzbekistan is safe (gotta love police states for that), there is decent public transport, power, water etc. But we aren't in Kansas now either.
It took a while to escape the airport. By dint of sharp elbows, advance queuing techniques and priority tags I was pretty much one of the first people out which took my driver by surprise. If you'd been at the back of the bus I reckon it would have taken at least another hour to clear immigration. Not one of the worlds more efficient and agreeable airports. Not a single public lavatory either.
The drive on to Samarkand was unremarkable, flat fields, baking heat. The only point of note was a man standing in the middle of the road waving a snake at passing cars. Sometimes travel can be like taking acid.
I'd rate the departure experience as medium complex. Lacking some of the Byzantine twists and shoving crowds you once experienced at DEL, it isn't the easiest place either. Customs, a baggage scan and document check before check in. Air Astana have a separate Business class counter but the subtlety of this may be lost on your fellow travellers. An opportunity to roll out my fluent Russian
" Nyet, biznes class. Eknomi class ( insert image of me shoeing someone away with a rather patronising waving gesture) "
Check in staff looked on, disinterested. Can't say I blame them as no blows were exchanged but the queue jumper was less than impressed with me.
Two bags were exchanged for a boarding pass, lounge invite and a small scribbled piece of paper for 'refreshment'. Hmmm. Immigration was a breeze after a little difficulty with the Kazakh only counters that are only labelled in Kazakh and Russian. Dumb stuff like that makes me wonder if this is all part of an elaborate ruse to wind people up, surely no-one can be so stupid as to think English signs wouldn't be useful at this point? No queue at security and after another document inspection - and a couple more stamps on my boarding pass - we were airside..
Small. And the business 'lounge' is, well, here are some pics
No wifi, no Internet, no real food and NO COFFEE. As I said, I hate mornings. But I REALLY HATE mornings with no coffee. Only 1h30 until departure.
KC ALA-TAS
A321
Business class 5A
7 rows of Business class greeted me, arranged 2-2 with about a 38" pitch.
More than enough for the load of 6 for the 2 hour flight west from Almaty to the Uzbek capital Tashkent. OJ, water and champagne were offered before push back, before a short taxi took us to the active runway and a swift take off. we curved 180 degrees after take off and headed ease south east with the Pamir mountains to our left. A clear day gave some great views south into Kyrgystan.
The service was simple. A hot towel followed by a tray with it all.
Spinach lasagne, salmon shaslik, mushrooms were all pretty tasty. The salad was fresh but the dessert looked nasty so I passed. Diet coke, was, well diet coke! Lasagne seemed a bit of a heavy choice for a mid-morning flight though.
Oh, and they had coffee so my day got much better.
Service on board was pleasant enough with a mixed Kazakh and Russian crew. Like most former Soviet republics there is a substantial minority Russian population ( around 25% ) and Air Astana represented this well. They weren't amazing but polite, fairly efficient and with a decent standard of English. Compared to other regional carriers...well you can see how they have a decent reputation!
Frankly there isn't much more to report on KC. Apart from playing some moronic Just for Laughs clip (a great reason to hate Montreal) we kept on flying and swept down into Tashkent airport with some great views of the large spawling city. No ATC delays here!
A little view down the back
Mountains fringing the Fergana Valley on the approach to TAS
And here is where the real travelling begins. What do I mean by real? Well in a homogenised world where you can wave your Amex at any problem before strolling off for an espresso machiato, it is interesting to experience.
* A hushed airport with a strong sense of menace
* Petty minded bureaucracy that requires you to fill in a Customs declaration twice...then stamps one copy for you to keep and hand in on return
*...and expects you to keep little registration forms for each night spent in a hotel
* Has a proper currency black Market with a 30% premium
* Propaganda everywhere
* Dire warnings in every guidebook of corrupt policeman always out for a bribe.
OK this isn't an overland trip through the Congo persued by Kalashnikov toting gunmen. Uzbekistan is safe (gotta love police states for that), there is decent public transport, power, water etc. But we aren't in Kansas now either.
It took a while to escape the airport. By dint of sharp elbows, advance queuing techniques and priority tags I was pretty much one of the first people out which took my driver by surprise. If you'd been at the back of the bus I reckon it would have taken at least another hour to clear immigration. Not one of the worlds more efficient and agreeable airports. Not a single public lavatory either.
The drive on to Samarkand was unremarkable, flat fields, baking heat. The only point of note was a man standing in the middle of the road waving a snake at passing cars. Sometimes travel can be like taking acid.
Last edited by Swanhunter; May 14, 2011 at 10:13 am
May 4, 2011, 4:33 am
#26
Join Date: Feb 2008
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My own entry into Uzbekistan took some time due to the fact that a TK flight arrived just before. It seemed like all passengers on that flight had a few more bags than you'd normally see. It also seemed like all passengers were trying to sneak things past Customs with predictable discussions to follow.
May 4, 2011, 2:58 pm
#28
Join Date: Mar 2001
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Great stuff so far, thanks. I'm hoping to be passing through various 'stans next year as part of the Mongol Rally so this is all of particular interest.
I couldn't agree more with your campaign against the misuse of 'entree'. Fair enough for LH and other airlines to use 'entree' when they mean 'main course' for flights to/from America. But do they think the rest of us English speakers all actually speak American? Grrrr...
I couldn't agree more with your campaign against the misuse of 'entree'. Fair enough for LH and other airlines to use 'entree' when they mean 'main course' for flights to/from America. But do they think the rest of us English speakers all actually speak American? Grrrr...
May 4, 2011, 3:50 pm
#29
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Join Date: Jul 2009
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Swanhunter, only you could pull this off with such grace and style. What a great read. Your knowledge of "that part of the world" makes me envious. I am an amateur traveller by comparison...
Keep up the good work.
Keep up the good work.