Carfield

Hi all,

Here is the report on another recent roundtrip to Colombo, and due to time restraint, I will just report on the segment that is more interesting and unusual. Here it goes!

February 26, 2007
BR 15/AA 7959 LAX-TPE Lv2230 Arr0500+1 Boeing 777-300ER B-16705 Regular livery
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...=8QbNHDNy5btqM

Well the return segment definitely did not shine as well as the inbound flight, and I guess I am still flying Business, despite of its fancy label, “Premium Laurel,” and service can’t really compare to my earlier experience in Super First. Also I felt that the flight attendants were rushing through all meals and they all looked rather exhausting and were not attentive. The seat itself is okay in terms of width, but the angle is really steep for sleeping and I kept on sliding off the seat, which makes a rather poor night of sleep.

Check-in: I arrived earlier from an American Airlines from Chicago, so I took advantage of the Flagship lounge at AA’s terminal before heading over to Tom Bradley, which was rather quiet especially after the Chinese New Year Season. There was no wait in the line and the agent was rather efficient in the whole process.

Lounge access: There was no lounge access for EVA Air’s Business class passengers, and instead, we were given $15 coupon to use for food or duty free, which was actually quite a nice option. The TBIT common business class lounge simply did not worthy of the effort to that temporary structure, and with the $15 coupon, I had a nice supper in the Daily Grill at the food court, and then headed towards the gate when time was up.

Boarding: Boarding took place at 9:55pm from gate 103, and priority boarding was enforced. I like how TBIT separate F/J/elite passengers from regular economy passengers. After boarding, the usual things were handed out. OJ or water… newspapers… and amenity kits… slippers and headsets were pre-placed at each seat.

Cabin: The cabin was really spacious with a six abreast seating on a widebody like 777, and everything was clean.

Seat: Width as I said earlier was great, but the sleeping positions were very uncomfortable, and the sliding factor is serious. EVA Air should try to reduce the slope a bit, and other than that, everything works well and I like the additional overhead lights, as well as the bottled water holders.

Amenities: A nice amenity kit from La Prairie was passed out (a grey colored one) and I assume that both F and J got the same amenity kits. One significant part of the experience was the printed menu, which went missing today, and the F/As came around to take individual orders. It was rather cheap for a world-class airline. The official reason was that “they did not load enough menus for this flight,” so they only passed out the wine lists, and as you all know me, that lack of menus was enough to kill off any good reviews.

Entertainment: Audio-vide was on demand, but I felt that they could use more local Taiwanese television shows, since there were a great variety of excellent variety shows being produced. Movie selections are up to date with movies, such as “Prestige” and a variety of Asian movies as well. All on demand, of course! It is no CX or SQ’s KrisWorld, but good enough for a second tier Asian airline, but it can be better with more selections. I actually felt that there were less selections than before.

Take off and routing: We took off from R/W25R at 11:02pm, and flying time was a long thirteen hours and forty-five minutes. Routing first took us across the Ventura County and cruised at 30,000feet, and then passing King City, Salinas, SFO, before climbing to 31,000feet, and then 32,000feet, 34,000feet and 36,000feet before entering the Japanese air space. We passed by Narita, Haneda, Kawasaki, Mountain Fuji, South of Nagoya, Owase, Tosashimizu, Miyazaki, Makurasaki and then into Taipei. We landed on R/W06 at 4:47am two days later, and parked at gate C1.

