Pre-trip Report: notzac needs a break, November 2009
- Thread starter notzac
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Cyclogenesis
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Fun read 
Agree on the DFW A/C very nicely located and you must have had the same barman as me
Agree on the DFW A/C very nicely located and you must have had the same barman as me
Enjoying the trip report so far!
Ditto.
I'm looking forward to the 'Gin & Slide' night when you return
I have definitely done so, and got a nicely worded e-mail from one of the CS supervisors thanking me for writing in and that the compliments will be sent on to the managers of the FAs.
Glad everyone is enjoying the TR thus far!
I did a lot of research before visiting Cuba, knowing that it would be a v different experience than that which I'm used to when travelling. It's almost impossible to summarise, but I'll give it a go:
I had a minor accommodation crisis after the first day - I was supposed to meet a local tour guide who was going to show me around and find me a 'Casa Particular' (basically a bed and breakfast), but they never showed up. Fortunately I had the cash to extend my stay at my hotel! I was worried that the accommodation issues were an omen of further bad tidings, but it was the only thing that went wrong during my stay.
Given I didn't have my pre-arranged tour guide, I figured I could show myself around the city - but one of the "registered tour guides" (whatever that means) stopped me in the street and convinced me to part with a little cash so he could show me around. A capital idea! We walked all around the old part of the city while he explained the significance and history of some of the buildings, so I'd count it as money very well spent.
My daily routine ended up being waking up, going downstairs to endure brekkie at the hotel, walk around, see some museums or interesting buildings, back to the hotel to escape the heat for an hour or so, have a late lunch somewhere, see some more sights and then have a late dinner and find a bar to drink in. The piano bar at Hotel Florida where I was staying (never mind the non-existant piano) was good fun - drinking and watching a mix of locals and tourists dancing to the salsa until the wee hours of the morning!
Soon enough, it was time to leave - and truth be told, I was looking forward to getting back to civilisation. As embarrassing as it is to admit it, I had "technology withdrawal symptoms" for the first day - it's amazing how reliant we become on having a decent Internet connection! I'd booked a taxi for a v early flight back to CUN, which showed up exactly on time and dropped me to the international terminal at HAV at 05:30...
Flight 7: MX 7323 HAV/CUN
Track Flight Status for (MX) Mexicana 7323
On-time departure: Late (never mind what flightstats.com shows)
Craft: F100
Crew: Fine
Seat: 18D
Checking in was a miserable experience. After being dropped off at the airport (CUC 25 fare again), I went looking for the Mexicana check-in and found a long line almost the depth of the concourse with no premium check-in whatsoever. cough. After waiting an eternity, I finally made it to the front of the queue and had my bag checked through to AMS and myself checked through to MEX. After paying the departure tax and having a shiny sticker attached to my boarding card, I still had some CUC left over - after a couple quick gift purchases, I exchanged the rest to EUR and went through immigration.
Outbound immigration is much the same as it is in Australia - go through customs (if you want a stamp you need to ask for one), go through security and in to the gate area. There is a shared VIP lounge which I may have been entitled to use, but I was content enough to try spending the few remaining coins I had and wander around the (v small) terminal. They have flags from all over the world hanging up in the gate area; I was a little disappointed to see no Australian flag.
By then, the sun had burnt off most of the remaining fog and I was able to see some of the planes waiting on stand. Older Russian planes for the most part, but one newer Tupolev TU-204, which was kinda cool. My chariot - a Fokker F100 in the new livery - was waiting and ready to board. I had perhaps more hand luggage than I should have had, and had watched one of the Cubana flights being boarded and hand luggage restrictions being enforced so I was a little worried I was going to get something gate checked on me. No need for concern - soon enough we were on the plane and almost ready to go.
If it wasn't for two pax sitting behind me trying to find somewhere to put their camera gear, we might have actually had an on-time departure. They rummaged around in the overhead bins, failed to find any space, argued with the staff who wanted to gate check it, looked in more overhead bins, then arguing with the staff some more ... finally they found enough space to squeeze their gear in, just as airport police boarded to deal with the "unruly pax".
Aside from that, the flight was unexciting - quick drink service, fill out arrivals forms and then preparation for landing. I'd not paid attention when my boarding card was being printed - I'd been sat right up the back next to the engines - so I was v v glad I had my noise cancelling headphones with me! We landed in to a b*s gate - my very favourite thing :shock: - and was sat on the bus for a good 10 minutes at the terminal doors before the driver acquiesced and let us off. Immigration was extremely efficient, security less so. None the less, I was landside at about 30-40 minutes after landing, so I can't complain too much.
After a quick schlep across to the domestic terminal (about the same amount of walking as you'd do at MEL for a INT>DOM connection), I was standing in the priority check-in line for the next flight. I wanted to get my bag re-tagged (they'd used two baggage tags at HAV and one had been ripped off) and a new boarding card issued for the domestic flight, as my seating allocation wasn't the best. Once that was all sorted, I went through security (remembering the no liquids rule) and headed for the lounge. If anything - more disappointing than the MEX Int'l lounge and a good bit smaller again. Reasonable self-service booze selection, PCs with possibly the slowest internet connection known to man, a small handful of seats and dirty windows looking out on to the tarmac.
I passed the time there productively by catching up on a weeks worth of e-mail and remembering to print out my BA boarding cards. As these were to be my very first BA flights, I'd never used the BA OLCI function before - v impressed with it! Leaves QF's for dead. Enter PNR and surname, select flight(s) you want to check in, select seat(s) and then you can print, e-mail, fax or pick the boarding card(s) up at the airport. Plus, there's an iPhone friendly version if you're that way inclined; obviously no print function but the other options remain available.
So, with a decent seat secured for the next flight, a boarding card for the flight following so I can clear security for the next flight and several gins polished off, it was time for the next flight...
Flight 8: MX 344 CUN/MEX
Track Flight Status for (MX) Mexicana 344
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A320
Crew: Friendly
Seat: 12D
This flight was much the same as my first Mexicana flight (including having the same seat); just goes to show that the service standards are quite consistent. Good flight, decent service, on-time, etc. Nothing to complain about.
Upon landing at MEX, I headed for the Mexicana domestic lounge as I'd been told thats the one they're promoting on the website. The staff at the desk weren't sure about letting me in ("you need to clear security and use the international lounge, sir"), I convinced them I was just wanting a quick look around and I was allowed to enter. Quite a nice lounge! Not the biggest, but v comfy seats, a bunch of telly's if you want to watch something, a small selection of snack food or a proper (paid
) restaurant and bar with a more complete selection. I had a quick gin and relaxed in one of the lounge chairs, but as I was only supposed to be having a quick look (and I was reasonably certain they wouldn't give me the WiFi username and password on that basis), I decided to head for the international gates and lounges.
Passing through to the international gates is a very simple affair - a quick x-ray of bags but no need to walk through a metal detector - I found my way back to the American Airlines lounge where I set myself up on one of the lounges for the long wait to my very first British Airways flight!
That's more than enough typing from me now - more later!
- Most Australian-issued cards will not work, due to affiliations with banks in the US
- For that matter, good luck finding anywhere that accepts credit cards at all - cash is basically the only way to go
- There are two currencies - the Convertible Peso (CUC), which is the tourist money and the Cuban Peso (CUP), which is the 'moneda nacional'. 1 CUC = 24 CUP, so it's incredibly important to know the difference!
- Internet access is fairly limited; there are apparently a few top hotels that have WiFi, but I never found any of this mythical stuff. Most of the tourist hotels have a PC or two in the lobby, and you can buy access cards from them (assuming they haven't run out). Internet access is really slow (think dialup) and there are no printing facilities or anything of the kind that I noticed.
- You can spend a large amount of money on hotels in Cuba, but I don't have that sort of cash. For around AUD $120 - $150 a night, the hotels you'll find (including the one I stayed at) are well air-conditioned (a necessity!), have staff that speak at least some English and the rooms will have mostly uncomfortable beds and mostly clean bathrooms. I slept in a single bed for the first time in god knows how long. :shock: Generally speaking, don't expect much and you won't be disappointed.
- Local water isn't potable, however buying bottles of water is easy and cheap. You even get a choice of still or sparkling!
- Food is somewhat disappointing. Consider that the local speciality is 'Ropa Vieja' (translated literally, "old clothes" - it's actually a spiced minced beef dish) and you start to get an idea. Vego food is mostly non-existant, so I ended up ordering a lot of side dishes. The style of the dining rooms and menus is imported straight out of the 70s and 80s, so loads of garish paint, tired furnishings and large amounts of (poorly prepared) lobster for dinner. I had to keep reminding myself that it's a communist country, so the restaurants are all run by the state to give people a job - ability is a secondary consideration.
- If you want to eat well, do something I should have done but didn't - visit a 'paladar', which is a restaurant run out of someones' house. It's one of the few ways in which Cubans are allowed to earn money of their own making, and the food is reputed to be of a generally excellent standard.
- Being a skinny white man, "blending in" is somewhat impossible. Havana is a good city to look like a tourist in though; the attitude towards tourists is fairly positive.
