From Canberra to San Francisco

[harvyk]

CBR – SYD

I was originally scheduled to go on QF704, the 9:50 flight from CBR-SYD, however due to the wild winds which had been hitting SE Aus I decided to get to the airport ridiculously early.
So I turned up to CBR airport where the check in girl asked if I’d mind being put onto an earlier flight. I said that’s fine, so she handed me a boarding pass for QF564, the 9:00am flight. The way I figured was it would give me an hour leeway if something went wrong, such as my flight having to circle SYD for 2 hours.
Then the check in girl said some magic words. “Mr Harvyk” you have been given an upgrade… She then went onto say that I had been given an op up into Premium Y. She then handed me my boarding pass where I was allocated seat 24D.
As I was walking away I was thinking about the seating plans for a 747-400, and I realised seat 24D was in fact a skybed seat…
I went up to the QP at CBR and had some breaky. I also guested in my friend who drove me out to CBR airport, as he had never been inside a QP and had always wondered what was behind those doors.
At 8:35 they made the boarding announcement, and on I went. The flight itself was good, it was a 737-400, and there was no one in the middle seat, so I had a bit of elbow room. (I’ll always go window if there is an option).
We got the standard chocolate biscuit and juice for morning tea and before I could blink we where landing in SYD.



SYD – SFO
On landing in SYD I made my way over to the international transfer desk, which is conveniently placed out the front of gate 1 at T3, the gate which QF564 used.
Got down stairs to see the bus waiting and people boarding. Jumped on the bus and went across to T1. I quickly filled in the departure card, and since the check in girl gave me an express card I went through emigration and security in about 2 minutes…
I then went up to the J lounge where they replaced my boarding pass issued in CBR with a new one because “they don’t use the same system as CBR”.
They also confirmed that I was in fact in a skybed seat.

I sat around in the J lounge for a little while and I then went for a walk around the terminal, checking out some of the Duty Free offerings. I at that point in time decided to pre-order my duty free so that I can pick up on return. It’s the first time I’ve done this, since my last few flights I had departed from MEL, and returned into SYD.

At about 1pm I wondered over to gate 8 (about 5 minutes before boarding). I then sat around there for about 20 minutes, and remembered that last time I took this flight they where late boarding as well, never mind, I could endure 20 minutes of the standard airport chairs.
Well being Premium Y I was invited to board fairly quickly, and on I went. 24D was the second seat back from the main front door. I quickly sat down and before I could blink the FA turned up and introduced himself as Ben and offered me a drink. Well as I was feeling a little dehydrated I went with the H2O option. He explained that this was a J seat, but the service was going to be premium Y. I spoke to the Pax sitting next to me where we worked out how much it would cost for us to purchase these seats normally without op-ups and premium Y taking over the J cabin.
Soon after we were in the air, and on our way. Before I could blink Ben was around to get our drink orders. OK, it was time to hit the hard stuff. Within a couple of minutes I was sitting there reclined back listening to music with rum in hand, as far as I was concerned this is the only way to fly.
Soon after I finished my drink the entertainment system came on-line, so it was time to start the endless supply of movies which was going to keep me going.


Dinner was served about an hour later, I ended up having this really nice spicy beef with rice. (I’d love to get the recipe) Ben then kept me going with combinations of Red wine, coke and coffee and snacks in alternating order. To be honest I don’t think I had ever received such great service and this includes the times I’ve flown J.
After quite a few movies I decided I’d try and get some sleep, but given it would have only been about 7pm back at home my body said who was I kidding, so I switched to the TV shows they had available.
I changed the recline on the skybed quite a few different times and changed to the map channel. Before I knew it (and once the earphones came off, giving me an appreciation on how well their noise cancelling works) I dozed off and that was me done for the next few hours.
Woke up with about 2.5 hours to go and decided now was the time to fill in my arrivals card.
Breakfast was served shortly afterwards where I had the eggs and sausage, which again was very tasty, coupled with fresh OJ (well out of carton, but same brand I buy for home, and obviously only brought a few hours before we took off) and a couple of coffees.
Soon after we descended into SFO and before we knew it we had landed.
Since we where the only flight which had landed at that time, and it was mainly non US citizens onboard they opened up half the US arrival desks to visitors as well, which meant I waited in line for no more than about 5 minutes. It took the whole of two minutes to get through US Customs, that included taking my fingerprints (although only on my right hand) and having a laugh with the customs guy about how I’m having to supply the Americans with Tim Tam’s because Arnott’s won’t do it.
I then walked over to the baggage carousel where my bag was already sitting there waiting. I then picked it up and walked over to the quarantine line where the guy commented how much of an art form I had got spinning around my small suit case so I could push it past. The guy then directed me out the front door and I then wondered up to the airport shuttles. I couldn’t believe it, from leaving the plane to walking out the front door of SFO was under 15 minutes.

