In and Around Tokyo in January
Oct 26, 2018, 7:03 pm
#17
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Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: PDX
Programs: Free agent!
Posts: 1,427
Thanks for reading, farbster. I assume so about the watches but part of it was that I was already over there. Then again, I am not the watch expert in our relationship, so I could be wrong.
Oct 26, 2018, 7:04 pm
#18
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: PDX
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Posts: 1,427
On my last full day in Tokyo, I was scheduled to visit the Japan Airlines maintenance facilities and visit their SKY MUSEUM in the late morning. Both Japan Airlines and ANA offer complimentary tours of their maintenance facilities but on this trip, only Japan Airlines had open slots. I don't recall how far in advance I had signed up for the tour but a week prior to the tour, I had received confirmation that my application was successful. Signing up for the tour required the usage of my rudimentary Japanese skills along with some Google Translate. As with this sort of thing in Japan, I applied using my hotel's address and phone number as my residence, which caused no problems.
As my tour was scheduled for 11:30, I headed out to Haneda's Terminal Two to do some planespotting prior to heading over to Japan Airlines' maintenance facilities.
Empty observation deck at Haneda's Terminal Two
NH Boeing 777-200ER JS717A. I flew her LAX - HND on my first adult trip to Tokyo over Thanksgiving in 2012.
I tend to prefer the planespotting action over at Terminal Two, which is why I was here despite going to tour Japan Airlines' maintenance facilities later in the morning. I would've taken more photographs but the zoom function on my camera at the time had stopped functioning.
The Japan Airlines Maintenance Center 1, SKY MUSEUM and hangars are located in between the southern end of Haneda's two main runways. In terms of getting there, one must take the Tokyo Monorail to the Shin-Seibijo Station, which is only served by services that make every stop.
Tokyo Monorail
Curvature
Kei Nishikori in a Japan Airlines advertisement for all you tennis fans
Rival carrier's aircraft taxiing by the station entrance
The Maintenance Center is right next to Shin-Seibijo Station
JAL Maintenance Center 1 exterior
I was here
Walking up to the building involves a security guard checking your reservations and ID to make sure you are allowed access to the building. After that, it's into the lobby for your tag and lanyard, which also indicates which classroom you'll be in today. Since one could arrive half an hour before the tour started, I made sure to be right on time so that I had extra time to enjoy the SKY MUSEUM. The Sky Museum has two main sections, one which has some exhibits explaining commercial aviation (ie, what a pilot does, what a flight attendant does, etc.) and another has memorabilia from Japan Airlines and other airlines it has acquired through the years, such as Japan Air System.
Boeing 777-200 model in the lobby
Sky Museum. The floors above are Japan Airlines offices.
DC-9 cockpit mockup
Shell Flat Neo. I flew home on the product on the right.
Galley and jumpseat
And then onto the memorabilia and more aircraft models:
Through the years
Emergency supplies for a transpolar flight
Seventies timetables
Nineties timetables. As someone who loves the first eight seasons of The Simpsons, I need that middle one.
First with the Moscow Shortcut
Cutaway model
Old tickets
Luggage tags
JAS
Inflight magazines
More seats
JAS & TDA flight attendant uniforms
Miffy/Nijntje
More models and more kawaii
Chronology of Japan Airlines
80's
90's, the decade in which I started flying on JAL
2000's and the stupid "Rising Sun" livery
Tire/tyre. I had no idea Bridgestone was a Japanese company until I was posting this photograph onto my Flickr account
Amazingly detailed 737-800 drawing. I remember texting this to a friend at the time because I was so impressed by this.
The classroom session, like everything else on the tour, was all in Japanese and lasted half an hour. It was led by a gentleman who had retired from Japan Airlines and covered some basic aviation topics, along with some things related to Haneda Airport. I was able to follow along well enough as there was also a Powerpoint presentation that accompanied it. After that, we had another half hour at the Sky Museum before we were lead out to the maintenance facility and hangars.