- People tend to be really friendly - just keep in mind that there's always something they want. I had some great conversations and recommendations for places to go and see for the price of a mojito, but there were a number of times someone stopped me in the street for a chat and then wanted to sell me cigars. 'No moleste, per favor' (Please don't bother me) became a v handy phrase to know!
- It seems everyone knows where the Buena Vista Social Club is playing (at at least 8 different bars, all at the same time!) How much of a scam it is I don't know, but I was perfectly happy listening to the "regular" musicians at various bars so I didn't try to find out.
- The historic sights of the city are well worth seeing; buildings like El Capitolio really give you a sense of just how much money Cuba used to have in the early 1900's. To get in to many of them, you have to pay a few CUC to get in and a few CUC extra to bring the camera. Not at all expensive, but a rip-off compared to the prices for the locals, which are generally the same figures but in CUP instead.
- In terms of public transport, there are buses - but you will need fairly decent Spanish and the local money to use it. I think they assume that no-one apart from the locals are going to use it, so it's not set up for tourists at all. It's easy enough to walk everywhere in Havana, or catch a taxi (pretty cheap!) if you'd rather not.
- If you're looking for something other than rum, cigars or touristy souvenirs, don't expect to find much. The local fashion industry is basically non-existant and the only boutiques I saw were for Adidas and Puma. I'd recommend forgetting the shopping and enjoy another mojito instead..
- Speaking of rum, Havana Club is incredibly cheap in Cuba (around CUC 5 for a 750 mL bottle, less for locals) and there is a substantial range available, of which we only see one type in Australia I think. I can easily understand how drinking is the national past-time!
- I figured it would be a put-on job for the tourists, but salsa music really is everywhere. Most restaurants and bars seemed to have a band playing, and the locals seem to listen to it in their cars and at home as well. I ventured out to a club one night and even the dance music played by DJs is salsa-based!
I had a minor accommodation crisis after the first day - I was supposed to meet a local tour guide who was going to show me around and find me a 'Casa Particular' (basically a bed and breakfast), but they never showed up. Fortunately I had the cash to extend my stay at my hotel! I was worried that the accommodation issues were an omen of further bad tidings, but it was the only thing that went wrong during my stay.
Given I didn't have my pre-arranged tour guide, I figured I could show myself around the city - but one of the "registered tour guides" (whatever that means) stopped me in the street and convinced me to part with a little cash so he could show me around. A capital idea! We walked all around the old part of the city while he explained the significance and history of some of the buildings, so I'd count it as money very well spent.
My daily routine ended up being waking up, going downstairs to endure brekkie at the hotel, walk around, see some museums or interesting buildings, back to the hotel to escape the heat for an hour or so, have a late lunch somewhere, see some more sights and then have a late dinner and find a bar to drink in. The piano bar at Hotel Florida where I was staying (never mind the non-existant piano) was good fun - drinking and watching a mix of locals and tourists dancing to the salsa until the wee hours of the morning!
Soon enough, it was time to leave - and truth be told, I was looking forward to getting back to civilisation. As embarrassing as it is to admit it, I had "technology withdrawal symptoms" for the first day - it's amazing how reliant we become on having a decent Internet connection! I'd booked a taxi for a v early flight back to CUN, which showed up exactly on time and dropped me to the international terminal at HAV at 05:30...
Flight 7: MX 7323 HAV/CUN
Track Flight Status for (MX) Mexicana 7323
On-time departure: Late (never mind what flightstats.com shows)
Craft: F100
Crew: Fine
Seat: 18D
Checking in was a miserable experience. After being dropped off at the airport (CUC 25 fare again), I went looking for the Mexicana check-in and found a long line almost the depth of the concourse with no premium check-in whatsoever. cough. After waiting an eternity, I finally made it to the front of the queue and had my bag checked through to AMS and myself checked through to MEX. After paying the departure tax and having a shiny sticker attached to my boarding card, I still had some CUC left over - after a couple quick gift purchases, I exchanged the rest to EUR and went through immigration.
Outbound immigration is much the same as it is in Australia - go through customs (if you want a stamp you need to ask for one), go through security and in to the gate area. There is a shared VIP lounge which I may have been entitled to use, but I was content enough to try spending the few remaining coins I had and wander around the (v small) terminal. They have flags from all over the world hanging up in the gate area; I was a little disappointed to see no Australian flag.
By then, the sun had burnt off most of the remaining fog and I was able to see some of the planes waiting on stand. Older Russian planes for the most part, but one newer Tupolev TU-204, which was kinda cool. My chariot - a Fokker F100 in the new livery - was waiting and ready to board. I had perhaps more hand luggage than I should have had, and had watched one of the Cubana flights being boarded and hand luggage restrictions being enforced so I was a little worried I was going to get something gate checked on me. No need for concern - soon enough we were on the plane and almost ready to go.
If it wasn't for two pax sitting behind me trying to find somewhere to put their camera gear, we might have actually had an on-time departure. They rummaged around in the overhead bins, failed to find any space, argued with the staff who wanted to gate check it, looked in more overhead bins, then arguing with the staff some more ... finally they found enough space to squeeze their gear in, just as airport police boarded to deal with the "unruly pax".
Aside from that, the flight was unexciting - quick drink service, fill out arrivals forms and then preparation for landing. I'd not paid attention when my boarding card was being printed - I'd been sat right up the back next to the engines - so I was v v glad I had my noise cancelling headphones with me! We landed in to a b*s gate - my very favourite thing :shock: - and was sat on the bus for a good 10 minutes at the terminal doors before the driver acquiesced and let us off. Immigration was extremely efficient, security less so. None the less, I was landside at about 30-40 minutes after landing, so I can't complain too much.
After a quick schlep across to the domestic terminal (about the same amount of walking as you'd do at MEL for a INT>DOM connection), I was standing in the priority check-in line for the next flight. I wanted to get my bag re-tagged (they'd used two baggage tags at HAV and one had been ripped off) and a new boarding card issued for the domestic flight, as my seating allocation wasn't the best. Once that was all sorted, I went through security (remembering the no liquids rule) and headed for the lounge. If anything - more disappointing than the MEX Int'l lounge and a good bit smaller again. Reasonable self-service booze selection, PCs with possibly the slowest internet connection known to man, a small handful of seats and dirty windows looking out on to the tarmac.
I passed the time there productively by catching up on a weeks worth of e-mail and remembering to print out my BA boarding cards. As these were to be my very first BA flights, I'd never used the BA OLCI function before - v impressed with it! Leaves QF's for dead. Enter PNR and surname, select flight(s) you want to check in, select seat(s) and then you can print, e-mail, fax or pick the boarding card(s) up at the airport. Plus, there's an iPhone friendly version if you're that way inclined; obviously no print function but the other options remain available.
So, with a decent seat secured for the next flight, a boarding card for the flight following so I can clear security for the next flight and several gins polished off, it was time for the next flight...
Flight 8: MX 344 CUN/MEX
Track Flight Status for (MX) Mexicana 344
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A320
Crew: Friendly
Seat: 12D
This flight was much the same as my first Mexicana flight (including having the same seat); just goes to show that the service standards are quite consistent. Good flight, decent service, on-time, etc. Nothing to complain about.
Upon landing at MEX, I headed for the Mexicana domestic lounge as I'd been told thats the one they're promoting on the website. The staff at the desk weren't sure about letting me in ("you need to clear security and use the international lounge, sir"), I convinced them I was just wanting a quick look around and I was allowed to enter. Quite a nice lounge! Not the biggest, but v comfy seats, a bunch of telly's if you want to watch something, a small selection of snack food or a proper (paid
) restaurant and bar with a more complete selection. I had a quick gin and relaxed in one of the lounge chairs, but as I was only supposed to be having a quick look (and I was reasonably certain they wouldn't give me the WiFi username and password on that basis), I decided to head for the international gates and lounges.Passing through to the international gates is a very simple affair - a quick x-ray of bags but no need to walk through a metal detector - I found my way back to the American Airlines lounge where I set myself up on one of the lounges for the long wait to my very first British Airways flight!
That's more than enough typing from me now - more later!
Last edited:
docjames
Senior Member
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- Posts
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You summary of Cuba, HAV and CUN, and Mexicana sound identical to ours from Sept 08.
Oh, and the "home meal" x3 we had were by far the best meal we had in Cuba. By far. Everything else was pretty much rubbish.
And yes, Havana Club, very, very cheap. And music everywhere.
Oh, and the "home meal" x3 we had were by far the best meal we had in Cuba. By far. Everything else was pretty much rubbish.
And yes, Havana Club, very, very cheap. And music everywhere.
haydensydney
Established Member
- Joined
- Feb 20, 2008
- Posts
- 1,375
Yip - your Cuban adventures also sounded like our trip last year. It was interesting, but I won't be rushing back in a hurry. The food really was dismal, although as you mentioned it's not really their fault...
I'm enjoying reading about your travels! Keep it up
I'm enjoying reading about your travels! Keep it up
So - I'm back home now. In terms of the holiday itself, that was pretty much it - the rest of the journey was all about catching up with friends from the past, so it doesn't bear too much of a mention. The flights and hotels though...