Day 1
I found a shuttle van which would take me to my hotel, the annoying thing was after I boarded it then went around to T1, T3 and International G concourse and waited about five minutes at each place to have no one jump on board. Soon after it was dropping me off at my hotel and despite the fact that I was early, they said me room was ready and let me check in and go up to the room. Time for a much needed shower.
After that I wondered down and got some lunch, and realised that I actually remember my way around San Francisco (last time I didn’t go anywhere without a map in my back pocket, this time I was wondering around feeling very confident that I knew where I was.)
After some lunch I then found a tour bus which took me the scenic way down to Fisherman’s wharf. I wondered around the road a bit to see if I could get either a photo of Alcatraz or the golden gate bridge, unfortunately fog city was living up to its name. I have a sort of photo of Alcatraz, and I didn’t even bother with Golden Gate. I then wondered back to Pier 39 where I purchased a few souvenirs for the family back home, I then brought fish and chips (yes I found a place which not only had fish and chips, you could order it by name) and then wondered over to see the seals which live just off the edge of the pier.
After that I took a taxi back to my hotel and called it a night.

 

[straitman]

CBR – SYD

I was originally scheduled to go on QF704, the 9:50 flight from CBR-SYD, however due to the wild winds which had been hitting SE Aus I decided to get to the airport ridiculously early.
So I turned up to CBR airport where the check in girl asked if I’d mind being put onto an earlier flight. I said that’s fine, so she handed me a boarding pass for QF564, the 9:00am flight. The way I figured was it would give me an hour leeway if something went wrong, such as my flight having to circle SYD for 2 hours.
Then the check in girl said some magic words. “Mr Harvyk” you have been given an upgrade… She then went onto say that I had been given an op up into Premium Y. She then handed me my boarding pass where I was allocated seat 24D.
As I was walking away I was thinking about the seating plans for a 747-400, and I realised seat 24D was in fact a skybed seat…
I went up to the QP at CBR and had some breaky. I also guested in my friend who drove me out to CBR airport, as he had never been inside a QP and had always wondered what was behind those doors.
At 8:35 they made the boarding announcement, and on I went. The flight itself was good, it was a 737-400, and there was no one in the middle seat, so I had a bit of elbow room. (I’ll always go window if there is an option).
We got the standard chocolate biscuit and juice for morning tea and before I could blink we where landing in SYD.



SYD – SFO
On landing in SYD I made my way over to the international transfer desk, which is conveniently placed out the front of gate 1 at T3, the gate which QF564 used.
Got down stairs to see the bus waiting and people boarding. Jumped on the bus and went across to T1. I quickly filled in the departure card, and since the check in girl gave me an express card I went through emigration and security in about 2 minutes…
I then went up to the J lounge where they replaced my boarding pass issued in CBR with a new one because “they don’t use the same system as CBR”.
They also confirmed that I was in fact in a skybed seat.

I sat around in the J lounge for a little while and I then went for a walk around the terminal, checking out some of the Duty Free offerings. I at that point in time decided to pre-order my duty free so that I can pick up on return. It’s the first time I’ve done this, since my last few flights I had departed from MEL, and returned into SYD.

