RandomBaritone

Really jealous of your LH F ORD>FRA trip, as I took the same exact routing a few months back -- my first time in LH F -- and had a wretched experience first to last! So many things went wrong:

• My UA flight BOS>ORD was three hours late, cutting short my time in the Polaris lounge
• The Polaris lounge hadn't yet been expanded, so it was packed full
• The UC near the gate was even worse, without a single seat open
• I didn't think to go to the GA and declare that I was in F, so I waited in the J/F queue at the gate for literally 20 minutes
• Every seat in F was taken, so it felt cramped far beyond what I expected
• No Rimowa amenity kit
• The crew was shockingly inexperienced, with one FA telling me they didn't have caviar (?!) then after I confusedly showed her the menu, saying I'd have to wait since she didn't know how to serve it
• The privacy shield on my seat was stuck in the lowered position, so there was zero privacy
• The fellow behind me in 2A snored so loud that we could all hear it. On a 747. Think about that.
• The cabin was far too warm, so even without the snoring I didn't sleep a wink

FWP, of course. And fortunately my next leg FRA>DEL was immeasurably better! But given how excited I had been, I'm crying a silent tear of envy comparing your ORD>FRA experience to mine.

kosy91

waiting for the next instalment !

ironmanjt

WOW. That sounds like an absolutely awful series of events. In dozens of LH F flights in the last five years I've never had anything anywhere near 25% that bad. What did you do to anger the travel Gods?! Were there possibly weather issues in the day before that caused it to be full and maybe an inexperienced crew to be swapped in?

A crew that didn't know about caviar?! I would seriously drop LH a note about that. Normally ORD is a fairly senior route, so having crew that inexperienced in F would be unheard of. They need to hear about this.

On the temp, that does happen maybe 25% of the time in my experience. Normally a comment to the crew and its dealt with right away. Did you try?

RandomBaritone

kosy91

WOW!! Does that meal look delicious !!

I'm Indian so I'm biased...but I would be one happy customer if I was served that!!

ironmanjt

Nice change compared to my last few arrivals in Frankfurt in that we arrived at the "top" of the Z gates so it was a very short walk to immigration and the transfer gates. No real NEED to go through immigration except one: I had about three hours, and wanted to get some Starbucks and go to the First Class Terminal. As one does. No silly first class lounge at the B gates for me with the risk I wouldn't get a ride to the plane!

Only one problem today: immigration lines were rather long. Managed to talk my way through one of the shorter lines, and was through quickly enough and I made a beeline for caffeine. I have no idea who "Can" is, but it doesn't sound remotely like Jason and I think I got his coffee....



For some reason, I'm always burning up after a redeye flight, so the chilly walk to the First Class Terminal felt great. Fantastic agent at check in, and unfortunately I got selected for random extra screening by security. Normally, this would be a pain but at the First Class Terminal they're almost apologetic about it.

Since I'd skipped breakfast on the plane it was time for a proper breakfast before grabbing a shower. Eggs Benedict, Pain au Chocolate, fresh-squeezed OJ and some rosé? Don't mind if I do! My only small quibble with the lounge (other than the temperature, but that's a German thing) is that they stopped carrying english muffins some time in the last 6 months and now serve the benedict on toast. Oh well, I'll live. Since it's happened several times in a row now I assume it's the new normal.



Nice shower, grabbed a few ducks (anyone interested in trading some Lufthansa ducks let me know), and soon enough it was time to board my flight to Munich. I didn't expect that anyone else in the lounge would be going to Munich, but surprisingly I was one of four people! I guess either there were lots of HON Circle members headed to Munich today, or others with first class connections out of Munich?

Lufthansa flight 100
Frankfurt, Germany (FRA) to Munich, Germany (MUC)
Depart 10:15, Arrive 11:10, Flight Time: 0:55
Airbus A321, Registration D-AISZ, Manufactured 2009, Seat 9D
Miles Flown Year-to-Date: 5,143
Lifetime Miles Flown: 2,525,205

Today's flight time? a whopping 37 minutes in the air....but that doesn't stop Lufthansa from serving a nice deli plate and making TWO drink runs. Also, a first for me on a Lufthansa A321, there were 15 rows of business class today! As most people know, this is "EuroBusiness" which is just standard economy seats with the middle blocked. This means they can easily move the divider between cabins....and today there were 58 seats in business!



Relatively short connection in Munich of barely 90 minutes, but one of the best things about the First Class Lounge in Munich is that when you enter there's an immigration desk, and they take care of immigration while you enjoy the lounge...and then you collect your passport on the way out and re-enter the correct part of the terminal: Schengen or not.

Unfortunately I was still full for breakfast, which meant no enjoying the Schnitzel in the lounge today. But there was time for more coffee and a glass of Champagne while I enjoyed the views of the tarmac:



Down to the gate, and boarding was right on time.