Food: There were three meals: supper/light meal after takeoff, mid-flight refreshment, and pre-arrival breakfast service. The first meal was a supper/light meal, which was rushed through with no initial beverage and canapé/nuts service. The appetizer tray, which was a Thai seafood platter with shrimps and scallops, was served first, followed by beverage and bread (a choice of garlic bread or wheat rolls), and then after the appetizer plate was collected, the entrée was served, which was a stir fry seafood with satay sauce. For the seafood part, I counted – two pieces of shrimps and two pieces of squids, and even the appetizer featured more shrimps and scallops. After entrée, there was no dessert service, only a fruit plate, which featured kiwi, grapefruit, melon, cantaloupe, and papaya. An hour and nine minutes after takeoff, the meal service was completed with tea or coffee with individual boxes of chocolate thins. Then there was a mid-flight refreshment on demand, and the F/As actually decided to serve them around 7am LA time, and I had a nice dim sum plate, which featured har gow, siu mai, BBQ filled rice roll, which was surprisingly nice and pleasant. Breakfast was served at 11am PST/3am Taiwanese time. For Asian Cuisine, fruit appetizer started first (and no tray was used initially), which featured cantaloupe and melon balls, grapefruit, pineapple, and cantaloupe. Then the main meal was served on a tray, which was a choice of Five grain congee and Taiwanese street stall dim sum, which was my selection – Fried Pancake filled with Egg Omelet, Baked BBQ Pork Bun, Steamed chicken bun, and warm sweet soy milk. For western folks, the same sequence, and they had an egg dish.

Flight attendants: I felt that the F/As are just average and they were able to do the basics, such as addressing passengers by their last names, but obviously rushed through all the meals, and one of the F/As really did not smile much through out the flight, and when you said, “thanks,” she did not react. The service is just lukewarm… maybe it is a late night flight or what, or the outbound was so excellent that the return just looked pale.

February 28, 2007
CX 463 TPE-HKG Lv0625 Arr0810 Boeing 777-300ER B-HNJ
I managed to take an earlier flight, which ended up taking off slightly late, and of course, I also found out that my original flight was operated by a Boeing 747-400 in a two class situation (which meant I would possibly be accommodated in F). Anyway, it is such a short flight, so it does not matter much. Nothing to report back, except a 100% full J and Y flight. Service was good as usual, and here is the link to the meal pictures.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...=8QbNHDNy5btqu

March 1, 2007
SQ 469 CMB-SIN Lv0110 0735 Boeing 777-200ER 9V-SQE
Did a CMB turnaround and transit desk was as simple as ever. No question was asked and no eyebrow was raised. I headed to the Lotus Lounge, which was fairly empty at this time of the day. Boarding began at 00:40am and F cabin was 55% full. We took off from R/W22 at 1:19am, and we cruised at 11,277m throughout the evening.

Amenities wise: We got the PJ (the old style) and the new Ferragamo amenity kits, which were nice. The F/As were great as usual, but they questioned why I took pictures of the meals. Sometimes I really did not know how to explain myself well. Nevertheless they took it easy, and I did not use flash, so I did not disturb folks nearby me. But the biggest disappointment was that no menus were loaded, which were a big no-no to me. I still felt the supper could be better. I like the chicken consommé appetizer, but the lamb foccacia was not to my taste. I will rather have a bowl of noodles or congee. I wish one of the choices could be more Chinese oriented or at least lighter, instead of three main dishes, which was quite spicy. I think a breakfast type meal would be better.

We landed on R/W2C at 7:25am Singapore local time, and parked at gate F50 a few minutes later. Flying time was an usual three hour and thirty-six minutes.

The next flight was more interesting for sure, and I will give you a full report.

March 1, 2007
SQ 862 SIN-HKG Lv1100 Arr1445 Boeing 777-300ER 9V-SWB (sorry for the typo)
Of course, this segment was an exciting one, as I finally got to fly the brand new Boeing 777-300ER, the most hyped up SQ product for the past few months at various message boards and media. My conclusion is that the new seats are really nice, but does it live up to its hype? Or does it worth all the effort to go out of your way or pay extra money to fly the new 77W? I really doubt it, and I also felt the 77W F/A team was good, but just not as warm and personable than my other F flights on the Boeing 747-400. I don’t know why, but I felt the service on 744 in F is always better than SQ F on 777s.

I had a long four hours at the lounge and the breakfast was a mixed of Singaporean dishes and Continental choices, and an egg/omelet station was set up today. The lounge was quite busy in the morning and then quieted down after the first wave of flight left. I worked a bit on my computer and then took a shower, before heading to the gate.

