Maiden DONE4

[docjames]

Great TR, thanks for posting.

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Thanks all. For those interested, this trip earned 56495 plus 3 X 8000 loyalty bonuses minus 45000 for MEL-LAX up to First. Out of interest, mileage monkey miles were just a little out (ended up earning about 3000 more than I'd predicted).

Net earn 35495, 1450 SC.

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Arrived MAD about an hour late. Unfortunately due to late arrival, the 4pm return to LHR was closed, and no J seats available on earlier flights. Was offered economy seat, but not being as savvy as some on this forum, I wasn't sure if I'd be credited with J or Y SCs....

Instead I found my way to the Iberia lounge in terminal 4S, and had a shower, caught up with you, dear readers, and sat down to wait for the (delayed by at least an hour) 1840 back to LHR.

Sorry to resurrect this old thread, but could someone clarify for me:

When booked in J, if I had voluntarily taken a lower class seat on an earlier flight, would the SCs be for original fare paid, or seat flown?

thanks. (and next episodes will be in September)

 

[Katie]

When booked in J, if I had voluntarily taken a lower class seat on an earlier flight, would the SCs be for original fare paid, or seat flown?

I believe if they have credited as Y, you can ask for an original routing credit? Haven't done this before, but have seen it mentioned here.

 

[Jamesl]

I know with VA you are credited to what your fare was purchased for.

 

[Stoopidsteve]

So...the saga continues..
This section:
BNE-HKG-LHR (CX)
Then continue the DONE4:
LHR-FRA (conference in Germany) (BA)
FRA-LHR (BA)
LHR-SIN (QF)
SIN-HKG-BNE (CX)

and for those who wondered, the beanie decided to return from its sojourn in the USA, where it had a very nice time thank you very much. Last part of the trip started at silly o'clock. So does this part, but at the other end of the day...

waiting in "First" lounge in BNE for CX156 to HKG. No fluoro in here. But not much else either. Oh wait, yes there was some wally in fluoro...



CX156 leaves at 0050. Shame the lounge fare is so poor (whose silly idea was it to start this leg in BNE instead of popping down to SYD or MEL?). Wonder if I 'd be allowed to sneak into Emirates lounge....oh, not til April. And probably not on a CX boarding pass.

Mentioned to Lounge Angel that it was my first time turning left, and she says "not quite as nice as Sydney" in this year's entry to greatest understatement. Still, it's somewhere quiet to sit and work...er do this TR.

more to follow..

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Actually, CX156 finally took off from Brisbane at 000000mygodit'slate 0300.

Captain Lawrie Shaw and Australian Flight deck crew, with "Amy" and her HKG based cabin crew did the honours.

A330, coffin class. seat 16k.

A late late late dinner of lamb cutlets went down OK, but choc ganache tart pastry was bit thick.



Some snooze, but not a huge amount. Felt a bit warm, even after I'd changed into my QF 1st PJs (did someone say DYKWIA?)

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Arrived into HKG at 0915, vs scheduled landing time of 0745. No time to spend in any of the lounges in the quick dash to Gate 61. Here's me proving I was in HKG airport...


Boarded CX257 at 0935....would the luggage make it?

So cabin crew asked ground crew to check, and it was reassuring to be told it was loaded.

 

[Stoopidsteve]

So, seat 91K on upper deck of 747. It's last seat on the right at the back. the seat guide makes it look like it's right next to the toilet and agley, but there's a big wardrobe/ cupboard between the seat and the loo, so it's really the most private seat, even if there is more foot traffic than at front of the cabin. All the footrests are looking a little tatty on this and previous coffin class, and would have been nice to try new business class.
View attachment 9347


Another Aussie captain (Lawrie G.....) pushed back at approx 1020 (vs scheduled 1005, they'd waited for transferring PAX from BNE).

Japanese ISM, Noriko, greets me and I think other OWE, consulting manifest. Nice, but when sitting in D, what can be asked for, other than the silly request to move downstairs and further forward to A?

