The God’s are smiling on Brucey, or at least somebody is.
I was delighted to discover that Qantas had ‘bumped’ me up to Business Class for the whole long-haul leg of the flight! And while I am sure that this would always be appreciated, it couldn’t have happened at a better time. Dead set, not only did we have to put up with Sydney Airport being an absolute shit fight due to all the construction work, but the place was chocker block full of pilgrims, who by the stench emanating throughout the entire terminal, had not had a shower since the start of World Youth Day ’08, and had never heard of deodorant. To make matters worse, nearly all of them were waiting to board the next flight to London, and I wasn’t looking forward to sharing a cramped cabin with 400 of them for 24 hours…
So, whoever you were – you brilliant person you (I have my suspicions) – thank you very much for the unexpected upgrade!
And I must say, I have never flown in such luxury! Everybody should do this at least once. I’m talking about walking onto a 747-400, and being shown to my seat – upstairs – which is about the size of a recliner lounge. Before you can stow your luggage, the wonderful flight attendants already know your name and are trying their best to pour champagne down your throat. No sooner has the plane taken off, you are not wondering how to kill the time, but lamenting the fact that you won’t even go close to watching everything you want to on the extensive in-flight entertainment system that has more channels than Foxtel, and all programs played on demand. The seats even come with power outlets so you can plug in your laptop and go for your life without fear of the battery running out (as you can see I’ve had plenty of time to write this!)
And the food is to die for; the Qantas menu was put together by Neil Perry, the chef behind the famous Sydney Rockpool restaurant. My first entrée was Salad of Smoked Salmon and green peas with mint dressing which was superb, and didn’t leave much room for the main, from which you had to choose either Seared Snapper, Roast Chicken or Lamb in Rosemary, all with delicious sides.
The other meals were just as good – Basque style chicken and artichokes with roast potatoes and green beans for supper, and a sensational hot breakfast, just before touching down in London consisting of whatever you ticked on the boxes. I went for scrambled eggs, bacon, smoked salmon, spinach and onion relish, croissants, a banana energy booster smoothie and a hot chocolate top it off.
At any time during the flight, you could order a toasted sandwich, baguette or focaccia with pretty much whatever you wanted on it.
Of course, to wash all this food down, the James Squires didn’t touch the sides, and was quickly followed up by several glasses of delicious Shiraz, and naturally throughout the flight the spirit bar got a good workout, and the cabin crew were always obliging with requests. My dessert of Cream Espresso and Praline Ice Cream with Cream Anglaise was accompanied by a glass of fine Cognac, which was all I could take before needing to sleep off some of the first class indulgence – in a sky-bed that reclines to a completely flat position and is very comfortable to sleep on. While I was able to take advantage of around 5-6 hours deep sleep, I later found out that most of the team in cattle class wasn’t able to manage any at all!
Anyway, enough of the bragging, I’ll try to keep my updates more entertaining in future but I couldn’t help myself just this once!
MATTHEW BRUCE
Foreign Correspondent | Cronulla SLSC
