A super short and roundabout trip to Tokyo via the Middle East and Europe in (mostly) F

[Flyfrequently]

As you're Canberra based, you'll have to provide a 'social' presentation at dinner with us other Ken Behrens

This Mexican had to Google Ken Behrens - love it @kookaburra75!

 

[PrezRegan]

And of course the pièce de résistance - a shower in the sky.

After a light breakfast I got changed into something a bit warmer for London (even though I'm not leaving the airport j suspect it might be a bit chilly inside)

The shower is similar to the one on EK with about 5 mins of hot water. Easy to use. The space is a bit small and no heated floor but hey, still a cool experience!

Before the cabin crew prepared the plan for landing they came by and gave me a fast track tag for immigration and some chocolates. The service on board was amazing, the last 9hrs have made the whole roundabout flight and limited sleep worth it!

Now to start the journey back via cdg and HND.

Update - it's minus 5 and I'm waiting for the bus to do the transfer to terminal 5, super glad I changed out of my usual travel attire of shorts and tshirt!

 

[Flyerwin]

What a time to be alive and be able to vicariously experience this force-de-tour!

Thanks for sharing and we know it’s real because of the repeated posts from the onboard WiFi glitching lol!

 

[jukebox333]

@PrezRegan - quick question: where/what did you use to create the travel map in your first post?

 

[PrezRegan]

@PrezRegan - quick question: where/what did you use to create the travel map in your first post?

Great circle mapper

 

[Dmac59]

Great Circle Mapper

Great Circle Mapper

www.gcmap.com

 

[jukebox333]

Great Circle Mapper

Great Circle Mapper

www.gcmap.com

Cheers for that.

 

[PrezRegan]

LHR-CDG
BA328
11:10-13:27
Dur 1h 25m
Seat 1A

Boarding was via bus which was... interesting. Flight was delayed due to something being broken. Onboard experience was classic club Europe with a middle seat blocked. Interestingly I didn't have a neighbour. Despite the short flight a choice of mozzarella or trout salad was offered, along with a drink and dessert. The food was quite tasty and the cabin staff were friendly.

On landing it was a bit of a challenge to find the right terminal 2E is divided into K,L,M as well and the one you have to go to depends on which gate your aircraft is at. I don't think it's possible to walk between them as the bus took about 8 mins to go from 2E (L) to where I needed to go (K).

Unfortunately JL has no f lounge here and eligible guests are directed to the air France business lounge (not the la premiere). Whilst it might be possible to go check out the BA lounge it's in a different terminal and I don't know if they have internal checks to go through like at LHR. The air France lounge is pretty average, a bit worn and tired looking. There's a limited cold selection in the buffet and the usual mix of drinks. I'm not planning on eating anything but I'm glad I didn't choose an earlier flight in to Paris as the galleries first lounge in LHR is definitely a better place to chill than this.

Pics are from the view as we departed the UK and the food onboard.

 

[PrezRegan]

2nd last flight
CDG-HND
JL46
17:24-14:26
Seat 1k

Another amazing flight with JL, just as good (if not better) than my flight with them last year. Service was friendly, attentive and just really warm. I was pretty tired and fell asleep immediately after my meal without having my bed made and the FA came along and put a blanket over me and tucked me in! How's that for service. On waking up I was asked if I wanted a drink and also offered the dessert I hadn't eaten with dinner.

The food was delicious, they have an interesting truffle and beef sukiyaki main specifically for the Paris to Tokyo route and that was very tasty. Highlight was also getting to try the limited edition centenary whiskey commissioned by JAL - you used to be able to buy this if flying first class year for about $1000 but unfortunately that's no longer available. It was just on display in the little snack area between the toilets and the cabin - help yourself!

We're just commencing our descent into Tokyo now. I'm looking forward to getting to my hotel and being able to sleep! I do have a dinner plan which I'll hopefully be able to achieve - if I can pull it off it'll be a very interesting experience.

Pics are of the food and also a stunning shot of the mountains over china just as dawn was breaking. The CSM came by to tell me about it as I was awake - stunning view!

 

[PrezRegan]

Oh also, I just got an alert from seats.aero that the HND-SYD flights in J I was hoping to grab with ANA for tomorrow just became available. Unfortunately because it's so last minute it'll probably be too much of a pain to change hotels and flights from syd-cbr so it looks like I'll just enjoy my extra day in Tokyo - it's a tough life

 

[drron]

Join the club. When we flew JL F DFW-NRT I also got tucked into bed. A fantastic flight.

 

[PrezRegan]

Deplaning was super quick as was immigration surprisingly. They didn't make everyone go over to a separate area to do biometrics, you could just do it when you went to the counter.

Rather than getting a train I paid about $13 to get the airport limo to Shibuya station which was the closest stop to my hotel, the IHG Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya. On check-in I was advised I'd been upgraded to a premium room with separate bath - no shub! (I will always shoutout to @Fifa who introduced me to this term). The room is quite large by Japanese standards and has a view - pics below. Status was acknowledged and option of drinks vouchers or points offered.

Importantly, the reception team were also able to help me make a reservation at an interesting restaurant I wanted to try out on a whim which didn't allow for solo bookings. Read on (immediately after) for more details on this unique culinary experience...

 

[PrezRegan]

So despite me saying I had nothing planned for Tokyo a few things did cross my mind. One of them was to try fugu - the meat of the blowfish/pufferfish, which if prepared incorrectly, can cause death. I don't think I'm going to die as it's been about an hour and besides jetlag I feel ok. This isn't the first time I've eaten strange foods - some of you may recall my review of puffin and fermented shark in Iceland - and when I was in Okinawa a few years back I did try their regional delicacy of chicken sashimi - yes it's a thing, look it up - which I found to be unique but not particularly tasty, wouldn't try that again. This was very different.

So the restaurant I went to is called Torafugutei, and it's a restaurant that specialises in preparing and serving fugu. You can't miss it - the restaurant has a giant pufferfish facade as well as a tank of fish.

Unfortunately because I was alone I couldn't order the set menu which features everything from pufferfish sashimi, to skin, to offal, hotpot and porridge. I just ended up having to order all the components individually instead.

So, in my opinion, fugu is possibly one of the most (if not *the*) most delicious fish I think I've ever eaten. In both raw and cooked form, its flavour is so sweet and delicate. In sashimi form it's served with ponzu dressing and it is very light and refreshing. The skin sashimi, which is served with the fatty layer underneath is also quite delicate and doesn't smell or taste "fishy". I also ordered the hotpot which came with vegetables and meat and you made it into a stock before turning it into a porridge. That was delicious. In addition I also ordered the furu-sake which is bits of fugu skin fried and then served in hot sake. That was interesting, and more novel than tasty in my opinion.

All up, it came to about $60 and was absolutely delicious. I'd go back there again in a heartbeat and for anyone sitting on the fence about trying it, I highly recommend.

Pictures are of the facade, skin sashimi appetizer, fugu meat sashimi, and the hotpot. The last picture is of the furu-sake, which is lit on fire when served.

 

[patrickw]

Loving the TR so far @PrezRegan - how are you going with jet-lag & time-zones?

Great review on Fugu, and definitely adding that restaurant to my want-to-go list for my next Japan trip.

Looking forward already to your next TR when you try Q-Suites and can compare it to QR F.

 

[PrezRegan]

I think I'm ok with the jetlag, ive just been sleeping whenever I'm tired but I've gone all the way to GMT+0 and back.

Very keen to try out q suites, I have a suspicion the door might make it better than f!