Domestic BA Trip Report: Visiting Scotland for a Meal and Good Company

[jjpb3]

With the summer slipping away, and no new destinations chalked up in this year's travel log, I thought I'd emulate SQfg and see whether I could hop to somewhere outside my home city to say that when I ate out, I really ate out. Tropical paradise, however, is sort of out of reach for a quick weekend getaway and meal, so I cast my glance towards options in Europe.

I then remembered that I had been too ill to meet SQFAN when he was in London, so I thought, why not? Why not visit Scotland? One of my best friends is from Aberdeen, and I've always been curious about the place he grew up in.

A check with SQFAN's itinerary revealed that he wouldn't be on one of his far-flung jaunts, so ABZ it was. I would get to try LHR T5 for domestic travel as well, and this was shaping up to be a trip with a host of new experiences crammed into a very short period of time: in short, a traveller's ideal.

I also realized that I just might be able to use this trip as reconnaissance for a bigger SQT Do up north. Maybe that time I can persuade fellow London travellers jhm and phaleesy to join, and even buddies SQ LPP and cawhite from across the pond.

Let me see if I can persuade them at least to consider it.

[jjpb3]

Before the flight: before LHR security

Right then. Run errands early, get a quick workout on Saturday morning, and soon I was off in a cab to Paddington. I might have used the Tube, I know, but I underestimated the time it took to do my errands. So, here's an iconic shot of London:


All right, the shot is iconic to me, a London resident. Can you guess why?

The HEX was a couple of minutes away from departing when I got to the platform (don't you love it when timing works out that way?), so it was a short wait before we were zooming off to LHR. By the time I realized I fell into a nap, we were between Terminals 1/2/3 and 5:



OK, I'm going to whinge again about the inadequate signage at T5. If, upon alighting from the HEX, you take the lifts up to departures, you won't have problems. If, however, you choose the escalators (as I did: remember, I was exploring new experiences -- which includes the HEX to T5 ), you'd be a bit confused. There are no easily read signs to Departures, just Arrivals. What you have to do is to go to the Arrivals level, and then take the escalators inside the level, up to Departures.

LHR T5 has become one of my favorite terminals in Europe. The light and airy feel is a huge improvement over the older terminals.

Glancing to the left after my SSCI machine reveals a not-overly-busy landside:


Straight ahead was a proud declaration of support for Team GB (go, team!):

[jhm]

All right, the shot is iconic to me, a London resident. Can you guess why?

If I guess the right answer, where should I post it ?

[jjpb3]

Before the flight: through security

For domestic travel, they now shoot a digital photograph of you when you go through the first security check. Quite painless, actually, but puzzling given the announcement at the departure gate (see later).

One big improvement at T5 is the granting of fast-track privileges to BA Golds and Silvers (by the oval OW markers below the sign, also to their OW equivalents) in addition to Club Europe and Club World passengers. It was quick to go through the first checkpoint, and then of course you're confronted by the pileup at the second, where you have the conveyor belt for x-rays.

Again, the signage could have been better. Or maybe they should have thought harder about how confusing the process can be. Before x-ray, you're supposed to take the tray off from the botton; place your stuff (bags, liquids, shoes and belts, overcoats [and even cardigans ]) into the trays [note: do not take your laptop out, or else you'll get a snide reminder from the BAA goon]; and then walk through.

At the other end, you're now not supposed to take the tray off the conveyor belt. Blah blah blah, the tray is supposed to stop voluntarily. It does when there are large objects inside, but I saw my tray continue moving determinedly with my passport and BP inside, so I lifted the tray off the belt. Cue the yells from the BAA goon that I wasn't supposed to do that.

I took my passport and BP off the tray, looked at him calmly, and said, "Too late, next time I won't." Grrr, I dislike BAA goons.

I hadn't visited the North Galleries lounge, so I decided to do so this time. The best thing about it is that it's at the same level as security, so I was spared the silly down-and-up-and-up escalator ride used to annoy Sapphire and Club Europe/World passengers.

Compared to the departure area, the lounge was an oasis of calm that morning:



I think BA did a very good job refreshing its lounges from the Terraces design (see later). A view of the food section, which, while more limited than the one in the South Galleries, was more than adequate for someone whose last meal was before his visit to the gym:



I had the chicken curry with rice and then a serving of pasta , accompanied by lots of water and a glass of red (Australian shiraz, I think) from the well-stocked beverages section:



I left the lounge only regretting the fact that I couldn't stay for a leisurely perusal of the day's paper.

Bonus: the departure gate was just below the lounge (A gates).

[jjpb3]

If I guess the right answer, where should I post it ?

Go on then , right in this thread.

[SQflyergirl]

If I guess the right answer, where should I post it ?

wherever you do, make sure the letters are legible

[jjpb3]

wherever you do, make sure the letters are legible

Clear signage is everything to an old man like me.

[jjpb3]

The flight

At the gate, the gate agent announced, twice, that we needed our passports for a biometric test. So everyone dug into their bags to retrieve their passport (including me, as SQFAN had told me I didn't need my passport for domestic BA travel). There are two checks at the gate. I think the first one is when your photograph from landside comes up so they can compare it to you. Did they look at passports at this point? No.

The second one seemed to be the standard check, where they register you as having got on the flight. Did they look at passports at this point? No.

So I'm still stumped why they twice asked us to take our passports out before getting to the machines.

The flight was full. When I OLCI'd the day before, I had a vacant seat next to me. When I SSCI'd, the vacant seat was still there. But midway through the boarding process, someone took the middle seat. Not that he was a bother. He fell asleep after he stowed his laptop bag underneath the seat in front of him, and woke up only to lean back once the aircraft had reached cruising altitude.