For some reasons, the flight was boarded early and when I was at the gate, F56, around 10:30am, boarding was almost in its concluding stage. F and J cabin were pretty full. F was almost 100% full. My first impression was “wow”. I really like the brown/beige décor, which is soft on the eyes, yet very luxury. Everything is just so new and the seats were indeed wide. The TV screen was just huge and the new KrisWorld catalog was just amazing in F and J. You can fly nonstop for days without feeling bored or running out of stuff to watch or play on. If I have time, I really want to type up the whole entertainment selection.

In terms of seats, here is my analysis:
Pro:
1. The seats were really wide and there were ample of rooms to leave newspapers beside you.
2. The new LCD screen was nice.
3. I really like the leather and the soft interior. The seats are soft and the leather fabric looks just beautiful and elegant, while maintain the luxurious, yet stylish first class décor.
4. There were ample magazine storage, and the sign was easy to read.
5. There were enough lights in the seats, unlike CX current F.
6. The new menus were nice.

Con:
1. The seats seem very cramped on a Boeing 777. Maybe the high divider (which was actually done to protect privacy) makes you feel that you are in a locked box.
2. It is hard to find a comfortable regular seating position.
3. The storage space for hand luggage was simply unsatisfactory and I know why overhead bins were cancelled, but more roller on storage spaces should be installed.
4. As a result, the seats were wide and luxurious, but seem to have less seat pitch visually (but it is actually generous in reality compared to the current F seats). Visually, they just have the opposite effect.

This time, I told the F/A that I will be taking pictures because of the nature of the new plane, and she had no problems, as many passengers were taking pictures of this brand new 77W and even the crews themselves took private pictures. Boarding was completed at 10:58am and we pushed back on time. Flying time was three hours and ten minutes, which were too quick. We cruised at 36,000feet today. We took off from R/W2C at 11:13am.

In terms of amenities, new brown colored socks as well as real slippers were handed out this time. Eye shades were also offered featuring the new F colors. The new leather menus were nice and here is the wine list and the menu. To describe the new china and meal concepts, they were excellent. The oyster appetizer was amazing. The Oyster appetizers were just amazing considered served at 36,000feet. The soup was just wonderfully done. I had the noodle entrée, which was okay. The dessert is nice. So everything is pretty perfectly done.

Lunch from Singapore to Hong Kong
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...=8QbNHDNy5btrq

Sam’s Choice
A three-time winner of the World Gourmet Summit’s Asian Ethnic Chef, Sam Leong is famed for presenting Chinese cuisine with a deliciously contemporary touch. He brings to you his recommendation for a most exquisite dining experience in the sky.

Shi Quan Shi Mei

Cold Xiao Chi
Sliced abalone with sweet pineapple
Tofu with brandy cherry and ginger sauce
Seared beef fillet in Oriental vinaigrette
Scallop with Bai Ling Mushroom

Cuisine from the Wok
Deep-fried “pipa” prawn with soya crumbs
Braised pork neck with ginseng
Steamed cod in spicy chilli sauce
Stir-fried asparagus with fungus

From the Paddyfield
Choice of steamed rice or porridge

Soup
Thick Supreme Broth with crabmeat and spinach puree

International Cuisine
Appetizers
Combination of Malossol Caviar with lobster-fennel salad
Oven-baked warm oyster with pesto veloute and cheese in half shell

Soup
Cream of Jerusalem artichoke soup with gammon ham

Salad
White asparagus, olives and pistachio, baby lettuces and aged feta cheese
Balsamic and extra virgin oil dressing
Singapore dressing infused in shallot oil with sambal, lime and honey

Entrées
Grilled Beef in Chanterelle sauce with vegetables and mashed potatoes
Or
Famous Singapore Chicken Rice
Fragrant poached chicken with Pandan-flavored rice, served with ginger, soya and chili sauce
Or
Ramen with kurobuta pork belly in miso broth
Or
Roasted vegetables with avocado and Portobello mushrooms on warm roesti with mesclun in truffle oil dressing

Desserts
Almond tuile shell with ice cream and fruit salad
Warm bitter almond soup with sesame dumplings

Cheeses
Selection of Emmenthal, Caprice des Dieux, Rambol walnut and boursault vache Chesses served with garnishes