Nevertheless, settled into a second brunch (breakfast had been served on CX156), incl great dim sum, then a few hours later, a dinner. As in my previous limited experience, service unobtrusive and very efficient without being obsequious. OWE (I think) given first choice of main dishes.

Smoked salmon/ prawn started looked and tasted fantastic, followed by their signature slow cooked pork. The raspberry coulis-topped cheesecake was good too.



Temperature was much cooler, and conducive to a couple of hours sleep...I don't sleep well on planes, even on flat beds.

 

[Stoopidsteve]

A beautiful day to arrive UK, clear, sunny, warm. Flying in from East, we circled central London a few times, and at serious risk of neck dislocation with this seat config, this afforded great views of the Eye and Olympic Park.

We landed a little behind schedule at 1613 (vs 1600, but had to sit waiting for another aircraft to depart our bay. At gate 18, Terminal 3 at 1632. Usual longish walk to Immigration. Had been offered Fast Track card, but had also read it to see it was only for non-EU passport, so apparently tere is not Fast Track for EU. Long queue, but very quickly through (about 10 mins).

Despite assurances, was beginning to wonder if luggage had made it as my First Priority label put on in BNE obviously hadn't worked in this case...I waited patiently, putting it down to the very quick interchange in HKG, and really it was only another 10 mins before it appeared.

A quick pick up from shuttle bus, and more waiting at avery busy Alamo car hire, and finally I was heading to Oxford via M25. Lovely sunny day marred by ineffective windscreen washers.

Arrived after average motorway speed of about 80-85 mph (130kph-ish), and that was really just keeping with traffic speed.

Arrived in college, very quick shower/shave and dressed in penguin suit for college's 50th Anniversary Dinner. Haven't worn Black Tie in anger for over a decade, but fortunately it still fits..

 

[Stoopidsteve]

It was nice to catch up with a few old friends from a couple of decades ago. I may get around to more pics of the ancient architecture of the place if anyone's interested?

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Here's where dinner was last night...ancient architecture of Oxford....from the 1960s




by Danish Architect Arne Jacobsen (hat courtesy of stoopid)

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Spent the morning in the Ashmolean museum, oldest public museum in the world.
Battery died on camera, so no pics, but it allowed me to have similar reflecting time as my Washington trip:
for those who don't know, Ashmolean houses an eclectic mix of things,
From ancient Egypt:
mummified remains, and pondering the mortality and afterlife. These great and rich people, who could afford the lavish funerary and mummification rights, their achievements recorded in stone stelae. But after so long their achievements count for.... ?
Greek and Cypriot cultures, the myths and legends so familiar to us.
Stone and Bronze Age Britain, again the warrior/chieftan burials, so important at the time, important and powerful people, reduced now to staitc museum artefacts, and we don't even know their names..

Small rooms with snapshots of Muslim history, Indian, Chinese, Japanese culture....

The sadness of Stradivarii instruments locked up in cabinets, never played, their raison'd'etre snuffed out...

The beautiful cabinets and Chairs with "Do not touch" "Do not sit on this"....

The surprise in rooms of art, the great Dutch masters, the romantic greats, Lutyens, Rembrandt, Picasso, Turner, Lear...all great artistic infleunces, but interstingly the images casuing most people to stop and engaeg are two large monocctome images by Jenny Saville... Exhibitions: Current- Ashmolean Museum

Then lunch with a friend at the Trout. A Glorious September afternoon, good food by the river.
The Trout | Home

Another evening of meeting up with old college contemporaries, too boring for those not involved, save for the memorable line from a Barclays Bank Risk Manager who, when it was suggested his profession wasn't viewed with much favour in UK right now, said if asked he tells people he's a back street abortionist as that gets less adverse reaction than "I'm a banker"....

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Awoke at 0700 to another stunning morning, a little chill in the air, but clear blue skies..three days of sunshine in September in England?

