tng11

Sorry, but this report is going to end where it has and there will be no more new posts from me.

Well hello there! Glad to be back in TR writing mode, especially since it's been quite a few months since my last one. So follow me again as I gain 8 pounds over a 10-day period.

Introduction:
Since my roots are from Hong Kong, and after the death of my grandfather last year, my family thought that it was nigh time for a visit back to Hong Kong during Chinese New Year. Since I was born in Canada, Chinese New Year celebrations here with my family have never amounted to much more than the occasional laisee/hongbao/red packet (whatever you choose to call it.) But I knew that Chinese New Year in China and Hong Kong is probably one of the most festive times of the year, and I've been longing to go back for many years. This year my schedule aligned perfectly with the date of the New Year (February 19th), and it was a go!

Planning:
The planning is always the fun part. I was set to be travelling myself again, as my parents had more time off and spent some time in Thailand and South Korea before we joined up in Hong Kong. That meant I was free to choose my own routing and as always, the longer the journey, the better.

Back in November when I really got down to the planning, there was CX F availability from JFK which I jumped on immediately. For the return, after much searching and coming up empty handed, I decided to give Alaska a shot and much to my surprise there was wide open availability on Emirates First Class. Since the A380 was launched on EK, it had been a dream of mine to have an on-board shower with them, and this was the opportunity to do so! Even better was there was great availability to DFW - one of the longest A380 flights in the world and still within reasonable distance of my home in YYZ (I had the choice of JFK - but I wanted the 2 extra hours to DFW )

Closer to departure, I was getting a little antsy - as good as CX F was, it was "boring" in my mind. I kept poking around on the ANA search engine and was repeated tempted by availability on the Lufthansa A380 in F to PVG. Now even though I've flown the Lufthansa A380 in F before and loved it, it was going to be a much longer journey than the direct flight to HKG. I've also never been to Shanghai before, and saw this as a great opportunity to take advantage of the 72 hour visa free transit in China (I've been to China before, but found their visa policies too onerous, so I haven't been in many years.)

Eventually, I ended up with a YYZ-YUL-MUC-FRA-PVG itinerary to make it work, right at T-14. Closer to departure, more direct flights to FRA opened up, but they were in nearly full cabins - while the loads on YUL-MUC were giving me great odds of having the entire cabin to myself (a bucket list item for me as stupid as that sounds!)

The only thing was, was the LH F itinerary would cost me a heck of a lot more money. Had I stuck with the CX itinerary, I would have kept my total out of pocket cash costs under $250. With LH, I ended up paying another $650! But YOLO, right?

Cost:

YYZ-YUL-MUC-FRA-PVG (YYZ-YUL in AC J, MUC-FRA in LH J and YUL-MUC/FRA-PVG in LH F: 105,000 Aeroplan + $627.56 CAD

PVG-HKG (CX J): 8,000 Avios + $125.92 CAD

HKG-DXB-DFW (EK F): 100,000 Alaska Mileage Plan + $92.20 USD

DFW-YYZ (AA Y): 15,000 Asia Miles + $5.64 USD


Screen Shot 2015-03-30 at 8.33.48 PM by jurastudent, on Flickr

tng11

If there's one cliche I've heard too many times, it's "be careful what you wish for." Despite living in Canada, I fly very few miles on my flag carrier because most of my travel is international, and simply because there are so many better options out there. When Air Canada introduced the 3-4-3 layout - there was much outrage on the AC forum. I take a much more pragmatic view, however:


Screen Shot 2015-03-30 at 9.17.53 PM by jurastudent, on Flickr

AC2020 (AC420 Cancelled)
Toronto to Montreal
Economy Class, Seat 23F
Airbus A330-300
Scheduled: 17:00-18:15
Actual: 17:22-18:14


I don't know if it was me being cocky or if I'm just still young and have a tendency to say stupid things.

The morning of departure, I wake up to find that my flight to YUL has been cancelled. Well, crap. Off to the airport to resolve the situation.


2015-02-12 15.32.06 HDR by jurastudent, on Flickr

I get to the J counter. I start babbling off to the agent incoherently, and he looked at me like I was frothing at the mouth. "Hold on sir, your flight hasn't been cancelled, it's just changed flight numbers."

He prints out the boarding pass. First thing I see is 23F. I ask "What do you mean 23F? That's a middle seat?"

