Because I heralded it as a trailer, I have taken the unusual step of posting all three legs of the trip from Cork to Durban in the one report so that I can elaborate on the various headings.
Right! With that preamble out of the way, are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin.
Follow the adventures of honey lamb as once more, she takes to the skies!
Those of you who have followed my various trip reports will remember that last year I took a trip to Las Vegas in First on BA and I was somewhat underwhelmed by the experience. I felt sad as part of me really, really wanted to like BA but the truth was that all of the flights I had taken, both in First and CW had disappointed me one way or another and really they were at the bottom of the list when it came to researching flight options for various destinations. The trip to Las Vegas had only come about because they were the cheapest on offer and surprisingly First was cheaper than CW.
Shortly after the Las Vegas trip I was on the search for deals again, this time to visit my brother in South Africa for a significant birthday. In the past my trips there had always been with VS (in fact my first ever VS flight had been to South Africa) with the exception of my last one which had been DUB-DXB-DUR on Emirates and had come out the cheapest in Business. The downside was that the timing of the flights for that meant that it took over two days travel to get there.
I really didn’t want to do that again as time was short and so I tried every permutation under the sun with different airlines to get from Cork to Durban in Business - even routing myself through AMS and other EU departure points but the reality was that ORK-LHR-JNB-DUR on BA was the cheapest. Interestingly, that routing was cheaper that ORK-LHR-JNB or LHR-JNB-DUR; the add-ons at both ends of the LHR-JNB sector significantly reduced the price. What was more, to upgrade one sector on the LHR-JNB leg to First still had the fare lower than VS in UC both ways. It really was a no-brainer. The decision therefore was, which leg to choose to upgrade - especially as they were both overnight flights! Some of you may remember that I stupidly left my purse on the Aer Lingus flight from Cork on my trip to Las Vegas 
and, although it was quickly found, the trek from T5 to T2 and back to retrieve it had severely curtailed my time in the Concorde Room to a mere 45 minutes. This time I was going to enjoy fully the delights of the Concorde Room so LHR-JNB in First it was…….…...and on the A380. Happiness!!
OK, that’s the preliminaries over. On to the trip report proper.
Follow her trials and tribulations as she embarks on her journey from Cork!
Erm, there weren’t any!
Well I did wake up at 4am and saw that it was very foggy outside. I didn’t get back to sleep so got up extra early and did the final odds and ends of packing before going to open up the local church and setting it up for the day before handing over to my co-worker (and have everyone coming in to wish me a good journey - you’d have thought I was going to uncharted areas of the Amazon, the way they were talking!
) The fog hadn’t lifted when my friends arrived to bring me to the airport nor did it on our way there although at times it was a bit patchy. However Cork Airport is 502ft above sea level and when we arrived there it was bathed in sunlight with the fog clinging to the valleys below!Once parted from my friends I proceeded to check-in. Although I had done OLCI for the BA flight to JNB and DUR, I had not been able to do it for the Aer Lingus leg even though it was a codeshare, so I headed off to the desk. Now, at this point, I must confess I took my eye off the ball. I had forgotten I had been unable to select a seat on this flight and when I had checked in for the LAS flight last year the check-in guy had asked if I had any seat preferences. This time the check-in guy (not the same one) merely confirmed my routing, asked how many bags I had to check and handed me my three boarding passes - all very quick and efficient; it was over in a matter of minutes! Very pleased with the smoothness of the operation, I headed upstairs to security which was equally as smooth and settled down to await my flight. And then I saw the seat number for this flight - 28D!!
The second last row on the plane! Feckit! I suppose I could have tried to change it but at this stage I figured I wasn’t going to have to collect luggage since my bags were tagged through and the upside was that I was in Zone A for boarding and thus I reconciled myself to my fate.In the fullness of time the flight was called and it so happened I found myself fourth or fifth in the queue for boarding and, once the wheelchair passengers had been boarded we were off in a hike! As we boarded the plane there was a lady of a similar vintage to myself ahead of me. We were slightly held up as she struggled to place her carry-on in the overhead bin above row 5 to the extent that the cabin crew standing next to me asked to pass me so that she could help her. However the said lady managed before that could happen and merrily made her way to row 19!!!
