Graduation and first anniversary present!

[NDiddy]

Well after 6 years and countless hours of study Mrs Diddy has finally graduated and coincidentally our anniversary is next month. So what better way to celebrate/reward ourselves than with a USDM redemption. I actually booked this in Feb 2012 and the day has almost arrived. There are some extra flights thrown in to make the itin work but half of the flights are through the USDM booking.

Flight Details

MEL - SYD 16th Dec QF - Y - Citibank PMG
SYD - BKK 16th Dec TG - F - USDM
BKK - HKT 17th Dec TG - J - USDM
HKT - BKK 21th Dec TG - J - USDM
BKK - CDG 21st Dec TG - F Suite - USDM
CDG - ZAG 22nd Dec AF - Y - Paid
ZAG - SPU 22nd Dec OU - J - Paid but very cheap
DBV - ZAG 27th Dec OU - Y - Paid
ZAG - CDG 29th Dec AF - Y - Paid
CDG - MUC 3rd Jan LH - J - USDM
MUC - BKK 3rd Jan TG - F new suite - USDM
BKK - SYD 4th Jan TG - F - USDM
SYD - MEL 5th Jan QF - Y - Citibank PMG

I've been really looking forward to this trip more so for my wife but as a first experience in F of any sort I could not think of a better way to spend 3 weeks with the other half. As always I will try and update this thread with relevant posts and photos to match. Since this is not a work trip, I should be in better shape to do it justice. Horrendously early flight tomorrow to make our connection in SYD but I'm up for the challenge. Will post as we go along and hope you all get to enjoy the journey with us.

 

[NDiddy]

Sorry guys - Internet connection has been woeful over the last few days so the posts will be a bit sporadic until I cand find something a bit more reliable. Nevertheless let's begin


There's a damn good reason they call it OMG o'clock. We were at a wedding last night and only got home at 11:30pm for a 3:00am wake up. A bit bleary but still excited and charged up for the flight. Taxi promptly arrived at 4:15am and it was off to Tullamarine for our QF400 flight to Sydney.


Check In


Hardly a soul in the queue but since we had checked in online we were devoid of any service and had to use the bag drop off process which is unnecessarily complicated. 10 minutes of mucking around waiting for the bag scanner to read the baggage tags and we head for the security line.


Security


One word - LONG - As the picture below will attest. They had one gate open and a line predominantly filled with SYD and Cairns passengers. We were still early so again no biggie. 15 minutes later and we were at the gate.




Boarding


On time (20 mins before the flight) but certainly not the happiest cabin crew working the early shift. Mind you I would probably be the same so I won't hold it against them. There were only 4 pax in J but they all arrived after I boarded so can't comment on whether the priority line was being enforced. Certainly the announcement was for a "come one come all".




Flight


QF 400 - MEL to SYD
Scheduled departure: 06:00
Actual departure: 06:00


Scheduled arrival: 07:25
Actual arrival: 07:10


Seats: 6B &6C


It's been over 5 years since I've taken a QF domestic flight and I must say I was impressed. The seats were very comfy for Y and the leg room was more than generous for this duration of flight. When I checked in online I found that the first half of the plane was booked solid but there was plenty of room in the back. Once on board though it looked like these seats were blocked for the high status FPP's as the first 3 rows (bar ours) only had 1 pax per row. There was a spare seat next to us but really it didn't matter for a 1 hour flight.




Breakfast was simple but effective. Museli, Muffin, Juice and Coffee - Tasty and enough to quell the hungries till we got to Sydney. No major issues on the flight and this has certainly given me the confidence to pick the early AM connection for flights out of SYD on USDM redemptions. Although I still would like to spend a night at the Intercontinental as a pre-holiday kick start.




Overall very happy with the flight and service. Citibank PMG, tick as far as I'm concerned as was happy not to burn further points in J for this and the return SYD-MEL leg.

 

[NDiddy]

I was always nervous about this connection (being non linked) and would have liked to have gone up the night before to avoid the stress but we did have a wedding that we could not miss and I was grateful at being wheels down 15 mins ahead of schedule.

We quickly departed the plane and made our way to the carousel. To our surprise our bags were the first two to come through The gods were indeed smiling on us. We used the train to get to T1 and arrived at check in around about 7:35.

Check In

As expected Y line was enormous with a handful in J and none in the F line. There were 3 very elderly people being looked after by the F check in attendant and I didn't like our chances of being served any time soon and so ended up going to the J check in. I did not realise that Thai used Menzies for their check-in in SYD or anywhere else for that matter. The lady who served us had a badge claiming 15 years of exceptional service which must have all been used up as we certainly didn't get anything more that the stock standard questions: Dangerous goods, boarding 40 mins before, check in closes...you get the picture. A simple good morning would have gone a long way. I was too excited about the flight and wouldn't let this woman get me down so we got our BP's and headed straight for immi and security.

Immi and Security

Immigration was quick but security on the other hand was just insane. Luckily the express passes came in hand and 5 mins later we were doing some TRS claims and duty free before heading to the lounge.

For some reasons the pics are not uploading so I'll leave it here for today and update further when the interwebz starts to play nice. I've just realised there are a lot of photos from the SYD-BKK leg so I'll do my best to get them all up.

 

[smit0847]

Isn't the TG flight SYD-BKK at like 3pm? Why did you get there so early?!?

 

[ozmille]

Isn't the TG flight SYD-BKK at like 3pm? Why did you get there so early?!?

