Round The World and other travel

Flight Log 7: OZ541

Seoul Incheon (ICN) - Frankfurt (FRA)

ABOVE: Our Boeing 747-400 Combi at Seoul Incheon, with its huge cargo door clearly visible towards the rear

Following a memorable FRA-ICN flight ten days previously, Bruce and I had taken steps to ensure that the westbound experience would also live up to expectations: we had pre-allocated seats 1A/K and had both pre-ordered the Chinese meal. So when we boarded our 747 Combi, we had known for several days exactly where we were headed. On this occasion, the only other occupants of the First Class cabin were a third passenger in 3A and the relief pilot in 4K.

As per previous Asiana flights in First, headsets, amenity kits and slippers were already in place, while sleeper suits were delivered by the crew. Unlike the eastbound flight, Champagne was available on the ground, served with the usual warmed nuts. Having sampled the Taittinger on the outbound, we opted for the Winston Churchill on this occasion.

I was slightly taken aback by a total power outage, but it didn't seem to indicate anything sinister and all services were up and running again within seconds. There was a round of hot towels and drinks were topped up immediately prior to pushback, which came a little behind schedule at 1258. The cabin crew gave the traditional bow to passengers and an announcement from the flight deck during the taxi indicated that our expected flight time was 11hrs 20mins - a huge contrast with the eastbound sector!

We left Incheon behind at 1316 local time and, even though it was a day flight, I changed into my sleeper suit as soon as the seat belt signs had been switched off. Menus and wine lists were distributed and the full lunch offering was as follows:

WESTERN MENU		CHINESE MENU
Starters		Starters
Foie Gras Mousse with blini, truffle and ginger compote		Shrimp spring roll
Caviar		Assorted cold platter
Pepper-crusted Tuna with carrot and chive slaw		Crabmeat soup
Pickled Mushroom with chick pea salad and baby leaf
Creamy Chicken Soup and risotto ball		Main course 1
		Assorted stir-fried seafood 'Jeon-ga-bok'
Main courses
Roasted veal tenderloin with lobster, mushroom ragout,		Main course 2
wilted cabbage and horseradish cream		Stir-fried pork and cashew nut served with oriental
Pan-fried Sole Stuffed Crab with grilled tomatoes and		sauce and accompanied by fried rice
parsley pesto
Braised Beef Cheek with mushroom gnocchi, asparagus		Dessert
and Burgundy jus		Chinese tropical fruit
		Coffee and tea with petit fours
Cheese selection
Castello Blue, Saint André, Camembert		We are pleased to offer Caviar Service on your request

Dessert
Tropezienne with blackberry sauce
Coffee and tea with petit fours

KOREAN ROYAL TABLE D'HOTE		WINE LIST
Starters		Champagne
Eggplant Roll with soybean paste sauce		Taittinger Comtes de Champagne 2002
Abalone Roll of boiled dropworts 'Minari Jeonbok Ganghoe'		Pol Roger Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill 1999
Purple sweet potato porridge
		White wines
Main course		Meursault 1er Cru Clos des Poruzots 2009, Burgundy,
Korean Royal Cuisine 'Bibimbap' and Grilled		France
Toothfish: Steamed rice mixed with various vegetables,		Chateau Brown 2007, Bordeaux, France
accompanied by red pepper paste 'Gochujang', sesame oil,		Jordan Chardonnay 2008, California, USA
grilled toothfish, assorted side dishes and soup
or		Red wines
Korean Royal Cuisine 'Bibimbap' and Braised Beef		Chateau Gruaud Larose 2008, Bordeaux, France
Short Rib in Sweet Pumpkin: Steamed rice mixed with		Corton Bressandes Grand Cru 2008/09, Burgundy, France
various vegetables, accompanied by red pepper paste		Robert Keenan Winery Cabernet Sauvignon 2006/07,
'Gochujang', sesame oil, braised beef short rib in sweet		California, USA
pumpkin, assorted side dishes and soup		Vaso 2009, Dana Estates, California, USA
or
Korean Royal Cuisine 'Bibimbap' and Stewed		Port
Seafood: Steamed rice mixed with various vegetables,		Sandeman 20-year-old Tawny Port, Porto, Portugal
accompanied by red pepper paste 'Gochujang', sesame oil,
stewed abalone, scallop and sea cucumber, assorted side		Dessert wines
dishes and soup		Blandy's 10-year-old Malmsey Madeira, Portugal
or		Jackson-Triggs Vidal VQA Ice Wine 2007, Niagara,
Korean Royal Cuisine 'Ssambap' with Beef Short Rib		Canada
'Bulgalbi': Steamed rice topped with grilled 'Bulgogi' beef
and bean paste, wrapped with various leafy vegetables,
accompanied by assorted side dishes and soup