Classroom
View from the classroom
The tour of the maintenance facility was awesome and I really can't imagine an equivalent taking place in the States. We were taken out to the hangar directly attached to the maintenance center and then walked over to a second hangar, where we got to see the Japanese equivalent to Air Force One being backed into the hangar. Other highlights included a OneWorld liveried Boeing 767-300 and a Boeing 737-800, along with watching aircraft take off in front of us on runway 16R.
I do have quite a few photos I took of this part of the tour but attendees received an email a day later that emphasized that photos should not be posted to social media, so I've hidden all of my photos. There are certainly photographs available online but I didn't want to be the person who ruined it for everybody else.
The last point I wanted to make about the tour is that there were such a wide variety of people on the tour, which I thought was great. I've done some slightly similar things here in the States at the Boeing factories and the crowd is very much just a bunch of geeky dudes, myself included. I loved seeing the different ages of people on the tour and the gender mix was much more balanced.
If you have the slightest interest in commerical aviation (and I assume you do because you are on Flyertalk), I would highly recommend the tour.
As my tour was scheduled for 11:30, I headed out to Haneda's Terminal Two to do some planespotting prior to heading over to Japan Airlines' maintenance facilities.
Empty observation deck at Haneda's Terminal Two
NH Boeing 777-200ER JS717A. I flew her LAX - HND on my first adult trip to Tokyo over Thanksgiving in 2012.
I tend to prefer the planespotting action over at Terminal Two, which is why I was here despite going to tour Japan Airlines' maintenance facilities later in the morning. I would've taken more photographs but the zoom function on my camera at the time had stopped functioning.
The Japan Airlines Maintenance Center 1, SKY MUSEUM and hangars are located in between the southern end of Haneda's two main runways. In terms of getting there, one must take the Tokyo Monorail to the Shin-Seibijo Station, which is only served by services that make every stop.
Tokyo Monorail
Curvature
Kei Nishikori in a Japan Airlines advertisement for all you tennis fans
Rival carrier's aircraft taxiing by the station entrance
The Maintenance Center is right next to Shin-Seibijo Station
JAL Maintenance Center 1 exterior
I was here
Walking up to the building involves a security guard checking your reservations and ID to make sure you are allowed access to the building. After that, it's into the lobby for your tag and lanyard, which also indicates which classroom you'll be in today. Since one could arrive half an hour before the tour started, I made sure to be right on time so that I had extra time to enjoy the SKY MUSEUM. The Sky Museum has two main sections, one which has some exhibits explaining commercial aviation (ie, what a pilot does, what a flight attendant does, etc.) and another has memorabilia from Japan Airlines and other airlines it has acquired through the years, such as Japan Air System.
Boeing 777-200 model in the lobby
Sky Museum. The floors above are Japan Airlines offices.
DC-9 cockpit mockup
Shell Flat Neo. I flew home on the product on the right.
Galley and jumpseat
And then onto the memorabilia and more aircraft models:
Through the years
Emergency supplies for a transpolar flight
Seventies timetables
Nineties timetables. As someone who loves the first eight seasons of The Simpsons, I need that middle one.
First with the Moscow Shortcut
Cutaway model
Old tickets
Luggage tags
JAS
Inflight magazines
More seats
JAS & TDA flight attendant uniforms
Miffy/Nijntje
More models and more kawaii
Chronology of Japan Airlines
80's
90's, the decade in which I started flying on JAL
2000's and the stupid "Rising Sun" livery
Tire/tyre. I had no idea Bridgestone was a Japanese company until I was posting this photograph onto my Flickr account
Amazingly detailed 737-800 drawing. I remember texting this to a friend at the time because I was so impressed by this.
The classroom session, like everything else on the tour, was all in Japanese and lasted half an hour. It was led by a gentleman who had retired from Japan Airlines and covered some basic aviation topics, along with some things related to Haneda Airport. I was able to follow along well enough as there was also a Powerpoint presentation that accompanied it. After that, we had another half hour at the Sky Museum before we were lead out to the maintenance facility and hangars.
Classroom
View from the classroom
The tour of the maintenance facility was awesome and I really can't imagine an equivalent taking place in the States. We were taken out to the hangar directly attached to the maintenance center and then walked over to a second hangar, where we got to see the Japanese equivalent to Air Force One being backed into the hangar. Other highlights included a OneWorld liveried Boeing 767-300 and a Boeing 737-800, along with watching aircraft take off in front of us on runway 16R.
