Heading towards the light

[JessicaTam]

Thanks all for the sentiments. Mother nature was the only variable I had. I chose the time of year, including the new moon to have the best chance. But not to be.

 

[JessicaTam]

AB3547 KEF-TXL A321 Y

We were delayed about half an hour out of KEF, and subsequently landed a bit late in TXL. We made up a fair bit of time as we had a decent tail wind.

At one point the tail wind was 242km/h which gave us a ground speed of 1079km/h. I don’t think I have ever travelled that quickly! :shock:

The plane was pretty full, but I had a blocked seat next to me from a few days out. Looks like the AB platinum shadow works with OWE. I was the only pax to have priority boarding so had no mob to follow. I queued in what appeared the priority boarding lane, although it wasn’t partitioned like the regular queue - just a sign at the start of the boarding area. A chime went off and the pax scanned their own BPs at a gate which opened for each successful scan. No human intervention. My line (of one) had no scanner so I asked the one person overseeing the boarding process about priority boarding who scanned my BP manually and waved me through. Much to the chagrin of the other 200 pax no doubt. So I guess I was the only OWE on the flight.

Catering was a bit of a let-down. By the time they got to me (less than half way down) there was no hot food left, just snacks, so I declined to eat. I did have a soft drink, as prices weren’t too bad.

As we travelled south the sky darkened and I looked wistfully over my shoulder. But alas all I could see was a dark night sky.
View attachment 85439

 

[JessicaTam]

Berlin - take 2


Well today was certainly an interesting day. I had left the hotel in Reykjavik in the dark and arrived in Berlin in the dark - with only a three hour flight in the middle. The joys of European winters.


I caught the 109 bus from TXL, which took me to within a few hundred metres of the Berlin Hampton Hotel.


http://www.australianfrequentflyer....o-hilton-treat-you-18502-164.html#post1553244


It was a comfortable hotel, however no fridge or safe in the rooms. It was a few hundred metres (in opposite directions) from both the UhlandStr U-Bahn, and Zoologische Garten S-Bahn.


The Julias Tower at the Spandau Citadel:


I visited the Berliner Dom:


And made it to the upper level where I got a shot of the skyline:


On the way back to the hotel:

 

[JessicaTam]

KaDeWa

No trip to Berlin is complete without a visit to KaDeWa (Kaufhaus Des Westens). A department store with a very large range of merchandise and prices to match. I took a walk through the food hall and there certainly was plenty for everyone.

Just a couple of photos (with apologies to Anna):

 

[RooFlyer]

Pics in Berlin take 2 ( only) not loading for me.

But I have just put on half a kilo looking at the cakes pics

 

[JessicaTam]

Train Berlin to Dresden

Germany has a lot of solar panels on house roofs, as well as larger installations. There are also a large number of wind farms. They are slowly reducing their reliance on nuclear power. Of their 17 plants, 9 have been decommissioned, with the remaining 8 due to be out of action progressively by 2022. At least that is what I gather from a german newspaper article I attempted to read.

My train was due to leave the HauptBhf at 0903, but checking my emails that morning I found one from D-Bahn telling me there had been a schedule change. Oh dear - it was already 8am when I checked. I was offered to change my trip if it no longer suited. The new time was 0904. My faith in German efficiency has been restored.



We arrived spot on time in Dresden and I jumped on the number 8 tram to my hotel, the Dresden Hilton: http://www.australianfrequentflyer....o-hilton-treat-you-18502-164.html#post1554876

 

[JessicaTam]

Dresden

It seems someone had tipped off the paparazzi that I was in town. There was always a crowd outside my window taking photos. Good thing they didn’t know exactly which room I was in - because their aim was a little off.



I spent a delightful afternoon wandering the streets and in and out of buildings. I thought Dresden would be a nice city to tick off during my trip from Berlin to Frankfurt. That was a mistake. It is now firmly on my ‘must return to’ list, instead of ticking it off my ‘been there done that’ list.

