ozimax
Member
- Joined
- Feb 23, 2009
- Posts
- 191
Currently sitting in a reasonable hotel in Nahkon Sawon, about 3 hours drive north of Bangkok. Actually it's most probably the only reasonable hotel in NS, but that's another story. Everything has a price, and even the dodgy hotels I frequent in Bangkok are a bargain. (I have no expense account and all my costs are paid through prayer alone.)
Some sundry travel ramblings about this 3+ week trip.
Emirates has upped their game, with the exception of their seats. Be it A380 or 777, their seats were no doubt designed by PhD students in mediavel torture. They truly are dreadful, although not as bad as Swissair/Lufthansa cattle class. Having said all that, last week's A380 DBX-SIN seemed like it was newly outfitted. The economy HD video screens seemed to be about 15" and the ICE system was lightning fast. The wifi was only $1 for 500mb. I didn't use it but that's cheap.
Now on to the Emirates business lounge at DXB. Absolutely fantastic. The smoked salmon for breakfast was to die for, and the food was endless. Sad thing that we only had about an hour to enjoy the offerings. Check-in at DXB again was excellent, which is much more than what I can say for Singapore.
Singapore QF economy class check-in is almost dreadful. Actually, our family split up last Friday. I flew Jetstar to Bangkok, while my wife and daughter flew QF to Sydney. Jetstar check-in was lightning fast. The check-in process for QF took forever. There didn't seem to be any QF club check-in line. The staff member assured my wife that her bags were checked through to Coffs Harbour. We had to educate her that this wasn't the case and all baggage had to clear customs in Sydney. Then came the immigration. Of course Singapore is all about order, but it takes an eternity to process, well, anything. (I had to buy a ticket from a machine earlier in the week to get a haircut. Not me. Buying a tourist rail pass in Singapore takes forever. Only certain stations sell them, and only people dressed in red uniforms etc etc.) It is always so refreshing to get back to Sydney where stuff just gets done. I know we complain about everything, but Australia is very good at most things, compared to the rest of the world. And laid back.
I did enjoy the Singapore QF club. We got there early and it was empty. An hour later it was packed. Although the lounge is not opulent, the food was good and the staff were sensational. There's a knack to getting an extra traveller into the lounges on this trip. The hard part is finding someone travelling on QF to the same destination. Usually a club member is only too happy to take a friend into the lounge. I know I am happy to help others if I can, and most are.
I have visited Singapore several times and I have come to the conclusion that I don't really like the place. It is almost sterile, ludicrously expensive and, IMHO, unfriendly. I love Thailand with all it's incumbent smells, traffic and craziness. Singapore is a must visit, but make sure you take suitcases full of cash. Which brings me to Dubai. Another sterile city but an interesting visit all the same. After nearly 800 flights, 65 lengthy overseas trips and almost 5 years living overseas, we actually planned a few stopovers this trip. Dubai is very expensive, but not as expensive as Singapore. The weather in February is actually magnificent. Cool evenings and warm days. And here's a tip, whether it's Singapore or Dubai, forget public transport and take taxis. The extensive trains and buses in these places are designed for the locals. They're cheap and excellent, but it takes forever to get anywhere. Time is everything on a two day stopover, so patronise the local cabbies.
I have a lot more to say about Spain, but that can wait until the next episode of ramble.
Ozi
Some sundry travel ramblings about this 3+ week trip.
Emirates has upped their game, with the exception of their seats. Be it A380 or 777, their seats were no doubt designed by PhD students in mediavel torture. They truly are dreadful, although not as bad as Swissair/Lufthansa cattle class. Having said all that, last week's A380 DBX-SIN seemed like it was newly outfitted. The economy HD video screens seemed to be about 15" and the ICE system was lightning fast. The wifi was only $1 for 500mb. I didn't use it but that's cheap.
Now on to the Emirates business lounge at DXB. Absolutely fantastic. The smoked salmon for breakfast was to die for, and the food was endless. Sad thing that we only had about an hour to enjoy the offerings. Check-in at DXB again was excellent, which is much more than what I can say for Singapore.
Singapore QF economy class check-in is almost dreadful. Actually, our family split up last Friday. I flew Jetstar to Bangkok, while my wife and daughter flew QF to Sydney. Jetstar check-in was lightning fast. The check-in process for QF took forever. There didn't seem to be any QF club check-in line. The staff member assured my wife that her bags were checked through to Coffs Harbour. We had to educate her that this wasn't the case and all baggage had to clear customs in Sydney. Then came the immigration. Of course Singapore is all about order, but it takes an eternity to process, well, anything. (I had to buy a ticket from a machine earlier in the week to get a haircut. Not me. Buying a tourist rail pass in Singapore takes forever. Only certain stations sell them, and only people dressed in red uniforms etc etc.) It is always so refreshing to get back to Sydney where stuff just gets done. I know we complain about everything, but Australia is very good at most things, compared to the rest of the world. And laid back.
I did enjoy the Singapore QF club. We got there early and it was empty. An hour later it was packed. Although the lounge is not opulent, the food was good and the staff were sensational. There's a knack to getting an extra traveller into the lounges on this trip. The hard part is finding someone travelling on QF to the same destination. Usually a club member is only too happy to take a friend into the lounge. I know I am happy to help others if I can, and most are.
I have visited Singapore several times and I have come to the conclusion that I don't really like the place. It is almost sterile, ludicrously expensive and, IMHO, unfriendly. I love Thailand with all it's incumbent smells, traffic and craziness. Singapore is a must visit, but make sure you take suitcases full of cash. Which brings me to Dubai. Another sterile city but an interesting visit all the same. After nearly 800 flights, 65 lengthy overseas trips and almost 5 years living overseas, we actually planned a few stopovers this trip. Dubai is very expensive, but not as expensive as Singapore. The weather in February is actually magnificent. Cool evenings and warm days. And here's a tip, whether it's Singapore or Dubai, forget public transport and take taxis. The extensive trains and buses in these places are designed for the locals. They're cheap and excellent, but it takes forever to get anywhere. Time is everything on a two day stopover, so patronise the local cabbies.
I have a lot more to say about Spain, but that can wait until the next episode of ramble.
Ozi