Fruits
Fresh fruits in seasaon

SQ862QD SIN-HKG (LF1) 202-1.1 03FC

Wine List
Champagnes
Dom Perignon 1999
Krug Grande Cuvee

White Wines
Dr Loosen 2005 Urziger Wurzgarten Riesling Spatlese
Chablis Premier Cru Fourchaumes “old vines” 2003 Domaine Laroche

Red Wines
Chateau Cos d’Estournel 1999 Saint-Estephe
Chateau Pichon-Longueville Comtesse De Lalande 1998 Pauillac
Beaune Les Avaux Premier Cru 2002

Port
Graham’s 20 Years Old Tawny Port

Mix of the Month
Tropical Sparkle
A refreshing and fruittty delight consisting of lime cordial, 7-UP, orange juice and tomato juice

Generally speaking, this flight is exciting and all the new china looks nice.

After the meal, I watched Simpsons and then soon, descent began. I did not get to test the bed mode, but generally I am satisfied with the new products, but I still think SQ over-hypes the products too much, and I don’t see why SQ has to make award bookings and collect all these extra fees for just flying 77W.

We began our descent at 2pm and landed on 7L at 2:23pm, and parked at gate 25.

Just a disclaimer: there is possibly the only time that I will type up whole movie and TV list. Just to show you how great this new system is… It took literally thirty minutes to type them up.
March 2007
Hollywood Movies:
(Action)
Casino Royale
Crimson Tide
Déjà vu
Diamonds are Forever
Dr. No
Enemy of the State
The Guardian
The Last Boy Scout
Rocky
Rocky II
Rocky Balboa
Spy Game
The Spy Who Loved Me
Thunderball

(Comedy)
A Good Year
The Birdcage
Employee of the Month
Moonstruck
Mrs. Doubtfire
Much Ado About Nothing
Night at the Museums
Stranger than Fiction

(Drama)
Babel
Dead Again
Dead Poets Society
The Departed
Flags of Our Fathers
Ghost
Good Will Hunting
Gridiron Gang
Infamous
Marie Antoinette
Out of Africa
The Prestige
The Queen
The Remains of the Day
Splendor In the Grass

(Musical)
Dreamgirls
Mary Poppins

International Movies
(Arabic)
Al Safara Fee Al Emara
All Spicy
Banat West Al Balad

(Australian)
BoyTown
Jindabyne
Oscar and Lucinda

(British)
Allen Autopsy
The History Boys
Mrs. Brown

(French)
Don’t Worry, I’m Fine (Je Vais Bien ne T’en Fais Pas)
Les Grand Meaulness
One Summer (Le Passager De L’Ete)
Our Happy days (Nos Jours Heureux)
The Singer (Quand J’Etais chanteur)

(German)
The Robber Hotzenplotz (Der Rauber Hotzenplotz)
TKKG and the Mysterious Mind Machine (TKKG-Die Ratselhafte Mind-Machine)

(Italian)
The Days of Abandonment (I Giorni Dell’Abbandono)
The Wedding Director (Il Regista Di Matrimoni)

(Spanish)
Ants in the Mouth (Hormigas En La Boca)
Elsa & Fred
Nobody’s Perfect (Va A Ser Que Nadle Es Perfecto)
Volver
Welcome Home (Bienvenido A Casa)

(Swiss)
Vitus

(Cantonese/Mandarin)
All’s Well End’s Well
The Banquet
Fatal Contact
Love on delivery
Men Suddenly in Black 2
On the Edge
Rob-B-Hood
Wo Hu

(Japanese)
First Love
Kintaro, The White-Collar Worker
Nada Sou Sou: Tears for you
Rough
Udon

(Korean)
Holy daddy
The Host
Now and Forever
The Romantic President
Spring Breeze

(Hindi)
Chup Chup Ke
Corporate
Golmaal
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
Khosla Ka Ghosia
Krrish
Lage Raho Munna Bhai
Omkara

(Tamil)
Ismai Arasan 23am Pulikesi
Perarasu
Sillunu Oru Kaadhal

(Just for Kids)
Charlotte’s Web
Happy Feet
Flushed Away
Open Season
Barnyard
Mary Poppins
Aladdin
The Lion King
The Incredibles
The Robber Hozenplotz

