SQ from DEL/BOM to SIN:777 vs A380 vs A350, Mumbai Local Trains, Great Kabab Factory

[SQueeze]

Wow. What an eye opener to the daily city life. It’s amazing, isn’t it - seeing it from ground level at a people to people level. It’s fascinating.

For the train, you have to get off before the train stops especially in peak hours because the rush of people coming in will prevent one to come out at the time. I will find my video of one of it and let’s see if I can upload it later.

The steps of taking local train is: know your destination platform whether on right or left and stand right at the door no matter what. And take the carriage at the back as the train would have slowed down enough to jump when it reaches the platform, and jump!

I do find mumbaikar attitude very positive in a very stressful situation on the train. They even help each other and keep making space for more people. And give up space to elderlies and families automatically. They ask questions and direction to one another and help one another. It’s community spirit at its best despite the obvious challenges.

It is not only eye opener for me constantly, but also heart-opener.

[yflyer]

Wow. What an eye opener to the daily city life. It’s amazing, isn’t it - seeing it from ground level at a people to people level. It’s fascinating.

I now find that exploring almost any city is best done on foot...and that goes for Indian cities too.

For the train, you have to get off before the train stops especially in peak hours because the rush of people coming in will prevent one to come out at the time. I will find my video of one of it and let’s see if I can upload it later.

The steps of taking local train is: know your destination platform whether on right or left and stand right at the door no matter what. And take the carriage at the back as the train would have slowed down enough to jump when it reaches the platform, and jump!

Yes, agree that one should stand at the door no matter what. Cool breeze and great view aside, I would have no idea how to get off if I were wedged inside with all the other pax...

Don't think I am up to taking a train a peak hour though...way too busy! Will stick to early morning off-peak periods!

I do find mumbaikar attitude very positive in a very stressful situation on the train. They even help each other and keep making space for more people. And give up space to elderlies and families automatically. They ask questions and direction to one another and help one another. It’s community spirit at its best despite the obvious challenges.

It is not only eye opener for me constantly, but also heart-opener.

Absolutely.

[yflyer]

Continuing with the TR...

Not long after that Mumbai trip, I found myself heading to Delhi again, this time on SQ406, a 5.10pm departure operated by A380 rego 9V-SKF...



Before the flight, I passed the Irvins stand in T3...



...which had a long line, as usual...



...Irvin's sells the snack-of-the-moment: salted egg fish skin...a deliciously addictive snack that is all the rage here in Singapore at this time. There are different brands, and to me, many of these brands taste pretty good, but none have queues as long as Irvin's. At other outlets in Singapore, they actually limit the number of packets of this snack each customer can buy. Is this a fad? Time will tell!

My flight to Delhi was a very comfortable one the upper deck of the A380.

Some nice pics after take-off of the airport and reclaimed land area, where a new terminal is being built...





Timingwise, I find SQ406 to be very good...you can have dinner onboard, and then arrive in New Delhi just after 8pm.

At that hour of arrival, if you are a foreign passport holder, the immigration queues are not long, and you can be out of the airport quite quickly (As long as you don't check in luggage, as sometimes luggage could take a few minutes to appear)...

On most times I am on SQ406, I can get to my hotel in Gurgaon, usually the Westin Gurgaon, after 9.30pm or so, which is early enough to even spend a little time in the hotel lounge.

[yflyer]

On this occasion, I was upgraded to a very large Suite on the executive floor of the Westin Gurgaon.









Very spacious bathroom with extra large tub...





Over recent trips, the Executive Lounge at the Westin has become my sanctuary after work...



...an oasis of peace and quiet after a hectic work day, and also a great place to have breakfast in the morning before yet another busy day...



As you can see from the pictures, I am a creature of habit, and even plonk myself in my favourite seat in the lounge every single time...

For fuller coverage of the Westin Gurgaon, please refer to this previous TR.

[yflyer]

In a previous TR, I covered the SIA SilverKris Lounge in New Delhi, which I did not find particularly impressive...

On recent trips, I have, instead, been spending time in the Lufthansa Lounge, located just next to the SilverKris Lounge.



The LH Lounge opens from 8.30pm to 2.30am, catering mainly to the late evening Lufthansa flights, however I normally don't arrive at DEL earlier than 8pm or even 8.30pm anyway, so the opening time suits me just fine.



But the good thing about these opening hours, and the late LH flights, is that, by contrast to the packed SQ lounge, the LH lounge is almost empty when I am there, and it is a very nice lounge indeed, far preferable to the SQ Lounge down the corridor.