I was furious! So many times I have been in the first few rows and when they were called last to board there was very little if no space, for us in the overhead bins, It is not helped by the fact that the first couple of bins are occupied by crew stuff and so many of the passengers in the first rows have to place their bags in rows further back which causes chaos on landing. Aer Lingus has alleviated this somewhat by boarding passengers in the first few rows in Zone B but really the cabin crew need to monitor it more. Anyway, I settled myself in 28D and there was no-one in 28E so - nice!!! And there was an advantage!! The trolley service from the back starts at row 29 so no delay!! After that it became bog-standard and you all know what that means! Altogether now - “It took off; I had a G&T; it landed”
Actually the flight had taken off on time, if not a minute or two early but because we were held in a stack we landed just a tad late but I wasn’t under any pressure to get to T5 - well once I had made sure I had my purse with me!
Share her dramatic experiences as she transits from T2 to T5!
Nope! None there! Well maybe a little blip or two.
In spite of the fact that Aer Lingus only moved to T2 last July, I have travelled through it sufficiently enough to know my way around and so it was with speed I made my way to Flight Connections where there were several people already waiting for a bus. It arrived 5 minutes later and just as we were about to depart I received a phone call - Aer John, thinking I was on the later VS flight! Did he have to rub it in!
On arrival in T5 I made my way to Security and Fast Track. OK, so it’s no VS private wing but it was relatively quiet (and certainly much quieter than on my last trip through the VS wing) and I was through reasonably quickly. From there it was on to the escalators to bring us up to the next level. Those passengers who were entitled to use Fast Track had a separate escalator and the lady manning the entrance to the escalator area, having looked at my boarding pass, addressed me by name and asked me if I knew where the Concorde Room was. I assured her I did but she proceeded to tell me. I must confess I only half-listened!
At the top of the escalator I looked to the right, confidently expecting to see the door to the Concorde Room but it wasn’t there! I looked around totally confused but couldn’t see where to go. I had completely forgotten that every other time I had gone into T5, it had been from check-in and not from Flight Connections. Eventually, I asked at the Information Desk but the lady there didn’t know and so sent me off to the Galleries lounge to ask. Muttering away to myself, I headed over there and, of course, when I arrived there, it all became clear to me!
There to my right was the main entrance to the Concorde Room in the same area as the other lounges and the Spa. The latter threw me completely as I hadn’t known where it was in relation to the Concorde Room and as I hadn’t had time for a treatment on my last visit, I hadn’t bothered to book one for this. I was warmly welcomed at the desk and headed in. The place was relatively quiet but on nearly every group of seating there was a coat or bag, something to indicate that the place was taken. I was hungry and went to the dining area but was told that every booth there was taken - so that’s where they all were!! Instead I perched myself on one of the seats on the dining bar in the main area and waited and waited and waited! I counted six staff members hanging around, chatting to each other and doing absolutely nothing but did they come next or near me? No they did not!
The Cloak of Invisibility had obviously followed me over from the Clubhouse and had acquired an extra layer to make me doubly invisible. At this stage It was well past 2pm and I hadn’t eaten since before 6am thanks to my early rising and as my blood sugar level was at an all-time low, my irritation level was at an all-time high! 
I was contemplating murder but before such an extreme act could take place, a seventh staff member appeared to take my order. Very quickly I was served with a glass of champagne and too quickly I was served with a toasted club sandwich and fries. I say “too quickly” as no sooner was the champagne in front of me than yer man presented me with the club sandwich. Now to me, a toasted sandwich consists of hot toast and warm fillings depending on what they were. This was warm toast with cold fillings (one of which was bacon) and warm fries. It had obviously not been cooked to order but just assembled from pre-cooked ingredients. I had chosen that because I was hoping the tasting menu was going to be on the A380 and I didn’t want to spoil my appetite and because I was hungry I was disinclined to complain. But to say I was disgruntled would be a fair comment. When, oh when is BA going to get it right as far as I am concerned? 
