Hkg - bkk - cmb - sin - hkg - pek - ddg // fnj // she - pek - hkg - sin - hkg

[ermen]

Segment #4 (HKG - PEK: KA900 | 01 Aug 0800HRS)

Was bit of a rush to get to the down-town MTR station. Wanted to make use of the airport express in-town check-in service which closed 90 minutes before flight departure. Counter agent commented that I just made it - arrived one minute before the scheduled closure to drop off my bags. Very fortunate as KA had a different check-in counter to CX (which was fairly crowded!). Check-in assistant almost forgot to priority tag my bag though main check-in agent spotted this omission and rectified it quickly. (am i exhibiting DYKWIA behaviour? :!

Arrived at HKG airport and cleared immigration in good time. Saw the famous golden arches in the distance and was tempted- after all, what is better than a coffee with a sausage and egg mcmuffin in the morning? However, looks like half of HKG had the same idea as me, so I gave up on that idea upon seeing the line.



Plan B - the Pier F lounge which was conveniently beside my departure gate! Pier F is located underground so does not have the "open" feeling that the Wing F has. Nonetheless, still had a decent lounge with a good selection of food. Note that whilst there is a seperate dining area called "the Haven", the food service was buffet style, rather than a la carte style. Settled in for an Asian fusion breakfast of HK noodles + scrambled eggs and ham.

On the theme of Michelin starred lounges, the Pier in my book is probably only rated two stars - worth a detour to get here but not up to the SYD QF F lounge which is definitely worth a special journey (case in point F lounge runs! ).









Forgotten that I had not managed to get my RMB in HKG! Needed for spending and to pay my North Korea tour fees! Silly me. Left the Pier hurriedly in search of an ATM compatible with my bank. Did not manage to find one. :-| Looks like will need to get my RMB in PEK.

 

[ermen]

Segment #4 (HKG - PEK: KA900 | 01 Aug 0800HRS) continued

I was probably the last J pax to board though Y pax were still being processed. Never flown KA J before so was most interested to check it out. Not surprisingly, as this was the first flight out to PEK for the day, loads were pretty full, with the J cabin totally sold out (was hoping for an op-up to F but did not happen ). Seats were the standard regional recliner and I ended up sitting beside a CX MPC GO whom I thought was really annoying. Pretended to acknowledge the cabin crew's requests to turn his phone off but proceeded to use it till right before takeoff. :!: Moreover, this pax had a cold and was sniffing throughout the flight (can't you go and blow your nose??)





On the menu that morning was a starter of fruit platter followed by mains of omelette, ramen or dimsum. Needless to say, the cabin crew did the CX thing again and came around with the food trolley for passengers to select their mains. I chose the ramen but did not really touch it as already had breakfast in the Pier. Kudos to the crew however, who thought I did not like the ramen and asked me whether I wanted to have another main course. Service was good despite the full J cabin, with the staff being quite attentive. Downside was lack of individual IFE.

 

[ermen]

PEK

Arrived into PEK on a rainy morning. Fortunate that there were no ATC delays! Otherwise could have risked an unprotected transfer as my CA PEK - DDG flight was scheduled to depart 2:05 hours after landing. PEK - DDG was the only flight of the day - failing which would be an 8 hour train + bus ride. Anyway, at least my scheduled transfer was within the MCT for PEK T3!

Cleared immigration in a reasonable time and had to take a shuttle train to the main terminal for baggage collection. Must be a stressful experience for a lot of people as I noticed a sign asking people to "relax" I wonder why. :?:





Collected baggage and proceeded upstairs to the CA domestic check-in desk. Faced with a long queue in Y - something that I have not been in for a long time! I had recently signed up for the, so was technically *G but credited this flight to CX as thought the points would be more useful for me! Line moved really quickly however - agents were probably very used to moving many passengers. . Found out I was allocated a window seat on an A320 - I thought I chose aisle in the seat selection - however did not push it as i) was only a 1.5 hour flight and ii) i didn't know how to request for an aisle seat in Mandarin.

Overall, very impressed with the efficienty of PEK T3 as was expecting worse based on comments on flyertalk. Many were thinking that a 2 hour transfer in PEK was pushing it even though was within the airport's MCT.



Cleared domestic security again - not like Australia at all where you can freely enter and exit. Security was as tight as an international flight - with the only difference being travel documents needed for the local Chinese. Passed by what looked like a free wi-fi terminal though did not know how to operate it. Also passed by a "Jackie Chan cafe" which I thought was amusing - at least this won't be happening here.

 

[ermen]

Segment #5 (PEK - DDG: CA1631 | 01 Aug 1315HRS) continued

Short 1.5 hour flight over to DDG - camera ran out of battery so couldn't snap anything on the plane! Was most surprised that the flight was full! I mean one would have thought that nobody had much business to be in DDG? :shock: Seat belt sign was also kept on fo a very long time - flight was in perpetual turbulence - little wonder was all i could see out of my window was thick cloud all the way from PEK to DDG!

Finally landed onto a small military airport -for some reason, reminded me a little of JTR with the military buildings in the background :-| Stopped in the middle of the tarmac and had to walk the 50 metres or so to the "arrivals hall".