Dessert
Fresh fruit
Coffee and tea
Caramelized honey and jujube 'Dae Chu Cho'

As a post-take off drink, I had some more champagne, together with some ice water and the first appetiser (shrimp spring roll) served as an amuse bouche. Although we were having the pre-ordered Chinese menu, a nice feature was that the caviar service from the western menu was available on request. We both opted in, obviously! I was offered a glass of vodka with the caviar on this occasion, but as ever preferred the taste of champagne. Delivery of nicely-presented dishes then proceeded with the remaining starter, the soup and both main courses, while both the Meursault and the Corton Bressandes managed to put in an appearance. Another fabulous feast in the skies was rounded off with some refreshing oriental fruit and a cup of tea.

I started to watch a movie, but couldn't get into it and gave up in favour of reading. (I still regarded my recently acquired Kindle e-reader as a new toy at this stage! ) I then had a light sleep to break up what was going to be an exceptionally long day. When I came round, a crew member offered me something from the snack menu and I decided to try a hot roast beef sandwich with a cup of tea, both of which were rather nice.

REFRESHMENTS (available on request throughout the flight)		LEFT: Hot sandwich served as a mid-flight snack
Ramen
Warm Noodles
Hot Sandwich
Fresh fruits

I settled in for another long spell of reading. Our route had taken us across the Bohai Sea and over Tianjin, before veering northwards to pass east of Beijing. Resumption of a more conventional heading then saw us passing over the Siberian cities of Irkutsk and Krasnojarsk and right across northern Russia towards St Petersburg, before passing across Estonia just south of Tallinn and finally heading out over the Baltic Sea.

With 2hrs 15mins left to run, a round of hot towels allowed us to freshen up in preparation for the so-called 'snack' meal prior to arrival. I recognised the menu as being identical to that offered on my previous ICN-FRA flight in June 2012:

WESTERN		KOREAN
Appetizer		Main course
Roasted Beet with boiled quail egg, heirloom tomato		Korean Royal Cuisine 'Ugeoji Galbitang': Korean
and mustard vinaigrette		traditional cabbage and beef short rib soup, served with
		various side dishes and steamed rice
Main courses
Balsamic glazed Mero with mushroom and grilled		Dessert
pineapple salsa		Fresh fruit
or		Coffee and tea
Cumin Scented Lamb Tenderloin with green olive and
peas, orange segments and tomato coulis

Dessert
Vanilla Mousse, pineapple shavings, crunchy chocolate
and lemon dressing
Coffee and tea

Although this second meal was a re-run of one that I had already sampled, I chose exactly the same options as before. This time around, I found the lamb main course even more enjoyable than previously.

ABOVE: The pre-arrival, so-called 'snack' meal

A tasty Belgian Leffe beer washed it all down nicely and a third serving of Earl Grey rounded things off in a most civilised manner. The final part of our route took us down over the Baltic, clipping a corner of Poland near Szczecin, then over Berlin and Leipzig before descending into Frankfurt. There was a final round of hot towels and on this occasion, the parting gift turned out to be a shopping bag - a little disappointing after the attractive scented candle and CD on the eastbound flight.

We touched down on 25L at 1618 local time and parked on-stand ten minutes later. It had been another fabulous experience of Asiana Airlines' wonderful hospitality and professionalism in First Class. With the Aladdin's Cave that was bmi Diamond Club now sealed up for ever , we both wondered when we might again enjoy such an indulgence.