Once again, it’s time to travel to (where else but) Japan.
Unlike last time, this trip is in the civility and comfort of Business Class
(as a side note, I should point out that with the previous trip I really can’t
complain given the price). As such, it’s time for the much anticipated (it is
anticipated, right?) trip report)
Beforehand, online checkin went pretty smoothly, with my
preferred seat (3A, both legs) selected and ready to go. A few things I found
quite nice were:
·
An email from Luftahnsa the day before
confirming some of the basic details (times, services onboard etc) along with
the time difference in Tokyo, weather and links to exchange rates.
·
A selection of electronic newspapers and
magazines available for download after check in
·
An email receipt after dropping off my bags
·
Email confirmation of the departure gate
Airlines catch a lot of flack for unreliable web services
connected to the creaking, legacy, systems but in this case it was all smooth
and convenient. The agent/employee who checked my bags was good enough to
remind me I could use the fast track security and which lounge I was entitled
to. Nice for if you don’t travel often and likely to forget some of these
little details.
The “fast track” security at Manchester had quite the queue.
So much so that many of us were being diverted in with the other passengers.
All in all, security didn’t take too long so I wasn’t particularly concerned. I
suspect that if I’d paid extra to use fast track (as opposed to being included
in the ticket), I might have been a little miffed.
I took the busy security as a portent of things to come as a
sign at the Aspire lounge informed me that the lounge was at capacity and no on
the day bookings could be taken. One of the results of this was that there were
no baps for bacon sandwiches out. Turning a disappointment in to an
opportunity, I figured this was the universe telling me to have coffee and
croissant instead of a bacon sandwich (healthy eating is a new years resolution
for me).
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| Breakfast/snack |
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| The view |
Despite around a half hour delay, the flight to Munich was
fairly uneventful. The continental breakfast provided on board was a nice
alternative to the typical greasy, fried breakfast that the English are used
to.
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| Continental breakfast - chocolate muesli |
Paranoid, as ever, my first port of call upon arriving in
Munich was to figure out where the gate I needed was. Second was the Business
Lounge. I wasn’t expecting much but it’s not a shabby lounge and (at least
during the time I was there) it was a quiet, relaxing space. As it turned out,
for most of the time I was waiting, the lounge was almost deserted. I’d heard
that the lounges in Munich tended to fill up at peak time so it was quite a
pleasant surprise to find a nice, quiet space relax in.
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| I am required under international to have a pretzel whenever i come to Germany |
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| Waiting to board -747-9 |
Eventually, it was time to board the flight. I was quite
exited about this part of the journey as I was looking forward to trying ANA
business class and seeing how it compared with Finnair (from last years trip).
From the moment I boarded, I felt like VIP. After taking my seat (which
required shifting the small mountain of amenities), one of friendly and helpful
members of the cabin crew explained the use of the mattress topper (a nice
little addition to make sleeping more comfortable) and offered to store my coat
and hat in the cloakroom. I was also offered a cardigan (as I was wearing a
t-shirt under my coat) which I thought was a nice little touch. The in flight
entertainment offered a number of satellite TV channels (CNN, NHK world and a
sports channel) in addition to a selection of television shows, movies etc –
not that I had much intention of using them, my plan was to catch up on some
much needed sleep later on (same as last time. While a good entertainment
selection is nice, I still prefer making use of the bed to make sure I arrive
well rested).
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| My throne |
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| Pillow, blanket, mattress and slippers |
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| Entertainment selection |
After take off and
maybe ¾ hour in the air it was time for the meal service, beginning with a
pre-meal drink. The cabin crew were knowledgeable about available options and
offered helpful suggestions. For the pre-meal drink, I opted for an Italian red
wine which I was told was one they had specially for year end. For the meal, I
opted for the Japanese option over the western option. There was a sake from
Yamaguchi and a sake from Niigata on the menu, which went nicely with the food.
Interestingly, the flight attendant who was advising the best order to try the
two types told me she is from Niigata even showed me on one of the maps where
the prefecture is (I was curious as I’m still not familiar with the location of
most Japanese prefectures). I was told that a lot of passengers don’t go out of
their way to make conversation with the flight attendants in that way, which I
thought was a shame.
Afterwards, with a full stomach, it was time to get some
shut eye. Comparing the seat/bed to those offered by Finnair, I’d say that the
Finnair seat is more comfortable when in recliner mode as the ANA seat seemed a
little short. In bed mode, I’d say the ANA seat was more comfortable.
I think I was one of the last people to wake up as other
passengers were having their breakfasts. The breakfast/snack service in ANA
business class is “on demand” up to about 2 hours before landing so once I’d
woken up, I was offered the breakfast choices. As with the main meal, I opted
for the Japanese style breakfast. All that was left after that was to prepare
for landing (and make sure my landing/customs cards were filled in properly – a
good timesaver for arrival)
Having travelled to Narita several times, it would normally
be a simple matter to find my bearings and get to Kyle’s. Of course, this time
wasn’t quite so simple I’d travelled to Haneda instead. Fortunately, armed with
a cheap data SIM, the wonders of the internet made up for my lack of
navigational skills and my journey continued. Upon arriving at Kyle’s, I
received the usual warm greeting: “You again?”
We caught up on current events and I gave Kyle his Christmas
present – The 2017 Private Eye Annual (I saw it in a bookshop and immediately
thought of Kyle). It was starting to get late in to the evening (in other
words, my stomach was rumbling) so our next priority was dinner. In all the
years I’ve been visiting Kyle, I’d never been to the Bikkuri Donkey restaurant
near his apartment. Suspending disbelief that we’d somehow managed to ignore
this option before, we had our restaurant choice for the evening. This provided
a perfect opportunity for me to try a “hamburger steak”, basically a Japanese
version of Salisbury steak. It was also my first time eating at a Japanese
“family restaurant”, I’d seen them before in shows like Toradora (the
restaurant that Minorin worked at, that Taiga took Ryuji to in an early
episode) so that was fun.
On to the next day!