Easy drive to HEathrow, drop car off, wander up to Galleries First in T5. No, didn't need WP card out, boarding card sufficed.

Strange horses with lamps on their heads at the entrance...



Many people, but still seats available...wonder what it's like when it's busy?

Several distinct areas, from the wine bar in the middle, the comfortable leather couches. A kipper for breakfast, then head off for Frankfurt flight...

 

[Stoopidsteve]

BA 904, A320, Business, Seat 1C, scheduled 1050, push back 1059, took off 1130.

Captain Jerry Harvey said hello then asked us all for three things:
1) Please Don't smoke
2) Please keep your seat belt fastened
3) Please watch the safety briefing

Purser Craig Kirkwood

Flight was pretty full, took off to the west, so had to do an about turn to head SE.

Despite having eaten in lounge, still found room to squeeze in the smoked salmon and cream cheese (I did turn down the bagel) before relaxing with a paper.

 

[Stoopidsteve]

We landed at Frankfurt at 1330 (vs scheduled 1335) but as the captain said, were then given the longest taxi known to man. Doors opened at 1350, and we walked down the steps to the waiting bus.

Luggage seemed to take forever, looked like one hand cart was unloaded by one man then wheeled back to the plane for another load. Some pax were getting a little fractious, presumably with connecting flights. GErman reputations for efficiency a little tarnished.

Once I'd retrieved luggage (I KNEW there was a reason I did previous bit of DONE4 as HLO), went to the connecting bus stop to take me to the train station.

German efficiency again displayed as a HUGE queue of people blocked the airport exit waiting for the transit bus...whether there was a breakdown I am not sure, but after more stressed pax and a queue got even longer, bus finally pulls out from kerb where it had been waiting 50m up the road and stops in front of the scrum... maybe the rules said it couldn't leave except at scheduled times....?

A hot 5 min ride the the train station, purchase ticket from machine, and board the train to Wurzburg.

I hadn't realised seats were reserved..maybe I should have wondered why people were walking past empty seats...I found a table of 4 and sat. TO have a family of 3 arrive and I think tell me I was in their seat. After some schoolboy German trying to find out where on my ticket I should look for seat reservations, they settled down when they realised I was on my own, so their 3 bums and mine made 4...room for all. Father of family tried to persuade teenage daughter to talk to me in English, but she said I understood enough German.

The 90 min trip on the train was quite uncomfortable...couldn't stretch legs out due to facing passenger, and it was a bit warm. But the train was quiet and on time. Cost for that trip was EU25.

Quick walk to the cheap hotel, shower and wandered down to the Conference centre. Early evening and still warm (>27C)

 

[Paddy55]

Great to see you traveling again!
Looking forward to next installment

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Wurzburg;I haven't seen much of it, and after a quick jog around for 30 mins or so, spent a long day in the conference centre.

Some 17th-18th Century buildings, obviously very clean and feels very safe, notwithstanding a big gang of teens drinking and smoking herbal substances in one of the old squares. They have trams



I had to present some stuff today:



Didn't finish til after 8.30pm. Back to hotel for quick change then out for dinner. Many picturesque squares with open air dining. Very relaxed, and much cooler after another hot day.

Starving after fairly poor food options at the conference. Simple salad and fries nicely prepared, and off to bed, to do it all tomorrow...

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Today was much cooler.
Conference was less intense, and managed to wander back to hotel around 5-ish for an hour or so. During which time we had a bit of a downpour...reminded me of home in QLD.
Then had to go out again for evening conference session, this time in a room in Weingut Juliuspital. Supposed to be a discussion session, but acoustics were terrible.


Still, a pretty room...

 

[Stoopidsteve]

Juliuspital is "a modern service-company which is managing a great hospital and a home for elder people, a nursery-school, farms, forests"
Part of that is funded by a big winery...interesting funding model for private health care.

Imagine Mater Hospitals funded by Penfolds...