This lounge has both seating and dining areas...





The F&B spread is quite impressive...

[yflyer]

A very nice selection of self service wine, beer, liquor and soft drinks, as well as hot and cold dishes.



Sula sparkling wine...



Some of the other wines on offer...



International and Indian starters and salads...



Soup...



Singapore (!) Char Kway Teow and Piri Piri Chicken Tikka...



Cheeky of the caterers to call that dish Singapore-style CKT, as strictly speaking it was not 100% authentic, but it was a tasty noodle dish, as was the chicken...

Vegetarian selections included Dahi Kebabs and Paneer Shashlik...



Indian sweets...

[yflyer]

This lounge caters to widebody passenger numbers, so it actually has TWO separate seating and dining areas...





...with the same menu replicated across the two...



There are also a few loungers for resting...



...and a work area...



Restrooms are available through a door leading to a passageway outside the lounge.



Interestingly, the restrooms and passageway are shared across the SQ and LH lounges. What if one left the LH lounge to use the restroom and re-entered the SQ lounge afterwards, or vice versa?

The lounge probably becomes very busy closer to the LH departure timings, but prior to the SQ403 flight departure at 9.55pm, the lounge was almost deserted...a heavenly space to spend time prior to the flight, compared the SQ lounge which is packed at the same hour.

Just remember to leave for the gate by about 9.10pm as no announcements are made for the SQ flight.

The LH Lounge is now my preferred lounge prior to boarding SQ403 DEL-SIN.

[yflyer]

My preferred flight out of DEL is SQ403, the A380 red-eye, with a 9.55pm departure time, and arrival in Singapore at 6.10am the next morning.

They serve dinner on this flight (Which I will cover later), and Krisflyer Gold / Star Gold frequent flyers could also have dinner in the LH lounge from 8.30pm onwards before the flight.

But apart from dinner in the lounge, and/or dinner onboard, there is a 3rd option for dinner -- eating in Delhi or Gurgaon prior to heading to the airport.

There is just enough time to have dinner from 7pm to 8pm before checking in at DEL.

But where to eat? One of my favourite restaurants in Delhi/Gurgaon is the Great Kabab Factory, which has several outlets in this part of India, however one of them is at the Radisson Blue Hotel in Delhi, which is located just a very short distance from the airport.

On one of my trips to Delhi, prior to flying back to Singapore, I decided I needed a kabab fix, and so I headed to the Radisson from the office after work, and presented myself at the restaurant emtrance at 7pm sharp...



...and was seated at the table the moment the restaurant opened...



This restaurant serves a mindboggling range of kebabs, starters and mains in an all-you-can eat set menu, in a format where roving waiters bring you each kebab one at a time, served course by course, each piping hot, and fresh from the tandoor, with unlimited repeats...



There is a veg or non-veg menu...just specify which you want. And once you decide on veg or non-veg, no further decisions are necessary, you get it all: an endless stream of delectable food will begin to appear at your table...

All of this is cooked right there by a team of expert chefs manning the tandoors, grills and ovens...



You could spend hours over dinner here, but I made this request to my friendly waiter: I need to finish dinner in an hour, by 8pm, is that possible?

"Of course, sir!"

I happily braced myself for the coming kabab onslaught...

[yflyer]

Raw onion rings and sauces/condiments...



I whetted my appetite by squeezing lemon on the onions and wolfing down several of them, and then taking a bite out of a raw green chilli...

"Fruit and salad, sir?"



First was a galouti kabab...a super fine minced lamb, which had an irresistable melt-in-the mouth texture, and accompanied by thin flatbread...



...next a chicken kabab...



...and then more chicken, this time a drumlet, with different seasoning...



As mentioned, these courses were brought one by one to your table, piping hot, fresh out of the tandoor...the ideal way to eat this cuisine...

Next, jhinga...or prawn...with a wonderful barbequed and charred flavour...



Some of these dishes may not be the most instagrammable or photogenic dishes to take photos of, as each was just a morsel of meat off a skewer, and placed on your plate, but they were each packed with intense flavour, and absolutely delicious...



Yet another very fine kabab course, this time fish...



According to Indian dining convention, those were the "starters" (Although I was already feeling full...)...it was time for the "main course", which was a gosht (lamb) briyani...



...along with a choice of dal, curries/gravy and naan bread...