Flight 9: BA 242 MEX/LHR
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 242
On-time departure: Late
Craft: B744
Crew: Reasonable
Seat: 28C
After clearing security to the international gates at MEX and making my way to the AA lounge (soliciting comments that I was at least slightly mad for spending a 6 hour layover there), I set myself up in one of the comfy couches and got stuck in to approximately equal quantities of e-mail and gin. Soon enough it was boarding time -- having noticed that the assigned gate was a fair distance away again (you'd think that they'd try to put a lounge intended for international pax near the gates used for international flights, but no), I made a point of walking down to the flight early. Interesting to note that there are quite a few widebodies headed for Europe of an evening in MEX! I spotted a LH B747, a KL B747 and an IB A340 as well as my chariot, a BA B747.
Boarding was relatively prompt, but no sign of a premium line. Visa waiver thingy taken off me, boarding pass scribbled on and off to my nice exit row seat. Walking down the aisle I saw the Club World cabin for the very first time - I'm still not convinced of the merits of sitting backwards on a plane. The lampshades were a bit kitsch, but a nice touch all the same. I ended up seated next to a chatty Irish Australian - we ended up having a nice conversation about why the each of us was in Mexico. I managed to pinch his copy of The Times as well - which was handy, as the flight was delayed by nearly an hour in departing (the Captain mentioned something about traffic and paperwork delays). No cabin service or anything else during the delay, but I was able to read a few sections of the paper and before I knew it, we were making our way to the other end of the runway. Holy long take-off roll, Batman!
The BA whY seat is OK, relatively speaking - though I think I prefer the QF whY seats. The crew were OK but nothing special and the food was definitely worse than QF long haul. Completely inedible tofu .. thing with a salad that might have been fresh the week prior. Good thing I'd eaten at the lounge! The legroom was great, but the sleeping tablet was even better and what seemed like seconds later we were on final approach in to London Heathrow's Terminal 5...
My first time at T5 and the first impressions weren't that great. The flight scored another of those wonderful b*s gates, which took forever and a day to make it to the terminal. The sheer number of BA B747s at T5 we drove past was fairly impressive! I think I counted about 15, not including the one I flew in on.
Once at the terminal I went off to flight connections - mental note that having the onwards boarding pass already could save a substantial amount of time (I'd hate to think what waiting to get a boarding pass whilst seeing the hordes from a packed B747 going upstairs to security ahead of you would be like :shock. I'd had the fortitude to book all my flights as T5->T5 connections, so I at least didn't have to change terminals. Also interesting with this sort of connection is that you never actually enter the UK, so no passport check.
So. Boarding pass checked, checked again, get told by at least three different security folk that I need to have liquids out ready for inspection, up the escalators and join a minimum 30 minute queue for security. Sigh. Not being in possession of a F or J boarding card and not having a BA Gold or Silver card disqualified me from the depressingly-short fast track security queue, so I whiled the time away waiting for my turn to go through a metal detector. Todays security was a leave-shoes-on day at least.
Once through grand theatre that is T5 security, I found my way to the south lounges complex and up in to the Galleries First lounge, popping by a duty free shop to indulge in a v cheap bottle of Charles Heidsieck NV bubbly on the way. My first impression of the T5 Galleries First lounge was a bit of a Pam Ann moment - those horse lamp stands are *very* British!
Second impression was the wonder that is the champagne bar ... bottles and bottles and bottles of the Bollinger La Grande Annee 2000, so I thought it entirely appropriate to find a comfy armchair and sample the bubbles extensively while waiting for my flight to AMS ... which I'll write up in the next post!
Flight 9: BA 242 MEX/LHR
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 242
On-time departure: Late
Craft: B744
Crew: Reasonable
Seat: 28C
After clearing security to the international gates at MEX and making my way to the AA lounge (soliciting comments that I was at least slightly mad for spending a 6 hour layover there), I set myself up in one of the comfy couches and got stuck in to approximately equal quantities of e-mail and gin. Soon enough it was boarding time -- having noticed that the assigned gate was a fair distance away again (you'd think that they'd try to put a lounge intended for international pax near the gates used for international flights, but no), I made a point of walking down to the flight early. Interesting to note that there are quite a few widebodies headed for Europe of an evening in MEX! I spotted a LH B747, a KL B747 and an IB A340 as well as my chariot, a BA B747.
Boarding was relatively prompt, but no sign of a premium line. Visa waiver thingy taken off me, boarding pass scribbled on and off to my nice exit row seat. Walking down the aisle I saw the Club World cabin for the very first time - I'm still not convinced of the merits of sitting backwards on a plane. The lampshades were a bit kitsch, but a nice touch all the same. I ended up seated next to a chatty Irish Australian - we ended up having a nice conversation about why the each of us was in Mexico. I managed to pinch his copy of The Times as well - which was handy, as the flight was delayed by nearly an hour in departing (the Captain mentioned something about traffic and paperwork delays). No cabin service or anything else during the delay, but I was able to read a few sections of the paper and before I knew it, we were making our way to the other end of the runway. Holy long take-off roll, Batman!
The BA whY seat is OK, relatively speaking - though I think I prefer the QF whY seats. The crew were OK but nothing special and the food was definitely worse than QF long haul. Completely inedible tofu .. thing with a salad that might have been fresh the week prior. Good thing I'd eaten at the lounge! The legroom was great, but the sleeping tablet was even better and what seemed like seconds later we were on final approach in to London Heathrow's Terminal 5...
My first time at T5 and the first impressions weren't that great. The flight scored another of those wonderful b*s gates, which took forever and a day to make it to the terminal. The sheer number of BA B747s at T5 we drove past was fairly impressive! I think I counted about 15, not including the one I flew in on.
Once at the terminal I went off to flight connections - mental note that having the onwards boarding pass already could save a substantial amount of time (I'd hate to think what waiting to get a boarding pass whilst seeing the hordes from a packed B747 going upstairs to security ahead of you would be like :shock
. I'd had the fortitude to book all my flights as T5->T5 connections, so I at least didn't have to change terminals. Also interesting with this sort of connection is that you never actually enter the UK, so no passport check.So. Boarding pass checked, checked again, get told by at least three different security folk that I need to have liquids out ready for inspection, up the escalators and join a minimum 30 minute queue for security. Sigh. Not being in possession of a F or J boarding card and not having a BA Gold or Silver card disqualified me from the depressingly-short fast track security queue, so I whiled the time away waiting for my turn to go through a metal detector. Todays security was a leave-shoes-on day at least.
Once through grand theatre that is T5 security, I found my way to the south lounges complex and up in to the Galleries First lounge, popping by a duty free shop to indulge in a v cheap bottle of Charles Heidsieck NV bubbly on the way. My first impression of the T5 Galleries First lounge was a bit of a Pam Ann moment - those horse lamp stands are *very* British!
Second impression was the wonder that is the champagne bar ... bottles and bottles and bottles of the Bollinger La Grande Annee 2000, so I thought it entirely appropriate to find a comfy armchair and sample the bubbles extensively while waiting for my flight to AMS ... which I'll write up in the next post!
Once through grand theatre that is T5 security, I found my way to the south lounges complex and up in to the Galleries First lounge, popping by a duty free shop to indulge in a v cheap bottle of Charles Heidsieck NV bubbly on the way. My first impression of the T5 Galleries First lounge was a bit of a Pam Ann moment - those horse lamp stands are *very* British!
Sophie and Thomas weren't there trying to get in with their Tesco Club card were they? No bales of Hay?
(and to those who don't get it, watch Pam Ann
)
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Sophie and Thomas weren't there trying to get in with their Tesco Club card were they? No bails of Hay?
SOPH-EHH!
Seeing as I'm at home feeling sorry for myself (head cold, bleh), what better time to continue writing my trip report! At the end of the last missive I was busy inhaling as much of the Bolly as my liver could handle prior to the short hop to AMS...
Flight 10: BA 440 LHR/AMS
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 440
On-time departure: Late
Craft: A321
Crew: Reasonable
Seat: 9C
I'd asked at the lounge to see if there were any seats further forward (Club was only as far back as row 6), but it wasn't to be. Soon enough, boarding commenced -- as soon as the flight opened up, there was a massive rush on the gate -- boarding order seems to be pax requiring assistance, then J, then shiny card holders, then the hordes. Like practically everywhere else though, this isn't enforced particularly well. Not wanting to be left with no overhead bin space, I joined the queue as quickly as I could and was soon seated waiting for take off.
BA mainline short-haul is all much of a muchness when seated in whY - generally it pays to re-check in the v excellent MMB function on the BA website for seating a few times, as QF elites are entitled to access the mostly decent seats forward on the ABC side of the plane. With the exception of this flight, I was able to get an aisle seat in the section that's converted (the B seat is squished and not assigned to allow for a slightly bigger A and C seat) right behind the curtain. Service was OK but not outstanding. Snack food was actually not too bad (the apricot and almond cookies are yummy) and the tea is excellent -- as you'd expect.
While I didn't see what was being served in Club, I'd hate to be paying for a J seat expecting something like QF or AA and then getting a slightly wider economy seat. The legroom didn't appear to be significantly better than what I had (I suspect it was no different at all). I understand that being able to shrink and grow the J cabin as demand dictates is a competitive advantage, but the seats are awful.
