Mattress to mattress, dawn to dusk... 100 hours of premium lust...

Shot of the check-in hall from a higher vantage point (the level where I am taking this shot is where all the restaurants are)


ICN check-in hall L for OZ premium classes. Pretty plain; perhaps all the accessories aren't out yet, but that'd be quite unusual.

I returned to the left luggage service and handed in my receipt, which was promptly exchanged for my bag. Found a bench, unzip the bag, repack it a little to get a new set of clothes and change my reading material. My bag is burgeoning with amenity kits...oh well, hope it survives all the way home.

Whilst this is happening, I'm watching a set of desks open up for (if I remember correctly) an Asiana flight. I notice the staff setting up their desks and just as they are about to start, all of the staff in the row of desks stand in front of their counters. A message starts to play over the PA in Korean, and the staff bow just as the message finishes. They then return to their counters and invite people to come forward.

I finish repacking and start moving towards the check-in desks handling my TG flight. The counters are already open and there is a dedicated desk just for Business Class and Star Alliance Gold. Fits both of my bills. TG contract the staff from OZ to handle their check-in, and with an offer of my CheckMyTrip itinerary, the check-in agent hands me two boarding passes for my flights today, a bag tag for my checked bag that will be also enjoying the long journey, and a lounge pass for the Boarding Gate Lounge operated by OZ.


My BPs taking me home, and lounge invitation

Once again, I cleared outbound security at ICN and once again (and for the last time for a while!) passed through immigration. I got four stamps (two inbound and two outbound) from Korean immigration and no one asked a single question. After this, I had the now-familiar task of heading to the Concourse via the rail shuttle.




More ICN airside at the main terminal

ICN airside at the Concourse

The Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge is located near the Cathay Pacific one. It is also likewise signposted once you take the escalators up from the rail shuttle, so finding it was a piece of cake.


The level above the main departures concourse where some lounges are located. There's also some space up here if you want to escape the main hubbub down below.


A large bell as an exhibit in the airport's Korean museum of culture


Entrance to the Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge

I went inside the lounge to the reception where my lounge pass was requested and taken. The lounge was still rather quiet when I went in, though there were quite a few people inside. There are no windows in this lounge, but the lighting and environment is kept calm and tranquil (save for the food area, perhaps).


Inside the Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge. Here are just rows and rows and rows of lounge chairs.

A library themed corner of the lounge.

Current Location: Asiana Boarding Gate Lounge, Concourse A, Seoul-Incheon Airport, Incheon, South Korea
Current Time: 0650h GMT+9, 62 hours 50 minutes after getting out of bed

Once I was inside, my first thoughts were, "I want a shower," probably closely related to the thought, "I need a shower". Luckily, this lounge does have showers, and pretty good ones at that. The shower rooms are rather compact and there is no toilet in them, so don't expect to take care of all your morning needs in the same room.


Slumber rooms to the left, shower rooms to the right.


One of the slumber rooms, presumably with a massage chair. No Asian home can do without one..... just kidding.


Lounge shower room.


Vanity bric-a-brac for pretty much every need. It is not intended that you take these bottles away.

The shower had good pressure and the supplied amenities were not too bad; well and truly sufficient for the purpose at hand. One disadvantage I suppose is that because the shower room is small and I had a fairly hot (read: warm) shower, all the steam became trapped in the room and the ventilation wasn't all that great. Nevertheless, a shower, teeth brushing and a shave almost always makes you feel like a new person. Almost.

After my shower, I thought that I had to have a look at the food selection, and perhaps sample it. The servery was set with breakfast, mostly of the continental kind. There was a mini salad bar (don't ask why), pastries, cereal selection, lots of biscuits and instant noodle cups available.


Food servery and dining area.


Salad bar.

I took a plate of salad and a cup of hot noodles (after adding in the requisite boiling water, of course). These noodles were hot in both senses - the Koreans are not messing around when you see a red cup of noodles, it will be spicy! Makes the average Australian feel very wimpy in comparison.


A morning sampling of the servery.

Having finished my meal, I found a quiet part of the lounge to relax and finish my bottle of water. My body needed a bit of rest so I didn't bother firing up my laptop to check messages or read some papers. This managed to tie me over until it was time to board.


Flight: Thai Airways TG659 Seoul-Incheon (ICN) - Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi (BKK)
Depart: Sched 0935h; Actual 0933h
Duration: 5 h 50 min
Distance: 2,282 mi (3,673 km)
Aircraft: HS-TKA "Sriwanna" Boeing 777-300
Class: Business
Seat: 12K


Once again I found myself in a regional J seat and aircraft. The flight to BKK was more than half full in J, but still not as packed as the red eye I flew to ICN the other day. Once again, we all received amenity kits, which were exactly the same as last time except this time we got a more stylish bag designed by Aigner (Etienne Aigner).

We pushed back and I said goodbye to ICN, at least for a while.

Once in the air and the seat belt signs turned off, the crew got moving to serve lunch. Lunch was prefaced with a hot appetiser and aperitifs.


Hot appetiser of fried prawn balls. The resemblance of the served plate to a Paul Frank creation is purely coincidental!

The appetiser plates were cleared, and then the meal trays were offered with the entree. The smoked salmon in this course was OK, but the salad tasted a bit left for dead. And of course, with every meal to and from Korea, you'd be wise to supply some kimchi, if even a little bit.


J Lunch trays with the entree of smoked salmon with salad.

The entree was followed by my selected main, the Korean traditional Bibimbap. If you think what was presented to me looks a little dead, you'd be right. I was rather disappointed with this dish. Yes, I know it's not dolsot bibimbap (which some of you are probably used to ordering at a typical Korean restaurant; the 'dolsot' part denotes the hot stone bowl the bibimbap is served in), but I'd expect that at least the ingredients of this dish were tasty, and they were not. Not sure what is it today with the rather dead tasting ingredients. The rice was also a bit sticky.


Bibimbap main.

After the trays for the mains were cleared, the cheese board and dessert cart were wheeled out to round out the meal. The presentation of the cheese and dessert cart was excellent, but the more I looked the more I started to realise that Thai seemed to have some things "just for the sake of having them". The cheese board was a great example - whilst Thai realises that it's a very Western thing to have cheese after a meal and thus provide a cheese selection, the cheese looked like simple off-the-shelf cheese representing the major groups - cheddar, soft creamy and blue cheese. Nothing spectacular about the cheese that has been given - it's "cheese for cheese sake". The other parts of Thai's service seemed similar.