TG476 leaves SYD at 10am

 

[NDiddy]

It took a little longer than expected to get to the Koru Lounge meandering our way through the throngs of people trying to make their flights. I never really appreciated how busy SYD can be. Entering the lounge you're greeted by an interesting setup through the front doors but what I liked better was the Korean Air 747 in the background. It is quite a striking blue that's for sure:






Making our way to the left we were greeted (take note Menzies), had our BP's scanned and made our way to a small 4 chair setup to the right which was a bit quieter than the main area.


A glass of Te Hana Champagne just to start of the morning:




I didn't take a lot of photo's of the drinks/food area but the spread was good and the hot food looked very appetising. I settled for a coffee just to perk up a bit which was your stock standard brew. It surely is one of the best views of the tarmac and you have a clear line of sight of the planes landing from over the water. Didn't see too many large ones come in but plenty of 737's and A320's:




I should have waited for the boarding announcement but I was too eager to jump on board and to sample the Dom pre-flight and from the "ration" stories I heard on other TR's I was keen to get mine.


When we arrived the Economy line was full of parents with kids but we only had to wait 5 mins before we were allowed to board and this was where the real fun started

 

[Simo]

Look forward to more updates.

 

[mella2007]

Looks like a great trip and congrats to Mrs Diddy on her graduation!

 

[NDiddy]

Boarding was via the First class door and I was in my seat 3E/F before the Sawadee trailed of in the cabin. Sometimes I think the photo's/colour decor of Thai don't do F class justice. I found the seat wonderfully comfy and the bed even more so. My tip is if you are flying as a couple, seats 3E/F provide a greater sense of space as all other seats are in front of you.

But the reason we're all here is to hear about the Dom dom dom 2003 Vintage and my first Dom Perignon experience. Utterly brilliant - So much so I think I may have had up to a bottle and a half on the flight. I counted 7 bottles throughout the flight so it looks like all pax were enjoying it:



The seat and cabin - with slippers of course:

 

[NDiddy]

Let's try this again - The cabin:



Amenities Kit with pyjama's:







Oh what the heck - another Dom before take off:

 

[NDiddy]

Flight Details

TG 476 - SYD to BKK
Scheduled departure: 10:00
Actual departure: 10:00

Scheduled Arrival: 15:25
Actual arrival: 15:10

Seats: 3E & 3F

The journey started well and we pushed back from the gate on time. It was a long taxi and wait though and although I can't confirm the exact time, it was probably 30 mins before we were wheels up.

Lunch

Gluttony personified! I'll let the pictures do the talking. Mrs Diddy and I decided to do the table for 2 where one person can sit on the Ottoman and lunch can be had together (thanks for the tip Sam Chui)

Dom & Warm nuts to start of with:



A trio of canapes:



Menu:



Light menu - Just before landing:

 

[NDiddy]

Wine and beverage menu:

 

[NDiddy]

Lunch was a journey in itself and utterly decadent.

Table setting with the basket of breads:



The obligatory vodka to accompany the caviar (take note this is way more than 30ml):



Caviar:



Lobster with garden salad:



The phenomenal lamb:

 

[NDiddy]

Cheese platter:



And to finish off a very tasty blueberry cheesecake:



It was truly a wonderful lunch - very filling and all served with the Thai smile we have come to expect. It was at this point the the Mrs and I decided that a wee snooze was in order and we both slept quite easily for at least a couple of hours.

The second meal was equally as good and just the pick me up for before we landed.

Cauliflower Soup - So good!



Stir Fry:



And another dessert with more than enough Dom:



For our first F experience I was so incredibly impressed. The staff were wonderful, the hard product brilliant and the flight uneventful (just the way I like it). We arrived in BKK and upon leaving the plane saw a sign for the Diddy's to accompany the ground staff towards the buggy for a speedy immi clearance and baggage claim. Didn't take any photo's but I have to say Thai's ground services and truly impressive. 25 mins from disembarking and we were in our taxi to the Princess Pathumwan for a cheeky overnighter and some MBK shopping.

 

[NDiddy]

Currently sitting in the Royal First Lounge and about to leave for CDG. I'll post the BKK-HKT return flight when I log in next. It was an interesting trip back into BKK this morning from HKT. Not sure if anyone read or heard about the Air Berlin issue that occurred last night but the entire airport was closed from about 9.30pm to 5:00am this morning. Unfortunately we were impacted but certainly not to the detriment of making our connection. Till next time

PS: Meanwhile I don't think Mrs Diddy ever thought this would be her experience in her wildest dreams. Thoroughly enjoying being spoilt and loving the present!

 

[zig]

Very impressed with the lunch and a very generous serving of caviar.

 

[markis10]

coughet Airport Emergency Landing: Aircraft Being Diverted After Air Berlin Engine 'Catches Fire' - coughet Wan

News piece on the incident overnight.

 

[NDiddy]

Very impressed with the lunch and a very generous serving of caviar.

Agree with you there zig - they weren't shy with the caviar for anyone. One pax asked for seconds and no issue for the staff.

 

[NDiddy]

Mrs Diddy was very keen to do some shopping at MBK before we headed for HKT and then Europe so we decided to stay at the Pathumwan Princess for the night. We booked the standard superior room online through them and when we checked in found out they had upgraded us to the deluxe which was a nice and welcoming surprise. Just a couple of photos of the room and then it's back to BKK to our trip to HKT.

 

[JessicaTam]

Thoroughly enjoying your TR, and I am looking forward to the next instalment.