I do have quite a few photos I took of this part of the tour but attendees received an email a day later that emphasized that photos should not be posted to social media, so I've hidden all of my photos. There are certainly photographs available online but I didn't want to be the person who ruined it for everybody else.
The last point I wanted to make about the tour is that there were such a wide variety of people on the tour, which I thought was great. I've done some slightly similar things here in the States at the Boeing factories and the crowd is very much just a bunch of geeky dudes, myself included. I loved seeing the different ages of people on the tour and the gender mix was much more balanced.
If you have the slightest interest in commerical aviation (and I assume you do because you are on Flyertalk), I would highly recommend the tour.
Oct 27, 2018, 1:52 am
#19
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: London
Posts: 18,404
Great report, certainly an excursion to consider (hopefully with my husband or father-in-law as they speak Japanese). Very pleased not to see photos from the hangar!
And very obvious that you have zero interest in Formula 1
And very obvious that you have zero interest in Formula 1
Oct 29, 2018, 11:20 am
#20
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: PDX
Programs: Free agent!
Posts: 1,427
Thanks again for your kind words, LapLap. I think kids would really love this tour, regardless of how much of an interest they have in commercial aviation. As for Formula 1, I'm a very casual fan but the Bridgestone thing is just something that I somehow never knew!
Oct 29, 2018, 2:20 pm
#21
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Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: PDX
Programs: Free agent!
Posts: 1,427
The tour of Japan Airlines' Sky Museum and Maintenance Center ended at one-thirty in the afternoon, so I made my way back to central Tokyo. I had read online about a tamagoyaki vendor at Tsukiji's outer market that I wanted to visit, so I headed onto the monorail and changed at Hamamatsucho/Daimon for Tsukiji Shijo.
Above ground transfer from Hamamatsucho to Daimon with Tokyo Tower off in the distance
It was actually my first visit to Tsukiji since December 2010, when I had a four hour layover at Haneda early in the morning on my way to Taipei Songshan. I have been back to Tokyo many times but heading down to Tsukiji never really appealed to me, no matter how jet lagged I may have been. I headed over to Shouro's stand to purchase some tamagoyaki to consume later. I would've walked around more but due to the late hour, a lot of the vendors were already closing up for the day.
Tamagoyaki from Shouro, which I ate in my hotel room later in the day. It was... alright.
Tuskiji Outer Market
Fish delivered directly to a happy bear
Passing by the Tsukiji Honganji Buddist temple on my way to the Tsukiji Tokyo Metro Station
My next two stops were also places I had previously read about online and researched. Due to the fact that I was staying east of the Sumida River, I continued to explore that area. I took the Hibiya Line and then transferred to the Sobu Main Line and alighted at Kameido, where my destination was Kameido Gyoza. Kameido Gyoza is a small restaurant specialising in Gyoza (duh). In fact, that's the only food they serve and they only have one type of gyoza, so it's not some new fangled thing with weird flavours or whatever. The gyoza come five per plate and can only be ordered by the plate. Once they see that you are about to finish your plate, they bring you a new plate unless you tell them to stop. In a way, it's similar to those Brazilian steakhouses where they keep bringing you food until you indicate otherwise.
Kameido Gyoza
Plate number three. They consolidate your remaining gyoza to the new plate
I really enjoyed Kameido Gyoza and had four plates of gyoza along with a beer. I thought I had eaten a lot but glanced across the counter at an older woman who had eight plates and then felt shame.
Since I ate so much, I walked back to the hotel with a stop at Kameido Tenjinsha, a shrine known for its views of Tokyo Skytree.
Alleys north of Kameido Station
Shopping street torii
Main torii of Kameido Tenjinsha
Skytree in the distance
Honden
Mitake Jinja
Ox shrine
Skytree and residential tower blocks
Not far from the Skytree
After resting in my room for a few hours, I then headed out to the Tokyo Solamachi shopping centre at the base of the Skytree to do some shopping. I bought some clothes and shoes for myself, some small gifts for the family and some edible omiyage for my co-workers. When I went back to the room to pack, my bag barely fit all that I bought on this trip.
