A Return to Travel: To Barcelona on Singapore Airlines SQ378/377 SIN-BCN-SIN (Y)

[yflyer]

Now that there are no paper menus onboard, I wonder why SQ doesn't put their menus on the IFE, for example the way Thai Airways does.

At the moment, the only way to peruse the menu was to connect your phone/tablet/computer to the aircraft wifi and access the menu online (no wifi charge required).

I was pleasantly surprised to note that, apart from paid options, SQ now offers 2 hours of complimentary wifi internet access to economy pax.



You did this by giving your email address, as well as your seat number and last name. The system actually checks that the seat and last name match the passenger manifest on the flight before granting access -- I know because I tried keying in a different seat number and name, and access was not granted.

There were also paid internet options, but the data plans looked quite skimpy, and the one time-based plan available seemed quite expensive too.



I didn't purchase any of the paid plans, but made very good use of the 2 hour complimentary access, which worked fine for WhatsApp, Facebook etc.

[yflyer]

Finally it was time to eat...



SQ no longer do a round of drink service before meals, they go straight to serving the meal trays with an accompanying beverage.



The two options available were Asian style steamed chicken with black bean sauce with egg fried rice, or Mediterranean fish in a tomato-based sauce with chickpeas and tomatoes. I chose the chicken...

The tray as served...



...and with covers off...



While there is no longer a real glass on the tray, I am so glad SQ has stuck with very nice metal cutlery for Y meal service.

For my beverage I asked for half a cup of white wine, and half a cup of red. The white was Frontera, while the red was a Cabernet Merlot which I had not tasted before...



There was no longer an appetiser, but the main course (Served in a disposable plastic casserole) came in a fairly decent portion size.



The chicken was delicious: tender and tasty, and the rice was soft and fluffy too...



The meal tray no longer came with salt & pepper sachets. If you needed salt or pepper, you had to ask for it (which I did)...



While the tray came with milk for your coffee/tea, there was no sugar provided on the tray (Again you had to ask), which was a surprise since many or most people did have sugar with their coffee or tea.

Dessert was Udders ice cream, which was very good!



After dinner, I asked for a Gin & Tonic which was brought promptly...it tasted great, but came without lemon. And the wooden stirrer looked really cheap too (Even with the SQ logo on it...).



I understand the need for cost cutting in these difficult times, but I hope SQ would consider improving the presentation of their cocktails when things pick up.

I resolved to remember to specifically ask for a lemon slice next time I ordered a G&T. (Did I get one? Wait till the return BCN-MXP-SIN sector to find out!)

Nothing I could do about the wooden stick though...first world problems, I know, but look at how EK Y serves a G&T (Caveat: This was pre-pandemic)

[yflyer]

No SQTalk TR would be complete without a discussion of 3D maps...



I quite liked the 3D map displays on this flight...



I spent more time on the overhead views, though which could be zoomed in or out as needed...



These days, I am very conscious of which country I am overflying at any given time. Flights to Milan typically pass south of Ukraine, so the ongoing conflict there would not affect this flight.





At some point during the night, I headed to the galley for snacks and was offered a pretty decent selection of nibbles.



It was also nice to know that there were Koka cup noodles onboard, although I did not ask for any.

[yflyer]

The lights came on 2.5 hours before landing, and breakfast service began soon after...



This time, I asked for the Western breakfast selection, which was scrambled eggs with veal sausage...



This looked really good...



...and tasted wonderful too...I think SQ has really upped their game when it comes to their Y breakfast main courses...



There was also Meiji yogurt...



There was no longer any fresh cut fruit through...another cost cutting casualty.

Overall I was quite happy with breakfast...while simpler than before, the main course was still very satisfying.

[yflyer]

After Baku, the aircraft made a big detour south, probably to avoid Ukrainian airspace, before turning northwest towards Milan...



Cabin ambience on this A350 was very good, although this was a very full flight...

Front Y cabin...



Rear Y cabin...



I watched a few snippets of movies prior to landing...

Dune is a fantastic movie...



...although this is a movie I would want to watch in an IMAX theater, rather than on an IFE screen, which really didn't do justice to the scale of the onscreen action...



No Time to Die is another excellent movie...



I will miss Daniel Craig in his role as James Bond...