Cheese and dessert being served from the cart.

I wanted to save my stomach for whatever laid ahead of me (First and more First service to come), so I asked for only a bit of cheese and fruit, but I did make a note to have the dessert, albeit it was a humble slice of cake.


A piece of cheese and some grapes.


Blueberry cake dessert.

When my dessert plates were cleared away, I went to the bathroom for a quick freshen up before dozing. The Thai J bathrooms are equipped with accessories from Salvatore Ferragamo, which I find quite interesting seeing as that is what they also provide for the F passengers too. The accessories were well positioned in the bathroom. You can also get better toothbrush / toothpaste sets in the bathroom compared to the amenity kit. The bathroom's dental kits come in a durable soft plastic container with a closeable cap on top. It's a much sturdier way to carry your toothbrush around and protect it from whatever elements that may be around it.


Inside the TG J bathrooms, featuring accessories by Salvatore Ferragamo.

After finishing in the bathroom, I reclined my seat into the angle-flat sleeping position and dozed pretty much up until we had to prepare for landing. That was a nice solid rest and put a bit back into me in preparation for my long layover in the TG BKK F Lounge.

Before long, we touched down in BKK - an airport I was getting to know all too well - and we docked up at the gate. Now the rest of the day was First service all the way......

MENU

Thai Airways TG659 Royal Silk Class Seoul-Incheon - Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi
21 June 2011


First Serving (Lunch)


Hot Savoury

Prawn balls


First Course

Smoked salmon

Mixed green salad with balsamic vinegar dressing


Main Course

Deep-fried chicken breast with Doo Ban Jang sauce
Steamed Thai Hom Mali rice

Grilled Promfret with Champagne mushroom sauce
Ducheese potatoes, carrot, baby zucchini

Bibimbap

Pork in red curry with eggplant
Steamed Thai Hom Mali rice, green bean


Assorted bread

Crackers

Butter


Cheese and fresh fruits

Dessert

Blueberry Walnut Cake

Tea, coffee, espresso, cappuccino


Second Serving (Pre-landing Snack)

Sandwiches



Drinks


Champagne

Piper Heidsieck Brut Champagne


Red Wine

Domaine Vincent Giradin (2008)

Chateau Fourcas Hosten (Listrac) (2006)


White Wine

Bourgogne Blanc Chardonnay Maximum (2009)

Chateau Guiraud (2009)


Aperitifs

Campari

Gin Martini

Screwdriver

Bloody Mary

Black Russian

Vodka Martini

Warre's Warrior Port


Spirits

Rum

Gin

Bourbon Whiskey

Whiskey

Vodka


Cognac and Liqueurs

Remy Martin XO

Kahlua

Drambuie

Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge


Beers

Heineken

Chang

Singha


Soft Drinks

Fruit juices

A range of soft drinks and diet soft drinks


Beverages

Espresso

Cappuccino

Instant Coffee

Decaffeinated Coffee

Special Blended Coffee

Oolong Tea

Ceylon High Tea

Japanese Green Tea

Chocolate Malt 3 in 1

Current Location: Arrivals Concourse (Airside), Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok, Thailand
Current Time: 1300h GMT+7, 71 hours after getting out of bed

I check my mobile and watch and somehow realise that we've gained a massive 25 minutes on our scheduled arrival. No wonder that flight felt a little fast.

Regardless, I was out of the aircraft when I was greeted by another lady in purple holding a board with my name on it. And she led me to - yep - another buggy, which once again was driven like it was at a demolition derby. The buggy with a woman infused with the spirit of an F1 racer and a plump ABC with his backpack atop of it sped along the hallways as fast as its little electric engine could carry it. We came to a stop at the security checkpoint, which was cleared (too easy) and I was then led to Thai Airways' flagship lounge at its main hub: the Thai Airways Royal First Lounge.


Another buggy taking me from plane to lounge.

Current Location: Thai Airways Royal First Lounge, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok, Thailand
Current Time: 1310h GMT+7, 71 hours 10 minutes after getting out of bed

The TG F lounge at BKK is apparently one of the best in the world, pipping the QF F Lounge in SYD for Skytrax's Best First Lounge award the year after the latter's winning of the said title. It is quite a large lounge that doesn't scream a lot of unique character, but what it does offer is a peaceful haven from what is normally a busy airport (not helped by the airport's "ambience"!) and possibly an even busier city which the airport serves.

As I walked in, I was given a very warm Sawadee by the reception. They invited me to book a massage at the Spa, but after getting my feet pummelled and warped as if it were done by my chiropractor mother-in-law (OK, a bit extreme, but I was tired!), I decided that I'm better relaxing by taking things my pace with my body at ease. They welcomed me into the lounge and invited me to sit in one of the mini lounges.

The TG F Lounge is divided up into two main sets of sections, separated by a spacious hallway. One section is a large, common seating area in the middle of the lounge. The other section is a set of (seven? Can't remember by count) "mini lounges". Each mini lounge is open in nature, separated from each other by a solid wall, and each consists of a set of couches, a coffee table, a television set, and a study table. If you've ever been to IKEA and seen mini display room after mini display room after mini display room, the mini lounges are like that, except they all look the same, of course.

I took my seat at one of the tables and immediately was offered a small aperitif of some sort of juice. They asked me if I would like anything else to drink right now, whereupon I ordered some green tea, which was promptly served from the lounge bar.


The welcoming drink (little wine glass) and green tea.

The lounge was quite empty, with pretty much only me in it. There are plenty of staff who mainly hang out near the bar, ready to be of assistance to anyone (or rather, ready to serve whatever culinary or beverage needs are to be satisfied). The decor of the lounge is not much different to their other lounges, and seems a bit dull, though it does have that traditional touch to it. The "dullness" is probably not helped by the very low lighting maintained in most of the lounge (controllable light level in the mini lounges). A tour of the lounge...




Common seating area of the TG F lounge at BKK.


Basic business centre with a few computers around.

Another shot of the business centre. There are some interesting artworks that decorate the lounge, from wall mounted to sculptures.