At about 1pm I wondered over to gate 8 (about 5 minutes before boarding). I then sat around there for about 20 minutes, and remembered that last time I took this flight they where late boarding as well, never mind, I could endure 20 minutes of the standard airport chairs.
Well being Premium Y I was invited to board fairly quickly, and on I went. 24D was the second seat back from the main front door. I quickly sat down and before I could blink the FA turned up and introduced himself as Ben and offered me a drink. Well as I was feeling a little dehydrated I went with the H2O option. He explained that this was a J seat, but the service was going to be premium Y. I spoke to the Pax sitting next to me where we worked out how much it would cost for us to purchase these seats normally without op-ups and premium Y taking over the J cabin.
Soon after we were in the air, and on our way. Before I could blink Ben was around to get our drink orders. OK, it was time to hit the hard stuff. Within a couple of minutes I was sitting there reclined back listening to music with rum in hand, as far as I was concerned this is the only way to fly.
Soon after I finished my drink the entertainment system came on-line, so it was time to start the endless supply of movies which was going to keep me going.


Dinner was served about an hour later, I ended up having this really nice spicy beef with rice. (I’d love to get the recipe) Ben then kept me going with combinations of Red wine, coke and coffee and snacks in alternating order. To be honest I don’t think I had ever received such great service and this includes the times I’ve flown J.
After quite a few movies I decided I’d try and get some sleep, but given it would have only been about 7pm back at home my body said who was I kidding, so I switched to the TV shows they had available.
I changed the recline on the skybed quite a few different times and changed to the map channel. Before I knew it (and once the earphones came off, giving me an appreciation on how well their noise cancelling works) I dozed off and that was me done for the next few hours.
Woke up with about 2.5 hours to go and decided now was the time to fill in my arrivals card.
Breakfast was served shortly afterwards where I had the eggs and sausage, which again was very tasty, coupled with fresh OJ (well out of carton, but same brand I buy for home, and obviously only brought a few hours before we took off) and a couple of coffees.
Soon after we descended into SFO and before we knew it we had landed.
Since we where the only flight which had landed at that time, and it was mainly non US citizens onboard they opened up half the US arrival desks to visitors as well, which meant I waited in line for no more than about 5 minutes. It took the whole of two minutes to get through US Customs, that included taking my fingerprints (although only on my right hand) and having a laugh with the customs guy about how I’m having to supply the Americans with Tim Tam’s because Arnott’s won’t do it.
I then walked over to the baggage carousel where my bag was already sitting there waiting. I then picked it up and walked over to the quarantine line where the guy commented how much of an art form I had got spinning around my small suit case so I could push it past. The guy then directed me out the front door and I then wondered up to the airport shuttles. I couldn’t believe it, from leaving the plane to walking out the front door of SFO was under 15 minutes.

Day 1
I found a shuttle van which would take me to my hotel, the annoying thing was after I boarded it then went around to T1, T3 and International G concourse and waited about five minutes at each place to have no one jump on board. Soon after it was dropping me off at my hotel and despite the fact that I was early, they said me room was ready and let me check in and go up to the room. Time for a much needed shower.
After that I wondered down and got some lunch, and realised that I actually remember my way around San Francisco (last time I didn’t go anywhere without a map in my back pocket, this time I was wondering around feeling very confident that I knew where I was.)
After some lunch I then found a tour bus which took me the scenic way down to Fisherman’s wharf. I wondered around the road a bit to see if I could get either a photo of Alcatraz or the golden gate bridge, unfortunately fog city was living up to its name. I have a sort of photo of Alcatraz, and I didn’t even bother with Golden Gate. I then wondered back to Pier 39 where I purchased a few souvenirs for the family back home, I then brought fish and chips (yes I found a place which not only had fish and chips, you could order it by name) and then wondered over to see the seals which live just off the edge of the pier.
After that I took a taxi back to my hotel and called it a night.

harvyk,

A good read thanks.

What was the name of the Fish & Chip shop (and/or where) on Pier 39 as I'll be there in a few weeks:?:

 

[Slats7]

Great trip report so far! Nice work with the upgrade, well done

 

[harvyk]

I don't remember which place on Pier 39 it was, but there is a big sign out the front that says "Fish and Chips". It's near the entrance and hard to miss.