Bought some Rilakkuma stuff for the little one
Korilakkuma, Rilakkuma and Kiiroitori with the Skytree
After packing, it was up to the hotel's rooftop deck for a few snaps before heading out for one last dinner in Japan.
Rooftop terrace
Viewing in a southwesterly direction
Skytree from the rooftop terrace
In past trips to Japan, my dining selections were all sort of on a whim or even just from the convenience stores or a local fast food chain. On this trip, I put some effort into finding good dining spots so on this last night, I found an izakaya that was well rated on Tabelog, Motsuyaki Inagaki, which specialised in Motsuyaki. Motsuyaki refers to a style of food that focuses on skewers using the innards of animals.
I was seated at the bar and somewhat to my displeasure, I was brought an English menu once the staff figured out that my Japanese was limited as I usually try to do my best with the Japanese menu.
Tsukune (ground chicken meatballs)
Chicken, liver, etc.
Chicken wings
Chicken skin and negima (chicken thigh with spring onions)
Tuna sashimi
Being seated at the bar, it was an option for me to order more food from the folks who were doing the grilling at the other side of the bar. I tried getting their attention with sumimasen (excuse me) but one of the gentlemen didn't hear me. A gentleman sitting next to me starts talking to me and I deduced that he meant something along the lines of "you'll have to speak up" but I, of course, had to respond to him that I was sorry and that my Japanese wasn't great. It turned out that he and his friend both spoke English and so the three of us started chatting for the rest of our stay at the restaurant. We shared drinks and conversed in a mixture of Japanese and English. They ended up paying for my dinner, which was way too generous and invited me out for drinks with the two of them. The three of us got in a cab and headed over to Hoppy Street, a street in Asakusa that is lined with bars and eating establishments. However, Hoppy Street was already closed for the night so we ended up drinking at an outpost of Isomaru Suisan, a twenty-four hour seafood place. Thankfully, I was able to somewhat pay them back by covering the tab and a few snacks that we had at Isomaru Suisan.
It was a really great experience chatting to them about their lives in Japan, my life in the United States and pop culture interests that we had in common. It was amusing to me that they were more interested in our culture in the States and I was more interested in their culture in Japan. After we were finally done drinking for the night, we parted ways after exchanging contact information on the LINE messaging app
Starting the walk back to the hotel after a great night
Passing by Kaminarimon one last time
Crossing Azumabashi on foot
Above ground transfer from Hamamatsucho to Daimon with Tokyo Tower off in the distance
It was actually my first visit to Tsukiji since December 2010, when I had a four hour layover at Haneda early in the morning on my way to Taipei Songshan. I have been back to Tokyo many times but heading down to Tsukiji never really appealed to me, no matter how jet lagged I may have been. I headed over to Shouro's stand to purchase some tamagoyaki to consume later. I would've walked around more but due to the late hour, a lot of the vendors were already closing up for the day.
Tamagoyaki from Shouro, which I ate in my hotel room later in the day. It was... alright.
Tuskiji Outer Market
Fish delivered directly to a happy bear
Passing by the Tsukiji Honganji Buddist temple on my way to the Tsukiji Tokyo Metro Station
My next two stops were also places I had previously read about online and researched. Due to the fact that I was staying east of the Sumida River, I continued to explore that area. I took the Hibiya Line and then transferred to the Sobu Main Line and alighted at Kameido, where my destination was Kameido Gyoza. Kameido Gyoza is a small restaurant specialising in Gyoza (duh). In fact, that's the only food they serve and they only have one type of gyoza, so it's not some new fangled thing with weird flavours or whatever. The gyoza come five per plate and can only be ordered by the plate. Once they see that you are about to finish your plate, they bring you a new plate unless you tell them to stop. In a way, it's similar to those Brazilian steakhouses where they keep bringing you food until you indicate otherwise.
Kameido Gyoza
Plate number three. They consolidate your remaining gyoza to the new plate
I really enjoyed Kameido Gyoza and had four plates of gyoza along with a beer. I thought I had eaten a lot but glanced across the counter at an older woman who had eight plates and then felt shame.