There were many great local movies on Krisworld as well...



We began our descent into Milan...



...as the crisis in Ukraine intensified by the minute...

[yflyer]

Final approach into MXP...





It was still dark when we landed just after 6am local time...



Quite a number of pax deplaned in Milan...



Transit pax were required to remain onboard.

There was a change of tech crew as well as cabin crew.

During the transit stop in Milan, I took the opportunity to walk around the rear galley to stretch my legs. The crew rest happened to be open so I was able to take a peek into this inner sanctum...

Short steps leading up to the crew rest...



The sleeping cubby holes looked very comfortable, not unlike beds in those capsule hotels in Japan...



New crew came onboard and the aircraft was serviced from the rear doors...



By then dawn was breaking...



The aircraft was not cleaned, and no new pax came onboard in MXP, but airline staff did verify all pax were accounted for, and we were also asked to identify our hand luggage in the overhead compartments.

[yflyer]

Finally after about an hour or so, we were ready to take off again...





We took off for Barcelona at about 7.20am. By then the sun was up...



There were great views of the French and Italian Alps out the starboard windows as we departed Milan...





On this daytime sector, the cabin was bathed in bright sunlight...



A beverages and a snack were served on this short sector...



I opted for the tomato and chicken focaccia, with a cup of apple juice...



This was ok, but nothing fantastic...

[yflyer]

Flight time from Milan to Barcelona was about 2 hours.



We landed smoothly at around 8.30am, and I was off the plane by 8.45am.



Some final pics of 9V-SMS, on the ground at El Prat Airport, Barcelona...





There was a nightmarish immigration queue that took more than an hour to clear for those without EU passports, but post immigration health checks upon arrival were quick.

There was an online health declaration form to fill up prior to arrival in Spain, which included details of your vaccination status. I had printed copies of my Singapore vaccination details, and along with the printed QR code from the Spanish online declaration. Health / vaccination document checks were done very quickly and efficiently. If only their immigration counters were similarly efficient.

After that it was a comfortable taxi ride to my hotel in the city...

Overall impressions of the flight? SQ still gets almost everything right in long haul economy. While COVID19 has certainly prompted changes in service, for example masked and gloved cabin crew, the level of service remains superb, and catering was good as well, if not as elaborate as before. The hard product, in terms of seat and IFE are still among the best in the industry, if not the best. I also appreciated the 2 hours of complimentary wifi for all Y pax -- this had real value.

What would I want to change? It would be nice if menus were also present in IFE, and as mentioned earlier, the presentation of Y cocktail beverages could be improved. I did miss the fruit for breakfast, and the appetiser course for meals, but my main courses were quite delicious. I really enjoy a pre-dinner drink before the actual tray service, and I would be really happy if that initial drink service was reinstated.

Pax had to wear masks throughout the flight except when eating. I thought this would be quite inconvenient, but in the end, I was so used to wearing the masks that I felt quite comfortable with a mask on throughout, and was even able to rest and sleep with my mask on.

While cabin crew wore face masks and protective glasses throughout, the warmth and care of their cabin service still shone through. I look forward to the time when we we can all go about the flight without masks, and this goes for both pax and cabin crew.

Next up, Barcelona!

To be continued!

[MAN Flyer]

Yay, a yflyer TR!. Finally a sign that we are on the way back to some for of 'normality', whatever that ends up being...

Looking forward to the rest of it, and many more to come.

There is now also a full service bar...

Top Man!!!.

The best thing about the old SKL/FCL at T3. Spent many an hour sat at the bar chatting with him, even when able to use TPR.

I was surprised and extremely pleased to see him in there last month. I actually missed him on my way in and only saw him when I got sick of waiting for food to be delivered to the FCL area and went to get my own.

[yflyer]

Yay, a yflyer TR!. Finally a sign that we are on the way back to some for of 'normality', whatever that ends up being...

Looking forward to the rest of it, and many more to come.

Thanks MAN Flyer! It feels really great to be travelling -- and writing TRs -- again!

Top Man!!!.

The best thing about the old SKL/FCL at T3. Spent many an hour sat at the bar chatting with him, even when able to use TPR.

I was surprised and extremely pleased to see him in there last month. I actually missed him on my way in and only saw him when I got sick of waiting for food to be delivered to the FCL area and went to get my own.

