Round The World and other travels
A frequent flyer's collection of trip diaries
This is: Spring Fever 2008
Flight Log 5 : LH630
Frankfurt (FRA) - Dubai (DXB)
In the same way as at Heathrow
earlier in the day, and for the same reasons, boarding was a scrum.
It reminded me of an experience at a German bus stop when I first
visited the country in the late 1970s, which had made a severe dent
in the stereotypical image of Germans that I'd hitherto held
Nevertheless, I managed to be second into the
nose cabin of the 747, which on Lufthansa is Business rather than
First Class. My jacket was taken immediately and I was given a
welcome drink of sparkling wine. (The worrying thought that they
might not serve proper Champagne crossed my mind at this stage,
thankfully later on to be proved completely unfounded!) I was
impressed by the very modernistic Recaro seats, even before I'd had
a chance to explore their various features, and by the cleanliness
of the cabin, which this time was certainly not down
to the young age of the aircraft! Boarding was complete by 1500. The
Captain announced the expected flight time of 5hrs 20mins and we
pushed back from stand five minutes adrift at 1515. The safety
video, featuring rather serious-looking animated characters, was
shown in both German and Arabic but, most unusually, not in English.
We taxied out to the old military runway at right angles to the main
ones and took to the skies at 1526. There was the usual very noisy
retraction of the front wheel, which is something I normally
associate with being in First Class.
Initial flying conditions were bumpy as I tried in
vain to spot any recognisable landmarks. Hot towels were handed out
as we passed Munich Airport and the Captain described our routing as
being via Vienna, Budapest, the Balkans, the Black Sea, Turkey and
the Gulf. He neglected to say how one gets from Turkey to the Gulf,
but more of that later
Menus were distributed and I found my washbag, which was hiding in a
slot behind the armrest of my seat. The menu read as follows :-
| LUNCH |
|
WINES |
| Hors D'Oeuvres | Champagne | |
| Vitello Tonnato (thin slices of veal with tuna sauce and capers) | Jacquart Brut Mosaique | |
| Smoked brook trout with fennel orange salad and Meaux mustard sauce | ||
| White Wines | ||
| Salad | 2006 Rheingau Riesling Qualitätswein trocken, Schloss Reinhartshausen, Germany | |
| Roman salad with diced cucumber and bell pepper, presented with Balsamico dressing | 2007 Chardonnay Vineyard Selection, Kleine Zalze, South Africa | |
| Entrees | Red Wines | |
| Olive crusted saddle of lamb with ratatouille and potato gratin | 2003 Chateau Castéra, Cru Bourgeois Supérieur, Médoc, France | |
| Tilapia with leek and tomato confit, accompanied by mashed potatoes with olives | 2005 Vegalfaro Tinto Crianza, Utiel-Requena, Spain | |
| Penne with vegetable ragout and Provolone | ||
| Cheese and Dessert | ||
| Roquefort, Camembert and Comté cheese | ||
| Caramel tiramisu with kiwi, strawberry and mango coulis | ||
| Fresh exotic fruit salad |
I started up the AVOD system and found it very easy to navigate using the large screens. A quick look at the Classical section revealed Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto, a work that has featured in these pages several times in the past, due to its presence on my own laptop's hard disk. This recording was by French pianist Hélène Grimaud, and I enjoyed it very much, despite the intermittent presence of some slight distortions in the sound. (This featured in all the recordings that I listened to. Perhaps the system isn't quite up to the demands of classical music.)
There was a pre-dining drinks service and I found
myself all but compelled to sample the Champagne
, along with the dry roast peanuts
that were also offered. The crew were very attentive and my glass
received multiple top-ups
The food service then proceeded in a leisurely fashion, with
plenty of time to recover between courses before moving on to the
next. I had the smoked trout and salad, followed by the lamb main
course and then some cheese. I stuck with the Champagne initially,
but then tried the Spanish red with my lamb and some port with the
cheese. The cheese / dessert service and the tea / coffee service
were both notable in that they were carried out from beautifully
prepared and presented trolleys (NB not standard airline
carts). I've already commented on the leisurely pace and indeed, the
meal was spread out to cover more than half of the flight! By the
time everything was cleared away, we only had about 2.5 hours to
run.
Another bumpy patch ensued and then darkness fell quickly. I'd been listening to some Chopin Preludes and then found an excellent double-album on the system that was a tribute to legendary conductor Herbert von Karajan. Although the Captain hadn't mentioned it earlier, I noticed from the system map that our routing was ... erm ... interesting : right over Iraq! My last BA flights to and from Dubai a couple of years ago routed via Iran, I assumed quite deliberately. We emerged unscathed. I couldn't resist having a play with the seat and couldn't decide whether I'd be able to sleep well in the sloping layout or not, should I need to on some future flight. I liked the ability to instruct the seat to 'memorise' a particular position.
About an hour out from the destination, there was a beverage service and little nutty cup-cakes were handed out. I had an apple juice to accompany mine. Fast Track invitation cards were handed out for Immigration, which would prove to be a real bonus on arrival. There was then a second round of (exceptionally!) hot towels and the cabin was prepared for arrival with about 30 minutes still to go. Jackets were returned with the aid of a torch, as there were no lights in the closet!
We touched down in darkness at 2250 local Dubai time and were on-stand some eight minutes later.
Looking back on it, I really enjoyed my first LH
longhaul experience. The cabin crew were friendly and very
attentive. The food was comparable to that offered by BA and, if
anything, slightly better. However I still think BA have a winner in
their flat (and horizontal!) beds and I personally like the
increased privacy afforded to the solo traveller by their forward /
back layout. That having been said, I think I can see more of Lufty
in my future
Date: Fri 18 Apr 2008
Aircraft : Boeing 747-400
Scheduled dep : 1510
Actual departure : 1515
Scheduled arrival : 2305
Actual arrival : 2258
Cabin : Business
Seat : 2K
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