Also Qantas gave me a phone call and offered a free upgrade to premium Y for my flight back home. They let me pick out a seat, and again I'm in a sky bed on the way home...

Not bad considering I booked and paid for discount Y (an un-upgradeable Q \ O fair each way)

Considering this is the third (unprompted) upgraded flight I've done with QF in the last couple of months I can't complain...

 

[straitman]

I don't remember which place on Pier 39 it was, but there is a big sign out the front that says "Fish and Chips". It's near the entrance and hard to miss.

Thanks anyway. I'll try and find it.

Also Qantas gave me a phone call and offered a free upgrade to premium Y for my flight back home. They let me pick out a seat, and again I'm in a sky bed on the way home...

Not bad considering I booked and paid for discount Y (an un-upgradeable Q \ O fair each way)

Considering this is the third (unprompted) upgraded flight I've done with QF in the last couple of months I can't complain...

Congratulations.

 

[harvyk]

hey straitman,

The place is called "Hook & Cook". It's in the second building on the left just after you go past the entrance to Pier 39

A box of fish 'n' chips and a drink cost me about $10, but (IMHO) there would have been enough for 2 people.

 

[straitman]

hey straitman,

The place is called "Hook & Cook". It's in the second building on the left just after you go past the entrance to Pier 39

A box of fish 'n' chips and a drink cost me about $10, but (IMHO) there would have been enough for 2 people.

Excellent thanks.

 

[harvyk]

Day 2
Started the day nice an early with 7am meeting around the corner from my hotel. That finished about 9:30am where I then went back to my hotel. Something I have noticed is jet lag hits me like a ton of bricks always on day 2, so I deliberately didn’t have anything planned for the rest of the day (apart from dinner). Did a "time zone adjustment sleep" (and I know it works because now on Day 3 my body clock is obviously adjusted) and woke up again about 3:30 and did a few email work type things (the reason why I’m here), until about 7pm where I went to meet a friend for dinner.

The place we went to was an alley called Belvin Alley. This is an alley which during the day I wouldn’t have thought much of, but at night it lights up like nothing I’ve ever seen before… The alley had 8 different restaurants, after we walked up and back checking out the menu at each place we decided to stop at the second restaurant called Landmark. Starting off with a very nice bottle of red, we could smell some amazing aroma’s. We asked the owner (who was wondering around and very friendly) what was that we could smell… It turned out to be the smoked chicken (which is what I ended up getting). Again the portion size was huge, and tasted absolutely amazing. Strongly recommend dinner in Belvin Alley at least once if you visit San Francisco.

After dinner we wondered around, and ended up at a whisky bar. I don’t remember the name (hey I had downed half a bottle of red by this stage) however I’ll see if I can find out what it was called. Anyway here its claim to fame was whisky sours, which is a drink I had never had before, but I thought I would try one… then two… then three… Yes I quite enjoyed them, although I was told that apparently this place does them better than anywhere else in San Francisco, so I’m reluctant to turn it into my drink of choice.

I then wondered back to my hotel and called it a night

 

[straitman]

harvyk,

Are you staying Down town or in the Fisherman's Wharf area and which hotel?

 

[harvyk]

China town (down town), at "Grant plaza" on the corner of grant and pine.
It's pretty central, with most things only a block or two away, inc cable cars and decent places to eat, and it was also pretty cheap, around A$120 a night for a queen room.

The rooms themselves are basic, but clean, with own bathroom, flatscreen TV and a desk, and a fan which is quite nice considering it is also quite warm right now.

My only two gripes is a. it's internet is very unreliable, and b. To make the booking I used a different CC to the one I brought across with me, the CC I used from home had lots of money in it (which was untouched), the one I brought didn't. It just meant that A$700 was charged (inc money put on hold) on the CC I brought across with me which pretty much wiped out the card until I got more money tranferred into it.

 

[straitman]

China town (down town), at "Grant plaza" on the corner of grant and pine.
It's pretty central, with most things only a block or two away, inc cable cars and decent places to eat, and it was also pretty cheap, around A$120 a night for a queen room.

Ta.

