London Trip - Jan 2016 - with SQ

[Flyerfly]

Hello!!!
A few of you may remember me …. I used to fly very frequently and had written a few trip reports here many years ago (I am still guilty of not finishing a few of them haha). A subsequent change in job, and an addition of a new member to the family stopped me from the road. One thing lead to another I lost my diamond status with CX … gradually downgraded to green …

This year, I have finally run out of excuses for avoiding business travel. As I am no longer in need for chasing and maintaining status for CX, I thought it is a good time for me to experience other airlines. Being based out of Hong Kong, the choices are ample. And off I go.

In Jan 2016, I took SQ to Singapore then to London – which I plan to cover in this trip report. Just last week, I took another trip to London, this time via Taipei and I flew Eva Air (BR) – which I hope to cover in a separate thread. Thrown in several short-hauls to SG, KL, Shanghai and Beijing – I made Star Alliance Gold with TG in 5 months. I don’t know why I chose to bank with TG …. A wrong decision?

Let me start by saying that my on-board experience with SQ J (after not flying with them for 7 years) and BR J (first long haul with them last week) – easily beat my CX J experiences hand down. That’s even taking into consideration the Diamond/ Gold status I used to enjoy. So far I have no regret switching away …

Jan 2016 – HKG-SIN-LHR-SIN-HKG – SQ J

I was excited to fly SQ after a many years hiatus. But the impression of SQ HKG Lounge was a let down – guess I was spoilt by CX’s awesome lounges all these years – but perhaps not a fair comparison …

Bet many of you are familiar with this lounge ..



Once on-board, I was wowed by the seat and the cabin ambience … truly excellent setting to travel in. The screen is big and crystal clear in HD. The movies/ Tvs/ music options are super extensive.

11A was my seat for the HKG-SIN sector that night. No leg room constrain being a bulk-head seat.







Dinner menu …



Champagne, salad and garlic bread – the balsamic salad dressing was very yummy …



The beef short ribs main course was really delicious, and the presentation was excellent …



The chocolate cake dessert was yummy too



And I finished the meal with a banana …



I was also very impressed with the attentive service. Didn’t find the crew any robotic … I recalled they were gracious and warmth. (But after taking BR to London and back, I prefer the more casual service style of BR)

To be continued …

[Flyerfly]

After spending a couple of days in SG attending meetings, I took SQ318 to London.

My assigned seat for the flight was 20A – a window seat without window OH NO!! But the flight was full and there were no other seats let alone window seat to change. A lesson learnt!



No view … forced to stare at the screen (which I watched 3 movies during the flight) … and the crew …



Satay to start … yummy !



Pate and some bread … didn’t really suit my taste …



And the prawn noodle main course I chose was “meh” … can’t compare to the real thing from hawker stalls in Malaysia and Singapore …



I must have skipped the dessert and fruit course … can’t find the pictures and I can’t recall …

During mid-flight, I asked for snack and was given this sandwich … the presentation was so so but it tasted good … also took some fruits and apple juice …



Time passed fast during the 14.5 hours flight thanks no part to the comfortable seat and the excellent in-flight entertainment. I tried my best not to sleep … to adjust to the time difference.

As the flight was scheduled to arrive at 7+ pm London time, a “light” dinner was served.

Excellent salad course with scallop and prawn …



By the time I was served all other choices were no longer available … left with this Thai fried fish dish – which I didn’t mind and it was very flavoursome .. but I remember it was spicy !



Overall a good flight, despite the no window 20A. The food was OK. Nothing to complain about the services from the crew, but there was also nothing to remember for.

Arrived in LHR slightly behind scheduled … my first time in the Queen’s Terminal (T2) and I liked it. As no other flight was arriving the same time, managed to breeze through the immigration, collected my check-in luggage and board Heathrow Express in slightly more than 30mins. Very fast considering the long walk after de-planing to the immigration and the long walk to Heathrow Express station.

To be continued …

[Flyerfly]

For this trip I put up in Le Meridien Piccadilly. It is a hotel I have stayed a few time before. Was booked into a club room which was larger than normal rooms, and it came with lounge access. The room was quite dated but still very comfortable, apart from the “squazzy” floor. And there was no view.







Absolutely no view …



The day of my arrival in London it was also the last day of Lumiere London (London light festival 2016). Picadilly area was closed for cars, including the road directly in front of the hotel. After checking in I took some time to stroll around the street and joined in the festival …







One of the more “intriguing” display was a screen showing an elephant backside swinging left and right, while doing its business! Many people stopped to appreciate the sight which I found pretty amusing …



Directly in front is another display, this time showing the front of the elephant …

[Flyerfly]

The next morning (and the remaining mornings in London) I had breakfast at the hotel lounge. A simple spread of bread, cheese, ham, smoked salmon, fresh fruits, yogurts, cereals, milk, coffee and juices were served. Apologies for the bite off the bread before the picture was taken



The first couple of days were full of meetings. The remaining 3 days were quite okay schedule wise … I stole some times to visit the Audi showroom near Green Park to view the newly launched A4 (still not launched in HK yet) …





and my dream cars … the new R8 and the facelifted RS6









I also bought this for my little girl … a very clever designed “mini runner”, which serves as a bicycle as shown ... but with the horizontal angled bar turned down and the seat removed it can be converted into a balancing "skateboard" for kid.