Inside of one of the mini lounges.


A "buffet sample" room. You don't actually pick stuff to eat from here, you simply get a preview so that if you want to order it, you can tell someone (or point).


Restaurant area, for those who need a more standard way to have a meal.


Finally, why not have a little mantle to show off your prestigious awards?

At this point, some of you may or may not remember a major event in Australia at this point in time.

Ash cloud invasion on the Eastern seaboard.

My flight back to BNE the next day - a QF J Any Seat Award - was not immune to this, and with the prognosis not good, I was tapping into all my contingency plans. It was great to have a place to plug in my laptop, get some charge into it, as well as work out what to do once I was in SYD. Would I have to stay somewhere? Where could I stay? Should I call a friend? What about the XPT train? What if we were diverted away from SYD?

I tried to quickly call the folks to discuss my movements, and basically sapped up all my credit from the roaming charges, no thanks to my dad overreacting to my explaining my options, his being so stubbornly set that I was going no where near SYD and was going to end up in BNE. *sigh* I've travelled more than you have, Dad, trust me on this one will you........

Anyhoo, as the afternoon rolled in it was getting seriously closer to scheduled departure. I decided on a snack before I thought about a pre-flight shower. I could've had one of the substantial options but then I was wondering what the onboard experience might be, and given that I wasn't in the mood for anything big. I tried to find something from the menu which would be light and interesting, but the menu is so boring in comparison to the other F Lounges I've been used to, most particularly the QF F Lounge! In the end, I decided on some dim sum (siu mai) and a club sandwich, just so I could see how the Thais try to make one. A hot chocolate rounded out the snack.

The siu mai was pretty standard - not hard to do this right, really, and it's not as if they were hand made. As for the club sandwich, it probably pales in comparison to the more Western interpretation, and the egg here was baked / poached rather than fried in many interpretations that I've seen. It sufficed for the task at hand, but it definitely wasn't anything spectacular. Probably looks like an effort at the microwave cafe or greasy spoon.


Steamed siu mai.


Club sandwiches.


Hot chocolate. Pretty dense, but tasty enough.

A little closer now to our scheduled departure, and our flight seemed like it was still going ahead as planned. So now it was time for a shower. I was led to the shower rooms, which are quite large, though apart from the size and possibly a few other bits a pieces here and there, the shower rooms are pretty much exactly the same as the J lounge ones. Same brand of accessories - nothing too exclusive or expensive. The shower seems a bit better, and the basin is made of glass rather than straight out porcelain. More space to swing a cat if that's your thing.






Around the shower room in the TG BKK F Lounge.

As I left the shower rooms, it was getting very close to the start of boarding. I asked one last time if the flight was going ahead and possibly without diversion, of which I was told that all signs at the moment are "business as usual". I didn't have to wait much longer before we were told to go to our flights. There's no buggy service or escort to the gate, so it was a lone hike for me to a very distant gate.

Just as I was about to leave the lounge, my phone buzzed as an SMS arrived. It was from Qantas. My flight SYD-BNE has been cancelled. Well, with no time nor credit to deal with it now, I resigned myself in that I'll deal with it when I land in SYD.

Out of the lounge, I paced towards my gate. Priority boarding was in operation, though about 20% of the plane had already boarded when I'd arrived. Luckily, there aren't many of those travelling in F tonight, so it will matter very little.

MENU

Thai Airways Royal First Lounge Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi
21 June 2011


A La Carte Selection


Menu of the Month

Grilled Fish with White Wine Sauce


Breakfast

Pork Congee

Chinese Doughnut

Boiled Rice with Fish


Selection of Breads

Assorted Pies

Assorted Cakes


Omelette / Scrambled Egg / Fried Egg
with Ham, Bacon or Sausage


Yoghurt

Cereals / Cornflakes

Seasonal Fresh Fruits

Fruit Juice


Snack

Cashew Nut

Assorted Nuts

Potato Chips

Spring Rolls

French Fried

Shrimp Cocktail

Dim Sum

Fried Prawn Cake


Sandwiches

Traditional Sandwiches
Cheese, Ham or Tuna

Toasted Ham and Cheese Sandwiches

Club Sandwiches


Soups

Chicken Soup

Corn Cream Soup

Mushroom Cream Soup

Tom Yum Goong
Spicy and Sour Soup with Shrimp and Lemon Grass

Giew Nam Goong
Shrimp Wonton Soup

Fish Maw Soup


Salads

Garden Salad with Choice of Ham, Shrimp or Chicken

Choice of Dressing

• Thousand Island
• French
• Balsamic
• Thai Herb
• Japanese

Main Course

Phad Thai Goong
Stir Fried Noodles with Shrimp in Tamarind Sauce

Khao-Phad
Fried Rice Shrimp, Chicken or Ham

Grilled Duck with Egg Noodle

Khang Keiw Wan
Green Curry with Chicken, Shrimp or Beef

Fish Fillet in Dried Red Curry

Grilled Pork Chops or Beef - Thai Style

Noodle Soup with Chicken and Shrimp Ball


Continental Dish

Pork Chops

Beef Steak

Fish and Chips with Tartar Sauce

Spaghetti with Carbonara Sauce


Buffet Corner

Assorted Cheeses


Bakery

Selection of Breads

Assorted Pies

Assorted Cakes

Assorted Cookies


Desserts

Ice Cream
Vanilla, Chocolate


Drinks


Coffee

Regular Coffee

Cappuccino

Latte

Espresso

Decaffeinated Coffee


Hot Cocoa

Hot Chocolate

Hot Chocolate Malt


Tea

English Breakfast Tea

Earl Grey Tea

Black Tea

Green Tea

Jasmine Tea

Oolong Tea

Peppermint Tea

Camomile Tea

Selection of Fruit Tea


Juices

Apple

Grape

Guava

Orange

Pineapple

Tomato

Carrot

Mixed Fruit


Soft Drinks

7 Up

Sprite

Coke

Pepsi

Coke Light

Ginger Ale

Soda water

Tonic water


Cold Drinks

Iced Tea

Iced Coffee

Iced Chocolate


Mineral Water

Evian

Perrier


Champagne

Moet & Chandon Imperial


White Wine

Georges Duboeuf Chardonnay (France) (2007)

Cape Mentelle Sauvignon Semillon (Australia) (2008)


Red Wine

Chateau Belregard-Figeac (France) (2004)

Chateau Villa Bel-Air (France) (2005)


Beers

Chang

Heineken

Singha


Aperitifs

Campari

Dry Martini

Martini Rosso


Gin and Vodka

Bombay Sapphire

Gilbey

Absolut

Smirnoff


Rum

Bacardi

Captain Morgan Black Label

Thai Rum Mae Khong


Tequila

Pepe Lopez


Whisky

Chivas Regal

Chivas Regal Royal Salute

Johnnie Walker Black Label

Glenmorangie Single Malt

Jack Daniel's


Cognac

Hennessy V.S.O.P.