Lufthansa flight 586
Munich, Germany (MUC) to Cairo, Egypt (CAI)
Depart 12:55, Arrive 17:35, Flight Time: 3:40 (actual departure 15:39, arrival 20:37 - 3:02 late)
Airbus A320, Registration D-AIPC, Manufactured 1989, Seat 1D
Miles Flown Year-to-Date: 6,774
Lifetime Miles Flown: 2,526,836

Unfortunately, departure time came and went and after 10 minutes the captain came on. Apparently we had some sort of mechanical issue, and the mechanics would be coming on to check it. They showed up a little bit later, checked some things out, and as they left the plane the only word I could make out to the flight attendants was "Kaput!" That's not a good sign.

Sure enough, the pilot announced that this plane was going nowhere today, and please wait while they figure out what's going on. Turns out, there was another plane sitting around which they hoped to have catered and ready to depart in about an hour. Please collect your bags, head back to the terminal, and we'll let you know what's up.

After about 15 minutes of milling in the gate area they told us where our new gate would be, and that boarding would hopefully begin in 30-40 minutes. So yes, back to the lounge where the agents were already aware of the issue, and said they would come get me when it was time to board. Yes, that meant time for another espresso and glass of champagne. The struggle is definitely real.

After about 20 minutes they told me boarding was ready to begin, but when I got to the gate it took about 20 more minutes for us to start boarding. We finally ended up pushing back about two hours and 44 minutes late...so it was beginning to look like I was just going to miss out on the 300 euros mandatory compensation under EU Regulation 261. Boo! If I'm going to be 2:44 late I can take another 16 minutes!

Fortunately, I was the only person in my section of seats, so I had a whole row to myself. This meant I could use one of the fold-out tables from the bulkhead just for food and drink and another for watching films on the iPad. Not a bad way to fly on a narrowbody.

Lunch started with drinks and packaged almonds:



Then it moved on to a full lunch. The burrata and plum tomatoes with pesto were fantastic, and there were three choices of main: veal goulash, halibut, or canneloni I went with the goulash which was much better than expected...and the "cocoa bean cream on mango cubes" was fantastic for desert. Fantastic meal for a shorthaul.



About an hour before landing, chocolates were handed out...so why not have one more glass of wine:



We landed 2:43 minutes late, so unless this taxi took 17+ minutes it looked like I was going to miss out on 300 euros by mere minutes. Not sure if anyone else has heard the expression "BFE" which stands for "Bumf*ck Egypt" implying somewhere is in the middle of nowhere...but that's definitely where we landed today. The taxi went on and on, as the minutes ticket closer and closer. 2 hours and 59 minutes late, we finally parked....and the flight attendant was ready to open the door.

However, apparently, at the 2:58 mark Lufthansa declared us "arrived" despite the door still being closed. Hard to not think this was intentional...



Oh look, 20:35...exactly three hours late...and the door is still closed. It did eventually, at 20:37, finally pop open three hours and two minutes late. Lufthansa has yet to reply to my request for compensation under EU261, so it'll be interesting to see how much of a struggle this is...



For the first time ever for me, there was absolutely no wait at all for immigration or a visa, so I handed over my $25 at the bank, got a visa sticker, quickly through immigration, and maybe 15 minutes after arriving I was at the Le Meridien checking in.

Dropped my bags in the room, and headed down to the sports bar for a quick drink before turning in for the night. Unfortunately, however, it was Thursday night and half of Cairo was at the sports bar drinking and smoking up a storm. My lungs couldn't take it, so I headed up to the relatively empty lobby bar for some cheesecake and a glass of bad Egyptian wine before turning in.



With that done it was time to get some sleep before taking care of a few things in the morning and then turning right back around to head to Germany to begin the real vacation portion of the trip!

RandomBaritone

Yes!!! The duck I got in October was pitch black, and to my eye it looks bizarre. In fact if it were an American company they'd never hand these out, because there's a weird blackface overtone. I guess Germans just don't see it; I showed it to a German friend and he shrugged, but when I showed it to an American she was horrified.

Anyway I'd love to trade for a different color. PM me for the details and we'll make it happen!

offerendum

The Cheescake looks pretty good. Understand the smoking problem - terrible!

ironmanjt

Odd. I must admit I never got that impression from it either.

Unfortunately, the black ones are the new normal - they have replaced the yellow ones as the "standard" going forward except when they have special seasonal ones.

RandomBaritone

Ber2dca

Do you get a 'black face' feeling from watching Daffy Duck too? Odd complaint.

RandomBaritone

Thanks for your input! I think it's an American-vs-European thing.

And that's definitely enough on that topic.

aquamarinesteph

OMG, that looks amazing. I'd love a meal like that!

ironmanjt

After a very good night's rest, it was up early to take care of a couple meetings before heading over to the airport. I checked out the Le Meridien club lounge to hopefully find a bit of breakfast, but the rather small spread was disappointing. The only thing I really wanted was some hard boiled eggs, but some giant local-looking muscled-out dude had taken what looked to be two dozen of them and was peeling and eating them one by one....so I settled for coffee.