After that I moved and went over to an area towards the back of the Concorde Room which had some runway views and seemed to be less crowded. I discovered it was a mezzanine area over the main concourse and open to that area. While I could appreciate it might be light and airy in summer, I found it quite chilly and also noisy from the various announcements and so I high-tailed it back into the main room and after much moving around found a seat where I was not being assailed by draughts from the door out to the said mezzanine area and where there was availability since there were still belongings on seats claiming them for absentee passengers. I managed to find sockets to top up my various devices and in the absence of a wait staff who was willing to disengage from an interesting conversation to look after me, went to the bar to request a top-up of my champagne! Even my worst experience in the Clubhouse was never as bad as this and it got to the stage where I was totally bored. My boredom was relieved by the advent of a couple of my vintage who seated themselves in my seating area and proceeded to entertain me with their chat! They were bound for Singapore where he had business and from there they were cruising in the Indian Ocean before returning from somewhere in India (can’t remember where) He moaned that his wife only accompanied him on interesting trips but I must admit, I was on her side! We enjoyed each other’s company for the brief time before it was time for me to head for the C gates and my flight to JNB.Travel with her on the A380! Does horror reign?
Erm, I don’t think so! Well maybe perhaps at the beginning!
I arrived at gate C63 which was the gate I had used for my trip to LAS last year. Boarding had not commenced but already lines had formed around the Priority boarding lines and indeed the Economy lines. As I arrived they were pre-boarding wheelchair passengers which had the effect of the lines extending even further! Sure enough, as the wheelchairs returned the call was made for passenger in First, CW, Gold, Silver and Bronze members to come forward which seemed to mean half the plane. Economy was held back and we were told to use all the desks but of course it meant that there was still a crowd on the jet bridge although many of the card holders trotted along to the seats at the back of the bus or to the jetway to the upper deck. As I approached the door everyone and his dog was being directed to turn right but as I presented my boarding pass the dear cabin crew squealed, “Oooh! 2A! Let me escort you to your seat”, which he did.
I was fully expecting it to be the same as the F seat I had had on my flight to LAS last year but no, it wasn’t. Some elements were the same such as the light, the electronic blinds and the casing for the IFE but much was different. For starters it seemed to be larger but also the external casing of the suite made it much more private - but, I hasten to add, not as private and claustrophobic as a window seat in CW. The mini wardrobe, which on the LAS flight had been facing you, on the A380 was outside the suite and accessed from the aisle and was a tad larger. To be honest, while the suite looked larger, it also seemed a bit bare and bland. Oh and the controls were a bit inaccessible compared with the other F.
When I had booked the seat map was available to me and 1A had been blocked out. I had therefore chosen 2A and for the longest time, I was the only person who had selected a seat. However at OLCI 1A had become available (along with the rest of the cabin) and I considered changing. I was later to be pleased that I had not, as 1A looks out directly on to the side of the stairwell leading to the upper deck. It meant that it was completely private but it really would not have suited me! Oh, and the rest of the cabin was completely full inspite of the fact that only I and one other person had selected seats!
I was the first into the cabin and as I fished out all the bits and bobs necessary for a flight, the cabin crew fetched up beside me, offering me a pre-flight drink. I opted for water but maybe water is the Irish for champagne or else a miracle occurred but a glass of champagne was delivered to me
(Yeah, right! You so believe I asked for water!! You’re obviously a newbie if you believe that!!) and in the fullness of time it was topped up! That doesn’t happen to me very often. A sleep suit was delivered to my seat and I headed off to the washroom to change. I was quite disappointed with the washroom as it was no more spacious than the VS ones with the same cat-swinging limitations but the bonus was the provision of Molton Brown toiletries. An amenity kit was offered which was identical to the one given on my LAS flight with the addition of earplugs which had been offered separately on that flight. However on the overnight flight from LAS I had been given slippers but there was no sign of them on this flight. Inconsistency rules on BA as well as VS.As I said before, it was a full cabin in F but in fairness the crew worked their socks off before the flight. The guy in the suite the other side of the aisle (and slightly in front of me) had a problem with his seat as it would not stay upright and try as they might, the crew could not fix it. The passenger though, was OK about it - no hissy fits; no DYKWIA. He recognised that they had done their best and the reality was he was going to be horizontal for the most of the flight - not, I hasten to add, that he was horizontal then. In fact, if he were on a VS flight, he would have been reclining at an angle that most of us would be on take-off!
While boarding was taking place, I poked around in the pocket containing in-flight magazines, etc. and found a menu. Oooh goody! The tasting menu was on but looking at it, it didn’t seem very enticing to my palate and I preferred the ordinary menu. “Oh, well”, thought I to myself, “Some you win, some you lose”. Mind you, I was a tad puzzled that the menu was partly in Chinese!