Hennessy X.O.


Liqueurs

Amaretto

Baileys Irish Cream

Cherry Heering

Creme de Menthe Verte

Drambuie

Galliano

Kahlua

Malibu


Port and Sherry

Taylor's Tawny

Harvey's Bristol Cream


Classic Cocktails

007
Neutral Vodka, Dry Vermouth, shaken not stirred

Americano
Campari, Sweet Vermouth, topped with Soda

Black Russian
Neutral Vodka and Kahlua

Bloody Mary
Vodka, Tomato Juice

Dry Martini
Dry Gin and Dry Vermouth

Kamikaze
Neutral Vodka, Triple Sec, Lemon Juice and Simple Syrup

Long Island
Dry Gin, Light Rum, Neutral Vodka, Tequila and Cola

Mai Tai
Light Rum, Dark Rum, Orange Curacao, Orange Juice, Pineapple Juice and Grenadine Syrup

Manhattan
Bourbon Whisky and Sweet Vermouth

Margarita
Silver Tequila, Triple Sec, Lime Juice and Simple Syrup

Mojito
Light Rum, Lime Juice, Simple Syrup, Mint Leaves

Singapore Sling
Dry Gin, Cherry Heering, Benedictine D.O.M., Lime Juice, Grenadine Syrup and Soda Water

Whisky Sour
Bourbon Whisky, Lime Juice and Simple Syrup


Wine and Champagne Cocktails

Spritzer
White Wine and Chilled Soda Water

Buck's Fizz
Champagne and Fresh Orange Juice

Champagne Mojito
Light Rum, Lemon Juice, Simple Syrup and Champagne


Non-Alcoholic Cocktails

Fruit Punch
Orange Juice, Pineapple Juice, Lemon Juice and Grenadine Syrup

Sparkling Pine
Pineapple Juice, Grenadine Syrup and Dry Ginger Ale

Flight: Thai Airways TG475 Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi (BKK) - Sydney (SYD T1)
Depart: Sched 1915h; Actual 1918h
Duration: 9 h 5 min
Distance: 4,675 mi (7,524 km)
Aircraft: HS-TNE "Nonthaburi" Airbus A340-600
Class: First
Seat: 2A


I was greeted at the door with another Sawadee as I was shown to my seat. I noticed quickly that the crews on this flight (or at least in the First Class section) seemed much more confident about their English compared to the other Thai crews I've had.

The TG F is a very dated product, with the exception of the leased "suites" on the 77Ws and the new F on the TG A380s. The seats don't look anything special at all, and are not cocoon seats. This is very much like LX old F, though I prefer LX's F rather than TG's since the former seems still "fresh", probably due to the colour scheme. Also, I found LX's old F seats more comfortable than TG's F. Nevertheless, the similarities in both is that the F cabin is kept very small - only 8 passengers, and tonight we were not even going to get that many - in fact, only 2 people in First!




Thai Airways F cabin on the A346.


Leg room shot

The flight started off with a typical pre-flight drink. Of course, I had to select a champagne. The glassware in TG F is quite differently shaped to that in TG J. Each glass also has an unconventional "ridged" feel all around it.


Pre-flight Champagne

Amenity kits and menus were also handed out at this point. The amenity kits in TG F are designed by famous luggage manufacturer Rimowa. The contents are not great, but the best part is definitely the case. Lufthansa had a similar case given to their F pax for a while, but this seems to have stopped. Soft light blue sleeper suits were also offered.


Thai Airways F amenity kits, with case designed and manufactured by Rimowa.

Contents of the F amenity kit.


Thai Airways F sleeper suit.


Menu in traditional looking cover case.

The cabin was secured for take off and we pushed back from the gate. So far, so good. An easy but long taxi out to the runway prefaced our take off from BKK, and a signal that I was finally going home.

Once we were up in the air and at cruise, I had a quick browse of the IFE. The screens are obviously small given the kind of hardware installed at the time of these seats, however at least there were more entertainment options on TG's IFE compared to LX (along with an easier-to-use system as well).


Small IFE screens in TG F.

Soon after, the crew sprang into action to serve the two of us in F. Even though the flight was 9 hours, it was good to eat as quickly as comfortably possible, then get lots of sleep. Aperitif orders were taken, and I opted just for a lemonade. They served this with a small plate of nuts and the hot appetiser of rice cakes. I'm not sure why the plate of nuts was trail mix (including sultanas and a bunch of rubbish nuts), but this was not a good choice. The rice cake appetiser wasn't great; I would've rather had the prawn balls they served on my ex-ICN flight earlier that day.


Aperitif of lemonade.

Nut mix to go with the aperitif. Rather dumb mix if you ask me. If I wanted this I would've asked it to be sided with a glass of milk.


Hot appetiser of rice cakes with prawn. Lame in my opinion.


Table set for my F meal.

So, so far it's not a great start to the meal. But the next part should perk most people up - caviar! I've never had caviar in the air before, so this ought to be an interesting experience. The caviar was wheeled in on a fancy cart which also showed off all the garnishes. A shot of vodka was also offered with the caviar course, albeit it was just Smirnoff vodka.

Conclusion from me? Well, I think caviar is rather overrated. That probably insults and hurts quite a few people, but whilst it was relatively enjoyable, I don't think it's something I'd use as a deal breaker for F class service.

What is interesting is that given that there were only two of us in the cabin, the two FAs serving F Class were able to both be present to serve meals from the carts.


Caviar course being prepared on the meal cart.


Caviar course with standard garnishes. Yes, I know the purists will say there is too much wrong with this picture right now...