One of the slightly annoying things about flying in to AMS is landing on the far runway, which I copped both times on this trip. The taxi to the terminal takes something in the order of 10-15 minutes, which is less than wonderful. Complaints aside, I was off the plane in short order, through Customs and then waiting for my bag ... which took 15 minutes to appear and did so with broken zip tags and a missing TSA lock. It appeared that HMRC had taken it upon themselves to destroy the lock and zips all in one go, which I wasn't too happy about given they are supposed to be able to unlock them. I took it up with the local ground handler, and their (polite and sympathetic) response could be basically summed up as: "too bad, so sad". The bag was still perfectly usable and the zips could be cheaply repaired back at home, so I conceded defeat and wandered off to catch a train.
Catching a train to the city is one area where AMS truly shines - walk out of the arrivals hall and straight in to the train station at Schiphol. Lined up to buy my ticket, was assisted by a v friendly staff member - I'm yet again reminded how much I love the dutch and their multi-lingualness - I acquired a train ticket to the city and an OV Chipkaart to use on the metro and tram services. From there it was off to my friends place, where I spent a few days ... which flew by far too quickly, and it was soon time to take my next set of flights in the general direction of Switzerland...
Flight 11: BA 8452 AMS/LCY
Track Flight Status for (CJ) BA CityFlyer 8452
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: AR1
Crew: Scottish!
Seat: 9F
When I was looking for intra-Europe flights to the places I wanted to get to, BA came up the cheapest (I refuse to even consider FR or U2) - but of course this meant transiting London an awful lot. I decided to mix things up a bit and take a couple flights with BA CityFlyer on their Avro RJ100 craft (I couldn't find any flights that were scheduled to use their shiny new E170s, which are supposedly quite nice) - which meant a transit at LCY rather than LHR.
Departing AMS was a v smooth experience - a 10 minute wander from the train station to the check-in area, where I was promptly assisted by one of the staff at the Club check-in desk. No bags, mercifully - I left them with my friend so I didn't have to try and negotiate extremely short train connections in Switzerland with more than bags than were absolutely required. Once in possession of boarding cards and instructions on where to find the Terraces lounge, I went through Customs (v quick! Whilst having an EU passport would be faster again, at least an Australian passport generally solicits no questions at all) and straight in to the airport terminal. Security checks are all performed at the gate, which appears to be relatively unique to AMS in Europe -- seeing as this shortens the gap between check-in and lounge, I feel it's relatively civilised. Pity the Terraces lounge at AMS is a bit rubbish. No food! There was at least some gin and free WiFi, so I settled in to a session of e-mail while waiting for my flight.
Because security checks are completed at the gate at AMS, it's important to leave the lounge when boarding is called so that you actually make the flight. I imagine it would be much worse if you were on a widebody flight somewhere, but it seems perfectly reasonable for a small plane. At any rate - arrive at the gate, go through security and in to a "holding pen" before getting on the plane. I'd been allocated window seats for both flights and frankly wish I'd had aisle seats instead -- for someone like me who is relatively tall and has relatively broad shoulders, the window seats on an AR1 are incredibly cramped because of the curvature of the fuselage. The view was unfortunately mostly obscured by the engines, but was nonetheless cool - because the wing is above you rather than below you, you get a great view down.
Safety demo was all done "by hand" due to the lack of video screens - the CSD was a Scottish lass, so following along was a bit of a challenge! Fun accent though. Flight was mostly unexciting, but landing in to LCY is pretty cool. Due to the length of the runway and for noise abatement reasons, the angle of approach is much steeper than at any other airport I've been through. You're basically pointed "nose down" towards the ground right up to the last moment -- the aircraft doesn't so much flare as it does level out and the wheels all hit the tarmac at almost the same time.
Transiting at LCY is a dream compared to LHR - arrive at the gate, navigate the stairs down on to the tarmac and in to the terminal building, clear Immigration (even when transiting you end up landside, so I ended up "entering" England), walk up a set of escalators, get boarding card and passport checked, go through security and I was back to being airside after landing in about 10-15 minutes flat. Much faster than at LHR, where my best effort for transiting has been 45 minutes.
The downside of course is that there's no lounge - and as I didn't have any ££, I couldn't buy myself anything anyway. LCY at least offers free WiFi throughout the terminal, so I was able to entertain myself for the 20 minutes or so until boarding..
Flight 12: BA 8765 LCY/ZRH
Track Flight Status for (CJ) BA CityFlyer 8765
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: AR1
Crew: Scottish!
Seat: 11A
Turned out that the craft and the crew were the same (minor moment of déjà vu on boarding), and the service provided was much the same again. Taking off from LCY is at least as cool as landing there -- it's kinda like an airplane drag race! Start at the far end of the runway, engage clutch, rev the engines, dump the clutch and take off at a great rate of knots!!
Landing in to ZRH is unexciting, but the first thing you notice is how clean and calm the airport is. It's sterile and even a little creepy, quite frankly. We arrived at the satellite terminal, got the train to the main terminal (which arrived exactly to the second when the display said it would - how very Swiss!) - listen out for the cow noises, which are entertaining but would get old quickly - go through Immigration ("How long are you in Switzerland?" "Two days" *stamp* "Fine") and over to the train station for the trek to our office in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately, ZRH is basically the closest airport to the office - from there it's another two hours on the train.
The Swiss train service is legendary for it's punctuality, but should also be noted for its' cost. Unless you have an (expensive) discount card, the ticket prices are almost criminal! I paid CHF 112 (about $120) for a return 2nd class ticket. I'd missed the direct service while waiting for my passport to be stamped, so the ticket I got involved changing trains three times (Zurich HBf, Olten and Bern) with connection times between 4 minutes and 12 minutes. Glad I didn't have a big bag to lug around, but everything otherwise worked out v smoothly. I believe it's a capital offence in Switzerland to have a train show up late.
While it was great meeting all of the staff in our Swiss office, I won't bore anyone with the details. Next up, back on the train to ZRH and on to MXP via LHR!
Flight 10: BA 440 LHR/AMS
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 440
On-time departure: Late
Craft: A321
Crew: Reasonable
Seat: 9C
I'd asked at the lounge to see if there were any seats further forward (Club was only as far back as row 6), but it wasn't to be. Soon enough, boarding commenced -- as soon as the flight opened up, there was a massive rush on the gate -- boarding order seems to be pax requiring assistance, then J, then shiny card holders, then the hordes. Like practically everywhere else though, this isn't enforced particularly well. Not wanting to be left with no overhead bin space, I joined the queue as quickly as I could and was soon seated waiting for take off.
BA mainline short-haul is all much of a muchness when seated in whY - generally it pays to re-check in the v excellent MMB function on the BA website for seating a few times, as QF elites are entitled to access the mostly decent seats forward on the ABC side of the plane. With the exception of this flight, I was able to get an aisle seat in the section that's converted (the B seat is squished and not assigned to allow for a slightly bigger A and C seat) right behind the curtain. Service was OK but not outstanding. Snack food was actually not too bad (the apricot and almond cookies are yummy) and the tea is excellent -- as you'd expect.
While I didn't see what was being served in Club, I'd hate to be paying for a J seat expecting something like QF or AA and then getting a slightly wider economy seat. The legroom didn't appear to be significantly better than what I had (I suspect it was no different at all). I understand that being able to shrink and grow the J cabin as demand dictates is a competitive advantage, but the seats are awful.
One of the slightly annoying things about flying in to AMS is landing on the far runway, which I copped both times on this trip. The taxi to the terminal takes something in the order of 10-15 minutes, which is less than wonderful. Complaints aside, I was off the plane in short order, through Customs and then waiting for my bag ... which took 15 minutes to appear and did so with broken zip tags and a missing TSA lock. It appeared that HMRC had taken it upon themselves to destroy the lock and zips all in one go, which I wasn't too happy about given they are supposed to be able to unlock them. I took it up with the local ground handler, and their (polite and sympathetic) response could be basically summed up as: "too bad, so sad". The bag was still perfectly usable and the zips could be cheaply repaired back at home, so I conceded defeat and wandered off to catch a train.
Catching a train to the city is one area where AMS truly shines - walk out of the arrivals hall and straight in to the train station at Schiphol. Lined up to buy my ticket, was assisted by a v friendly staff member - I'm yet again reminded how much I love the dutch and their multi-lingualness - I acquired a train ticket to the city and an OV Chipkaart to use on the metro and tram services. From there it was off to my friends place, where I spent a few days ... which flew by far too quickly, and it was soon time to take my next set of flights in the general direction of Switzerland...
Flight 11: BA 8452 AMS/LCY
Track Flight Status for (CJ) BA CityFlyer 8452
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: AR1
Crew: Scottish!
Seat: 9F
When I was looking for intra-Europe flights to the places I wanted to get to, BA came up the cheapest (I refuse to even consider FR or U2) - but of course this meant transiting London an awful lot. I decided to mix things up a bit and take a couple flights with BA CityFlyer on their Avro RJ100 craft (I couldn't find any flights that were scheduled to use their shiny new E170s, which are supposedly quite nice) - which meant a transit at LCY rather than LHR.