The opera house:


I visited the Weinachtsmarkt, tried a couple of the local treats, and watched as a few snowflakes drifted down.

So many cities/countries/places, so little time/money/annual leave!

 

[JessicaTam]

Train Dresden to Frankfurt

The view from my window the next morning:


I caught the tram back to the station and spent 20 minutes in the DB Lounge. These lounges are available to paid members as well as those travelling ‘long haul’ in first class. Considering I book my trains a few months out the price difference between first and second class is only about €10. In Berlin and other major stations there is a separate first lounge which is separate and has a larger range of food and drinks that are served to your seat.

I had got another change of details email this morning. This time to tell me that the train was not going to depart from platform 3 but from number 17. Did I mention German efficiency?

Did you ever struggle with a suitcase up the stairs to the train platform? Not anymore:

 

[RooFlyer]

I assume you can sit on top of your case and enjoy the ride up too?

 

[ellen10]

Train Dresden to Frankfurt

The view from my window the next morning:
View attachment 85451

I caught the tram back to the station and spent 20 minutes in the DB Lounge. These lounges are available to paid members as well as those travelling ‘long haul’ in first class. Considering I book my trains a few months out the price difference between first and second class is only about €10. In Berlin and other major stations there is a separate first lounge which is separate and has a larger range of food and drinks that are served to your seat.

I had got another change of details email this morning. This time to tell me that the train was not going to depart from platform 3 but from number 17. Did I mention German efficiency?

Did you ever struggle with a suitcase up the stairs to the train platform? Not anymore:
View attachment 85452

I like the stairs and luggage idea. On our last trip driving the German countryside we too noticed so many wind farms, fields and fields of solar panels. We love the efficiency of the German trains too.
Loving all the photos...thanks for sharing.

 

[Danger UXB]

Feeling for you Jess. I was in Finnish Lapland last year well inside the attic circle. The weather gods smiled upon us.... but alas the solar activity god did not so no lights. We went to find the big guy in the red suit and he was truely brilliant. Enjoying the TR

 

[JessicaTam]

Pics in Berlin take 2 ( only) not loading for me.

But I have just put on half a kilo looking at the cakes pics

Hopefully that is now fixed.

 

[jastel]

I wasnt impressed with KEF.

Get off the flybus in the snow...no cover.
Check in for BA took ages. My Silver (Ruby) status was rejected as BA Blue...ie nothing...so no easy check in or boarding.
The seats in your pic are wood and not at all comfy...the comfy ones are in the food court I know.
Food court and shopping bit was normal enough.
But the design of the terminal was weird...that second passport check took ages (30 mins+), everyone panicking as the signs say 20min to gate A or whatever and they have been standing in line for 30mis, then downstairs and fight thru the DFS I thought I was exiting again?? Finally spot the sign for Gates.
Then down the next aisle where the boarding lines go 90 degrees across the walkway every 50m.
Thru those self scanning gates which work for about every 3rd person...wait again at door.
Then get on the bus to be bussed 50m to the plane and freeze your bits off in the snow while waiting to climb the stairs.
Then a 15 min taxi to the runway.

I know they are doing renovations but improvement is needed.

Hope you had a better run.

I agree about Dresden, very nice city with lots to see and do, especially if you are into WW2 stuff.

 

[kpc]

I decided last night that we might try to go to Tromso in Northern Norway in late Nov 2017 to see if we can view the Northern lights....fitting it in nicely between a conference in London and Muscat

 

[pagingjoan]

I wasnt impressed with KEF.