We have booked at Fisherman's Wharf as I had some free nights from a Priority Club promo earlier in the year.

 

[Skyring]

Strongly recommend dinner in Belvin Alley at least once if you visit San Francisco.

You should let Qantas Insiders know about this.

I'm planning a trip including a night in SF in October, and Belvin Alley sounds EXACTLY like what I want. Atmospheric rather than stratospheric.

There's a Fish and Chip shack near the entrance to Pier 39. It has open sides and fairly rustic decor. But I've had one of the great meals of my life there with a seafood basket, chips and a root beer. The view, the bustle, the tourists, the atmosphere - it's tremendous.

Congrats on the upgrades, btw. That's awesome!

 

[harvyk]

Day 3
OK, so today was a day of meetings and work. (the reason I went over there), nothing overly special happened today. Went out to the “Irish Bank” for some beers and dinner that night. I thought it was a good place to meet with friends as you could actually hear each other. Also they had outside seating which was very nice on the warm night.
Day 4
Today I spent the day catching up with friends. That night I went out to a restaurant called Tai Chi which is on Polk St (about a $10 cab ride from down town). I ended up having the curried chicken, which was beautiful. I was then taken out on a pub crawl by of friends, so I can’t really say where I ended up.
Day 5
Ok, so today the touristy things started again, after a very late start we drove across the Golden Gate bridge. Unbelievably it was not covered in fog which is common for San Francisco this time of year. In fact it’s possible for people to visit SF and never actually get to see the bridge because of the fog which lingers all day. We then continued to Sausalito, which is a small town on the other side of the bay. We stopped for lunch there at a restaurant (the main street was filled with them) where I had the salmon fettuccini. Surprisingly this was the first serving size which I would consider “normal”.
After lunch we walked down the main street a bit and went into a few stores (where I brought a great t-shirt “Alcatraz Dig – Dash – Dive Triathlon, 100 yard dig, ¾ mile run, 1.3 mile swim”) we then drove back to SF via the mountains to the east of the freeway, which overlooked the Golden Gate bridge. We were able to get a few photos in, stopping about every mile to see the bridge from a slightly different angle, knowing that before too long we (or the bridge) would be in fog. Whilst driving around there we came across an old army bunker, the interesting thing with this place is that they removed the guns from it in 1943, basically the year the US entered world war two…
We then drove down to the Golden Gate bridge lookout, and took some more photos of the bridge and Alcatraz. We then drove around San Francisco Park. My friend was a little disappointed that we couldn’t go into the park itself, however there was a concert there, so each entry road was closed with security ensuring everyone who passed had tickets for the event, sadly we did not.


After some driving around, and getting slightly lost, we found ourselves on Lombard St. This is the famous street which twists itself up San Francisco’s second steepest street. Apparently it’s not actually the steepest hill in SF as is commonly believed. It’s the street which is often shown in movies when they want to show how steep the hills in SF are.
Finally we went and got a drink at a place called Shanghai Kelly's which is on Polk St. We had a few rounds and then it was time to catch a taxi out to SFO.

 

[harvyk]

