BA85 LHR-YVR First 21 Aug 08
Posted: 21 Aug 2008, 16:13Picked up from the City by Virgin LimoBike 12:15, arrived at T5 13:05.
At check in, a humanoid 'take a number' deli-style told me to go to the check in number J6. I forgot to pick up any snob tags. I asked where iris security registration thing is, no-one knew.
Zero wait at South security except for untrained guy checking BPs.
After giving her my bp, dragon #1 at CCR looked down upon me and asked after 10 secs 'are you travelling F?' So I helped her out by pointing out the F on my BP.
Dragon #2 inside the hallowed turf was much more forgiving.
Looked at CCR dining menu - rather lacklustre to say the least - VS Clubhouse wins here.
Glass of bolly 1999, for old times sake, - very bolly, a deep almost slightly madirised feel to it - plus cheese & onion crisps
Needed food, so went to Plane Food. Had the specials - anti pasto plus fish cakes, bottle of Leeuwin Prelude Chard 2005. Was told it wasn't oaked but it is, which is more my taste anyway. OK, but it was my worst meal there so far.
Now to try the F lounge - Glass of Ch Haut-Bergey Pessac Leognan 2004 white - just my cup of tea. Vanilla, butter and spice. And at my temperature too (I like oaky wines near room temp).
F lounge already has defects - scratches, melomine veneer scrapes etc.
The 'outside' areas of F and CCR are very quiet indeed. You get waiter/waitress/waitron [(c) Decker] service in the CCR, not in F.
See you later... back to the CCR.
15:30 - back in the CCR. It's all a bit Vegas in here.
Lovely Puligny Montrachet 2005 (but a bit cold) and a Ch Batailley 1996. And some cheese. [16:03 - ooh look at them stains on the table - they've been there since I sat down in the same place at 13:15]
Not bad for a boy between jobs[:#]
Laters...
[16:09]...
[img]http://www.hanlincrest.com/images/P1000406.JPG[/img]
Overlooking some poor people today
...alligators...
[17:05]
a couple of '99s later (not Mr Wippy, Mr Bolly), and...
[img]http://www.hanlincrest.com/images/P1000407.JPG[/img]
Cleansing g&t
On return I will be finally back to Gold 'yesh yesh GOLD' after two years a lowly silver.
As I'm aboard I will fill in some bits once back on terra firma in a few hours.
... in a while...
[03:45]
Arghh - my head hurts. Clearly I have a problem here, a big problem, but despite that I will soldier on.
Made my way to the T5B satellite, to be greeted by nobody in front of me in the F/J line so I was delighted being barely moments to my next pint of Bolly '99 depite the minor irritation of having to share a 30 second train ride between the A and B terminals.
On boarding I was shown directly to my seat by two delightful ladies. I knew this was going to be pretty empty today, because on Monday I was the only pax in F. In the end I had two others, and with three crew assigned I was hardly going to struggle getting a wee dram.
Directly I was asked what I'd like and to test the water I went for the G&T. Nice, because sometimes it's only Champagne. Got into my PJs. The PJs are OK but they don't come in a nice cloth bag so, as regulars will know, as I go commando in PJs, I didn't have anywhere to put me kecks, so I had to hide them in my shoes. I don't think anyone noticed.
Taxied for the usual half hour or so, and off we went. Fixed my Bolly problem with a couple more '99s and canapees.
Started dinner service with a super cheese soufflee that truly went orgasmically with a couple of Clos du Bois Russian River Valley Reserve Chardonnay.
For me main I chose a spicy lamb cutlet dish that was as good as it gets in the air. My vote for the best airline dish of the year.
Matched it with a 1996 Bordeaux - don't have the menu with me right now but it was a goody - OK now I have the menu in front of me it's a Ch L_oville Poyferr_.
Gotta go - lounge here in YVR is closing.
... crocodile...
[04:15] OK now at gate waiting for my connection.
Let me explain why the lamb was sooo good. I have only once had rare meat on a plane and I think that was probably a mistake, and the lamb today was certainly at least in the _ point category. But to make it into a curry by covering it in a super spicy sauce made it remarkable.
Of course no meal is sacred without cheese. On viewing the plate (sadly no cheese board) I picked the Russian River Valley chard again, and some port that astionishingly was only available in very large quantites.
But something wasn't quite right at the Caerphilly stage, so I ordered some more of the Pessac Leognan that I'd had earlier in the lounge, but on strict intructions that the quantity should be kept in sub-pint proportions.
Obscurely, I seem to have rather a lapse of memory about the dessert. I remember the creme anglaise (custard for the burger munchers) being super but the rest of the desert I have no clue about other than there were some roasted nuts that smelt remarkably like the ones those blokes sell to tourists on Charing Cross Road that no-one in their right minds would purchase.
Lashings of Opitz Trockenbeerenauslese led me to forget completely anything else for the next few hours, so I'm afraid I can't really say much of interest about most of the rest of the flight.
My memory returned about forty minutes prior to landing.
I'd like to take the opportunity to thank the best crew I've had for quite some time and their uncanny knack of funnel feeding, for which I am indebted, not that I can remember much about it.
Now, I'm looking forward to meeting my extended family and crawling into a welcoming gutter somewhere in the Pacific Northwest.
I thank you for your patience.
[25 Aug]
I was on an interesting (for me anyway) configuration where WT+ was directly behind F between doors 1 and 2, with CW behind and in the bubble.
On landing there were two jetways at 1L and 2L. The 2L mated first so CW were deplaning before we could get out. However I made up for it, and I was first at immigration where delightfully there was no-one in front of me.
So during the entire trip I had never had to wait in line behind anyone! Surely a first.
In conclusion...
There is little point using the F check in other than that you can. There is nothing particularly 'special' about it unlike the old T1 and T4 F check in.
I liked the F & CCR lounges and the superb wine selection in both, although the food offerings in the CCR and certainly F (where there's a very simple buffet) were a million miles from the quality of the beverages. I have no idea why or what the pony tailed Quintissentially guys were doing in the CCR. There are many many waiting people in the CCR, but they didn't seem to come around much. The outside areas of both the F and CCR lounges are the tranquil spots.
A lack of trained people is a problem in T5. At every stage something was a surprise. They've been open six months now, surely it can't take that long.
The flight was faultless in every way except the airbridges on arrival. The seat was really comfortable both sitting up and when in the bad position. AVOD was OK but already looks antique compared to other airlines' offerings. I was certainly blessed with an empty flight and a truly stellar crew.
[25 Aug - assorted corrections and additions made]
Keep it up. Waitron seems to be a South African thing and I have adopted it along with s/he.