Vodka shot to go with the caviar. Vodka straight kicks the back of your throat; an inferior brand like Smirnoff, even more so.

The tableware in F is another evolution from the J tableware, with this "lifted corner" stylistic detail on each plate.


Bread roll to go with meal.

Even the butter could not be saved from being styled...


Fancy knob of butter here!

I finished the caviar course and perhaps regretted not asking for a bit more garnish. Plain caviar doesn't seem to have the beauty or enviable taste that others place on it. My plate was cleared and the entree of tuna and salmon with Nicoise salad was presented.


Entree: tuna and salmon with Nicoise salad.

This wasn't too bad - the two fish present on the plate were tasty, and the salad ingredients were not stale.

Next up was the "soup course", which in this case was a plain consomme. I know that in Asian cultures (particularly Chinese), serving a bowl of clear consomme before a meal is customary and is intended to whet the appetite and aid digestion. But the key to a good soup like that is still flavour - in this case, the flavour obtained from boiling the broth with the meat bones for a long time! I have no idea what they did wrong, but in no way did this soup have any effect except for slightly flavoured hot water with some vegetables floating in it. And it was a huge bowl too! In the end, I had a few sips before I sent it back and asked for my main course.


Consomme soup without any taste. And waaaaaaaaaaaay too big in my opinion

The dull soup was cleared and the main was brought on. To be honest, it was difficult for me to select a main, since I wanted to try something traditionally Thai, but the other options (except for one, perhaps) seemed also quite interesting, albeit I had some sort of lack of faith that they might actually deliver on those dishes. So, in the end I chose the Thai option of the beef curry. Yeah, I could probably get this if I went to a hawker store in Bangkok, but let's see how good they really are here.

The curry was delivered in a separate bowl to the rice and vegetables. The curry was very nice and tasty, the beef cheeks tender. Again, probably could get this in Thailand on the cheap, so maybe something better is expected in a dish for First Class. Still, at least it was tasty, which is more than can be said for even simple dishes in First Class sometimes - no jokes.




"Pa-naeng" curry with beef cheeks, served with Hom Mali rice and vegetables.

I was getting quite full at this point, but after seeing the cheese and fruit wheeled out I thought I had to have a bit of a pick. Thai, again, excel at their presentation on the cart, but that's where the fireworks really end. The fruit was fresh and the cheese was fine. Nothing special about the cheese, just the common stuff you can get off the shelf at your local supermarket or even basic delicatessen - nothing too fancy-schmancy.


Serving from the cheese and fruit cart.


Cheese and fruit selection.

The final course for the night was the dessert of parfait. A nice subdued number to finish things off. Maybe a bit too subdued for some.


Ivory chocolate and tangerine ice parfait.

After finishing the parfait and another glass of water, it was time to hit the sack. I asked for my bed to be made as I got changed and brushed up in the bathroom. The bathroom is again stocked with accessories by Salvatore Ferragamo, and also has those excellent dental kits.




Inside the TG F bathrooms. In the first picture on the right, you can see one of the TG dental kits.

Once I returned to my seat, my bed had been made. This is a fairly average, albeit sufficient, bed. The underlay is a thin one like most airlines. You are not given a thick doona, instead just a light blanket, which at least seemed to do the trick. Pillows are decent sized but not say big and fluffy. Finally, the bed is not exactly fully flat. It probably is at most 5 degrees to the horizontal, or at least it feels that way nearer to the top of the seat. I'm not sure whether this is to follow the theory that a slightly angled seat corresponds to an almost horizontal position due to compensating for the actual angle of the aircraft, but it is something to keep in mind.

You can probably sleep quite comfortably on this bed, as it's still softer than sleeping on a TG J seat, and of course not as angled.


My TG F bed.


Wednesday 22 June 2011


My tiredness must've caused me to get a good solid rest, because it seemed all too short before I felt a slight nudge. I opened my eyes to see the FA greeting me good morning and that breakfast was being served. I asked him how long before landing. "One hour," he said. Damn, no more time for sleep - he was right, time for breakfast.

The first breakfast course after orange juice, water and coffee was the continental opener - cereals, fruits and pastries. Can't fault TG's presentation on the fruit platter. The FAs couldn't help commenting on my affinity for selecting the dragon fruit.


Elaborate fruit platter.


The rest of the continental cart, minus the pastry selection.

My continental starters: some fruits and muesli (nothing special here - it's from a packet).

After the continental options, I decided on the blueberry French toast for the main. Apologies for the bad quality photo, as I was trying to take a photo as we passed over a small bout of turbulence, which kept shaking things up. This was pretty underwhelming, though I'd selected this option instead of the other one, which was a frittata, and I know what my track record is like of having a good frittata on board (i.e. zilch). The bread was a bit rubbery, was pretty much the run of the mill sliced white bread and really nothing special about how the French toast had been prepared. Dare I say it (though with admittedly a better array of tools) I could probably whip up a better set of French toast.

Overall, it was a very ordinary breakfast experience from TG F. I think my breakfast experience I had on FJ J the previous year was far better.


French toast stuffed with blueberries and cream cheese. Pretty underwhelming.

After breakfast was over and another cup of coffee later, we had less than 25 minutes before landing, which meant I needed to get out of my sleeper suit back into civvies ASAP.


My seat after breakfast in bed, on TG F.

Got dressed. Brushed teeth. Washed face. Looking forward to a better shower on the ground, most likely when I get to the QF J Lounge in T3.


SYD Airport in view on our approach.

Current Location: Arrivals Level, Terminal 1, Sydney Airport, Mascot, New South Wales, Australia
Current Time: 0730h GMT+10, 86 hours 30 minutes after getting out of bed

We touched down in SYD without much fuss and pulled up to a gate at T1. Another long hike to immigration later and I was easily cleared even without using SmartGate. Baggage claim was, surprisingly, not as delayed as it normally is, with bags coming out a mere 15 minutes after I'd arrived in the baggage hall. I couldn't help overhearing a mother and daughter travelling together that they were getting concerned about their domestic connection on Qantas. I couldn't help but mention that I was in the same predicament.