Since I ate so much, I walked back to the hotel with a stop at Kameido Tenjinsha, a shrine known for its views of Tokyo Skytree.
Alleys north of Kameido Station
Shopping street torii
Main torii of Kameido Tenjinsha
Skytree in the distance
Honden
Mitake Jinja
Ox shrine
Skytree and residential tower blocks
Not far from the Skytree
After resting in my room for a few hours, I then headed out to the Tokyo Solamachi shopping centre at the base of the Skytree to do some shopping. I bought some clothes and shoes for myself, some small gifts for the family and some edible omiyage for my co-workers. When I went back to the room to pack, my bag barely fit all that I bought on this trip.
Bought some Rilakkuma stuff for the little one
Korilakkuma, Rilakkuma and Kiiroitori with the Skytree
After packing, it was up to the hotel's rooftop deck for a few snaps before heading out for one last dinner in Japan.
Rooftop terrace
Viewing in a southwesterly direction
Skytree from the rooftop terrace
In past trips to Japan, my dining selections were all sort of on a whim or even just from the convenience stores or a local fast food chain. On this trip, I put some effort into finding good dining spots so on this last night, I found an izakaya that was well rated on Tabelog, Motsuyaki Inagaki, which specialised in Motsuyaki. Motsuyaki refers to a style of food that focuses on skewers using the innards of animals.
I was seated at the bar and somewhat to my displeasure, I was brought an English menu once the staff figured out that my Japanese was limited as I usually try to do my best with the Japanese menu.
Tsukune (ground chicken meatballs)
Chicken, liver, etc.
Chicken wings
Chicken skin and negima (chicken thigh with spring onions)
Tuna sashimi
Being seated at the bar, it was an option for me to order more food from the folks who were doing the grilling at the other side of the bar. I tried getting their attention with sumimasen (excuse me) but one of the gentlemen didn't hear me. A gentleman sitting next to me starts talking to me and I deduced that he meant something along the lines of "you'll have to speak up" but I, of course, had to respond to him that I was sorry and that my Japanese wasn't great. It turned out that he and his friend both spoke English and so the three of us started chatting for the rest of our stay at the restaurant. We shared drinks and conversed in a mixture of Japanese and English. They ended up paying for my dinner, which was way too generous and invited me out for drinks with the two of them. The three of us got in a cab and headed over to Hoppy Street, a street in Asakusa that is lined with bars and eating establishments. However, Hoppy Street was already closed for the night so we ended up drinking at an outpost of Isomaru Suisan, a twenty-four hour seafood place. Thankfully, I was able to somewhat pay them back by covering the tab and a few snacks that we had at Isomaru Suisan.
It was a really great experience chatting to them about their lives in Japan, my life in the United States and pop culture interests that we had in common. It was amusing to me that they were more interested in our culture in the States and I was more interested in their culture in Japan. After we were finally done drinking for the night, we parted ways after exchanging contact information on the LINE messaging app
Starting the walk back to the hotel after a great night
Passing by Kaminarimon one last time
Crossing Azumabashi on foot
Oct 31, 2018, 4:29 pm
#22
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: PDX
Programs: Free agent!
Posts: 1,427
My journey back home to Portland would involve two stops, Osaka and Los Angeles. I built the trip home around the fact that award space for the Japan Airlines flight between Osaka and Los Angeles was wide open and easily accessible for me via Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan. I was certainly aware that the hard product on that flight was not JL's finest but it beat having to head back across the Pacific in Y yet again.
For the first leg of the journey home, I flew HND - KIX on a separate ticket and for a small fee, I indulged in the Class J product, which was basically a premium economy product. To head to HND, it was onto the Toei Asakusa Line which ran as a through train service onto the various Keikyu lines until I arrived at Haneda. I took the correct set of escalators for Terminal One, which is JL's home for domestic flights, and found myself in the main hall of said terminal.