Departing AMS was a v smooth experience - a 10 minute wander from the train station to the check-in area, where I was promptly assisted by one of the staff at the Club check-in desk. No bags, mercifully - I left them with my friend so I didn't have to try and negotiate extremely short train connections in Switzerland with more than bags than were absolutely required. Once in possession of boarding cards and instructions on where to find the Terraces lounge, I went through Customs (v quick! Whilst having an EU passport would be faster again, at least an Australian passport generally solicits no questions at all) and straight in to the airport terminal. Security checks are all performed at the gate, which appears to be relatively unique to AMS in Europe -- seeing as this shortens the gap between check-in and lounge, I feel it's relatively civilised.
Pity the Terraces lounge at AMS is a bit rubbish. No food! There was at least some gin and free WiFi, so I settled in to a session of e-mail while waiting for my flight.Because security checks are completed at the gate at AMS, it's important to leave the lounge when boarding is called so that you actually make the flight. I imagine it would be much worse if you were on a widebody flight somewhere, but it seems perfectly reasonable for a small plane. At any rate - arrive at the gate, go through security and in to a "holding pen" before getting on the plane. I'd been allocated window seats for both flights and frankly wish I'd had aisle seats instead -- for someone like me who is relatively tall and has relatively broad shoulders, the window seats on an AR1 are incredibly cramped because of the curvature of the fuselage. The view was unfortunately mostly obscured by the engines, but was nonetheless cool - because the wing is above you rather than below you, you get a great view down.
Safety demo was all done "by hand" due to the lack of video screens - the CSD was a Scottish lass, so following along was a bit of a challenge! Fun accent though. Flight was mostly unexciting, but landing in to LCY is pretty cool. Due to the length of the runway and for noise abatement reasons, the angle of approach is much steeper than at any other airport I've been through. You're basically pointed "nose down" towards the ground right up to the last moment -- the aircraft doesn't so much flare as it does level out and the wheels all hit the tarmac at almost the same time.
Transiting at LCY is a dream compared to LHR - arrive at the gate, navigate the stairs down on to the tarmac and in to the terminal building, clear Immigration (even when transiting you end up landside, so I ended up "entering" England), walk up a set of escalators, get boarding card and passport checked, go through security and I was back to being airside after landing in about 10-15 minutes flat. Much faster than at LHR, where my best effort for transiting has been 45 minutes.
The downside of course is that there's no lounge - and as I didn't have any ££, I couldn't buy myself anything anyway. LCY at least offers free WiFi throughout the terminal, so I was able to entertain myself for the 20 minutes or so until boarding..
Flight 12: BA 8765 LCY/ZRH
Track Flight Status for (CJ) BA CityFlyer 8765
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: AR1
Crew: Scottish!
Seat: 11A
Turned out that the craft and the crew were the same (minor moment of déjà vu on boarding), and the service provided was much the same again. Taking off from LCY is at least as cool as landing there -- it's kinda like an airplane drag race! Start at the far end of the runway, engage clutch, rev the engines, dump the clutch and take off at a great rate of knots!!
Landing in to ZRH is unexciting, but the first thing you notice is how clean and calm the airport is. It's sterile and even a little creepy, quite frankly. We arrived at the satellite terminal, got the train to the main terminal (which arrived exactly to the second when the display said it would - how very Swiss!) - listen out for the cow noises, which are entertaining but would get old quickly - go through Immigration ("How long are you in Switzerland?" "Two days" *stamp* "Fine") and over to the train station for the trek to our office in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately, ZRH is basically the closest airport to the office - from there it's another two hours on the train.
The Swiss train service is legendary for it's punctuality, but should also be noted for its' cost. Unless you have an (expensive) discount card, the ticket prices are almost criminal! I paid CHF 112 (about $120) for a return 2nd class ticket. I'd missed the direct service while waiting for my passport to be stamped, so the ticket I got involved changing trains three times (Zurich HBf, Olten and Bern) with connection times between 4 minutes and 12 minutes. Glad I didn't have a big bag to lug around, but everything otherwise worked out v smoothly. I believe it's a capital offence in Switzerland to have a train show up late.
While it was great meeting all of the staff in our Swiss office, I won't bore anyone with the details. Next up, back on the train to ZRH and on to MXP via LHR!
On my last evening in Switzerland, my colleagues took me to a Swiss restaurant that specialises in Fondue. So incredibly unhealthy, but yum! New potatoes and bread with long skewer things and three different cheeses to dip in ... three cheese, tomato cheese and herbed cheese. Afterwards we toddled off to this noice wine bar around the corner for post-dinner drinkies - and would you know it, they have one of my fave champagnes (Taittinger NV) by the glass. Score!
I checked the train timetables and found a direct service back to Zurich Flughafen leaving at 10:04 the following morning. True to form, the train arrived at 10:02 and left as the clock ticked over to 10:04 ... did I mention how much I love the Swiss train system? I'd managed to end up in the quiet carriage, so I put my phone on silent, put the headphones on and drifted off for an hour or so. Soon enough I was back at ZRH, ready for my BA flight to London Heathrow's Terminal 5...
Flight 13: BA 713 ZRH/LHR
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 713
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A319
Crew: Smashing!
Seat: 7C
So. Check in, confirm there is a lounge I can use (I wasn't sure, as BA uses a contract lounge in ZRH and as such technically falls outside the lounge access rules for oneworld), head through a boarding card check, wander around the terminal for 10 minutes until I work out that I need to head downstairs and go through outbound Immigration before I get to fly anywhere .. which is where things started to get a little unstuck. There was a fairly significant queue which took around 15 minutes to get to the front of. I got the usual EU passport control treatment (quick look, no comments or questions, a stamp and on your way). From there to the train (cue cow noises again) and then off to the security checkpoint. This took a good 30 minutes to get through; by the time I reached the front of the queue I was starting to sweat it, as boarding had already started for my flight. But! The gate close time was a good 20 minutes away and the lounge was between me and the gate...
The Bellevue lounge is actually one of the better J lounges I've seen - and from the signs in the lounge with information about the construction work - is about to get better. Fairly decent selection of snacks and food, multiple wines and a decent array of spirits available, noice Swiss choccies and plenty of fruit available. Good views out to the tarmac, but not really great for spotting or taking photos (you could only see half of the plane at each gate). Annoyed with myself for cutting it fairly fine and not being able to relax in the lounge for a while, but hungry enough to get over that quickly and load up a plate of food to munch on (and grab a glass of Riesling to go with!) Figuring I had about 5 minutes to get to the gate before it closed, I bolted back downstairs and made for the gate. Blaming the security shenanigans for my tardiness, the gate dragon scanned my boarding card and told me to move it.. I don't think she appreciated my holding up the show, but oh well. The FAs confirmed I was the last to board, which is always a little embarrassing.
Took my seat, pushed back more or less on time, the PIC commented that we had "smashing flying weather" - and he wasn't wrong. Smooth as silk the entire way! Landed in to LHR, off through flight connections and played the "what security restrictions are in force today?" game at security ... that day was a shoes-off day, it seemed. Finally through all that nonsense and back to drink the good stuff at the Galleries First lounge!
Flight 14: BA 580 LHR/MXP
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 580
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A319
Crew: OK
Seat: 4C
Flight was relatively unexciting, and much the same as the other BA mainline shorthaul as above. The one interesting thing was that there was no-one in Club at all! One of the FAs (clearly the one rostered to look after the Club cabin) commented to a co-worker that she was "crossing the threshold, not sure if she could cope with it" when pushing a trolley in to whY .. which I frankly thought was borderline rude, but she more than made up for it by being extremely personable and helpful towards the pax she served.
I didn't see anything of Milan at all - I was really only there overnight to catch up with an old friend. We went out to a lovely little restaurant where I had an underwhelming ravioli dish, but the wine we drank and the service we received was excellent. Sated, we went back home and organised a taxi for the morning so I could actually get back to the airport. MXP is ages away from the city and the drive is fairly unpleasant, so I opted for a taxi to the train station and took the Malpensa Express to the airport. Much better option!
MXP isn't a very pleasant airport - fairly grungy. I got checked in, found my way to the security checkpoint, through passport control and then off to the Terraces lounge. Actually quite a decent lounge! Decent brekkie spread, god-awful coffee but decent tea, so I was able to wake up a little and sort myself out for the flight. One of the interesting things is that to use the WiFi, you need to hand over photo ID (which the lounge dragon makes a photocopy of) -- not so sure I like that idea, but apparently those are the rules.
Boarding time eventually rolled around, and of course the flight was leaving from the furthest gate...
Flight 15: BA 573 MXP/LHR
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 573
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A320
Crew: OK
Seat: 7C
This flight had people in Club, but it also had what appeared to be a school group -- and predictably, the FAs had their hands full trying to get them to shut up and sit down, even for take off and landing! This was a fairly new A320 - it had the "refreshed" Airbus panelling and my god it was quiet (which probably amplified the brats sitting up the back, but I digress..) I still maintain that I prefer Airbus'en over Boeings for the simple reason that I don't end up with a headache from the engine noise on an Airbus, and this particular craft reinforced that opinion.
We arrived in to LHR after flying through a little thunderstorm, and the Italians all burst out in applause when the wheels hit the tarmac. What, are they not used to landing with the plane in a reusable condition or something? :shock: Through flight connections again, security wanted shoes off again and back to the champagne bar again!