We all ended up introducing ourselves and discussing all manner of things travelling. They were headed to Cairns; lucky for me going to Brisbane I have plenty of options, though a lot of them cut down significantly by the ash cloud. We decided to head to T3 together. Once we had our bags (their bags surprisingly not far away from mine, and priority luggage - you got to be kidding me), we cleared immigration quickly (surprisingly not too many people in waiting) and then headed to the Domestic Check-in and Transfer.

Fortunately for the mother and daughter, their originally booked flight to Cairns in the afternoon seemed to be going ahead as scheduled, as they had anticipated that skies should be opening not long after lunch-ish. For me, unfortunately the only option they had available for me on the same day was the last flight of the day, QF556. At least there were seats available in Business, but I shouldn't complain - at least I was getting away on this day, and not tomorrow. All flights were packed, so I was lucky, having had to deal with this so late, that I was able to get a seat. I thanked the CSA for her help, checked my luggage in and proceeded to the security point.

It's so good to be able to pass through security again without having to worry about LAGs. Our shuttle bus was running a little late, but otherwise we were off to T3. Along the way, we chatted with passengers and staff alike about the experiences of operating within the ash cloud (or lack thereof, unless you are NZ, VA or DJ).

Once we arrived at T3, the departure FIDs said all that was needed.


Departure FIDs at SYD T3 - nothing more to be said, really.

At this point, I was resigned that the last flight of the day would be my only option, whilst my accomplices were glad that so far, their Cairns flight looked like it would be going as planned. I should mention that looking around T3 the mood was dead. No people teeming back and forth, no chocked up gate lounges.... no one. This concerned the mother and daughter more than anything, since most of the shops had closed and they wanted to get some breakfast, having not had a decent one on board the TG flight we'd just come off (though they were in Y). Seeing as I really didn't mind, I invited them to be my lounge guests. I told them they could get some breakfast, a coffee or water, a shower and use the wireless internet. The mother thought it was too much for me to do, but I mentioned it really wasn't anything and she and her daughter would be most welcome.

Current Location: Qantas Domestic Business Lounge, Terminal 3, Sydney Airport, Mascot, New South Wales, Australia
Current Time: 0850h GMT+10, 87 hours 50 minutes after getting out of bed

We approached the J Lounge desk and I informed them that I had two guests with me, who they greeted as warmly as they did to me. Even though the ash cloud had sent everything into a mild chaos, there were smiles all around. Whether it was standard service or swapping war stories, everyone was in a good mood, or more correctly, a "oh well, **** happens" one.

The lounge was fairly empty so we managed to get a set of four chairs for the three of us. Some water, green tea, light nibbles and some coffee then populated our small table.

To cut a long story short (because I did spend a lot of time in the lounge - hey, I was waiting for a flight at the end of the day), I basically had a great chat with the mother and daughter, which I preferred to do after such a long journey rather than tend to my messages and reading. They were great company and, like me, looking very much forward to heading to their final destination to meet family. It was so good to actually talk to someone else in person again, apart from airline or airport staff.

As predicted, the ash cloud restrictions began to lift as lunchtime rolled over, and the lounge started to get more and more populated. Flights were slightly delayed and produced a rolling effect, but otherwise operations were all go. The mother and daughter's flight to Cairns was luckily on time, and I said farewell to them and thanks for the conversation. They couldn't thank me enough for allowing them to come with me into the lounge.

MENU

Thai Airways TG475 Royal First Class Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi - Sydney
21 June 2011


First Serving (Dinner)


Hot Savoury

Fried Rice Crackers with Prawn Dipping


Oscietra Caviar with Garnitures


First Course

Grilled tuna and Tasmanian smoked salmon
Nicoise salad with quail eggs


Soup

Double boiled beef consomme scented with sherry wine


Main Course

Tender beef cheeks in curry "Pa-naeng" with peanuts
Steamed duo of Thai Hom Mali rice
Stir-fried pak choy with oyster sauce
Pickled turnip with egg

Stuffed chicken breast with portobello mushroom farce
Australian honey and red wine sauce
Chilli linguini pasta
Roasted vegetables

Seared Australian Mulloway with Nantua sauce
Black squid ink linguini
Roasted vegetables with black pepper

Tiger prawn with soy bean and black mushroom sauce
Stir-fried Healthy noodles with carrot and celery
Combination of chunky Chinese vegetables


Assorted bread and butter


Assorted cheese and fresh fruits


Dessert

Ivory chocolate and tangerine ice parfait with citrus fruit compote

Tea, coffee, espresso, cappuccino


Available Any Time (upon request)


Salmon boiled rice

Yellow noodle soup with garnitures (fish balls and shrimp balls)


Second Serving (Breakfast)


First Course

Fresh fruits

Yoghurt

Cereal


Main Course

Frittata with bell peppers, herb and Gruyere cheese
Pan-fried veal sausage chipolata
Panache of mushroom in herb cream sauce

French toast stuffed with cream cheese and blueberry
Maple syrup
Grilled ham
Baked tomato

Cold cuts platter
Bierschinken
Butcher ham
Salami
Gruyere cheese


Assorted bread, butter, jam, honey

Tea, coffee, hot chocolate


Drinks


Champagne

Veuve Clicquot Rose Vintage (2004)

Dom Perignon Vintage (2002)


Red Wine

Chateau Belgrave Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot / Petit-Verdot (2007)

Nuits-Saint-Georges Pinot Noir (2008)


White Wine

Chassagne Montrachet Le Divin Chardonnay (2008)

Chateau Le Thil Comte Clary Sauvignon Semillon (2008)


Aperitifs

Campari

Gin Martini

Screwdriver

Bloody Mary

Black Russian

Vodka Martini

Warre's Warrior Port

Bristol Cream Sherry


Spirits

Rum

Gin

Bourbon Whiskey

Whiskey

Vodka


Cognac and Liqueurs

Otard 1795 Extra Cognac

Kahlua

Drambuie

Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge


Beers

Heineken

Chang

Singha


Soft Drinks

Fruit juices

A range of soft drinks and diet soft drinks


Beverages

Espresso

Cappuccino

Instant Coffee

Decaffeinated Coffee

Special Blended Coffee

Oolong Tea

Ceylon High Tea

Japanese Green Tea

Chocolate Malt 3 in 1

At this point, I'm still staring at at least another 6 hours or so before I'm on a plane going home. I was thinking of ducking out to Sydney city and possibly calling up a few mates, but I decided that I was so tired that I didn't want to. Out came the laptop and I started working again. I don't know how I was working through even though I hadn't had a remarkable amount of rest (most of my sleep has been on a plane!), but it was happening. Mostly it was taking care of junk, like cleaning up my inbox which had built up since I was away, and making a list of what I had to do when I hit the office.

