Filmed on Nikon D5500 + Sigma 17-50 f2.8 lens.
Originally this flight is operated by the A380. However, a month before my flight, I received a call from Asiana saying that due to maintanence, my flight was now operated by the 747 with the old first class seats. I was told I could switch my flight either to the day before or after for the A380 suites. Because of scheduling issues, I could not change my flight and decided to stick with the old school 747. Chances are I won't have another opportunity to fly on the 747-400 anyways.
I ran into a problem with check-in. I was told I could not check my bag all the way to Beijing and had to recheck it. I told the agent that in the past it was always possible, but she said that I could not on this flight. While I was chilling in the lounge, I received a call from the agent saying that I was right and she will reprint the boarding pass and baggage tag and deliver it to me. Anyways it was nice of her to correct the mistake and then deliver the updated boarding pass to me.
Boarding began on time, and onboard I found myself on a clean but old 747-400. There was no mood lighting and in the snow storm, the cabin felt very dim. Because of the snow, we were brought to the de-icing pad. While we sat there, an old Caucasian man suddenly walked into the first class cabin and walked out. He started talking to some of the FAs, and then started singing "This land is your land" to them...It was a very odd spectacle...We sat on the de-ice pad for a long time. Our engines didn't start and the tug started to pull us back in the direction of our gate, which made me concerned. We docked at the gate and a few of the Port Authority people come onboard. I didn't see what was going on but I assumed that dude was removed from the flight. During the hour we spent on the ground, the FAs kept checking with passengers and offer drinks and nuts. They made a nice beautiful mimosa and kept apologizing for the delay, although no one ever told passengers what was the issue for the delay.
The old school seats really don't have any storage space or privacy. It is crazy to see how much first class has changed in the past 15 years. The business class seats like Cirrus and B/E Aerospace Super Diamond offer more privacy and storage than these old first class seats.
Service onboard was typical 5 star Asiana excellence. Asiana’s beverage and meal menus are always an adventure for me. This time I decided to go with the Western menu, and the steak did not disappoint. It was moist and flavorful and even better that they had some A1 steak sauce on board. It is also nice that they still have a caviar course, which was beautifully laid out. The champagne and alcohol menu was different than my previous flight. I am not sure if this is cost cutting or if it is because it is a 747, but the Pol Roger Churchill and Piper was switched out for less interesting champagnes. I was really looking forward to sampling the Churchill again but was told by the FA that they had changed their menu. The Sandeman 20 Year Old Port was also switched out for Taylor 20 Year Old Port. They did have a very interesting Hungarian dessert wine, the Chateau Pajzos Tokaj Aszu 5 Puttonyos. I liked it with the brie but it was too sweet for the cake. Hopefully they will bring back the Churchill.
Overall it was an excellent trip on an oldie 747 with delicious food and drinks.
14 окт 2024