Of course, once again, this was a free flow -- all you could eat...

[yflyer]

And then it was time for a multi-course dessert, starting with kulfi...



...and then kala jamun, phirni and chena toast, which were served one by one...



...and ending with their signature jalebi...



...and paan (Betel Nut Leaf) ...



A spectacular dinner, which I would highly recommend to anyone visiting Delhi or Gurgaon, as a great intro to the incredible cuisine to be found in India.

[yflyer]

After dinner, I caught an Uber from the Radisson to Delhi Airport. My Uber car picked me up from the hotel at 8.18pm and I was at the terminal by 8.27pm. No queues at the SQ KF Gold / Business Class check-in counter, and minimal queues at the Foreign Passport immigration counters either (Although the queues for Indian Passport holders were long).

A brief visit to the Lufthansa Lounge, and then to the gate, where boarding commenced on time.

My seat on SQ403 was in the upper deck mini-Y cabin of the A380 (According to FSJZ's excellent SQ fleet updates, there are only 6 A380's out of 18 which still have this upper deck economy section).



The upper deck Y mini-cabin is my preferred Y seating area on the A380 (Except on ultra-lightly loaded flights), because it feels very intimate and uncrowded, with a 2-4-2 layout. I also find that cabin service / meals etc happen faster on the upper deck compared to the main deck, where the cabin crew have a much larger cabin to cover.

There are so-called "preferred" emex seats available, at extra charge, on the upper deck, however I have never felt the need to select those, as I find legroom in regular seats perfectly adequate.

Row 81 emex seats pictured below...



The row 80 center block of 4 seats also has extra legroom -- these are also considered "preferred" seats, and incur an additional charge if selected online.



My seat on this flight was 82H, the last row upper deck aisle seat...



My seat fully reclined...



This is a good seat, as there is no-one behind you. You can spend the entire flight reclined if you want -- no need to set your seatback upright during meal service, which is one of my pet peaves when travelling Y. I like the last row middle pair 83D/G for the same reason.

The only thing to note is that the overhead bins in that row are tiny, so stow your large carryons in earlier rows before you get to your seat in the last few rows.



Good legroom.



Oval shaped footrest.



Side storage bin for window seat pax on the upper deck.



A/C power in the armrest (Note: Some of SQ's older A380's, including this one, don't support UK 3-pin plugs).



Armrests go all the way up.



Widescreen IFE, USB charging port and drink holder, as well as coat hook on the seat back.

[yflyer]

There are 2 bathrooms on the upper deck for Y pax...



A tip: If these bathrooms are full, just head down the rear stairs. There are several restrooms just downstairs on the main deck you can use as well.



The main deck of the A380 is comfortable too...



...very spacious cabin, with wide economy seats in 10-abreast 3-4-3...



If I knew for sure the flight would be very lightly loaded, I would pick a seat in the rear of the main deck -- there would be a greater chance of getting 3, or even 4 seats to yourself.

But that almost never happens on the A380 sectors to India.

[yflyer]

Back in my seat on the upper deck, cabin service began with steaming hot towels...



These were very refreshing after the heat and humidity of the Delhi summer.



Note the vanity mirror in the Y tray table.

Complimentary earphones.



These come with a airline 2 prong headphone adapter, that you can use to attach your own headphones -- A great idea in principle, but I found the adapter to be a little poorly constructed, and too tight for my headphone miniplug...manufacturing tolerances do not seem to be that great for this adapter. Understandable given the cost pressure. Still better to buy your own airline headphone adapter.

The new safety video has been around for a while now...I still enjoy watching it...a very well made video. I especially like the music, which sets the right mood for the upcoming flight...



A long taxi to the runway in this huge airport...



...and take-off...

[yflyer]

Amenity Kits distributed...



A quick browse of the IFE...this is the older Krisworld system, but it is still very impressive, with high quality video and audio...



Lots of good stuff to watch...



...but too bad this was a short red-eye...I planned to sleep as much as I could...

No peanuts served on this flight, just peas and crackers...



Beverage service...I ordered a G&T. The friendly cabin crew member gave me crackers...

"Just one packet will do! Thanks!", I said...

"We have plenty!", she said, and gave me three...

[yflyer]

Time for dinner...





International selection...



Indian selection (Both veg and non-veg options available, although priority for the veg options will go to those who ordered the AVML special meal)...



Again, I ordered the coriander-mint rubbed lamb, which was good, and very consistent with the same dish ordered out of Mumbai...