Terminal One, Haneda
FIDS with seat availability being shown. I was flying out on JL 225, departing at 12:40
Consistent with my past experience with domestic flying in Japan, the security checks took no time at all and I found myself airside in Terminal One, perhaps for the first time in my life. For all of my trips to Japan, I have usually flown ANA due to my past loyalty to UA (hahaha). Even now, I like ANA's schedule on their LAX-HND flight but when you're redeeming miles for a Business Class ticket, you are certainly less picky than you normally would be. I suppose I could've flown NH to KIX but since I was already flying JL across the Pacific, it made sense to stick with JL for the flight prior. As an adult, I know this was my first time airside in Terminal One but when I visited Japan as a child with my family, I know that we flew JL between ITM and HND.
Moving walkways
Ramp
Boarding area
Plant life
I had a kitsune udon before the flight
JL Boeing 737-800 JA318J, operating as JL 225 HND-KIX
Class J is set up in a 2-3 configuration on JL's 737s and I ended up on the aisle on the side of the aircraft with three seats. The flight looked quite full and Class J itself was completely full. There's not a ton to report on with regards to a short hop between the Kanto and Kansai regions but I did utilise the complimentary wifi to view the moving map. There were a few bumps on our descent to Kansai International Airport but none of them were strong enough to cause any discomfort.
On the ground at KIX
I've actually flown in and out of KIX a few times but somehow had never really spent much time in the main terminal of the airport. All of my past visits to KIX have been on Peach, a low cost carrier owned by ANA. In my first few visits, check-in for Peach was handled on the ground floor of the adjacent Hotel Nikko (yes, really) while passengers were bussed from a holding room to the tarmac. The arrival procedures were even more amusing, as all checked luggage was picked up on the side of a curb after being unloaded from what looked like a garbage truck.
Yes, this really happened (from 2012)
In recent years, Peach moved into the low cost terminal at KIX, Terminal Two. Despite being a much needed upgrade from Peach's initial years, it still meant I had really never been inside KIX. However, that changed when I disembarked after our short flight from Haneda.
KIX, domestic area airside
I could've had my luggage checked all the way through to Portland but with everything I mentioned above, I wanted to explore the airport a little bit, so I elected to pick up my luggage at KIX and re-check it for the rest of the journey. This, of course, meant I headed landside.
Pokémon Store right outside the domestic arrivals area
Amami x Vanilla Air x Pompompurin. Vanilla Air is NH's other low cost carrier
Starflyer hadn't packed away the Christmas decorations yet
NH photo op
Check-in counters
Stepping outside for the last bit of fresh air on this trip
Disappointingly, the observation deck was actually located on a different structure, which required a shuttle bus ride. I decided not to push my luck on a connection and headed back into the terminal to find something to eat. I actually did sit down at a restaurant, only to be ignored and when I got fed up, I decided to eat airside instead.
Airside again at KIX
Waiting for my meal at Pronto
Last whiskey highball of the trip
Japanese style Carbonara
After that meal, I headed over to the Japan Airlines Sakura Lounge in the south wing of the airport. Reports about the lounge from here on FlyerTalk were very negative, so I went into it expecting the worst but the lounge itself was fine. Sure, it wasn't anything fancy like the LH FCT in FRA (or so I've heard) but it was a decent place to spend an hour or so before a flight.
Sakura Lounge entrance
The large backroom of the lounge, which was pretty much just me and three or four other people
View of a MU Boeing 737-800 from the main room of the lounge
Yes, I am aware that I had just eaten twenty minutes ago but can anyone pass up FREE Japanese curry and a katsu sando?
South Wing of KIX
The KIX-LAX flight is operated by a Boeing 787-8, featuring the SHELL FLAT NEO product, which is regarded as JL's worst long haul product. This is a slanted lie flat seat with no direct aisle access and is currently being operated into lower yielding North American markets, such as YVR and SAN. Despite the hard product, the soft product was great, including delicious food and some very friendly and attentive FAs. I also like the MAGIC IFE system that JL has but I also like to avoid big budget films from Hollywood, so the system worked well for me.