SFO – SYD
OK, pulled up outside the international terminal, and wondered inside to find out which sets of check in desks Qantas was using, according to the screen it was desk 8. Well when I got to 8 it would have been hard to miss that it was a Qantas desk, there was Qantas signage everywhere.
Saw the line for non-status Y pax. It was at this point I was glad that I was both not flying Y, and had status. Went to the “line” for Y+, J, F, QP, SG, WP and I was the only one there… Went up and collected my boarding pass, 24D once again, so again (although expecting it this time) I was going to be flying back in a skybed.
Security was a breeze as there was only 10 pax in line, and two x-ray machines going. I was through there in less than 5 minutes. I went up to the JAL “Sakura” lounge to get what I thought was going to be a snack given lunch was a long time ago and it was still going to be 5 hours before we would be fed on the plane. I wondered up there, and after going down this very long corridor which felt more like an office than an airport I was very disappointed. There was a little bit of booze, some “cookies” and bags of crisps, and not much of anything. I hung around there as I had poured myself a drink, about 20 minutes later a lady came by and dropped off a tray of sandwiches, which went in about 2 minutes. I decided my “dinner” of half a sandwich was not going to keep me going for the next 4 and a bit hour I went down stairs again. I personally believe JAL missed a perfect opportunity here to really play up Japan (via food) to convince us that Japan should be our next destination after Australia.
SFO is divided into two concourses, “A” and “G”.” A” seems to be mainly star alliance such as NZ and UA. Interesting “G” is used by One World as well as Virgin America for their domestic flights. I’d guess that 70% of the flights leaving the “International” terminal that night where actually domestic US flights. “A” and “G” share the same building but use two different security areas with no connections between them, so I can’t speak about “A”.
I wondered up and down “G” for a little while just looking at finding something quick. Interestingly enough there are no fast food or take away places in the concourse. There are a few duty free stores, a candy store, a sandwich place and a few restaurants \ cafes which used table service. I ended up going to the Firewood Grill where I got a half decent hamburger \ fries and a drink for $15 which included tip. I wondered around the duty free stores and then wondered back up to the JAL lounge where I got out my laptop and checked my emails and had a drink. No more food had arrived which both did and didn’t surprise me. Before long we were told over the PA that the plane was ready for boarding. I wondered down to see that they were already boarding the back rows of Y. I jumped in line and soon enough I was sitting in my seat. After about 20 minutes the pilot come onto the PA and said we were actually ready to depart, but because of the curfew in Sydney we had to simply sit on the ground and wait.
After a little while we were being pushed back and where on our way – almost. It took us nearly for ever to taxi from the gate out to the run way, crossing over other run ways, and taking interesting path which also involved “pushing past” other aircraft. Soon enough I heard that wonderful sound of the engines roaring into life and up we went. I don’t know if they climb at a higher rate out at SFO because I was being pushed into the seat like I had never felt before.
Before too long the entertainment system came into life, and they were serving dinner. I ended up having the chicken cacciatore which again was very nice, and a peach muffin. I settled back and put on a movie. When the movie ended I felt very sleepy and turned the seat into a bed and then slept for the next eight hours, which is a record for me sleeping on a flight. Woke up with about 3 hours to go, I was going to put on a movie, however I just couldn’t get into it, so I decided to put on one of the TV shows that Qantas offer. Soon afterwards they turned the lights back on in the cabin and where walking down the isle offering breakfast. This time it was bacon, mushrooms and egg frittata, coupled with a blueberry muffin, fresh OJ and coffee. They wondered down a second time to see if anyone wanted a second muffin (which I did). After breakfast I paused the TV (as the first episode had ended and it hadn't launched into the second. I filled in my arrivals card and was annoyed that I had to tick yes to number 6 as according to the express card it meant I couldn’t use it. With the arrival cards filled in I continued watching the TV for another 45 minutes. About half way through the second officer got on the PA and explained that we had to slow down thanks to the curfew at SYD (you could tell this crew hated the curfew) and whilst we would have been slightly earlier to our scheduled arrival time, we would now be slightly later. I changed to the map channel to watch us coming into land, and listened to the radio. A short while later they came around to take the head sets, and a very short while later we landed at SYD.
Being virtually next to door one, we where one of the first to get off the plane. I wondered over to the duty free and picked up my pre-purchased duty free, which was a great way of doing it. There was no line and I didn’t have to wonder around looking for the stuff I wanted to buy. I walked over to the Immigration line where I asked if answering question 6 precluded me from using the express line, at least for this part of the process, I was told yes that’s not a problem however as I have an E-Passport I could use the smart gate. I had forgotten they had just installed it at SYD (it wasn’t there in June when I last used SYD T1) that took me about 5 minutes to get through and I wondered over to pick up my bags. Thanks to the business tags my bag was one of the first to come out. I then walked over to quarantine and told the guy what food I had in my bag. He said they didn’t care about it and they stamped my arrival card with a green stamp and told me to go down one of the express lanes. Unfortunately I picked the wrong one as there was a CX flight crew all needing to get their bags x-rayed in front of us. Lucky the AQIS girl saw this and removed the rope and said “this doesn’t look very express to me, here out you go” and with that she took the arrival card and directed us towards the door.
With that I then walked over to the transfer desk (down the various corridors) where I again could virtually skip the queues and handed my boarding pass over. With that they took the bag directed me towards security which took no longer than 30 seconds and I then joined the line to board the bus which was waiting ready to go.