Flight 16: BA 440 LHR/AMS
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 440
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A321
Crew: OK
Seat: 5D
Nothing very exciting with this flight - a copy of all the others. Crew and pax all boring, though the PIC mentioned that we would be taking off in to miserable weather, catching a little sunshine and then landing again in to miserable weather at AMS. How .. encouraging! Still, nothing wrong with this flight, and I was looking forward to getting back to AMS.
After landing, taxiing halfway across the continent and finally arriving at the gate, I managed to get on to a train heading for the city about 15 minutes after leaving the plane. I love AMS!
Next post, parting is such sweet sorrow -- but more longhaul flying and a completion of my SC run!
I checked the train timetables and found a direct service back to Zurich Flughafen leaving at 10:04 the following morning. True to form, the train arrived at 10:02 and left as the clock ticked over to 10:04 ... did I mention how much I love the Swiss train system? I'd managed to end up in the quiet carriage, so I put my phone on silent, put the headphones on and drifted off for an hour or so. Soon enough I was back at ZRH, ready for my BA flight to London Heathrow's Terminal 5...
Flight 13: BA 713 ZRH/LHR
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 713
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A319
Crew: Smashing!
Seat: 7C
So. Check in, confirm there is a lounge I can use (I wasn't sure, as BA uses a contract lounge in ZRH and as such technically falls outside the lounge access rules for oneworld), head through a boarding card check, wander around the terminal for 10 minutes until I work out that I need to head downstairs and go through outbound Immigration before I get to fly anywhere .. which is where things started to get a little unstuck. There was a fairly significant queue which took around 15 minutes to get to the front of. I got the usual EU passport control treatment (quick look, no comments or questions, a stamp and on your way). From there to the train (cue cow noises again) and then off to the security checkpoint. This took a good 30 minutes to get through; by the time I reached the front of the queue I was starting to sweat it, as boarding had already started for my flight. But! The gate close time was a good 20 minutes away and the lounge was between me and the gate...
The Bellevue lounge is actually one of the better J lounges I've seen - and from the signs in the lounge with information about the construction work - is about to get better. Fairly decent selection of snacks and food, multiple wines and a decent array of spirits available, noice Swiss choccies and plenty of fruit available. Good views out to the tarmac, but not really great for spotting or taking photos (you could only see half of the plane at each gate). Annoyed with myself for cutting it fairly fine and not being able to relax in the lounge for a while, but hungry enough to get over that quickly and load up a plate of food to munch on (and grab a glass of Riesling to go with!) Figuring I had about 5 minutes to get to the gate before it closed, I bolted back downstairs and made for the gate. Blaming the security shenanigans for my tardiness, the gate dragon scanned my boarding card and told me to move it.. I don't think she appreciated my holding up the show, but oh well. The FAs confirmed I was the last to board, which is always a little embarrassing.
Took my seat, pushed back more or less on time, the PIC commented that we had "smashing flying weather" - and he wasn't wrong. Smooth as silk the entire way!
Landed in to LHR, off through flight connections and played the "what security restrictions are in force today?" game at security ... that day was a shoes-off day, it seemed. Finally through all that nonsense and back to drink the good stuff at the Galleries First lounge!Flight 14: BA 580 LHR/MXP
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 580
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A319
Crew: OK
Seat: 4C
Flight was relatively unexciting, and much the same as the other BA mainline shorthaul as above. The one interesting thing was that there was no-one in Club at all! One of the FAs (clearly the one rostered to look after the Club cabin) commented to a co-worker that she was "crossing the threshold, not sure if she could cope with it" when pushing a trolley in to whY .. which I frankly thought was borderline rude, but she more than made up for it by being extremely personable and helpful towards the pax she served.
I didn't see anything of Milan at all - I was really only there overnight to catch up with an old friend. We went out to a lovely little restaurant where I had an underwhelming ravioli dish, but the wine we drank and the service we received was excellent. Sated, we went back home and organised a taxi for the morning so I could actually get back to the airport. MXP is ages away from the city and the drive is fairly unpleasant, so I opted for a taxi to the train station and took the Malpensa Express to the airport. Much better option!
MXP isn't a very pleasant airport - fairly grungy. I got checked in, found my way to the security checkpoint, through passport control and then off to the Terraces lounge. Actually quite a decent lounge! Decent brekkie spread, god-awful coffee but decent tea, so I was able to wake up a little and sort myself out for the flight. One of the interesting things is that to use the WiFi, you need to hand over photo ID (which the lounge dragon makes a photocopy of) -- not so sure I like that idea, but apparently those are the rules.
Boarding time eventually rolled around, and of course the flight was leaving from the furthest gate...
Flight 15: BA 573 MXP/LHR
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 573
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A320
Crew: OK
Seat: 7C
This flight had people in Club, but it also had what appeared to be a school group -- and predictably, the FAs had their hands full trying to get them to shut up and sit down, even for take off and landing! This was a fairly new A320 - it had the "refreshed" Airbus panelling and my god it was quiet (which probably amplified the brats sitting up the back, but I digress..) I still maintain that I prefer Airbus'en over Boeings for the simple reason that I don't end up with a headache from the engine noise on an Airbus, and this particular craft reinforced that opinion.
We arrived in to LHR after flying through a little thunderstorm, and the Italians all burst out in applause when the wheels hit the tarmac. What, are they not used to landing with the plane in a reusable condition or something? :shock: Through flight connections again, security wanted shoes off again and back to the champagne bar again!
Flight 16: BA 440 LHR/AMS
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 440
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A321
Crew: OK
Seat: 5D
Nothing very exciting with this flight - a copy of all the others. Crew and pax all boring, though the PIC mentioned that we would be taking off in to miserable weather, catching a little sunshine and then landing again in to miserable weather at AMS. How .. encouraging!
Still, nothing wrong with this flight, and I was looking forward to getting back to AMS.After landing, taxiing halfway across the continent and finally arriving at the gate, I managed to get on to a train heading for the city about 15 minutes after leaving the plane. I love AMS!
Next post, parting is such sweet sorrow -- but more longhaul flying and a completion of my SC run!
Not the best place to get stranded at when you miss your flight either. Not talking about myself, you hear...:shock:
If there's anything to see in Milan, it's the shopping. Just divine, and a reassuringly expensive 'feel.' We should go up and down Via della Spiga and Via Montenapoleone (might have butchered the sp??) together - it's way more fun than Chapel St.
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So, soon enough it was time to leave Europe. I'll spare everyone the details, but I was none too happy about leaving -- also unimpressive was the time I had to be up to go to the airport! Clever me hadn't considered the logistics of needing to be back at LHR for a 12:50 flight to MEX - arranging to be at AMS at 5:30 am is *not* my idea of fun!
I made it out to the airport in reasonable time - however the cab driver decided to drop me near the KLM/AF/Delta check-in area, which meant trudging the length of the airport to get to the BA check-in area. Ahh well, I'll know for next time!
Flight 17: BA 423 AMS/LHR
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 423
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A319
Crew: No idea
Seat: 5C
The ground staff for BA were not in the finest form on that morning - I had a fairly loud argument with the dragon patrolling the check-in queues. The economy queue stretched on forever, so I did what any sensible OWE would do and made for the Club Europe queue...
"Where are you going?"
"The Club queue"
"Are you travelling in Club?"
"No, I'm in economy but I'm a Qantas Platinum member"
*Blank look*
"It's a oneworld Emerald card."
"You need to use the economy check-in queue"
"I need to do no such thing. oneworld rules say I can use business class check-in"
"You can only use Club check-in if you're BA Gold"
"So, BA isn't a oneworld member in AMS?"
"Well of course it is.."
"Great, so I can use Club check-in then"
*humph* "If you absolutely insist"
"I absolutely do"
Check-in was otherwise unexciting. Sure, I wasn't the politest towards the dragon -- but it was before 6 am, I was tired and she should have been more familiar with the rules.
The outbound Immigration guy was v talkative - saw my boarding passes AMS/LHR/MEX and wanted to know all about my trip (in a friendly way, rather than treating me as a guilty party) .. soon enough I was through and walked all the way back along the terminal to a closed Terraces lounge! Fortunately it wasn't much longer until opening time, so I entertained myself by wandering around the corridors and reading a short history of AMS and KLM. Some of the old promotional posters were very cool.
After a short wait, I got in to the Terraces lounge for some much needed tea and Internet. Feeling somewhat more human but no less grumpy, boarding time came along and it was off to the plane. At the very least, I'll normally pay attention to the FAs during the safety demonstration -- but I was asleep almost as soon as I was buckled in, and didn't wake up until we were on finals at LHR T5.
Flight 18: BA 243 LHR/MEX
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 243
On-time departure: Almost on-time
Craft: B744
Crew: OK
Seat: 28C
Through Flight Connections and security -- today was a shoes-on day! -- then off to the Galleries First lounge for my last visit in a little while. I was about half way through my first glass of the Bolly when I realised I could improve on things - with a liberal application of the Tanqueray 10 I'd espied at the spirits bar on an earlier visit. Frankly, I needed the medication! I had a couple hours to kill, which I whiled away with a couple strong cups of tea, a plate of food and numerous Gin Fizzes. Soon enough it was boarding o'clock - I navigated my way past the horsies, down the escalators, across to the transit thingy, over to the B satellite and up to the gate.
