New trip, new blog format. If you dont like it bad luck. When you click on a thumbnail now it goes to the bigger version with exif data, and when you click the bigger version it goes back to where you clicked it from even if you had scrolled some way down the page full of boring text.
I like my new format a lot.
Before heading to Japan, I first have to head to Sydney, as theres no direct flights from the Adelaide farm village to Japan.
I make the Sydney flight every week, so this is really really boring.
But at least I can take all the bullshit test info out of this page whilst sitting in Adelaide waiting for my flight.
One thing I am looking forward to is dinner in the first class lounge at Sydney airport, I hear its really good but it is all 'designed by Neil Perry' and I think hes annoying.
Here I am, sitting in the transfer lounge in the Sydney domestic terminal waiting to go to the international terminal, due to our excellent airport design this requires a wait and a terrifying bus ride where people get thrown out of their seats.
The international first class lounge in Sydney airport didnt disappoint. I have never actually been before as on my last trip I went via Perth and the trip before that I went to the business lounge by mistake and couldnt be bothered moving.
The food is a la carte, they have a menu which you can see below but I heard one guy order what he felt like and they endeavoured to make it.
They also have a day spa thats free to use and im sure all the top shelf liquers and wines and things I dont like at all.
Before all that (yep, I went out of order already), I had to go to the tourist refund scheme office to get the GST and duty back on the camera I bought (you might notice the pictures are better quality, or not?).
This was an experience, as its hidden like you wouldnt believe and in the office are some nerds whos job it is to be as offensive as possible.
Still I got $60 back on my camera so its worth it, the idea of the scheme is if you are travelling within 30 days you can claim the tax back so that you purchase goods in Australia and not overseas.
The tourist refund scheme office is at the end of that hallway, past the toilets, down an alley, into an unmarked door, the government really does not want you claiming tax back!
Random photo of the main shopping area airside at Sydney airport, largely deserted at this time.
This is the entrance to the first class lounge, you go up an escalator, but its a living wall, quite impressive, all real plants and none of them were dead. Perhaps they replace them weekly? I touched the stuff they are planted into and it was wet and plastic feeling, so it uses some sort of technology. I might do my house in it.
I photographed the menu, in case anyone is bored enough to read it.
The bar area with the chefs preparing the meals in the background, remember everything in here, food, drink, day spa, massage whatever is free. Theres also some private rooms you need to book that are used by celebrities who dont want to be disturbed.
I chose pork in a chilli sauce, it was great, those are chunks of pork fillet, not meatballs made of ground pork.
A pretty boring and redundant view of the first class lounge. I will get bored of taking so many photos and typing about them soon enough, so for now enjoy the overkill.
The flight was uneventful, flying time just on 9:30 according to the pilot. I have included the required pictures of the food and the plane below.
On the flight I watched the men who stare at goats, then I stared at the flight track map for about 6 hours but it did not die. Then I watched a documentary on The Satanic Verses (the Salman Rushdie book, not the other one) which was very interesting.
I had a bulkhead seat, the first seat in economy (no upgrades this time) and the plane was less than half full, there was no one else in my block and only one other person in my entire row of 8.
My dinner was some sort of chicken in a cream sauce. The mash pumpkin and snow pea things were really nice, more so than the chicken.
Breakfast is the standard breakfast qantas seems to offer which is pretty good, they also offered a japanese breakfast which was a salmon cake in rice or something, I figured I can get enough of that in Japan so enjoyed an english breakfast.
My plane after I got off it, on the ground at Narita in Tokyo (actually 80km outside of Tokyo).