His response: "Yes sir, you can see on your boarding pass that it is a middle seat."

Me: "But I was seated in a window seat..."

Him: "Too bad, equipment swap!"

Me: "What about my chances for an upgrade to J?"

Him: "It's currently full, good luck!"

&@#$!!!!


2015-02-12 16.06.15 by jurastudent, on Flickr

At least I could still access the YYZ Domestic MLL - which was very crowded in the late afternoon. I also bumped into Don Cherry while on the elevator (in case you don't know who Don Cherry is - he's a loudmouth sports commentator with a tendency to wear incredibly tacky outfits.) Of course, I couldn't resist and got a selfie with him.




2015-02-12 16.15.32 by jurastudent, on Flickr

It's only about an hour, I'll survive: (the acceptance phase)


2015-02-12 17.29.23 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Oh boy... looks like there's gonna be some weather delays tonight in YUL. Hopefully that doesn't mess up my plans!


2015-02-12 18.27.27 by jurastudent, on Flickr

chongl

Subscribed...this should be a good one as I'll be flying similar products in a few months

benjahman

looking forward to this one! thanks for sharing!

moondog

I'm also looking forward to this, but I have a question about SHA-HKG since it is my most common (as in twice a month) BA redemption.

The taxes used to be around $45 (US), but dropped to ~$30 (US) about 6 months ago.

The number of points required has always been 7,500 in Y and 15,000 in J for me.

Did something change recently?

ETA: Perhaps you used cash + avios? (Cash to bring the mileage portion down to 8k from 15k.)

JALlover

subscribe, looks like its going to be an interesting report!

montezume

Where's the Don Cherry selfie?????

Digital01

Here we go! I'm sure this will be another great TR! Definitely jealous, no time for leisure travel these days!

Carq

I like your TRs because you are a foodie and have a good writing style, but I think it´s very rude that you didn´t finish two of your previous reports. I went to check which they were and I realized that maybe you made up for this by writing a comparison between JL and NH F.
If that was the case, you may be forgiven , but a full TR is still better than the comparison.

roadwarrier

This looks like it is going to be a fun TR.

Cannot wait for the rest.

SFO777

+1
Heck, the only time I watch hockey any more is Saturday HNIC on the NHL Network. Don't care much about the game. I just DVR it just so I can watch Coach's Corner.

Looking forward to your report tng11.

tng11

Seeing as I had about 90 minutes to go and all the time in the world, I decided to check in my main piece of luggage at the LH counter in YUL just to test how the ground services were. After some argument, I managed to convince the check-in staff that there was indeed a 72-hour transit policy for China and that it was valid with a separate ticket.

Aside from that, there was no escort or even the famous Lufthansa First Class ticket jackets for my boarding pass tonight (not that I needed either, really but I count that as a -1 for YUL ground service.)


2015-02-12 18.40.57 by jurastudent, on Flickr

At this point, I checked EF again and the cabin was still showing F7. I felt good about my odds of having the whole F cabin to my greedy self tonight.

In YUL, the only lounge for LH F is the AC J lounge - which was under renovation at the time and completely chockers (I lucked out and found a solitary empty seat to catch up on a few e-mails.)


2015-02-12 19.13.30 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Lufthansa Flight 475
Montreal to Munich
Airbus A330-300
First Class, Seat 2A
February 12, 2015
Scheduled: 20:00-09:55+1
Actual: 21:18-10:36+1

Tonight's A330-300 to MUC.


2015-02-12 19.15.43 by jurastudent, on Flickr

At T-45, there was already a formidable queue starting to form. Economy Class to the right, everyone else to the left (which was about 25 deep by this time.) Soon after, they announced that boarding would be slightly delayed as the incoming aircraft was late - but everyone still stayed put.


2015-02-12 19.16.14 by jurastudent, on Flickr

About 10 minutes later, one of the agents started to check out travel documents and the queue grew longer and longer. Just as pre-boarding was announced, the agent bypassed the first 20 or so people in front of me to ask if I would like to pre-board first. Hell yeah! At this point I was almost 100% certain I had the whole cabin to myself.


2015-02-12 19.50.21 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Let me take a step back here to express my thoughts on Lufthansa First Class. In the last 13 months I've taken 6 LH F flights (these would be my 7th and 8th), and my BIS miles on LH far exceed that of any carrier, of which I'm proud to say every long haul has only been in F.