I'd like to declare my love for fast track boarding.
Got settled in to my seat - I was in the same seat as was previously, but this time I was next to a v quiet Spanish lass that said "Hi" and not a great deal more. I was still too drunk to read the paper I'd bought on board with me, so I stared at the ceiling and pondered my trip thus far whilst everyone else was still boarding.. soon enough we were heading towards the other end of the runway at a great rate of knots. One of the things I will always like about flying in the jumbo jet is the sound of the engines spooling up at the start of the runway - it sounds so primal and powerful. Many things not to like about flying in them, but taking off in one is definitely cool.
By the time service began, I was sobering up - which I found inconvenient, so I ordered a G&T. The wonderful FA gave me an extra mini bottle of gin and told me to ask her if I needed more - bless! The food service I wasn't looking forward to, given the disaster of the catering attempt on my previous BA longhaul service - but this time it was distinctly edible and almost tasty (unheard of for a SPML). Embarrasingly, I can't remember what it was! It's the gin's fault...
I was determined not to sleep too much on the flight - which I mostly managed to suceed at - assisted by strong tea, The Times, a few Sudoku puzzles and some TV shows. The IFE was a bit underwhelming, so I ended up drained the battery on my laptop and watched a few episodes of Holmes on Homes (great show if you've not heard of it before). The crew on this sector were mostly OK, but prone to hiding in the galley after service. Flight otherwise boring.
On descent in to Mexico City, I was again reminded just how bloody big this city is - it goes on forever! Landed, arrived at gate, down through Immigration (no comments/questions about my v short stay), then waited .. and waited .. and waited at the carousel for my bag to show up. It finally came out with the last batch of bags; chalk up MEX as another airport that doesn't quite get priority baggage right. :evil:
I didn't describe the Customs procedure in my earlier post about arriving at MEX (or CUN for that matter) .. you pile your bags on to the x-ray machine, collect them at the other end and walk over to a stand to hand in your Customs form and press the magic button. The machine randomly chooses to light up either green or red - green means you're off scot free, red means you get to open up your bags for a (v cursory) search. I got the red light at CUN - it takes maybe an extra 30 seconds, so hardly an issue. Having gotten a green light for my second entry to MEX, I wandered back up to the Hilton for my second stay...
(Hotels 4 and 5 were in Cuba; I described them in the general write up so we'll skip those numbers)
Hotel 6: Hilton Mexico City Airport
I was given a slightly nicer room this time, but still pretty average considering the price paid. Room service was efficient. Bed was comfy. Shower was hot. Not much else to say about the room, though when I went for brekkie the waiter remembered me from the previous visit. Very friendly staff; I was wished a safe trip and merry Christmas by everyone at the front desk.
Coming up - back to the US!
I made it out to the airport in reasonable time - however the cab driver decided to drop me near the KLM/AF/Delta check-in area, which meant trudging the length of the airport to get to the BA check-in area. Ahh well, I'll know for next time!
Flight 17: BA 423 AMS/LHR
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 423
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: A319
Crew: No idea
Seat: 5C
The ground staff for BA were not in the finest form on that morning - I had a fairly loud argument with the dragon patrolling the check-in queues. The economy queue stretched on forever, so I did what any sensible OWE would do and made for the Club Europe queue...
"Where are you going?"
"The Club queue"
"Are you travelling in Club?"
"No, I'm in economy but I'm a Qantas Platinum member"
*Blank look*
"It's a oneworld Emerald card."
"You need to use the economy check-in queue"
"I need to do no such thing. oneworld rules say I can use business class check-in"
"You can only use Club check-in if you're BA Gold"
"So, BA isn't a oneworld member in AMS?"
"Well of course it is.."
"Great, so I can use Club check-in then"
*humph* "If you absolutely insist"
"I absolutely do"
Check-in was otherwise unexciting. Sure, I wasn't the politest towards the dragon -- but it was before 6 am, I was tired and she should have been more familiar with the rules.
The outbound Immigration guy was v talkative - saw my boarding passes AMS/LHR/MEX and wanted to know all about my trip (in a friendly way, rather than treating me as a guilty party) .. soon enough I was through and walked all the way back along the terminal to a closed Terraces lounge! Fortunately it wasn't much longer until opening time, so I entertained myself by wandering around the corridors and reading a short history of AMS and KLM. Some of the old promotional posters were very cool.
After a short wait, I got in to the Terraces lounge for some much needed tea and Internet. Feeling somewhat more human but no less grumpy, boarding time came along and it was off to the plane. At the very least, I'll normally pay attention to the FAs during the safety demonstration -- but I was asleep almost as soon as I was buckled in, and didn't wake up until we were on finals at LHR T5.
Flight 18: BA 243 LHR/MEX
Track Flight Status for (BA) British Airways 243
On-time departure: Almost on-time
Craft: B744
Crew: OK
Seat: 28C
Through Flight Connections and security -- today was a shoes-on day! -- then off to the Galleries First lounge for my last visit in a little while. I was about half way through my first glass of the Bolly when I realised I could improve on things - with a liberal application of the Tanqueray 10 I'd espied at the spirits bar on an earlier visit.
Frankly, I needed the medication! I had a couple hours to kill, which I whiled away with a couple strong cups of tea, a plate of food and numerous Gin Fizzes. Soon enough it was boarding o'clock - I navigated my way past the horsies, down the escalators, across to the transit thingy, over to the B satellite and up to the gate.I'd like to declare my love for fast track boarding.
Got settled in to my seat - I was in the same seat as was previously, but this time I was next to a v quiet Spanish lass that said "Hi" and not a great deal more. I was still too drunk to read the paper I'd bought on board with me, so I stared at the ceiling and pondered my trip thus far whilst everyone else was still boarding.. soon enough we were heading towards the other end of the runway at a great rate of knots. One of the things I will always like about flying in the jumbo jet is the sound of the engines spooling up at the start of the runway - it sounds so primal and powerful. Many things not to like about flying in them, but taking off in one is definitely cool.
By the time service began, I was sobering up - which I found inconvenient, so I ordered a G&T. The wonderful FA gave me an extra mini bottle of gin and told me to ask her if I needed more - bless! The food service I wasn't looking forward to, given the disaster of the catering attempt on my previous BA longhaul service - but this time it was distinctly edible and almost tasty (unheard of for a SPML). Embarrasingly, I can't remember what it was!
It's the gin's fault...I was determined not to sleep too much on the flight - which I mostly managed to suceed at - assisted by strong tea, The Times, a few Sudoku puzzles and some TV shows. The IFE was a bit underwhelming, so I ended up drained the battery on my laptop and watched a few episodes of Holmes on Homes (great show if you've not heard of it before). The crew on this sector were mostly OK, but prone to hiding in the galley after service. Flight otherwise boring.
On descent in to Mexico City, I was again reminded just how bloody big this city is - it goes on forever! Landed, arrived at gate, down through Immigration (no comments/questions about my v short stay), then waited .. and waited .. and waited at the carousel for my bag to show up. It finally came out with the last batch of bags; chalk up MEX as another airport that doesn't quite get priority baggage right. :evil:
I didn't describe the Customs procedure in my earlier post about arriving at MEX (or CUN for that matter) .. you pile your bags on to the x-ray machine, collect them at the other end and walk over to a stand to hand in your Customs form and press the magic button. The machine randomly chooses to light up either green or red - green means you're off scot free, red means you get to open up your bags for a (v cursory) search. I got the red light at CUN - it takes maybe an extra 30 seconds, so hardly an issue. Having gotten a green light for my second entry to MEX, I wandered back up to the Hilton for my second stay...
(Hotels 4 and 5 were in Cuba; I described them in the general write up so we'll skip those numbers)
Hotel 6: Hilton Mexico City Airport
I was given a slightly nicer room this time, but still pretty average considering the price paid. Room service was efficient. Bed was comfy. Shower was hot. Not much else to say about the room, though when I went for brekkie the waiter remembered me from the previous visit. Very friendly staff; I was wished a safe trip and merry Christmas by everyone at the front desk.
Coming up - back to the US!
Last edited:
After brekkie and saying my goodbyes to the staff at the MEX Hilton, I trudged downstairs and down the corridor to the AA check-in area. The J check-in line was cordoned off, but a quick chat with one of the ladies saw it opened up for me - in no time at all I was duly checked-in, boarding-carded up and sent on my way through security to the AA lounge.
I made a quick pass by the duty-free section on the lookout for Christmas presents and found these insanely expensive but awesome shot glasses with a little glass cactus in them - score! The drinking theme continued at the lounge, where the bartender made sure my gin:blood ratio was brought back in to balance .. to the point where the v long walk to the plane wasn't sounding like any fun at all.
It turns out the lounge staff have a few tricks up their sleeve for this particular problem - as there were a few of us all needing to get to the same flight, a buggy was summonsed to drive us all to the gate. Best. Idea. Ever!