[Flyerfly]

I also did some touristy thing during the trip …. Including lunches at Jamie Oliver’s at Covent Garden ... twice … always like the vibes of Covent Garden especially during weekend when the live performances are aplenty …this trip I visited the place during weekdays, which were much less crowded …





Garlic mushroom and a local beer Curious Porter



Went with this roasted pork + pineapple for main-course … quite yummy



Re-visited the place a couple of days later for another lunch with mates … chose different dishes that round …

Fried fish appetizer … I prefer the garlic mushroom



Lamb shank … delicious



Chocolate brownie as dessert … sinful !



Also had dinner at one of the better steakhouse in London in my opinion .. the Hawksmoor (sorry for the low quality pictures here … very dark inside)

[Mlee888]

Nice report! Thanks for sharing.

Looking forward to the BR one.

[yflyer]

Very nice report, Flyerfly! I am just back from London on SQ too...my saver upgrade to J on the 77WN came through, so I got to enjoy SQ New J on the way there and SQ New Y on the way back. Will write up a TR shortly so we can compare notes!

That lamb shank looks amazing, by the way!

[Flyerfly]

Very nice report, Flyerfly! I am just back from London on SQ too...my saver upgrade to J on the 77WN came through, so I got to enjoy SQ New J on the way there and SQ New Y on the way back. Will write up a TR shortly so we can compare notes!

That lamb shank looks amazing, by the way!

thanks !!! my next part of the trip report here is inspired by you yflyer !

[Flyerfly]

I had a free day before flying back to HK … in the morning, decided to be lazy and ordered room service … the portion was huge!



Inspired by yflyer’s trip report to the Shard, and seeing the great weather of the morning, I decided to visit the place. Was really lucky as the sky was clear due to the winter breeze … I remember it was below 4 degree throughout the day …



This counter at the viewing deck serves champagne if you are willing to pay for one …



Great view of London all around from the viewing platform of the Shard …









After the Shard, I walked to the Tower of London via Tower Bridge …

On the way passing buzzling offices



In full view of the Tower of London and the Tower Bridge





Walking across Thames on the Tower Bridge …



Looking back at the Shard … such a distinctive landmark …

[Flyerfly]

I am a very curious student of history, and the Tower of London is just my type of places to visit … beside seeing the Queen’s Jewel and Crowns … I am very much intrigued by the history of the place … listening to the story-telling by the Warden of the Tower was a great way to start the tour for this place, if you are visiting I strongly suggest you to join one … it’s free !

Some pictures of the impressive facade of the place …







And there were many good vintage points in the compound … I enjoyed my 4-hours there thoroughly …







After the Tower of London, I decided to walk to the Monument to the Great Fire of
London … On the way, again the view along this side of the Thames in the sun-set was just so mesmerising





This is the Monument (the story of the Great Fire of London is another capturing one)



Thereafter, I continue my walk to meet my friends for dinner at the restaurant Burger & Lobster @ Threadneedle Street … passing Leadenhall Market …



And inside the very busy Burger & Lobster restaurant … nothing too fancy about the taste of the food it is a great place to catch up with friends

[Flyerfly]

On the day of departure, I left the hotel for Heathrow extra early … to claim VAT refund, and to have breakfast at the Perfectionist Cafι which received a rave review by yflyer …
Ordered egg benedict and it was tasty !





My seat on SQ305 that morning was 14A … a real window seat (although only 1 window) …





Our neighbour that rainy morning was a Air Canada 787 dreamliner



An “artic” take-off …



Satay was a great way to start the lunch



Crab meat salad …



And Masala fish as main course …



A yummy nougart cake to finish …

[Flyerfly]

Stayed up most of the flight … I know I need to get some sleep as it will be an early arrival in SG … but I just cannot! So I ordered mid-flight snack to munch over movies …
Delicious shrimp salad wrap and chicken salad wrap



2.5 hours prior to landing, breakfast were served …

Croissant and fruit plater to start …



Love the French toast … the presentation was very pretty



Soon the plane touched down at Changi. Terminal 2. That meant I had to walk to T3 to take the connecting flight to Hong Kong.

Didn’t take picture of the SQ J lounge in T3 – not impressed by the place somehow. And I am sure you all are very familiar with it.

The flight to HKG was operated by A380-800. My seat was in the upper front. The seat looked and felt dated, and again I am sure you all are very familiar with



For this connecting sector, I slept most of the way except during breakfast time. Only because I BTC-ed nasi lemak. It did not disappoint, and was very authentic (I am a Malaysian and knows my nasi lemak )





That concludes this trip report on SQ J.

SQ J is well known around the world for its excellent hardware and the Singapore Girls service. I was impressed. But I can’t say there were any memorable or extraordinary lasting impression. Expectation is a b*tch.

In contrast, I had not much expectation on my next trip to London on EVA Air. And I came away wowed. I will write that up in a separate thread.

Thanks for accompanying me so far.

[Hajimbo]

Nice TR there flyerfly! Looking at your London pictures really made me miss the city! Next time if you (or anyone) are there - you should try go to Holborn! Very much vibrant part of the city - lots of upcoming arts and hipster scene!

The new J-class seat looks very much spacious than the older generation. Would love to try it one day - if I'm patient enough to accumulate more miles lol. btw, don't you feel cluster phobic with your seat not next to a window? hehe

[9V-SIA]

Love Hawksmoor Eight!

Great report

Thanks for sharing