I managed to work solid through to dinner time. The island dining was on offer tonight, and tonight's selection was a chestnut soup. I remember having a chestnut soup when flying F with QF one time, and I quite liked it, so I put one on order. The resulting dish was delivered, and it was just as good as the first time I'd had it.


Chestnut soup from island dining.

A little later, I decided to indulge my sweet tooth and picked at the cake selection. The cake selection in the QF J lounge is definitely a highlight for me; more often than not the cakes are very nice and go down a treat with a cup of tea, coffee or milk.


Chocolate brownie and sour cherry cake. Delicious.

Current Location: Qantas Domestic Business Lounge, Terminal 3, Sydney Airport, Mascot, New South Wales, Australia
Current Time: 2045h GMT+10, 99 hours 45 minutes after getting out of bed

Boarding time! I was going home!

Or was I?

I waited for the boarding call. There was none. I checked the departure FID - no change in status. But no change in the boarding time either. This isn't good.

Then we get the announcement. We are delayed. Our flight is not immune to the rolling delays today and we are given a new schedule departure about 40 minutes after our original time.

Bummer. If it was any blessing, I was only hoping we could escape before the close of curfew, and so far it was looking possible. With a handful of flights left on the departures board, it would really suck if anyone was left behind tonight.

The servery staff are starting to pack up. They were hoping they'd have an easy night; we're all not quite out yet. Some people take the last morsels of food on the servery, because the staff aren't replenishing any more of the dishes. The bar is effectively closed and some people pour themselves a nightcap from whatever wine is still on the self-serve. For me, lucky the water tap is still on, but all the ice in the ice bucket has melted.

...

Finally, we get a call. My flight is boarding. For real, this time. Finally - I was going home. I tiredly pick up my backpack, say goodbye and good night to the lounge receptionists, then head downstairs to my gate. There was no priority boarding, but I didn't care; the line was moving quickly, just how I liked it.


Flight: Qantas Airways QF556 Sydney (SYD T3) - Brisbane (BNE D)
Depart: Sched 2105h; Actual 2148h
Duration: 1 h 30 min
Distance: 467 mi (752 km)
Aircraft: VH-ZXA "Jervis Bay" Boeing 767-300
Class: Business
Seat: 1F


The passengers certainly helped themselves tonight by scrambling onto the aircraft as quickly as possible so we could all get out of here. After all, the last thing we need is a bit of competition from the other flights and the dubious SYD ATC cooking up the schedules even further than the ash cloud. The plane was pretty much full, with only one seat free in J and I'd be betting my last dollar that there weren't all that many more free seats in Y.

Our long taxi is followed by a smooth take off as we powered home to BNE. Being so late at night, our refreshment was more like a midnight snack. I can't remember what the other option was; all I remember is selecting the burrito and passing up on the bread service. The burrito definitely looks ugly and it was the basic meat and cheese (no beans or other kinds of fillings), but it tasted great. (Don't tell me my judgement is the tiredness talking...)


Refreshment burrito.

I had a little pour of red wine to calm myself down and try to make my body resign to committing to a good night's rest coming up... in a real bed on the ground.

Our approach into BNE was fine, with none of this "BNE ATC won't let us land just yet" BS that seems to be more normal in these last summer months. We touched down a shade after the 11th hour (of the night, that is) and pulled up to gate. My bag was out on the belt pretty quickly after we arrived down at the baggage hall, and they even managed to get priority baggage right, which at this time of night under these stressful circumstances is more rare than you'd ever believe, especially with an almost full plane of passengers.

Called up my family and they were just around the corner to pick me up. A quick ride home ensured and then I was up in my room with my luggage and bag.

I was home.

I was back in my bedroom. With my desk. And a real bed. Not one made from a comfy airline seat, with a thin underlay; no, one with a spring mattress. Not one that angles anywhere between 1 and 15 degrees to the floor; no, this one is fully flat and parallel to the floor. Comfy bed sheets, a sheepskin underneath the cover sheet and a soft quilt on top.

I unpacked the essentials, put my mobile on the charge and climbed in. Sleeping has never felt more comfortable.

Current Location: anat0l's bed, anat0l's bedroom, anat0l's home, Brisbane, Australia
Current Time: 2340h GMT+10, 102 hours 40 minutes after getting out of previous bed on land


Epilogue


So that was my story of how I spent at least 100 hours from one land bed to the next; or, to be more precise, from one (real) mattress to the next one! I think that's it's only befitting that, after having experienced so many different products, that I give a brief review of each of them again. So here they are:

Lufthansa Business (intra-Europe regional, short haul)

The Good

A bit further from the riff-raff and you can disembark first.

The Bad

Not much better service than Y - a slightly better snack, a bit more elbow room. Unless you're after the miles in a program, probably not worth the price differential. The entire plane has no TVs.

The Verdict

Unless you're booking this as a connector at incidental or no extra charge, or if the differential to Economy is very small, then this product is probably not worth it.


Swiss First (intercontinental, long haul) (old product)

The Good

Very warm service by LX. Intimate cabin of only 8 passengers. Excellent food and drink selection; very innovative food choices, and delicious too. If you like a good coffee, you'll love the Nespresso. Nice amenity kits by Bally and sturdy sleeper suits. Decent bedding.

The Bad

Poor IFE selection, very limited - bring something else to entertain you. Breakfast was a bit limited and salty; perhaps a bad catering day, or simply that breakfast, like the rest of Europe, isn't usually treated as a big deal. The seating is not very intimate on its own; the trade off of having fewer people in the cabin is that there are no walls that have to separate people for their own space. This is fine if you're in the old school of thought (and not a weakness in my view), but many others say that after you've done suites everything else is clearly inferior.