Flight 19: AA 2198 MEX/MIA
Track Flight Status for (AA) American Airlines 2198
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: B738
Crew: OK
Seat 4E
Mostly unexciting flight. Almost forgot to collect my duty-free at the jetbridge. Food was inedible for me - nothing vego available - so I had a couple side salads. If only AA would offer SPMLs for premium cabins! Service was OK; nothing really to write about.
Landing in to MIA is pretty awesome during the day - a wonderful view of the skyscrapers on final approach, then past the highrise apartments (condos?) as you land. Will definitely remember to get a window seat next time I do that flight!
Inbound Immigration at MIA is almost as much fun as it is in LAX - stood around waiting in queues for a good 45 minutes before it was my turn to be questioned and fingerprinted. I was actually a bit concerned (given where I'd been) that I was in for the full treatment, however there was nothing to worry about - "Where did you go in Cuba? Did you have a good time? On your way, sir" - apparently I gave the right answers. Baggage was waiting for me and I was through Customs after a quick query on how long I intended on staying in the United States. Too easy!
Seeing as I already had bag tags and boarding cards, I was able to drop my bag at the scanning point and head straight for security - all in all, I made it from arriving at the gate to the Flagship lounge in about an hour. Not too bad, really!
Flight 20: AA 1947 MIA/DFW
Track Flight Status for (AA) American Airlines 1947
On-time departure: Late
Craft: B752
Crew: OK
Seat: 4B
The Flagship lounge at MIA is actually quite disappointing. Cramped, ugly seats and v ordinary food spread. Some view of the tarmac, but nothing too wonderful. One of the AAngels had given me a T-Mobile WiFi card, which of course didn't work - thank God for remembering to sign up for a free month trial of the T-Mobile hotspot service! I found myself a seat and got stuck in to a little e-mail. As I'd finished my fourth stay and in theory completed the Hilton fast-track challenge, I decided to get in touch with Hilton customer service to see if my status could get updated ahead of the impending stay at the Hilton ONT that night. I spoke to a lovely lady who couldn't find the promo code for the fast track on my HHonors account (ruh-roh!), but we talked through what I'd signed up for along with the stays completed and booked - she determined it would be only fair that I was upgraded to HHonors Gold VIP on the spot!!
During the course of my stay in the lounge, I noticed that my flight was delayed - not at all what I wanted to see. After the second delay was posted, I decided to check with the AAngels whether I stood a chance of making my connection at DFW - one of the ladies at the desk responded with the good news that they were about to start boarding and the even better news that the flight would be landing at DFW three gates down from where the flight to ONT was due to depart.
The flight itself was uneventful - no food, just warm nuts and booze. The F seats in AA's B752 are just as horrible as ever! A little nap and soon enough we were touching down at DFW.
Flight 21: AA 661 DFW/ONT
Track Flight Status for (AA) American Airlines 661
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: MD82
Crew: OK
Seat: 5E
At DFW, I nearly made the mistake of overstaying my welcome at the lounge - a drink and bowl of the pretzel mix lasted longer than I thought it would - after realising just how little time I had to get through the aircraft door, I bolted out of the lounge, down the terminal and ended up second-last to board (phew, no walk of shame for me!) Got sat down, then snoozed for most of the trip back to ONT.
I woke up just before finals to a little commotion in the cabin - one of the pax in whY was not feeling well. She was moved up the front where the crew could keep an eye on her; thankfully no diversion considering how close we were to ONT, but the poor dear did not enjoy the remainder of the flight. Anyway. I disembarked, collected my bag from the carousel and went outside to catch the shuttle to the Hilton ONT ... which never turned up. I attempted calling the hotel, but the number was engaged. Not feeling particularly like waiting any longer, I hailed a taxi (who seemed a bit disappointed that it was a short fare) and finally made it to the hotel at something approaching 11pm..
Hotel 7: Hilton Ontario Airport
V underwhelming experience at this property. Check-in was a disaster; no apologies for the non-existant shuttle, zero benefits provided as a HHonors Gold (though I assume this had more to do with the timing of the status upgrade than anything else) and a room that hadn't been cleaned particularly well (used soap at the vanity basin??) on a floor that smelt of spilt beer. I called reception to register my dissatisfaction, only to be told they were fully booked and I couldn't get a different room. Not wanting to argue the point, I decided that things might seem better in the morning and went to bed instead.
To be continued!
I made a quick pass by the duty-free section on the lookout for Christmas presents and found these insanely expensive but awesome shot glasses with a little glass cactus in them - score! The drinking theme continued at the lounge, where the bartender made sure my gin:blood ratio was brought back in to balance .. to the point where the v long walk to the plane wasn't sounding like any fun at all.
It turns out the lounge staff have a few tricks up their sleeve for this particular problem - as there were a few of us all needing to get to the same flight, a buggy was summonsed to drive us all to the gate. Best. Idea. Ever!
Flight 19: AA 2198 MEX/MIA
Track Flight Status for (AA) American Airlines 2198
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: B738
Crew: OK
Seat 4E
Mostly unexciting flight. Almost forgot to collect my duty-free at the jetbridge. Food was inedible for me - nothing vego available - so I had a couple side salads. If only AA would offer SPMLs for premium cabins! Service was OK; nothing really to write about.
Landing in to MIA is pretty awesome during the day - a wonderful view of the skyscrapers on final approach, then past the highrise apartments (condos?) as you land. Will definitely remember to get a window seat next time I do that flight!
Inbound Immigration at MIA is almost as much fun as it is in LAX - stood around waiting in queues for a good 45 minutes before it was my turn to be questioned and fingerprinted. I was actually a bit concerned (given where I'd been) that I was in for the full treatment, however there was nothing to worry about - "Where did you go in Cuba? Did you have a good time? On your way, sir" - apparently I gave the right answers. Baggage was waiting for me and I was through Customs after a quick query on how long I intended on staying in the United States. Too easy!
Seeing as I already had bag tags and boarding cards, I was able to drop my bag at the scanning point and head straight for security - all in all, I made it from arriving at the gate to the Flagship lounge in about an hour. Not too bad, really!
Flight 20: AA 1947 MIA/DFW
Track Flight Status for (AA) American Airlines 1947
On-time departure: Late
Craft: B752
Crew: OK
Seat: 4B
The Flagship lounge at MIA is actually quite disappointing. Cramped, ugly seats and v ordinary food spread. Some view of the tarmac, but nothing too wonderful. One of the AAngels had given me a T-Mobile WiFi card, which of course didn't work - thank God for remembering to sign up for a free month trial of the T-Mobile hotspot service! I found myself a seat and got stuck in to a little e-mail. As I'd finished my fourth stay and in theory completed the Hilton fast-track challenge, I decided to get in touch with Hilton customer service to see if my status could get updated ahead of the impending stay at the Hilton ONT that night. I spoke to a lovely lady who couldn't find the promo code for the fast track on my HHonors account (ruh-roh!), but we talked through what I'd signed up for along with the stays completed and booked - she determined it would be only fair that I was upgraded to HHonors Gold VIP on the spot!!
During the course of my stay in the lounge, I noticed that my flight was delayed - not at all what I wanted to see. After the second delay was posted, I decided to check with the AAngels whether I stood a chance of making my connection at DFW - one of the ladies at the desk responded with the good news that they were about to start boarding and the even better news that the flight would be landing at DFW three gates down from where the flight to ONT was due to depart.
The flight itself was uneventful - no food, just warm nuts and booze. The F seats in AA's B752 are just as horrible as ever! A little nap and soon enough we were touching down at DFW.
Flight 21: AA 661 DFW/ONT
Track Flight Status for (AA) American Airlines 661
On-time departure: On-time
Craft: MD82
Crew: OK
Seat: 5E
At DFW, I nearly made the mistake of overstaying my welcome at the lounge - a drink and bowl of the pretzel mix lasted longer than I thought it would - after realising just how little time I had to get through the aircraft door, I bolted out of the lounge, down the terminal and ended up second-last to board (phew, no walk of shame for me!) Got sat down, then snoozed for most of the trip back to ONT.
I woke up just before finals to a little commotion in the cabin - one of the pax in whY was not feeling well. She was moved up the front where the crew could keep an eye on her; thankfully no diversion considering how close we were to ONT, but the poor dear did not enjoy the remainder of the flight. Anyway. I disembarked, collected my bag from the carousel and went outside to catch the shuttle to the Hilton ONT ... which never turned up. I attempted calling the hotel, but the number was engaged. Not feeling particularly like waiting any longer, I hailed a taxi (who seemed a bit disappointed that it was a short fare) and finally made it to the hotel at something approaching 11pm..
Hotel 7: Hilton Ontario Airport
V underwhelming experience at this property. Check-in was a disaster; no apologies for the non-existant shuttle, zero benefits provided as a HHonors Gold (though I assume this had more to do with the timing of the status upgrade than anything else) and a room that hadn't been cleaned particularly well (used soap at the vanity basin??) on a floor that smelt of spilt beer. I called reception to register my dissatisfaction, only to be told they were fully booked and I couldn't get a different room. Not wanting to argue the point, I decided that things might seem better in the morning and went to bed instead.
To be continued!
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I've stayed at the ONT Double-tree before and it was fine - chosen partly due to FT comparisons betwixt that and the Hilton but mainly due to the rate. The shuttle came quickly when summonsed using the complimentary 'phone in the terminal.
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