JL Boeing 787-8 JA833J, operating as JL 60 KIX-LAX
For this flight, I dined off the Japanese menu
Sakizuke
Marinated Red Cabbage & Vegetables
Waldorf Salad
Zensai ~Selection of seasonal colorful delicacies~
Scallops
Mustard Miso
"Ebiimo" Taro
Red Snow Crab
Seared Peffer Fish
Grated Radish with Red Chili Pepper
Sesame Tofu
Broad Beans
Japanese Tiger Prawn
Chilled Seared Greater Amberjack
Herring Roe
Black Soy Bean on Skewers
Monkfish Liver
Vegetables Pickled in Sake Lees
Dainomono
Beef Sukiyaki
Momen Tofu
Marinated Deep-filled Filefish
Steamed Rice
We are pleased to offer freshly steamed "Yiukigura Imazurimai" Koshihikari rice. After harvest, the rice is stored carefully with its chaff on, it is characterized by freshness, stickiness and sweetness.
Miso Soup
Japanese Pickles
Kanmi (Dessert)
Roasted Green Tea Mousse with Brown Sugar Jelly
Green Tea
And the Western menu for those who are interested:
Amuse-Bouche
Marinated Red Cabbage & Vegetables
Waldorf Salad
Hors-d'oeuvre
Red King Crab
Snow Crab
Basil Dressing
Main Dish (Choice)
"Wagyu" Sirloin Beef Steak in Balsamic Sauce
Baked Potato, Pacific Barrelfish, with Anchovy & Garlic Sauce
Bread
Dessert
Roasted Green Tea Mousse with Brown Sugar Jelly
Coffee Tea
Later on in the flight, I ordered the cheese platter off the Anytime You Wish menu
Platter of cheese
Forward view
I really enjoyed the flight and actually slept very well on the slanted lie flat seats. I really didn't mind the product and would certainly fly it again for either the right price or availability at the right time using miles.
Thanks again to all for reading this TR.
For the first leg of the journey home, I flew HND - KIX on a separate ticket and for a small fee, I indulged in the Class J product, which was basically a premium economy product. To head to HND, it was onto the Toei Asakusa Line which ran as a through train service onto the various Keikyu lines until I arrived at Haneda. I took the correct set of escalators for Terminal One, which is JL's home for domestic flights, and found myself in the main hall of said terminal.
Terminal One, Haneda
FIDS with seat availability being shown. I was flying out on JL 225, departing at 12:40
Consistent with my past experience with domestic flying in Japan, the security checks took no time at all and I found myself airside in Terminal One, perhaps for the first time in my life. For all of my trips to Japan, I have usually flown ANA due to my past loyalty to UA (hahaha). Even now, I like ANA's schedule on their LAX-HND flight but when you're redeeming miles for a Business Class ticket, you are certainly less picky than you normally would be. I suppose I could've flown NH to KIX but since I was already flying JL across the Pacific, it made sense to stick with JL for the flight prior. As an adult, I know this was my first time airside in Terminal One but when I visited Japan as a child with my family, I know that we flew JL between ITM and HND.
Moving walkways
Ramp
Boarding area
Plant life
I had a kitsune udon before the flight
JL Boeing 737-800 JA318J, operating as JL 225 HND-KIX
Class J is set up in a 2-3 configuration on JL's 737s and I ended up on the aisle on the side of the aircraft with three seats. The flight looked quite full and Class J itself was completely full. There's not a ton to report on with regards to a short hop between the Kanto and Kansai regions but I did utilise the complimentary wifi to view the moving map. There were a few bumps on our descent to Kansai International Airport but none of them were strong enough to cause any discomfort.
On the ground at KIX
I've actually flown in and out of KIX a few times but somehow had never really spent much time in the main terminal of the airport. All of my past visits to KIX have been on Peach, a low cost carrier owned by ANA. In my first few visits, check-in for Peach was handled on the ground floor of the adjacent Hotel Nikko (yes, really) while passengers were bussed from a holding room to the tarmac. The arrival procedures were even more amusing, as all checked luggage was picked up on the side of a curb after being unloaded from what looked like a garbage truck.
Yes, this really happened (from 2012)
In recent years, Peach moved into the low cost terminal at KIX, Terminal Two. Despite being a much needed upgrade from Peach's initial years, it still meant I had really never been inside KIX. However, that changed when I disembarked after our short flight from Haneda.
