This is a Trip Report from the Upper Class cabin
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I flew in from Malta a few days before on Air Malta and spent the night of the 11th at the Gatwick Hilton, bless the place it does what it says on the tin but I do have to chuckle at the prices they charge there, 2.80 for a coke, 24 for a steak etc.
I checked in for my flight the evening before using the twilight check in. I was concerned that the two large boxes containing four cat carriers I had schlepped to the airport all the way from sunny Swansea would incur additional costs (as they were both just over the maximum size per piece of luggage) however I was checked in and directed to the oversize luggage drop off and went about my business without one comment about the odd baggage I was taking off to the islands. The whole process took less than thirty minutes and it was a massive relief to be rid of the boxes that I had moved from Paddington to Victoria then onto the GEX and into the terminal via a succession of well tipped porters and taxi drivers.
After a brief sleep I was back in the terminal for six thirty am prepared for the usual horrible queues and security checks. Fast Track deposited me at the head of the security queue and I dutifully lined up with all and sundry and was through to the terminal in less than ten minutes (result), a quick trip to Boots and then off to the clubhouse for breakfast.
I already posted my rant about the lack of parental responsibility from the clubhouse at the time so I wont go into detail here except to say that pouring Smarties down your kids throats at 7am (ish) doesnt set the little ones up for a long haul flight. Luckily these little darlings werent on the Antigua flight, perhaps it was a ruse to wear them out for whatever flight they were on. I hope it worked for the sake of everyone who was near them. Actually they werent badly behaved, just cranked up on sugar and excitement and ready to run an Olympic sprint, which is not what you need to be exposed to when you are having your clubhouse breakfast and wondering when the daily mail will actually print any actual news.
So I surfed the web briefly and then made my way slowly down to the gate, for once enjoying not having to sprint between gates as I usually do when flying from Malta to Gibraltar, which I do more often then I would like.
Good old VS never fails to disappoint and whilst I arrived at the gate just as they were calling for Upper Class and Premium passengers the gate staff were processing everyone that had taken it upon themselves to join the queue, so I very uncharacteristically pushed my way to the front of the queue and presented my boarding card to the one agent that did appear to actually be trying to board people according to cabin. It was a complete free for all, for some reason it annoyed me, normally it doesnt but perhaps my chi was out of kilter this morning (its been a bad few weeks to be a Welsh Rugby Fan, but thats another rant).
I began to settle into 10K, Ipod out check, magazines stowed check, bang my bloody head on the overhead bin check, I do it every single time. Still they are well padded. I settled into my seat with a glass of fizz, I had planned not to touch booze for this flight but I figured I was being a tad too precious for whatever reason and I thought Id anesthetise myself sufficiently to relax and enjoy the flight.
The cabin began to fill up and my neighbour in 11K noticed that he and his wife (in 11A) didnt have the seatback magazine that lists the movie choices (sorry I cant remember the name) so he moved around the cabin taking copies from the other passengers seats that had yet to board. That also got under my skin so I asked for another glass of fizz and asked for a copy of the magazine as my seat also didnt have it. The other passengers were on their own if they needed a copy as 11K and I were well sorted thank you very much.
The combination of cheap fizz and the early hour took hold and I drifted off to sleep until we rotated. I awoke feeling far more relaxed and enjoyed the view of England disappearing into the morning and closed my eyes until the seatbelt sign went off.
The cabin crew were very quick to come around and offer drinks and dispense the shoe bag (which I left onboard) and then subsequently take the lunch orders. If someone came around with a basket of additions to the amenity kit then I didnt catch it, but I was half asleep at the time so they may have let me snooze. When awoken for the next drink orders I thought sod it and a vodka tonic duly arrived (it was now about 10.30amhic).
I spent a little time looking over the lunch menu (oh this was the second menu as the original one didnt apply to the meal choices that had been loaded). Options were a smoked haddock pate or curried squash soup to start and then a steak and onion square pie with mash potatoes and beef jus or chicken breast with roast potatoes and stuffing.
The soup was nice however I can highly recommend the pie, mainly because I had the chicken.
I had some cheese and port for desert and a couple more glasses of whatever red it was that I stuck with through the meal, sorry the name escapes me right now but it wasnt anything worth remembering.
Then it was time to dive into a few movies which I duly nodded off half way through and before you can say I wonder what that is it was afternoon tea with the dried out sandwiches and mystery fillings and those really nice scones (wish Id just stuck with a couple of scones actually).
I then proceeded to fill out the Antiguan landing card (the format always changes, I think they airlines just make up their own) and drink tea, tea and more tea in preparation for a busy afternoon in Antigua.
A now seriously over caffeinated me, straps in ready for landing and we arrive bang on time to my home of the past seven years. I speed walk into immigration and end up as the first arrival to be processed then, for the first time ever, my two boxes of cat carriers are in the first wave of bags to hit the conveyer.
A brief stop at customs to pay a deposit on the cat carriers (which I will lose if I dont remove them from the island when I say I will) and its off to rent a car and speed home to see my animals.
Note to self, next time you let someone stay at my place rent free for six months I really should tell them where the mop is, the place was filthy, not just a bit dirty but uninhabitable and putrid. My cats had taken to living in the garden as the house was too dirty even for them. So I spent my first day, and most of the next day, back in paradise spring cleaning a house I was due to vacate in less than a week and bonding with some very confused animals that had forgotten (almost) all about me. I am no Howard Hughes when it comes to my environment but damnnnn some people can just live like vermin.
Anyway it was not a bad flight considering I spent most of it asleep, the crew were really good and attentive but once again the priority boarding was a sham and the onboard food was poor. Still it was a G fare so I was happy enough. This was likely to be my last VS flight for the foreseeable future as I dont routinely fly anywhere on the VS network any more. My return was booked in club class on BA (as VS cant transport animals on that route) and I was looking forward to making the comparison between the two products.