We pushed back on time for our 10.5 hour flight and seemed to by-pass the queue of planes waiting for clearance so that within minutes we were airborne. Immediately the crew sprang into action and delivered hot towels (and, My! They were hot!) followed by another crew member handing out menus. One look at this told me that the other one had been left in the pocket by mistake and so I handed it to the cabin crew to avoid confusion. We laughed at the Chinese part of the menu and she agreed with me that the previous flight had probably been to Hong Kong. Yesss! It had the tasting menu and Yesss! It looked delicious. honey lamb was one happy bunny! Orders were taken for dinner and the tasting menu with wines it was!!
The drinks round came next and I requested and received a T10 and tonic with the choice of olives or nuts. My happiness was complete - well apart from the fact that the tonic came in a can. As I didn’t use it all and hate waste and there seemed to be no second helpings, I was a bit miffed but I used my call bell (which I rarely do) and requested a second T10 which was swiftly delivered. While all this was happening a cabin crew member hunkered down beside me, shook hands and welcomed me on to the flight. He was the CSD and chatted briefly to me. During the course of the conversation he told me that this was one of the last flights for his team and when I asked him what he meant, he told me it was going from World Wide crew to Mixed Fleet. On my Vegas trip I had had WW crew on the way out and MF on the return and the difference was noticeable. He was very pleasant to chat to and much more friendly than the CSD on my trip to Vegas who had seemed to be a tad uncomfortable in that part of her duties. Oh, and a word about the cabin crew assigned to my side of the cabin. She was really lovely. Nothing was too much trouble and she gave the impression she really wanted to look after me! Perhaps I looked like her mum!
And now for the best bit!! The tasting menu!! It was absolutely gorgeous and the best food I have had on a plane. The wine pairings were amazing. The service was exquisite. After each course I was asked if I was ready for the next one and I was able to dictate the pace - a truly enjoyable experience.
We started with an amuse-bouche before going on to the menu proper
followed by
Next was the consommé which looked exactly like what it was - a bowl of soup but it was full of flavours and delicious!
I forgot to take a photo of the sea bass course but again it was exquisite and beautifully presented and I think the wine was beginning to take hold as I only thought of taking this photo after I had started eating!
As for the berry dome, I have no recollection of eating it but I do remember the wine, so I must have done but alas no photos.
As I said before, the meal was exquisite!Nicely replete with both food and wine, I watched Paddington but the 4am start and the champagne, G&Ts and wine were beginning to take their toll and I decided that bed was calling me. I got up to use the bathroom and immediately the cabin crew was there to ask if she could make up my bed. I thanked her and when I returned it was already for me to snuggle down and snuggle down I did!
![][|)](./images/smilies/icon_smile_sleepy.gif "Sleepy"){kind=icon}
The next thing I knew, the cabin lights were back on and we were an hour away from JNB!! The cabin crew, on seeing I was awake, offered me a hot breakfast but really all I wanted was fruit and cereal which was duly delivered to me. I changed out of my sleep suit (which really are comfortable compared with the VS ones) and read as we glided down into JNB. The CSD came round once more to us individually to make sure we had a good flight and to wish us well for our stay in South Africa. We landed in JNB at around 7am and I was on to the next leg of my journey to DUR.So, what was my opinion of this BA flight?
The problem with flights to and from JNB is that, because they are both overnight flights you don’t really get the full on experience that you do with a flight of similar length - say to the west coast of America. Having said that, I have to say that it was easily the best flight I had had on BA. The food was superb and I loved the tasting menu. The seat was comfortable and spacious and when converted to a bed was good and less cramped than the VS suites. (As an aside I have to say that the seats in J on Singapore Airlines is by far the best when it comes to being converted to a bed. It is like being in a full-sized single bed).
Was it the best flight I have ever had? No. It lacked the sparkle of some of the VS flights I have had. While the cabin crew were very professional and friendly, I missed the interaction one gets with the VS crew and also the social aspect of the bar - and indeed on occasion with other passengers during boarding. Another aspect of VS is that, because its network is much smaller than BA’s it is not unknown to have the same crew as on a previous flight, albeit to a different destination and it really is lovely when they remember you from that flight. I have to say though, that BA is making its way up the ladder!
What happens in JNB?
