Gate A4, so we’re on the bus again. Getting from T3 to T5 took an inordinate amount of time. The transfer bus was 10 mins away, the e gates were closed, there were only 3 agents on passport control… basically one of those days where everything took longer than usual. End result was that I arrived at T5 just as the FIDS were showing go to gate,


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Another delay, now running 80 minutes late. With 20 minutes (hopefully) to departure. Crew are jolly, plane is packed, 6 rows in CE for the 40 or so minute hop up North.

Not quite sure what meal I have on order, have a sneaking suspicion it may be vegetarian, and I am a carnivore, we shall see.

Next stop, Newcastle!

It appears the special I ordered is on the standard menu, that’s a first. Menu for this evening


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The beetroot gravlax, which was tsty. I did manage to commit the ultimate sin, I had balanced the champagne on the edge of the tray, reached for the bread roll and sent the glass flying! Luckily there was more in the bottle ;)


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Finally landed just over an hour late. Uber arrived within five minutes and I have just arrived home, tired but happy.

Thoroughly enjoyable weekend, a few bumps in the road on the way back but met some very interesting people along the way,

Hope you enjoyed reading this. Not sure about next week, it’s going to be a bit of a funny one, I’m flying NCL-LHR-DUB-BHX, then working in Birmingham for the week so will only be out and about in the evenings. Don’t know if anyone would find that even remotely interesting.

Budapest is a wonderful place. I'd like to see your take on BHX and environs.

It's interesting to see reports on places I know well, so thanks for an excellent read. I hope you'll do some more. I see you're off to SBZ with LH, will that be the Hilton?

I thought the InterContinental would be fancy, but it's really dated...the 90s called and want their beige covers and chipboard back! so the club sandwich definitely suited your room :D. I'd imagined the Hilton was a legacy option in BUD, but I see now the rooms are far nicer. Lounge food is also pretty poor (in terms of my expectations of the brand), and again similar to the Hilton but the IC obviously has much more alcohol of the same bottom shelf variety.

That's the "old" LOT lounge, from their BUD hub.

Sibiu is nice. Wouldn't mind one bit going back there.

Ah of course. That explains why it doesn't match my recollection from earlier this year - I was in the Schengen lounge!

Hi. No, not the Hilton, I’ve chosen the Art Hotel. Not been in but walked past it on my last trip and it looks really interesting and the location is excellent. My friends in Sibiu didn’t have any information on it so no preconceived notions- watch out for the trip report after next ;). As I am literally going to see the guys and socialise the evening part of the trip report maybe blurry!

JapesUK Trip Reports

2024

Oct - A very short weekend trip to Kuwait flying all 4 classes
Sep - San Jose CA and 15 flights in J and F, a 1,000 tier point run on BA/AA/AS/IB
Sep - The Edinburgh FT Do

Aug - Seven Flights to Stretch SAS Status
Aug - More Lounging Around - The Ultimate Lounge Safari Take 2
Aug - 24 Hours in Tirana: Another Day of Sights and Speedy Shenanigans!
Aug - A double LCC weekend jaunt to Malaga
Aug - 24 Hours in Graz: A Day of Sights and Speedy Shenanigans!

July - The Flyertalk Bristol Do
July - Hasty Valencia Visit: Tapas, Vermut, and the Joy of Impulse Adventures
July - A Frequent Flyer’s Frivolous Foodie Foray

June - Lounging around in London Heathrow: The ultimate BA T3 and T5 lounge safari
June - Santorini Sprint: 24 Hours of Sun, Sand, and Speedy Sightseeing
June - Red Tape and Red Buses: When paperwork takes flight
June - Toronto: Towering Heights, Delicious Bites, and Niagara Delights!
June - Preveza for points: An overnight adventure with JapesGPT

May - Flying High, Haggling Low: A BA holiday to Marrakesh
May - Spontaneous Sicilian Splendour. Palermo in a day

Apr - Sky High Shenanigans: 6 Days, 5 Destinations, and a Whole Lot of Boarding Passes!

Mar - Four days in Baku, an Azerbaijan adventure
Mar - BA Holidays 6 day tier point run
Mar - A.I. goes to Aberdeen

Feb - A trip to two continents - Istanbul
Feb - Back to Bucharest for a toothy treat

Jan - Going for gold in Malaga
Jan - A Milan day trip

2023

Dec - A Christmas Escapade, Washington and my first first
Dec - A Stockholm weekend
Dec - Brussels, no sprouts! A short hop for hops.
Dec - A LCC trip to Faro, curiosity and comparison

Nov - Gdansk and Wroclaw for beer and XP

Oct - Bucharest and Back - again, and again, and again
Oct - A Short Sibiu Sojourn

Sept - Birmingham, Business, and Balti
Sept - A Budapest Long Weekend
Sept - Krakow Kraziness

That's a lot!

Certainly kwpt me from getting bored :D Amazed everyones not fed up with my prattle by now :D

Yet another great report JapesUK I don't know whether you were aware that the "shoes" is actually a holocaust memorial, it signifies how the Jews were rounded up and shot at the edge of the Danube, having been forced by the fascists to take of their shoes ( for resale) . Quite a poignant memorial in fabulous city. I recommend the ferris wheel next time.

Thanks! And thanks for the tip, always appreciated.

Yes, I was aware of the significance. I don’t tend to put a lot of info in the trip report in the sights and locations, maybe that is something I could do much better.