SQ A380 Suites from Beijing to Singapore and a run on the Great Wall

[yflyer]

Traffic back toward Beijing on that Sunday afternoon was surprisingly busy, and it took a little longer than expected to get to the Summer Palace. By then, it was mid/late afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set, but that made for wonderful lighting for photos...





We spent an hour wandering around the Summer Place, taking in the amazing views around the lake and park...









Parts of the lake had started to freeze over...in the heart of winter, the entire lake would be frozen over, and people would even ice skate on it, but in late November, the freezing process had only just begun...



Water painting in the grounds of the Summer Palace...



Walking along the extended covered walkway, fully painted from one end to the other...



The Marble Boat..



One of many bridges in the park...

[yflyer]

That evening, after our tour, which was our last evening in Beijing, Mrs yflyer suggested we head to Capital Spirits, a bar that specialized in Baijiu and Baijiu cocktails...

By that point, I was quite tired, but Mrs yflyer was her usual persuasive self, and we found ourselves navigating via Google Maps on my iPhone to the bar's address.

It was a cold, dark evening, and when we arrived at the address, this was the sight before us...



Hmmm...what was going on here? Were they even open? This was a Sunday night, after all...

It looked strangely quiet along this street.

"Look, the lights on the sign are on..."



There was number there, with the instructions to call for access.

I dialled the number.

"Hello..."

"Is this Capital Spirits?"

"Yes it is..."

"Are you open?"

"Yes we are..."

"Can you let us in?"

"Yes, please wait a moment."

A figure bearing a torchlight emerged from a dark alley...

"Good evening! This way please..."

"Thanks!" I said, and followed the man and Mrs yflyer down the pitch dark alley through the doorway, but not before bumping my knee on either a large urn or a bicycle parked along the dark passage...

Once inside, our eyes quickly adjusted to the dim lighting, and we took in the scene before us...



An intimate bar, with cosy seats and low tables, and jazz playing on the small hifi in the corner. It had a great vibe.

The other patrons were a mix of young locals and foreigners.

"What a find! How did you ever learn about this place..." I whispered to Mrs yflyer...who was by then already perusing the drink menu...



The cocktails on the menu looked amazing. There were also flights of baijiu on offer for those who were keen to sample this very Chinese alcoholic beverage...



She had learnt about this place from a Travelogue she watched on the internet while she was planning our trip. If anything, Mrs yflyer does very thorough research before our trips!

I decided on a Baijiu Sour, and Mrs yflyer opted for the Sichuan Sling...



Both were great...and did have the distinctive flavour and aroma of baijiu...

The staff there were wonderful too: young, friendly and energetic...



A very pleasant way to spend some time on our last evening in Beijing.

[yflyer]

The next day, we headed to Beijing Capital Airport for our flights: Mrs yflyer would head back to Singapore, while I would now head to Tokyo for a couple of days.



We headed first to the Singapore Airlines counter to check in for her flight...



We arrived at the airport just before 2pm for her 4:40pm flight...there were no queues to speak of at the SQ counters at that time...



After a quick check-in at the Suites counter, we headed across to the JAL check-in, where a short queue had formed in anticipation of the 2:10pm counter opening time for my 4:40pm flight, JL22 to Haneda.



Fortunately, although I was flying Y, I could use the priority-check in counter as a Oneworld Sapphire member, and got my boarding pass very soon after the counters opened.

I know boarding passes are just pieces of paper or cardboard, but I have to admit that I spent more than a moment admiring the Gold strip running along the top of the Suites BP, even if it wasn't actually my name printed on it...

[yflyer]

It was great that our flights were departing at around the same time.

Even better, this was one of the few airports where SQ and JAL actually shared the same airside departure lounge, the BGS Premier Lounge...



We handed the lounge receptionist our boarding passes and lounge invitations, and she directed us to the First Class section of the lounge...



This is not a very large lounge, but it wasn't crowded that day.

A smallish liquor selection. On a positive note, the vodka was placed in the refrigerator -- Ice cold vodka is the way to go!



Not a bad F&B selection...which included several hot dishes...



...as well as a noodle station, where noodles were cooked to order.





A massage chair...



...and a single workstation...



There was also a solitary shower...



Overall, a fairly basic F lounge offering, but on a positive note, it was quiet and peaceful, with unobstrusive service staff.

[yflyer]

It was time to board our flights...



This terminal was massive...boarding had already commenced by the time we got to the SQ gate...



...not that it really mattered for someone seated in 3A...she would have all the time in the world to get settled into her seat.

We kissed goodbye and I speedwalked across the terminal to the gate for my JAL flight, which was already announcing last call by the time I got there...



I headed down the aerobridge...