On Demand TV
(Comedy)
Extra – Patrick Stewart
Family Guy – A Hero Sits Next Door
Fraiser – Murder Most Maris, visions of Daphne, taps at the Montana, and I.Q.
Friends – The One with The Apothecary Table, The One with Mac & C.H.E.E.S.E, The One Where Rachel is late, The One Where Ross Is Fine, The One Where Chandler Gets Caught, and The One with the Stain
Futurama – The Birdbot of Ice-Catraz and Roswell That Ends Well
The Game
Home Again – Protection and Horn of Plenty
How I Met Your Mother – Cupcake, Zip, Zip, Zip, and Mary the Paralegal
Hyperdrive – A Gift from the Glish
Joey – Joey and the Stuntman
Lead Balloon – Rubbish
Malcolm in the Middle – Emancipation
Man Stroke Women
Max and Paddy’s Road to Nowhere
My family – The Spokes Person
My Hero – Girlfriend
The New Adventures of Old Christine – Pilot, Open Water, I’ll Show You Mine, and Long Day’s Journey into Stan
The Office (USA) – Christmas party, Office Olympics, and The Secret
Open All Hours
Phoenix Nights
The Simpsons – Bart the General, Who Shot Mr. Burns: Part 1, Who Shots Mr. Burns: Part 2, Das Bus, Treehouse of Horror XII, and Pokey Mom
Two and a Half Men – We called it Mr. Pinky, Hi, Mr. Horned One, That Voodoo That I Do, Madame and Her Special Friend, Something Salty and Twisted, and Humiliation is A Visual Medium
We can Be Heroes: The Nominees
Will & Grace: Dames At Sea, Al: Artificial Insemination, Part 1, and Al: Artificial Insemination, Part 2

(Drama)
Boston Legal: Shock and Oww, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
The Closer: Flashpoint
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: Coming of Rage
CSI: Miami: Blood Moon, Stalkerazzi, Invasion, Slow Burn, Money for Nothing, Wannabe, Deadline, The Oath, Rap Sheet, MIA/NYC Nonstop, and Innocent
CSI: New York: A Man, A Mile
Desperate Housewives: Pilot, Ah, But Underneath, Pretty Little Picture, Who’s That Woman, and Come In, Stranger
House: Three Stories, Spin, and Failure to Communicate
Jericho: The First Seventeen Hours and Fallout
Medium: Jump Start
Miami Vice: Knock, Knock, Who’s There?
Robin Hood: Will You Tolerate This?
Smallville
Vincent
Without a Trace: Lost Time

(Sports)
The Goodwill trophy: Highlights
Know the Rules
Play Like Champions: The Official Manchester United Skills Series
Tennis Masters cup: Shanghai
U.I.M Class 1 World Powerboat 2006/07 UAE Dubai

(Family)
Blue’s Clues: What Does Blue Want to Do on a Rainy day
Dora the Explorer: Treasure Island
The Fairly OddParents: Fairy Idol
Go, Diego, Go: Diego and Baby Humpback To the Rescue
Rugrats: Fluffy vs. Spike/ Reptar’s Revenge
Sponge Bob SquarePants: Just One Bite/ The Bully

Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends: Camp Keep a Good Mac Down
What’s New, Scooby Doo? Go West, Young Scoob

(International)
A Quirky’s World: SAA/Thai Night Brazzar
Die Camper: Der Fuhrerschein
Jack Go Go Go
Kang Xi is Coming: Lin Chi Ling
Le Bureau
MTV Semi Gierbal: Semi Girebal: Rajesh Khana/ Amitabh Bachpan (Spoof)
Muzica (Arabic)
TV Champion: Display Artist King

(Documentary)
49 Up
Criss Angel Mindfreak: Hellstromism
Digging for the Truth: Vikings: The Voyage to America
Discovery Atlas: Australia Revealed, Brazil Revealed, Italy Revealed, and China Revealed
Galapagos: Force of Nature
Journeys from the Center of the Earth

(Learning)
Art of the Photography: Portraits: Photographers of the Human Face
Biography: Dian Fossey
Know the Rules
Nanny 911: The Amico Family and the King family
National Trust: Waddesdon Manor
Play Like Champions: The Official Manchester United Skills Series

