(mini)Trip report to Perth for the footy

[Justinf]

so not having missed a game all season and being a long suffering Richmond supporter for 40 years, I am enjoying the ride that 2017 has brought to us.
A few weeks ago I decided that I couldn't miss the Fremantle vs Richmond game, the penultimate game at Subiaco Oval.
Having written a few Lonely Planet books on WA, it holds a special place in my heart and I love going to Perth. The game was a Sunday arvo game.
I booked a flexi fare on QF485 leaving at 9.05am on the Saturday and immediately put in for a points upgrade and it was granted straight away at a cost of 10,000 points. Managed to secure seat 2K at T80. Rows 2 and 4 on the A330-200 are the best seats with the seat being right on the window and the 'divider' thingy separating you from aisle.
I booked a normal economy fare for the return flight on QF772 on the Monday leaving at 10.10am. I submitted an upgrade request, but it wasn't immediate so I would have to take my chances.

 

[Justinf]

With an early start it was into the car at 6.30am and a quick 75 minute trip to A1 Airport Parking and a quick shuttle to the terminal.
Once again I kept my impeccable record of being tested for explosives at security.
Popped into the MEL J Lounge for some bircher museli and a coffee when it was announced that the flight was delayed due to the catering not having been loaded.
The lounge was its usual boring self and I just wanted to get going.
I left and wandered around the terminal for a bit.
Finally, just after 10am we commenced boarding.
Water or a grape style juice was offered pre take off.



Due to strong headwinds, flight time was announced at 3 hours and 50 minutes. Good. The longer the better when you're sitting here.



I can't say I was too inspired by the menu.



IFE was very limited. Really only two movies I wanted to see. Decided on Guardians of the Galaxy 2.



The load in J was fairly full. I think there were only two spare seats. One loo for 28 J pax seems a little light on.

 

[Justinf]

The first hour of the flight was VERY bumpy. Turbulence was a real problem. So much so, that the FAs had to take their seats for a good 45 minutes. It was the worst I can remember for a long time.
FInally the service started and I chose the Danish, which was quite ordinary.



I was quite peckish so opted against the eggs and went for the 'chicken and bacon' sandwich. It was OK, but lacking something. A bit of extra oomph perhaps. It resembled something from a short haul domestic J snack.





Presumably because of the time of day, there was no drinks service.
Dessert was rather unsubstantial. This was not much bigger than a 50 cent coin.

 

[kermatu]

May be no drinks service, but one can always ask for a Bloody Mary...

 

[cove]

I was there as a Fremantle Dockers supporter and two of our six tickets went to Richmond supporters. The Dockers were no match for Richmond this time. We may have seen the Brownlow winner of 2017 play for Richmond in that game.
We are going to Melbourne for a long weekend tomorrow so we can see some round 23 games. Can the Dockers lose a third game in a row by 100 points to lock Essendon into the final eight?
I think we will have breakfast in the Perth J lounge as the onboard meal can be a bit of a let down.
Should be a quick flight PER-MEL with a strong tail wind.
We regularly get tested at security so we get used to it

 

[cove]

Congratulations on getting the upgrade fairy to work her magic.

 

[Major]

The food offering doesn't look very inspiring for the J cabin,but I bet you enjoyed the weekend.

 

[Pushka]

The food offering doesn't look very inspiring for the J cabin,but I bet you enjoyed the weekend.

Agree. While not as bad as in Y it certainly doesn't look like a J brekky on a long flight.

 

[Justinf]

After a fairly lacklustre meal, I decided that even though there was no drinks service, that it was my right to sample the wine.
I've forgotten what it was but I chose a chardonnay, which was quite nice.


Guardians of the Galaxy 2 was excellent. One of the few sequels that I have enjoyed better than the first movie.
At the halfway point at around two hours, the turbulence had settled down and I noticed quite a few passengers had put their seat into full lay flat bed mode and had bunkered down for a nap.
I'm sure most of you have flown J on the A330, but rows 2 and 4 on the window mean that your feet don't have to fit into a 'cubbyhole' to lay flat. For someone like me who is 184cm (not overly tall, but slightly taller than average), these seats are fantastic.






I wasn't ready for a nap and decided that more wine was on the agenda.
I decided to save Kong Skull Island the movie for the trip home as there wasn't anything else I wanted to watch.