Over to the airport, and first stop was the baggage scanners before being allowed into the check-in hall. Put my bags on the belt, walked through the metal detector, and the guard demanded "Passport!" Told him it was in my bag...and he got so caught up harassing the little old lady walking through the metal detector after me that he completely forgot to check mine. Ah security theatre!

Check-in with EgyptAir at the dedicated First/Business counter was suprisingly quick, and the agent confirmed I was the only person in business class today. 24 seats all to myself...maybe EgyptAir wouldn't be so bad after all!

Passport Control, even in the expedited business class line was its usual shambles, and took nearly 30 minutes to clear. Despite knowing the grim fate which awaited me I headed to the lounge near my gate for a quick bite. I have to admit, the orange soda and cold pizza they serve has actually kind of grown on me...since everyone knows cold pizza is the best pizza. I wish they still had Diet Pepsi, but it seems they got rid of that nearly two years ago and now it's only the full octane stuff.



Boarding was pretty quick and painless once I got to the gate, and off to Vienna we go.

EgyptAir flight 797
Cairo, Egypt (CAI) to Vienna, Austria (VIE)
Depart 10:45, Arrive 13:30, Flight Time: 3:45
Boeing 737-800, Registration SU-GDA, Manufactured 2009, Seat 12A
Miles Flown Year-to-Date: 8,244
Lifetime Miles Flown: 2,528,306

Waiting for me at the seat was an assortment of goodies: an amenity kit, a set of stickers to be woken up for various things, some very poor quality headphones, and a blanket.



EgyptAir's 737s are actually not bad at all, and have great legroom for short-haul flights.



Welcome aboard orange juice, and chocolate:



It was a bit strange getting a Merry Christmas chocolate not just on EgyptAir, but in mid-January:



Before takeoff a family of six joined me in business class who boarded at the last minute. One man and five women, the man wearing an EgyptAir ID badge around his neck. Despite now being seven people in 24 seats they occupied the last two rows and it still felt extremely private and roomy. View of dusty Cairo after takeoff:



So, what's to eat today? Laminated, reusable menus were passed around:



...complete with a festive holiday cover:



Despite being a dry airline, they was still a drinks menu:



Starter of a couple salads, salmon, cheeses, and plenty of bread:



I went with the beef for a main, and it was about as disappointing as expected. I think he was trying to make a point with the bread, practically demanding that I take more...



The chocolate cake, despite being a little bit dry, was pretty good.



I passed the time watching movies, and about an hour before landing, a small snack of nuts and dried fruit was passed out. EgyptAir sure didn't want me going hungry!



Overall, a pretty reasonable and comfort flight, made even better by the relatively empty cabin. No, EgyptAir service isn't quite as refined as European airlines, but the 2x2 configuration and the extra legroom made it a much better flight overall than taking Lufthansa, Austrian, or Swiss. I would definitely take them again, especially if the flight timing worked out well.

Immigration and security in Vienna were relatively quick and painless, and I had about 45 minutes to enjoy the lounge and get a bit of work done while waiting for the next flight. Unfortunately, my connecting flight was at the very last gate in the terminal, so was a bit of a hike from the lounge. Oh well, after spending four hours on a plane it felt good to stretch my legs a bit.

Austrian flight 131
Vienna, Austria (VIE) to Frankfurt, Germany (FRA)
Depart 15:10, Arrive 16:45, Flight Time: 1:35
Airbus A319, Registration OE-LDA, Manufactured 2004, Seat 2C
Miles Flown Year-to-Date: 8,631
Lifetime Miles Flown: 2,528,693

Once up in the air, Austrian served a fantastic snack for a 75 minute flight with a chicken skewer, grilled vegetables with feta, and a delicious lemon tart. The tart was SO good I might have asked if there were any more left...but unfortunately not. I also had to practically beg the flight attendant to stop refilling wine - completely packed flight, but still fantastic service.



Arrived in Frankfurt right on time, and it was a relatively quick walk down the entire length of the A gates to my hotel at the Sheraton Frankfurt Airport. Nice surprise to get one of their few suites for the night, although it had way more space than I needed. I almost prefer not to get the suites there because they don't seem to cool quite as well. The living room area:



The fantastic five hour long happy hour was already going on in the Club Lounge, so I stopped in for a very high-brow snack of gummi bears and a glass of wine:



Caught the S-Bahn into the city, and met a couple of friends for beers and catching up. Being a Friday night the bar/restaurant was absolutely packed and super loud. Naiv definitely has the best beer list by far in Frankfurt, although I might give it a miss on a Friday night unless you're looking for a loud, happening bar. Plus, they took my favourite item (the bacon-wrapped dates) off the menu, so that was a little disappointing.

I had an early train the next morning, and was still feeling a little behind on sleep due to the redeye flight two days prior, so called it a relatively early evening and caught the train back to the hotel to crash. Next up, off to Dresden!

kosy91

I've stayed in the Sheraton several times - most recently last night, but I've never had a suite. Hopefully I can complete the Platinum challenge pretty quickly!