Do I think that Lufthansa First Class is the best hard product? No.
Do I think that Lufthansa First Class has the best soft product? No.
Do I think that Lufthansa First Class has the best catering? No. Not by a longshot.
Do I think that Lufthansa First Class has the best ground service? Almost.

So what keeps me coming back? Why do I frequently route LH F to Asia even though there are supposedly better options?

I'm pre-disposed to love anything German. My parents (despite being of Chinese origin), taught me to love German quality. We've only driven German cars for the last 25 years. I've grown up around precision tools that were made in Germany. I dated a German girl for over 4 years. I've lived in Germany and studied German as a second language at university.

Lufthansa First just has a very comfortable, "homey", fuzzy kind of feeling to me. Something about the colour scheme just rubs me the right way. I love the efficient, no-BS service. I love how it's unpretentious and low-key. And on some level, I love how it's always kind of a game to secure award space at T-14 - every time I manage to book it I always savour the victory.

The feeling tonight to me is one of comfort and relief - like stepping into my living room oasis on a cold, frosty night.


IMG_9337 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9338 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9334 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Despite using the same seats, the cabin definitely feels less spacious than its A380 counterpart. The overhead bins, the curvy aisles and the slightly staggered seating felt strange to me.


IMG_9335 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9341 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Tonight's purser and his colleague serving the F cabin tonight were both male - both in their middle ages. They were probably the most dynamic and cheery duo I've ever had on a Lufthansa flight, and we had some good chatter for about 10 minutes.

Sure, I would love to start off with some LPGS:


IMG_9332 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Mmm, and those buttery macadamia nuts too!


IMG_9339 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Just as I was about to tuck into those nuts - three passengers made their way into the cabin. @#$%!!! My bucket list item of having the whole F cabin to myself, down the drain. J was quite oversold and these three were op-ups from what I understand. But since I had Row 2 to myself, they practically weren't there anyways.

Here's a Rimowa kit to forget my troubles (As I've said around here before - I'm not a huge fan of these as I find them of limited utility and end up giving them away most of the time)

IMG_9343 by jurastudent, on Flickr

The captain came on and announced that unfortunately, we would be a bit late getting into MUC as we needed to wait for de-icing, but that he would do his best to make up for lost time once in the air.


2015-02-12 20.28.51 by jurastudent, on Flickr


2015-02-12 20.47.55 by jurastudent, on Flickr


2015-02-12 20.51.15 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Let's get the party started! One glass at a time (I had too many glasses tonight - which ended up in me defiling the pristine lavatory. )


IMG_9356 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9357 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Amuse bouche of smoked salmon with cream cheese:


IMG_9359 by jurastudent, on Flickr

And my pathetic attempt to get some work done before the dinner service started:


IMG_9361 by jurastudent, on Flickr

In the words of SFO777: showtime!


IMG_9367 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9374 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9375 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9377 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9378 by jurastudent, on Flickr

I'm not a big fan of caviar. The more I've consumed it - the more I hate it. But what the heck.


IMG_9379 by jurastudent, on Flickr

I love the pretzel bread on LH:


IMG_9384 by jurastudent, on Flickr

I did my best to smother the taste of the caviar with the condiments.


IMG_9385 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Next up, the appetizer trio of:

IMG_9388 by jurastudent, on Flickr

The prawns were my favourite:


IMG_9389 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Pork tenderloin was dry as the desert.


IMG_9391 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Tonight's main course choices were:

I went with the beef tenderloin:


IMG_9394 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Will I ever learn? Aside from one outstanding steak I've had in JL F - every time I order steak it comes to me well-done and tough as a hockey puck. Should have went for the Chicken Tikka... I took two bites and asked for it to be cleared. I hate wasting food, but this time it was really inedible.


IMG_9397 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Tonight's dessert cart (notice the absolutely giant blobs of ice cream!)


IMG_9401 by jurastudent, on Flickr

First dessert of Strawberry Gazpacho with Lemon Sorbet:


IMG_9403 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Second dessert of Chocolate Lava Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream:


IMG_9404 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Aside from the actual tiny piece of chocolate cake itself - the desserts were a disaster. The ice cream was of the low quality kind - the no-name stuff I would pick up from the supermarket on sale for 99 cents. There was lots of it, but it was devoid of flavour and poorly textured.