(Business)
Anything to Please
The Apprentice
CNN Business Traveller
Counter Culture: Chicago and Japan
Extra Time
The Good, The Bad, and the Ugg Boot
In Good Company: Firebird
Managing Asia
Reporters
Selling Yourself: Resort Manager
World Business special edition
Yours Truly, Asia

Travel
Amazing Vacations Homes: Innovative Architectures
Globe Trekkers: Central China and South Korea
Great Castles of Europe: Chenonceau and Neuschwanstein
Great Hotels: St. Regis, Aspen
Lonely Planet Six Degrees: Auckland and San Francisco
No Reservations: Iceland
Passport to Europe: London Now, Paris Culture, Spain, Milan, Amsterdam, and Zurich
Seductive Seaside Resorts
Superhomes: Quest for Perfection
Sync of Swim: Bali

Health
Mind, Body & Soul Meditation
Travelwise

Technology
Gadgets and Gizmos: I and II
Innovations
Mean Machines: Trains
Modern Marvels: James Bond Gadgets
The Real James Bond Gadgets

Fashion
America’s Next Top Model: The Girls Are 1940’s Pin-Ups
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugg Boot
Project Runway
Revealed: Vivienne Westwood
Style Her Famous: Jennifer Lopez
Style Star: Eva Longoria

Music & Arts
Classical Destinations: Finlandia
Dancing for Mr. B: Six Balanchine Ballets
Los Zafiros: Music from the Edge of Time
Music Videos
Planet Rock Profiles: Richard Ashcroft
Smooth Jazz TV

Food
Hell’s Kitchen (USA): Day 8, 9, and 10
Oliver’s Twist: Boat Trip
The Urban Chef

Music (700 albums)
Radio (22 Channels)

The second part will be about my return from HKG to LAX via NRT on CX and JL F.

aw

Allow me to be the first one to congratulate you on another superb trip report. ^ ^ ^

Robt760

Thank for sharing your experience Adrian. It's nice to know you enjoyed your trip and I especially enjoyed the part about the new SQ 777. The IFE selections are rediculously varied with so many options. I don't think I'll get a chance to fly with SQ, since most of my flying is OW partners and on AS.

Nice of you to take the time to post the info. Do you have reviews for any of your accomdations?

sporadic

WHOA. What a selection. I agree, it's too short for a 3hr flight. Even then, on SQ16 to SFO or SQ29 to LAX, there won't be enough time to watch everything. My goodness.

PS: 77Ws are registered as 9V-SW*, not SM*

Seat 2A

These days the number of FTers who will bother to take the time to type up a simple menu transcript are becoming increasingly rare, so your attention to detail is as remarkable as it is appreciated. THANKS again for yet another fine trip report! I'm definitely looking forward to the return report, which looks to include your first (?) trip in First Class aboard JAL.

saracen

A very detailed report. I admire you for taking the time to transcribe the inflight entertainment - well done!

Carfield

Thanks for the kind comments!

About accommodation, not much to report back because I somehow manage to head back to HK. I stayed at the Novotel Eastgate at CLK Airport (the second airport hotel... and the marriott should be opening in the near future too). I like the Novotel better than Regal because it is actually cheaper at most time and a nicer hotel in general. Yes, you need to take a shuttle, but operated at every 15 minutes during the day, so pretty good. Even a cab over there is quick and not bad at all. The service is great and the room is nice. Also it is connected to the Citygate Shopping Mall/Outlets, so not bad for some additional dining options and some shopping opportunities. It is also connected to the Tung Chung Station, which is convenient for those who want to venture out to the city, Disneyland, and all parts of the city. Not bad for a quick layover.

I wish I have more to report, but I guess nobody really wants to know about airport accommodations... right

Thanks,
Carfield

das

Thanks for a fantastic report and the photos! I'm planning a BKK-SIN-HKG-NRT-ORD trip on SQ/CX/NH (including SQ 862) and am debating between flying in C and F....your report is really tempting me to splurge on F.

Thanks again for another great contribution to FlyerTalk.