SYD – CBR
I turned up at T3 and went straight up to the QP for a shower. After the shower I had a little bit of time before boarding so I went and grabbed a coffee. For those who don’t know, the SYD QP has barista coffee on weekday mornings, which went down a treat. Just as I was finishing my coffee I heard the boarding call for my flight QF787. There was no lines, so I handed my boarding pass over to the girl who instantly said “LA?” to which I replied “San Fran”. The green boarding passes (and my passport in one hand, duty free in the other) must have given it away. On I went and before too long we were on our way home. After taking off from 34R (the “third runway”) we did three right hand turns, which was interesting as it meant we flew out to sea and then down along the coast. In fact it wasn’t until the last half of the flight that we actually turned back inland. With that we landed at CBR, taxied to a aerobridge, which the CSM made several comments about (I got the feeling he using an aerobridge in CBR is a bit of a novelty for him). Soon after we where disembarking from the plane and in the terminal. I put the US shrapnel into the change for good bin and made my way downstairs to collect my bags. Sure enough there it was ready to go, and with that ended my US trip.

 

[harvyk]

Would I recommend San Francisco as being a good place to visit? Yes, San Franciscans are very friendly people, there are loads of bars, clubs and other hidden gems across the city, and there are loads to see and do.

My personal highlight from the trip was seeing the Golden Gate Bridge. I have seen photos of this bridge in just about every travel agency I’ve ever been too since I was a small kid (which was fairly frequently as both my grandmother and my aunty used to work as travel agents). It’s been (at least in my mind) a symbol of a faraway place which for so long was unreachable, so to actually see it and drive over it (twice) was something pretty special.

 

[Skyring]

SIGH

Thanks for that. I stand against my taxi in the cabyard at Canberra airport, watching the planes take off and land. I thoughts go with the silver birds as their lights diminish in the sky over Mount Ainslie. Much as i love Canberra, heaven is where those lights lead, and next month I'll be coming home from San Francisco. Fort Mason, cable cars, bike ride over the bridge, lunch in Sausalito...

My travelling companion will be taking an AirNZ flight back to New Zealand, and if I'm travelling Qantas, then I'm wondering if I'll be able to guest them into a lounge. Separate concourses, and separate security, you say?

 

[harvyk]

That is correct, also I just realised I mixed up "A" and "G". "A" is the one that OW use, and "G" is the one *A use.

Also I personally think that missing out on the JAL lounge is not that much of a loss. It was certainly no QP, the food may as well been non-existent and the seating was limited. It still had some free booze, albeit limited to spirits, and I don’t remember seeing any wine or beer.

I don't remember exactly what time NZ flies out from SFO (there where departure and arrival screens for both concourses in concourse “G”, but I'd almost suggest after you and your friend check into your respective airlines I'd go to one of the restaurants in the main hall keeping an eye on the length of the security lines for both “A” and “G”.

 

[Flashback]

Also I personally think that missing out on the JAL lounge is not that much of a loss. It was certainly no QP, the food may as well been non-existent and the seating was limited. It still had some free booze, albeit limited to spirits, and I don’t remember seeing any wine or beer.

I don't know... that sounds a lot like a QP to me :mrgreen:

 

[harvyk]

I don't know... that sounds a lot like a QP to me :mrgreen:

Yeah, but QP just seem to do limited food, seating and booze in a much more classy way...

I'll put it to you this way, if I was not QP and only had a single use guest pass, I'd be asking for my pass back if I had gone in there last night.

For me personally it was the no food aspect which really got to me...

 

[parsonstrish]

Thank you for your report, my first time through SFO next month. Found your comments insightful. Hearing abt. the lounge, I may just book the hotel room one extra nite and leave a couple of hrs. prior to boarding.

You wouldn't remember what area where belvin alley is, would you?

Good report,