I was going to post the JNB-DUR leg in a different post but since I had originally posted a teaser in “trailer” form, I feel obliged to continue in the same way.
So, having arrived in JNB, the rest of the aircraft was held back till F had disembarked. As we has taxied to the terminal I had noticed a few international carriers such as Emirates on stand and I hoped that they had arrived long before us. They had! We arrived into a deserted Immigration Hall where, having zig-zagged through the tensa barriers (and there’s always one person in JNB who ducks under them even though he’s among the first off the aircraft), to where a young lady directed us to a desk which looked like it would be freed immediately - none of this trying to guess which lane to choose only to find you are in the slowest one or get behind someone who, having been processed waits at the desk until the rest of her family from the back of the plane have arrived and then joins her.
Immigration was easy-peasy and I then went to collect my bag knowing that I would have to re-check it. It came through very quickly and I made my way to the recheck desks outside of the Customs area. I was flying with Comair (which flies with BA livery) on this occasion, which was new to me as in the past I had used SAA. I couldn’t see the desk at first but a very nice lady from SAA directed me to there.
I seemed to be the only one connecting and I’m afraid I disturbed the young lady at the desk who it seems, having arrived at work at some God-forsaken hour, had pressed the snooze button on her phone.
She barely spoke to me as I presented myself at the desk. I explained that I was already checked in and had boarding passes but she told me that my Aer Lingus printed boarding pass would not be accepted and printed another, in spite of my telling her that an Aer Lingus printed one had sufficed in LHR. However, as I too was in snooze mode, I was disinclined to argue the toss and so meekly accepted my boarding pass (which had the advantage of the gate printed on it) and made my way to security in the domestic terminal. Security was quiet and I was through in no time at all. I started to make my way to the gate area when I happened to notice a signpost for the lounges. There had been no mention of lounges at check-in but given that my onward flight was in J, I felt sure I would be entitled to it and so I headed in that direction. After all, the worst that could happen was that I would be turned away! There are worse things in life!!
BA in South Africa uses the SLOW lounge which it shares with a couple of banks. I was warmly welcomed and made my way in. Given the early hour it was quite busy. There was the usual shelf with the coffee making machine, jugs of juice and water and the necessary milk, sugar, etc. There was an island unit with trays of food much of which would have been at home at a cocktail party, together with the usual pastries and rolls. Coffee was also available here. Further in the lounge was another island unit which was the bar and was manned. Showers were available and I considered having one but decided against as I felt that in another couple of hours I would be at my niece’s and could have one then. The toilets were immaculate as, whenever a passenger exited one, it was cleaned before anyone else was allowed in!
I found somewhere to sit and helped myself to water and coffee and availed of the wi-fi to catch up with what had happened since I left the Concorde Room. I was still tired, and if the truth be told, a tad hungover from all the wines in the tasting menu, so all I had was coffee and water. I had just about an hour there before it was time to leave for the last leg of my journey. At the gate lines had already formed and there were separate ones for Club and Economy. I wasn’t there too long before boarding commenced and soon I was ensconced in 3A.
Once on board, juice or water was offered prior to take-off. The flight was very full which was to be expected given that many of the passengers were obviously going to meetings as JNB-DUR is a main commuter route. Shortly after take-off, drinks orders of tea or coffee were taken. I asked for tea which was promptly delivered. The sugar was not served in sachets but on the end of a stick to be melted in the cup. At least I wasn’t sprinkled with sugar as when opening the sachets, but the sugar didn’t really dissolve that quickly - I think the phrase is “slow release”! A cooked breakfast was also served which seemed to be egg-based, like a frittata with tomato and God knows what else in it. I declined it as I really wasn’t hungry and so did a few others in the cabin.
How does her journey end?!!
Shortly afterwards we made our descent into King Shaka Airport and after a short walk, arrived in the baggage hall where I headed for the Ladies. On my return the baggage carousel had started up and I could see my bag trundling merrily along and in fact was about to disappear back into the loading bay!
I did a quick scamper across the baggage hall and retrieved it just before it was swallowed up into the bowels of the loading area. Happy that I had succeeded, I headed out to the Arrivals Hall where my niece was waiting for me ready to bear me off to her home and where, the following day we would surprise my brother who had no idea I was in the country!! Notice anything? Yup! No disasters! Not one! Zilch! Nada!!
Sorreeeee!!