KIX, domestic area airside
I could've had my luggage checked all the way through to Portland but with everything I mentioned above, I wanted to explore the airport a little bit, so I elected to pick up my luggage at KIX and re-check it for the rest of the journey. This, of course, meant I headed landside.
Pokémon Store right outside the domestic arrivals area
Amami x Vanilla Air x Pompompurin. Vanilla Air is NH's other low cost carrier
Starflyer hadn't packed away the Christmas decorations yet
NH photo op
Check-in counters
Stepping outside for the last bit of fresh air on this trip
Disappointingly, the observation deck was actually located on a different structure, which required a shuttle bus ride. I decided not to push my luck on a connection and headed back into the terminal to find something to eat. I actually did sit down at a restaurant, only to be ignored and when I got fed up, I decided to eat airside instead.
Airside again at KIX
Waiting for my meal at Pronto
Last whiskey highball of the trip
Japanese style Carbonara
After that meal, I headed over to the Japan Airlines Sakura Lounge in the south wing of the airport. Reports about the lounge from here on FlyerTalk were very negative, so I went into it expecting the worst but the lounge itself was fine. Sure, it wasn't anything fancy like the LH FCT in FRA (or so I've heard) but it was a decent place to spend an hour or so before a flight.
Sakura Lounge entrance
The large backroom of the lounge, which was pretty much just me and three or four other people
View of a MU Boeing 737-800 from the main room of the lounge
Yes, I am aware that I had just eaten twenty minutes ago but can anyone pass up FREE Japanese curry and a katsu sando?
South Wing of KIX
The KIX-LAX flight is operated by a Boeing 787-8, featuring the SHELL FLAT NEO product, which is regarded as JL's worst long haul product. This is a slanted lie flat seat with no direct aisle access and is currently being operated into lower yielding North American markets, such as YVR and SAN. Despite the hard product, the soft product was great, including delicious food and some very friendly and attentive FAs. I also like the MAGIC IFE system that JL has but I also like to avoid big budget films from Hollywood, so the system worked well for me.
JL Boeing 787-8 JA833J, operating as JL 60 KIX-LAX
For this flight, I dined off the Japanese menu
Sakizuke
Marinated Red Cabbage & Vegetables
Waldorf Salad
Zensai ~Selection of seasonal colorful delicacies~
Scallops
Mustard Miso
"Ebiimo" Taro
Red Snow Crab
Seared Peffer Fish
Grated Radish with Red Chili Pepper
Sesame Tofu
Broad Beans
Japanese Tiger Prawn
Chilled Seared Greater Amberjack
Herring Roe
Black Soy Bean on Skewers
Monkfish Liver
Vegetables Pickled in Sake Lees
Dainomono
Beef Sukiyaki
Momen Tofu
Marinated Deep-filled Filefish
Steamed Rice
We are pleased to offer freshly steamed "Yiukigura Imazurimai" Koshihikari rice. After harvest, the rice is stored carefully with its chaff on, it is characterized by freshness, stickiness and sweetness.
Miso Soup
Japanese Pickles
Kanmi (Dessert)
Roasted Green Tea Mousse with Brown Sugar Jelly
Green Tea
And the Western menu for those who are interested:
Amuse-Bouche
Marinated Red Cabbage & Vegetables
Waldorf Salad
Hors-d'oeuvre
Red King Crab
Snow Crab
Basil Dressing
Main Dish (Choice)
"Wagyu" Sirloin Beef Steak in Balsamic Sauce
Baked Potato, Pacific Barrelfish, with Anchovy & Garlic Sauce
Bread
Dessert
Roasted Green Tea Mousse with Brown Sugar Jelly
Coffee Tea
Later on in the flight, I ordered the cheese platter off the Anytime You Wish menu
Platter of cheese
Forward view
I really enjoyed the flight and actually slept very well on the slanted lie flat seats. I really didn't mind the product and would certainly fly it again for either the right price or availability at the right time using miles.
Thanks again to all for reading this TR.
Nov 5, 2018, 10:19 am
#24
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2004
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