The Verdict

A nice alternative to LH if you can't get F seats on the latter. Ditto this assessment if you can't score on SQ F, and even though SQ F has either private suites or a massive seat, plus caviar service and better champagne, the innovative menu on LX definitely makes for a strong alternative. I would be happy to fly LX F any time, and hope one day I can try their new F product (currently on A333 aircraft and on routes that are very difficult to get F seats for).


Thai Business (intra-Asia regional, medium haul)

The Good

You won't go hungry on TG. Meals are quite big. Presentation of meals is really good. Amenity kits even on medium haul flights (and not just overnight flights) is nice. Salvatore Ferragamo accessories in the bathrooms, along with versatile dental kits. Seats have plenty of leg room and are reasonably comfy.

The Bad

Seats are angle-flat, not fully flat. Not a problem for me, since I can sleep on them, but many cannot or will not. Blankets and pillows a bit lacklustre. Food selection is sometimes a bit of a dull choice and not interesting. Drinks selection is pretty much there "because we need it", which actually felt a lot like the food as well - e.g. "we need a cheese selection because people like cheese; it doesn't matter what we pick, we just need cheese".

The Verdict

A perfectly acceptable product for medium haul flights around Asia. If you're not too picky at all, TG will satisfy your expectations without a doubt. Going above and beyond that is asking a bit much. Be patient with the TG FAs, as they are good at what they do but not necessarily at ease with their English.


Cathay Pacific Business (intra-Asia regional, short and medium haul)

The Good

Like TG, you'll rarely go hungry on CX flights, with very filling meals. Great service of meals from a cart. Almost like Chinese / Asian cultural values, FAs will dote on you and be especially concerned if you're not eating! They are very amenable, especially if the cabin is not full. Bathrooms are nicely designed and equipped with Dermalogica products. Seat is comfy, like your arm chair in your lounge at home.

The Bad

Seats only recline to about 150 degrees or so, which is fine if you can picture yourself outside at a pool lying on a recliner. Blankets are a bit thin and pillows small. The meals are a bit rich - have more than 1 or 2 in the same day and you'll probably start to feel a little bit sick (a tip for the status runners). No amenity kits even on overnight flights - I suspect they will only give them out for long haul flights. IFE is loop back on limited channels, so maybe a book or your iPad is a better bet.

The Verdict

For most flights in the CX regional network, CX J will suffice for many. The FAs are courteous. Try the Cathay Delight if you're on board next time!


Dragonair Business (intra-Asia regional, short and medium haul)

The Good

Comfortable seats with decent leg room, especially given a narrow body aircraft with a fairly large J cabin. Meals are sufficient and tasty. In seat power is available.

The Bad

Nothing too exciting with the food - it fills you up in a fairly tasty way and that's all you can hope for. Wine selection looks rather rudimentary. Decor is only a notch up better than, say, the QF and VA domestic J operations; not as elegant as its parent airline CX.

The Verdict

If you're going to get a narrow body aircraft, then you know your comfort will generally take a hit. Nevertheless, KA have done alright in this regard and provide a decent service. If you're planning a run using CX and have a KA option, it's a nice switch of gears if you don't feel like seeing those sea green seats for at least another flight. Like KA, you may need to be patient with the FAs due to English, but they are always willing to help you.


Thai First (intercontinental, long haul) (old product)

The Good

With only 8 seats in the cabin, it is the same style of intimacy as LX - fewer seats in the cabin in exchange for less walls. There's always plenty of food, so you won't go hungry. Presentation of meals on the carts is immaculate. One of the few First Class services in the world to still offer a caviar course. Rimowa amenity kits... well, what can I say... win? Salvatore Ferragamo accessories supplied in the bathrooms. IFE is decent, on demand and a good selection.

The Bad

Most things on Thai's service feel like its there because it has to (similar to my previous remarks). The seat is reasonably comfy (for First standards), and you just might sleep well in it too, considering there is no special underlay supplied when the seat turns into a bed. Menu seems rather boring for a First Class standard. Breakfast was not done very well. Drinks selection is fairly standard; sure, they have Dom Perri 2002, but I'm not a fan. The amenities inside the kit were nothing to write home about.

The Verdict

TG F is the only other F service offered by the Star Alliance to and from Australia besides SQ F. The former is extremely easy to get seats for, so this makes up for the fact that it may be one of the most boring F services in the world (but not necessarily the worst.......)


In the end, I got to experience many products for my huge expenditure of BD miles. By the end I was losing my perception and the delay due to the ash cloud didn't help, but I enjoyed the experience. I added a few more amenity kits to my collection, got some QF SCs and did it all in style.

It's a hard life, but someone has to do it.


Fin

Nice report and thanks for all the photos. I just did a similiar 9 segments trip report on FT too ORD-IAD-FRA-KIX-ITM-NRT-BKK-HKG-ZRH-MUC-ORD mostly in F.

Some questions, how did you get the entire TG F lounge menus ? Did they let you keep it or you just took photos of every page ? I got busted when I try to take it with me, was stopped right by the entrance. I had those non-alcoholic cocktails from the lounge, and I totally forgot the names, thanks to you I can finally add it back to my trip report.

I was there (TG F lounge) back in early December, at that time they were still using Loccitane, I saw that from your photos it had changed to Thann, do they still have shower kit ? It was placed inside the wooden box inside the shower room. When they were using Loccitane, it had 4 little bottles of Loccitane Verbena line, do they have that with Thann in little bottles ? Or just big bottles you can't take it with you ?

I photographed every page. I didn't think about trying to finagle it from the lounge - would seem too difficult.

As far as I can tell, there were only big bottles, so you just use it from there. Nothing L'Occitane that I could remember, unless I bagged it and can't remember where I put it but I'm sure there was nothing too special.

Yes, there is a towel and shaving kit and some other bric-a-brac in the wooden box.

Odd - on departure from BKK I've always gotten an escort to the gate when flying TG F, and a buggy if the gate is a distant one.

Thanks for a brilliant TR, loved every portion of it. Thanks for sharing

That's very interesting trip, amazing idea of yours. But repeating Seoul, BKK is some what is not gr8, I also have some thing like this in my mind to do some journey - a small trip covering all continents, not repeating the same place any where. Of course, in economy or budget planes .. Whenever possible;

Admire your writing report and your patience, taking pics every where etc. would like to see your 1000 hours journey soon, nice 2 meet u here. TC, Cia..