But at that point I didn't really care. By the end of the meal, I had polished off 12 glasses of the LPGS since I boarded and I really wasn't feeling too good. I had to liquidate my assets in the lavatory in front - in the process splattering some of the pristine surfaces in the washroom. I did the walk of shame and told the attendant "Oops I made a mess." Gosh, wish I could have been a fly on the wall in the galley for the rest of the flight.

Since I had all of Row 2 to myself, my bed was made up in 2D:


IMG_9405 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9406 by jurastudent, on Flickr

I went out like a light until just about an hour to landing in Munich. Still feeling a bit queasy, I just took some water and the Muesli:


IMG_9408 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Rise and shine:


2015-02-13 03.23.20 by jurastudent, on Flickr


2015-02-13 03.20.58 by jurastudent, on Flickr

As was standard procedure with Lufthansa, the purser came by and asked for my thoughts on the flight and wished me a very pleasant long journey to Shanghai.


IMG_9409 by jurastudent, on Flickr


2015-02-13 03.43.59 by jurastudent, on Flickr

We touched down in MUC just about 30 minutes past our scheduled arrival time, possibly to the farthest non-remote gate possible. I was hoping that we would have a remote stand and limo pick-up today, but that just wasn't meant to happen.


2015-02-13 10.48.53 by jurastudent, on Flickr

All in all, it was another great Lufthansa flight. The bad catering and lack of ground service I chalk up to the YUL outpost (my LX flight out of there was also decidedly mediocre.)

tng11

First time at MUC and wow, what a world of difference it is from FRA. Aside from the far walk to transit immigration, MUC is infinitely better than FRA. Security was courteous and efficient (unlike FRA screeners who are IMO, the slowest I've ever seen in the world.) The signage was also a lot better.


2015-02-13 10.55.31 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Moreover, what's awesome about MUC is that you don't have to deal with queues at immigration. You can clear immigration in the most civilized manner possible at the FCL and freshen up. Shame that they couldn't do that in FRA with the FCL A (which as I understand, was designed to be setup like MUC but it didn't end up happening.)


2015-02-13 10.56.45 by jurastudent, on Flickr


2015-02-13 11.22.23 by jurastudent, on Flickr

For all intents and purposes, the MUC FCL is basically the same as those in FRA. Different caterer, but the layout and civility level are all the same. Again, a reason why I love Lufthansa - the FCLs are never too crowded and are an oasis of calm in the chaos of an airport.


IMG_9418 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9420 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9414 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9412 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9413 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9410 by jurastudent, on Flickr


IMG_9411 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Valentine's Day tomorrow. Too bad that I wouldn't have anyone to celebrate it with. Or would I?


IMG_9421 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Lufthansa also had some special menus going on for V-Day:


IMG_9422 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Coming to the MUC FCL, one thing I really wanted to tuck into was the Münchner Weisswurst. However, as I was still feeling queasy, I passed on eating anything here, hoping that I would feel better by the time I got to the FCT in FRA.


IMG_9423 by jurastudent, on Flickr

The food spread in FRA looked more appealing (though this was still excellent):


2015-02-13 11.13.06 by jurastudent, on Flickr


2015-02-13 11.13.14 by jurastudent, on Flickr

Seeing as I was running low on time, and that I didn't really feel the need to take two showers/baths within 3 hours, I decided to be bold and just straight up asked for a rubber ducky. My wish was granted by the lovely attendant:


2015-02-13 11.16.53 by jurastudent, on Flickr

tng11

Thanks chongl!

Thanks benjahman.

moondog, indeed I used Cash + Avios. The BA system bungled up a ticket refund while I was in SHA (I was booked in PY originally but J opened while I was in SHA) and I happened to be short on points. The price per point on CX redemptions is very reasonable!

Thanks JALlover!

Thanks Digital01!

Thanks? Sometimes life can get in the way of finishing things!

Thanks roadwarrier!

Thanks SFO777! I'm admittedly a very casual fan of hockey, but Don Cherry is certainly quite the character. Despite being a millenial, I hate taking selfies and do a terrible job at taking them. I had a sympathetic passer by help me out:


2015-02-12 16.23.48 by jurastudent, on Flickr

SFO777

OMG. He actually dresses like that in public. Very cool pic. ^