It's the bartender that makes the bar! He must have been very pleased to see you again too!

[yflyer]

It was a beautiful sunny Sunday morning when I got to Barcelona. My hotel, the Citadines, was right on La Rambla, a wide, tree-lined pedestrian boulevard that is considered the iconic heart of the city.



The first thing that struck me when I got out of the cab at La Rambla was just how utterly normal everything was.

Outdoors, most people went without masks, as restrictions had recently been lifted (On the subway, though, masks were still mandatory). People were out and about, both tourists and locals. The city was full of life.



I headed into the hotel...



The Citadines positions itself as an apartment-hotel, fairly basic facilities and amenities, but with clean and comfortable rooms.

The small ground floor entrance area...



...with reception and breakfast area one level up.



The lobby/reception area was cheerfully decorated...



...and had views of the street below...



Check-in was quick, and thankfully my room was ready although it was only 10.30am in the morning. I headed up to my room on the 4th floor.

[yflyer]

The room had a conventional layout, with a short passageway upon entry leading to the main bedroom area...





The room itself was smallish but comfortable...



There was a flat screen TV surrounded by framed pictures...



The work desk was a decent size, and the complimentary wifi (unlimited devices) was very fast.

Decent amount of closet space...



...and a large refrigerator...



The large bathroom was equipped with a shower stall...

[yflyer]

I headed to the hotel's rooftop garden...



...where I snapped a few photos of the city to send home...



The location of the hotel was just ideal, right smack on La Rambla (And coincidentally directly opposite the much more expensive Le Meridien).

Looking south east towards the waterfront...



Visible in the far distance were several iconic buildings, the Torre Jaume I, the steel trussed tower through which the cable cars of the Port Veil Aerial Tramway run, and further in the distance the sail-shaped W hotel.



And to the north, in the distance you could just see the top part of the Sagrada Familia...



My one regret of the trip is that I did not have time to visit the Sagrada Familia up close during my stay. While I had visited it on every previous trip, and even stayed just a stone's throw away on my last trip to Barcelona in 2019, it was always worth revisiting on every occasion as construction of this amazing church is still not complete, and continues to this day. As a result, the Sagrada Familia looks different every time I visit. For a comprehensive look at both the exterior and equally stunning interior, I would refer you to this TR from 2016.

The hotel also had a breakfast area...



...which served a passable buffet breakfast...







Overall, I thought this was a decent place to stay, as long as you had the right expectations.

It was an apartment hotel, so room service was not daily. For my 5 day stay, the room was cleaned only once. It was not fancy, but the staff were good, and the rates were reasonable compared to other full service or luxury hotels in this premium locale. If you wanted luxury, you could stay at the Le Meridien across the street, at significantly higher rates.

What I really loved was the hotel's location, which was ideal for visitors and tourists to Barcelona.

[yflyer]

To shake off any jetlag, I headed out for an afternoon run...

I headed out of the Citadines, and down La Rambla...



...towards Port Vell...



It was a beautiful day to be out...



Many other folks were walking down Rambla de Mar...



...but instead I continued along the Port Vell waterfront...



I passed "El Cap de Barcelona", a sculpture by Roy Lichtenstein...



...and continued past the Museum of the History of Catalonia...



..with it's many waterfront eateries...



I continued towards Barceloneta...



Folks were outdoors enjoying a beautiful Sunday afternoon...

[yflyer]

The beach was very lively as well...



Beach volleyball on the sand...



I continued towards Port Olimpic...



Past Frank Gehry's sculpture El Paix, constructed for the 1992 Olympics...



and finally to Port Olimpic itself...



...with its many seafood restaurants...



From there, I turned round and headed back the way I came, this time towards the W.



I have always wanted to stay at the W Barcelona, however during this period, when the MWC event was taking place, rates at the W were astronomical, and there was no way I would pay rates that high to stay there.

I did meet some business associates who were staying there. "Yes, a wonderful hotel" they said, "but there's nothing to do around here". They had a point -- while the hotel was striking, the surrounding areas was fairly quiet. They actually said they would have preferred staying at La Rambla...



I then retraced my steps back to La Rambla...

Total distance was just over 10.5km... a very pleasant route.