Get off the flybus in the snow...no cover.
Check in for BA took ages. My Silver (Ruby) status was rejected as BA Blue...ie nothing...so no easy check in or boarding.
The seats in your pic are wood and not at all comfy...the comfy ones are in the food court I know.
Food court and shopping bit was normal enough.
But the design of the terminal was weird...that second passport check took ages (30 mins+), everyone panicking as the signs say 20min to gate A or whatever and they have been standing in line for 30mis, then downstairs and fight thru the DFS I thought I was exiting again?? Finally spot the sign for Gates.
Then down the next aisle where the boarding lines go 90 degrees across the walkway every 50m.
Thru those self scanning gates which work for about every 3rd person...wait again at door.
Then get on the bus to be bussed 50m to the plane and freeze your bits off in the snow while waiting to climb the stairs.
Then a 15 min taxi to the runway.

I know they are doing renovations but improvement is needed.

Hope you had a better run.

Amazing how experiences differ, is it not?

I'm not devaluing your experience for a moment, jastel - but reporting that our KEF visit yesterday was the antithesis of yours.

Check in opened as we arrived (flying SAS), and there was one person ahead of us in the queue. We were checked in for two consecutive flights with the speed of summer lightning and were given unsolicited directions to the Lounge.

Waved through the entrance to Security when Australian passports were spotted - not checked at all. Nobody ahead of us in our lane going through Security, although ALL of our gear was explosive tested. Even that was done quickly and pleasantly.

The Lounge was a bit of a trek but was unexpectedly good - and all but empty. A generous array of cold foods and beverages, showers available, fast wifi, so all fine.

Our boarding gate was close and priority boarding worked smoothly. We were astonished at how empty the whole airport was, especially given the numbers of pax they handle each year. Not on dark, wet Wednesdays in December, apparently.

I do agree that the lack of cover for the FlyBus is a bit strange but we were able to board instantly, when we arrived, so it wasn't an issue on that occasion.

Luck of the draw with timing, as usual.

 

[Bundy Bear]

Thanks for the trip report so far, the title of the thread had thrown me a bit until I saw a reference to the Northern Lights and decided to do a bit of reading.

The Northern Lights is on my bucket list but I also know how expensive it is, and how much cold you might have to put up with to enjoy it.

 

[OZDUCK]

Dresden

I spent a delightful afternoon wandering the streets and in and out of buildings. I thought Dresden would be a nice city to tick off during my trip from Berlin to Frankfurt. That was a mistake. It is now firmly on my ‘must return to’ list, instead of ticking it off my ‘been there done that’ list

.

Same thing happened to us - so we did go back and thoroughly enjoyed it and the surrounding areas. If you get a chance next time try to visit the "Saxon Switzerland" area or Moritzburg Castle - all fairly close to Dresden. Another fun trip is on the paddlewheelers on the Elbe River.

 

[NZflygirl]

How many days did you spend in Iceland?

 

[JessicaTam]

How many days did you spend in Iceland?

Who? Me?

Two nights.

 

[JessicaTam]

The journey home

CX288 FRA-HKG B777-300ER J/CX163 HKG-MEL A330-300 J

The train trip from Dresden to Frankfurt gave me plenty of time to alternate between finishing the trip report and staring out the window. It's a tough life, but someone has to do it.

We checked into the HH Frankfurt airport for our last night in Europe: http://www.australianfrequentflyer....o-hilton-treat-you-18502-166.html#post1558167

Morning came and it was time to head to the terminal. A short walk and a shuttle train to the Terminal 2 and we were checked in and through security. German security is pretty thorough so it took a little while. We did have fast track access which helped.

The CX lounge in FRA is nothing to write home about (so I won't ). Let's just say that we should have lingered over breakfast.

We boarded on time and I got a beep at the gate! Except it was to move me from row 11 to 24 due to a failed IFE unit.

We were 50 minutes late pushing back, however landed in HKG only 30 minutes behind schedule.

We spent a couple of hours in the Pier F having breakfast and champagne. I think this is my favourite HKG lounge.

Then it was time to say goodbye to Sharon as she headed on to xSIN-PER and I made my way to MEL.

We taxied to gate 6 and with a trip down the 'something to declare' lane was in the taxi 17 minutes from doors open.

A couple of nights in Melbourne and then I headed west, back home and ready for work.