 

[Justinf]

I'd flown the Transcon J flight on VA before and a few A330 flights MEL-SYD on QF, but I was really enjoying the hard product this time.
I decided that with nowhere to be and nothing particular to do once in Perth for the day, that why shouldn't I be served wine while laying down? I'd moved onto the shiraz by now and was feeling no pain.



After four glasses of wine I decided it was best to stop and tried to get some sleep, but it was futile. I wasn't that tired, but laying down and resting was very nice.

 

[Justinf]

My thoughts on the flight was that it was a very pleasant way to spend four hours.
Before long we had made our descent in Perth and the surrounding area was very green thanks to the rain they had experience in the past few weeks.





Flight time was four hours and 10 minutes.
We touched down and there was a short taxi to the terminal.
I was presented with the half-consumed bottle of shiraz by one of the FAs which was a lovely gesture. Not sure whether I was going to drink any of it and as I had hand luggage only, I wasn't sure whether I was going to be able to bring it home. Nice gesture all the same and appreciated.

 

[cove]

It is lovely and green around Perth at the moment. We have had a real winter this year.

 

[zig]

That was a very unappealing breakfast Justinf, I do hope the wine was better

 

[Justinf]

Decided against the public bus and couldn't be bothered with Uber, so I cabbed it.
It was one of those New York style cabs. No front passenger seat and a divider between the back seat and the driver.
Safe to say there was no conversation between me and the driver. Cab fare to the Pan Pacific Hotel was $35.81.
I guess one thing about being an hour late meant that the chance of being able to check in to the Pan Pacific at 12.45pm was much better than 11.45am.
To my happiness, I was able to check in straight away.
I'd stayed here once before and found the hotel to be fine, although showing a bit of wear and tear. It was only a block from one of my favourite Perth watering holes, the Grosvenor.











Like I said, the room was showing some wear and tear, but it was perfectly adequate for a two-night stay.

 

[Justinf]

The views from the room were OK, without being breathtaking.







With no plans until much later when I was meeting friends, I decided to venture to the Grosvenor.
When in Rome I always say, so I ordered a Swan Draught.



Folks, I think I found a worse beer than West End Druaght.

 

[Pushka]

Surely no one drinks West End draught these days?

 

[cove]

I remember when Swan Brewery existed and I loved having a flight on their Lear jet back in the eighties. They had a 90 plus per cent market share of beer sales back then.
Today the brewery has gone and the land has been turned into an industrial estate in Canning Vale.
Almost no one drinks Swan these days..... but if you want the worst beer in Perth you might want to try a Rogers. Virtually undrinkable so avoid that one unless you want to test your taste buds to the extreme.

 

[Justinf]

I remember when Swan Brewery existed and I loved having a flight on their Lear jet back in the eighties. They had a 90 plus per cent market share of beer sales back then.
Today the brewery has gone and the land has been turned into an industrial estate in Canning Vale.
Almost no one drinks Swan these days..... but if you want the worst beer in Perth you might want to try a Rogers. Virtually undrinkable so avoid that one unless you want to test your taste buds to the extreme.

Love Rogers. Drank a bucketload of it pregame. Stand by.

 

[Justinf]

One good thing about the Pan Pacific was that there was free wi-fi. One bad thing about the Pan Pacific was that the wi-fi was so slow it was practically useless so I ended up using my own data.
After a couple of beers at the Grosvenor I wisely decided I needed to stop if I was going to make it out that night.
I toyed with the idea of touring the Perth Mint, but went back to the room and watched the Melbourne Storm vs Newcastle Knights game.
After a couple of hours of lazing about it was into the shower and then a short walk to the Barrack St Pier to meet friends at the Lucky Shag bar.
The walk to the bar was refreshing and some nice views.

 

[Justinf]

The setting for this bar is fantastic. Right on the Swan River was great view and and an outdoor deck.
I had a few pints of Four Pines American Amber Ale and it was very, very nice. Genuine American Amber flavour that I have grown to love during my numerous trips to the states.

I had an enjoyable couple of hours but the time difference was starting to really mess me up. It's amazing that only two hours time difference can screw with you nearly as much as the time difference when you are in Europe or the US. I had a friend that had travelled from Auckland for the game and he was really doing it tough.
The temperature was in the mid to low teens and we definitely needed a jacket and in my case a beanie to sit outside.







After watching the Wallabies get a pantsing from the All Blacks, I decided to finish off with a pint of Guinness and at around 9pm (11pm body clock) I'd had enough and said my goodbyes for the evening and strolled back and the thought of a room service pizza was on the cards.