I myself fell asleep during takeoff. I don't know about you, but I find the takeoff experience to be one of the most lulling I can enjoy. Unless I force myself to stay awake, I doze off. Sort of embarrassing if your boss is seated next to you and was asking a couple of questions as the aircraft thunders forward to gain lift (yes, that has happened to me, so now my boss waits until takeoff is done before asking me questions).

It was a short ride, punctuated by the quick meal service, and soon we approached ABZ.

Hmmm ... It doesn't look very tropical down there:



Nope, definitely not Langkawi:



I love gently rolling landscapes, though. Soon, it was time to lean back to wait for landing:

[Lobster]

I myself fell asleep during takeoff. I don't know about you, but I find the takeoff experience to be one of the most lulling I can enjoy. Unless I force myself to stay awake, I doze off. Sort of embarrassing if your boss is seated next to you and was asking a couple of questions as the aircraft thunders forward to gain lift (yes, that has happened to me, so now my boss waits until takeoff is done before asking me questions).

I tend to find all sorts of travel very snooze inducing. I had a boss recently who wanted to talk work the whole flight. This of course clashed with my plan for having a snooze. He would get his PA when she booked the tickets to get us seats together. However he was not familiar with OLCI so I would OLCI and grab myself a seat away from him and then of course complain bitterly that some stupid airline employee had moved me and there was nothing I could do.

[jjpb3]

Aberdeen - Part 1

It's a short ride (15-20 minutes) to the city from the airport. Well, that's short compared to the ride I'm usually subjected to coming home from LHR. The cab driver was a very friendly chap and happily chatted away during the entire ride. Unfortunately I understood at best 30% of what he said. My friend had had any Aberdonian accent ironed out of him by his university, so conversations with him didn't prepare me for the cab ride. Fortunately, the 30% that I did understand enabled me to chuckle and reply at the right moments (I think).

Views during the cab ride:



The houses right next to the road were quite pretty, which surprised me. They didn't seem to be too far from those in nice suburbs in Connecticut and New Jersey:



Upon SQFAN's recommendation, I stayed at the Copthorne Aberdeen. The room was roomy by European standards:





although the view outside the window



wasn't exactly to die for:

.

But the hotel is centrally located, and with room rates of £72 including breakfast, I'm not about to complain. Besides, I wasn't in Aberdeen to have a luxe hotel experience.

[StarG]

Thanks for sharing, jjpb3. Keep it coming!
Eagerly waiting for the meal pictures and of course the company that made this trip worthwhile.

[jjpb3]

Aberdeen - Part 2

I had about 45 minutes before SQFAN would come by to pick me up for dinner. I could have taken a nap (Lord knows I needed one), but I thought it would be a shame not to take a quick walking tour of the city, given my hotel's location. So I trudged a couple of blocks to the main street (Union Street) where I found possibly one of the most attractive buildings a Starbucks is located in :



Union Street has a mix of retailers, with the usual Waterstones just a few paces away from a Hugo Boss. But one thing struck me. Remember that this was a Saturday late afternoon. Here's a view of Union Street looking towards one end



and a view looking towards the other:



As you see, in terms of crowds, an Oxford Street/Bond Street or Orchard Road it ain't.

One of the charming aspects, though, is the existence of side streets like this (I think this was Mallet Street):



Pretty, no?

The walkabout was enough for me to grab some caffeine and also to buy some intriguing-looking baked goods. It turns out, according to SQFAN, that I absolutely had to get shortbread, as that is something special at Aberdeen. I can resist shortbread, I can resist (with diffuculty) strawberries and cream, but combine both in the form of strawberry-and-double-cream flavored shortbread, and my diet is conveniently forgotten . Here then was my trophy from Union Street, duly approved by SQFAN:



I had one piece before dinner. I was hoping it wouldn't ruin my appetite.

(No, it didn't. )

[jjpb3]

Aberdeen - Part 3

Soon, dinnertime. The drive offered wide open vistas of fields and the sea



and the views got even better once we parked:



.

Can you see how relaxed I was?



The restaurant was in an inlet that offered views reminiscent (in my eyes) of New England.



Even better was the fact that it was summer. More than two hours after dinner, roughly at 21.15 BST, there was still enough light to admire the calm scene:



SQFAN tells me the coastal views on the western side of Scotland are even more beautiful. I'll have to put western Scotland on my places-to-visit.

[jjpb3]

Thanks for sharing, jjpb3. Keep it coming!
Eagerly waiting for the meal pictures and of course the company that made this trip worthwhile.

Food pics coming soon, StarG. Unfortunately, my host was camera-shy so he preferred not to have pictures of him taken.

[jjpb3]

Aberdeen - Part 4 (food!)

SQFAN chose a seafood restaurant for our dinner:



The following pics are dedicated to our resident foodies phaleesy and jhm. I even weaned myself from the automatic setting on my camera just for these pics, because SQFAN advised me that that would do better justice to the food.

Overall, the dinner was deeply satisfying. The service was courteous and prompt, and the dishes executed with flair. Any stereotypes about the dire state of Scottish cooking were dispelled.

Our parade of dishes:

Tuna amuse-bouche:



Scallops starter



Cod as mains (it was one of the specials that evening)



Monkfish as mains (also one of the evening's specials)

For dessert, SQFAN chose the

Cinnamon creme brulee

I decided to go for the berries, and was offered a choice of sorbet, ice cream, or full cream with them. As I had already blown my diet, I went for the ice cream and full cream :

Very little guilt on the face of that satisfied diner.



So, phaleesy and jhm, care to accompany me next time to visit SQFAN? He says he'd like to show off an Italian restaurant.