The "arrivals hall" consisted of a single luggage carousel and its setup looked pretty amusing with the flower pots in the middle! Wanted to go to the loo - but for some reason didn't look the most inviting so passed on it. Dawned on me that I was in China! :shock: Saw a man relieving himself beside a tree - somehow joining him there seemed more hygenic . In the end, decided that I could wait till I got to my hotel.





The "arrivals' hall" led immediately to an outdoor waiting area. Never in my wildest imaginations was I expecting DDG to be like this :shock: - probably the most run-down airport that I had been in (though on hindsight, I acknowledge that my expectation set was totally warped). Was meant to wait for my friend who was flying CZ SZX-PVG-DDG and whose flight was due only 15 mins or so later - in my mind, I thought that I would be waiting for him in a proper "terminal" - and not in an outdoor area :!:



Turned my phone on and received the following text - "flight has been severely delayed in Shanghai, not sure what time will arrive into DDG". What was that meant to mean? What time will he be in? :?: Looked around for any TV screen showing arrivals information - none at all. :!: Start to panic. Should I wait in the heat or go straight to my hotel? Fortunately, I make out from people around me that the PVG -DDG flight was only delayed by about and hour or so. Not a big deal and not "severely delayed" - obviously he has never flown JQ in Australia

Spotted what seemed like a bigger terminal area so made my way there to check it out.

 

[ermen]

DDG

Found a little cafe on the second level of DDG airport whose carpet had probably run past its use by date. Could benefit from a trip to Bunnings I say. Still, it was quite a pleasant place to wait an hour. Goods views of the rather small terminal too!







Note the VIP departures lounge on the right hand side below. Found that amusing too Pretty sure that it makes the Hobart QP look like the F lounge



Travel mate finally arrived and we caught a taxi into the city. Did not expect them to be so old too. :shock:

 

[ermen]

DDG continued

Checked into our hotel. For those who are interested, it was the Kunlun Business Hotel which we booked for less than A$40 per night (great value I thought)

Went to our tour agency (DDCTS) which was located at the local police station :?: Realised they were affiliated with the local police :shock: Very trusting lot however as we didn't have to pay a deposit to secure our place on the tour. Also found out later that some fellow tourists did not have the money to pay on the day itself due to ATM card limits - but they said no worries - could pay after they got back from North Korea! I guess that's the benefit of being affiliated with the local police :mrgreen:

Decided to grab dinner. Travel mate found out from a local shopowner that a particular store served pretty good local cuisine (Korean). Tried the local beer (Yalu River Beer) which I thought was pretty good! Food ordering was a little trickier as was confronted with a fridge full of food. Didn't really know how to order though recalled the ancient maxim - when in doubt - just point!

Ended up ordering some BBQ beef, picked vegatables, pancake and a bowl of cold noodles. Food was not too bad and came in at RMB120 (A$18) for two. Must be some inflation going in China! :shock:







Later that evening, we took a stroll down to the Yalu River which forms the border between China and North Korea. Standing on the Chinese side, one notices the distinct lack of lighting when looking into North Korea.



Look at the half-lit bridge below- the North Korean section is non-existant as it had been bombed by the Americans during the Korean war. The bridge that you can kinda decipher in the background is called the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge which connects China to North Korea today.



Also joined a local river cruise which I thought was OK thought a little expensive though (60 RMB). Nonetheless, getting all revved up for my trip into North Korea which would begin in less than 12 hours!

 

[etops1]

This is very cool, loved reading it so far!

I was in Dandong earlier this year after coming back from North Korea, it is such a contrast. For one thing it has plentiful electricity, the streets are lit up like Times Square! You may have noticed a faint glow on the NK side of the river at night. That's the statue of Kim Il Sung in Sinuiju which is the only thing illuminated, I guess they have different priorities.
If you ever get back there I can highly recommend going to the "True Love Club" formerly "Real Love Club" where they have a nightly cabaret of singing/acting/ballet dancing dwarfs, androgynous pop stars, magic acts, comedy acts and there's no cover charge!

Agree with your observations on DDG and thanks for the pics, I would've taken some but I was recovering from a horrible bout of gastro. The taxi out there was probably the most hair raising I've been on, surpassing the one in Sicily and the driver who was actually smoking reefer in Chicago. He dropped me off not at the terminal but at some abandoned building near the terminal which may have been a hotel in a previous life. I had to haul my stuff through a construction site to get to the terminal, which looked like a bomb site anyway.

Look forward to the North Korean section. One day I'll get around to writing a trip report but I'm too scared Kim Jong Un will track me down!

"Cherish a good life, abide by the border regulations"

 

[TheEmu]

This is great, good fun read so far, ermen. Thanks for posting.
My 17 y.o. wants me to take her to Harbin in Feb
Looking forward to reading more soon.
Cheers
TheEmu

 

[ermen]

Thanks all for reading.
To be continued here
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....oples-republic-of-korea-42426.html#post666235

 

[Major]

I am really enjoying the read....thanks