Singapore airlines a330 to chennai(sq 528) and trip to chennai

[balajih67]

This is a trip report for flight sq 528 from singapore to chennai on 30 april 2016 in economy class.check in was smooth at changi as usual,after clearing immigration,headed to gate D40 for the flight.the gate was a long walk from the immigration counter(nearly 15 mins by foot) where my hand luggage was checked.This was the first flight where i would be travelling alone as well.

A short introduction about me:i'm balaji.17 years of age.just finished my final school exam and waiting for results when i made this trip to visit my grandparents back in india.



Our ride for that day was on 9V-SSI,a very new a330 first delivered to singapore airlines in september 2015.



Walking to the plane through the funky themed aerobridge.

I was seated in seat 62A,in the last row of the aircraft.Recline was fine and very good legroom.also the footrests were not present giving me more legroom.



A korean air plane beside our gate.



A silkair plane on the way to the runway.



A scoot aircraft as well.



Seat features-a 10.6 inch screen,spectacle receptacle,cup holder,handset.A blanket and pillow were placed at each seat.SQ branded earphones were also provided,but fellow SQtalkers have said that the sound quality from these were terrible,so i used by own headphones with an airline adaptor.

The crew came around with drinks and packets of murukku when we reached cruising altitude.

Menu for the day:






I chose the fish curry as indian curries are usually good onboard.A large number of vegetarian southern indian meals were also pre ordered by many passengers.No pictures of the meal,sorry.But the meal was so good,especially the almond kheer and the tender fish cubes.

the crew came around with tea and coffee during the end of meal service.i had the masala tea.

We landed at 9:46pm local time clocking a flight time of 3 hours 37 minutes.

some pics while taxiing to the gate at chennai airport



An emirates 777-300 ready to depart to dubai and the tail of an air india express plane(737-800).



A spicejet plane.



an air india plane.

Soon i disembarked and cleared immigration and collected my baggage and went home.INDIAN NATIONALS DO NOT NEED TO FILL AN IMMIGRATION FORM ANYMORE!

I will soon update this report with pics of chennai and my visits to places in chennai.This is my first report on sq talk.hows it guys?

[yflyer]

Nice write-up, balajih67!

I was not able to view the pictures in your original post, as they don't appear on the SQTalk page. To view the pictures, I had to copy the link from the blank spot in the TR and open it in another browser.

Not sure what the right way is to post images from Photobucket, since I use flickr myself. (Anyone else have suggestions?)

[orionmiz]

Just trying out...

Edit: Ok, to share the photo from photobucket, choose "IMG" on the "Share This Photo" section.

[balajih67]

Chennai photos and SQ 529

Sorry for the delay.Here are some photos of chennai

Koyambedu metro station(metro is similar to singapore mrt)



A local MTC bus going from bus terminus to Anna SQuare



A MTC Bendy Bus



A famous hindu temple in Vadapalani



An MTC AC bus no 570 going from bus trminus to Kelambakkam.Note, all MTC buses are not AC.fares on AC buses re double the fare on non-AC buses.



A outdoor garden outside Forum Vijaya Mall,Vadapalani



View from the carpark of forum mall



Cloudless sky in May,temperatures hit 41C max


Modern Looking apartments


The new Saravana stores in anna nagar(similar to mustafa singapore)

[balajih67]

Continuation

SHopping mall in chennai,Ampa Skywalk in aminjikarai

front view


Side View


Below are the photos of the Chennai Metro which opened on 28 June 2015.A review is written below all the photos.

[balajih67]

Continuation











Hotel Buhari,inventor of the chicken 65 dish



A very wet day,and waters can get in the station(unlike singapore)





Extension track(not yet opened)





Olympia Tech Park



Hilton Hotel

[balajih67]

more pics

A slum in Chennai



Forum mall(i mentioned earlier) view from metro station



HDFC Bank(sponsor of IPL)



Chennai mofussil bus terminus(for intercity buses)






Famous Koyambedu market(known for cheap prices of veggies and fruits)









Chennai Metro REview:

Chennai Metro was opened to ease traffic on the roads and provide an alternative method of travel.

Fare Cost:Rs 40 from Koyambedu(start) to Alandur(end) via vadapalani,ashok nagar,ekkathuthangal.

Rs 40 the way back.
Rs 80 round trip.

Mode of payment:You can purchase tickets at the ticket machines(valid for a single trip only,either to or fro) or buy a stored value card which can be topped up(similar to ezlink card).

Security:You have to walk through a detector before going to the platform and all your bags will be scanned(similar to the security at changi airport gates).

Cleanliness:Station platforms and train cars are well maintained.no dust or litter is strewn.no bad odour as well.

Comfort:Seating is similar to singapore mrt and hand straps are provided for standing passengers.Announcements are made in tamil followed by english.

Verdict:A cheap and economical way to travel when the entire network opens in 2020.as of now,its use is limited.

[balajih67]

final few days

View from my house balcony



Ancient building in Mount road,one of the busiest roads in chennai



Return flight on SQ 529:

STD:23:15 local time
ATD:23:45 local time

STA:06:10 am local time
ATA:06:02 am local time

flight no:SQ 529
Type:A330-300
Registration:9V-SSI

Boarding was delayed as the incoming aircraft arrived 15 mins late.SQ branded earphones were provided though i did not use them as i had my own.Footrests were not present which meant more legroom.

Seat features:

PTV:


cup holder and spectacle receptacle:



handset:



USB port:



Legroom:



Taxi:


Jet airways 737:


9V-SSI:


Meal:

International Selection:
Mainan fried fish fillet with buttered veggetables and mash
Appetiser:vegetable pasta
Dessert:chocolate fudge cake
from the bakery:bread roll and butter
Beverage:coffee/tea

Indian selection(non veg):
Main:Murgh Chicken Briyani with rich tomato gravy
appetiser:curd rice with pomegranate
Dessert:Rasamalai
From the bakery:bread roll and butter
Beverage:masala tea

Indian selection(veg):
Main:Steamed rice with beans and veg gravy
appetiser,dessert,roll and beverage similar to non veg selection.

The indian selection also came with Curd,pickle and pappadums.

Rest of the flight was uneventful and we landed at 6 am.

This is the end of the trip report of my holiday to india.
Please let me know how is it.All comments appreciated.

Until next time,Goodbye!

[KC*]

Nice TR, balajih67!

Enjoyed reading it. Nice pics too.

[9V-SPL]

Nice!

Miss the times flying SQ to Chennai back when it was a B747-400 and numbered as SQ410/409.

[yflyer]

Thanks for the TR, balajih67! I have very pleasant memories of previous visits to Chennai, especially the South Indian vegetarian meals. The new MRT looks impressive.

[SQfanatic]

Great TR. I have been to Chennai a number of times, and mostly it's for shopping for sarees and sometimes jewelry because you get better quality in Chennai than in Trivandrum. I also go to also shop for other food items and visit friends. If I go in December, we will definitely stop by as our last destination before heading back to SFO. I need to really explore the metro system too if time permits, which my parents are quite unwilling to.

As for the metro system, give me any one (Singapore MRT, this one, etc) over BART any day (Seriously, I am starting to hate BART for a number of reasons, a few to name are old cars, delays (Sometimes idiots jamming doors closing), service is less frequent in the evenings, fares rise a lot over the course of 6 months to 1 year, parking fees). Maybe when BART deploys its newest train cars I may reconsider but if of course I already graduate college next year, I will try to look for work away from my home (SF Bay Area).

Why did I not mention crowding? Because that's obvious with many metro systems during rush hour, big events, etc. To make matters worse, BART is taking away more seats to give more standing room during rush hour.