...and got to my seat. And this is where her, and my, flight experience began to diverge...

[yflyer]

Mrs yflyer admitted to feeling a little awed as she walked down the aerobridge, lugging her oversized handcarry (Perfectly permissible up front...).

"Good afternoon, Mrs yflyer, welcome onboard!" the suit-clad cabin crew member (Was he the IFS? She couldn't remember what colour his suit was) said as he helped her with her hand luggage, and deposited the bag into her suite.

"Wait...my husband asked me to take photos, do you mind not putting the luggage in yet?"

It took her a few moments to overcome her shyness and start snapping those photos. "I haven't got your thick skin...", she said afterwards...



But the cabin crew were great...

"Of course, Mrs yflyer, let me turn on the lights, better for the photos..."







At that point, we were still in phone contact, and she WhatsApp'ed the pictures to me...

"Very nice!" I replied, "...yours is the newer design with dark coloured seats..."

I sent her a picture of my "Suite" on the JAL 787...



Upon check-in I had requested an emex row aisle seat, and the window seat next to me was empty. Suite-like proportions indeed, in JAL Y!

I messaged a friend, a fellow aviation enthusiast, and described how Mrs yflyer and I were flying that day...

"Both have immeasurable legroom..." he replied.

At that point, it was time to push back and turn phones to airplane mode...I would have to hear about the rest of her flight after landing...

But more on my JAL 787 experience, and my onward HND-SIN flight on SQ631 in a separate TR. Let's focus on Mrs yflyer and her Suites experience...

[yflyer]

She received eyeshades, socks and slippers...



For her pre-take off drink, she chose the seasonal tea...



...which was very fragrant...



Lots of windows in Suite 3A, although Mrs yflyer felt that the windows were a bit far from the seat because of the shelf next to the cabin wall...

[yflyer]

Mrs yflyer got up and strolled around the Suites cabin for a few more cabin pictures before take-off...



The middle suites...





The view looking back into the PEY cabin...

[yflyer]

The day's menu...

Shi Quan Shi Mei...



The Western/International selection...





The non-alcoholic beverages on this flight...

[yflyer]

After take-off, she had a glass of Champagne...

"Which would you like, Mrs yflyer? Krug or Dom Perignon?"

"Hmmm...my sommelier's not here...Could you choose for me?" Mrs yflyer replied, referring to me , although I am more of her cocktail mixologist than any kind of wine expert...

A flute of Dom Perignon 2006 was poured...



...which Mrs yflyer found delicious...



...maybe next time SQTalk has an anniversary get-together, I shall invite Mrs yflyer, so that she can sample both Krug and Dom...

[yflyer]

Dinner service began with satay...



She found the sticks of satay to be meaty and tender...

"Very good satay!" she said...

And then the Shi Quan Shi Mei courses were presented...

Glazed Sweet Potato in Osmanthus Syrup, Spicy Sichuan Pepper-braised Beef Cheek, and Golden Melon and Octopus salad...



The sweet potato was absolutely delicious...

The beef was indeed spicy...and the golden melon and octopus salad was very refreshing.

Next was a bowl of double boiled beef brisket soup with green turnip and carrots...



The oolong tea that accompanied the dishes was superb as well...

"The difference that good tea makes should not be underestimated!" she remarked afterwards.

The mains came next...



This was a beautiful selection of four small plates, comprising:

Wok Fried Bay Scallop with Dried Chili and Cashew Nuts, which was delicious....

A very tasty Braised Turnip and Pork Meat ball with Shrimp Roe...

Mrs yflyer was very impressed with Deep Fried Bean Curd Skin Roll with Vegetable and Mushroom...it was surprisingly crisp and savoury..."How did they do that?" she wondered...

The only dish that did not hit bulls-eye was the Baked Crab meat and Beech Mushroom pastry, which she found too sweet...

Dessert was Chilld Hawthorn and Baby Lotus Root Soup with Snow Lotus Seeds, which Mrs yflyer found very pleasant.



Overall, a wonderful dinner which Mrs yflyer enjoyed very much.

[yflyer]

The bathroom...

[yflyer]

"I know this is not a red-eye, but please fold down and try out the bed...", I beseeched Mrs yflyer before the flight...

This time she did...

"The seat was comfortable, but the bed was very comfortable!"

The cabin crew member came by to set up the bed, and did it beautifully, complete with teddy bear...



She slept in it for the latter part of the flight, after finishing watching her movie on the large widescreen in front of her.

She loved the bed so much in fact, that she remembered thinking that the onboard mattress was so comfortable that it was even better than the admittedly old mattress in our bedroom at home, and that it was about time to change our mattress.

A bed on a plane more comfortable than a bed on land? Now that is praise indeed!

[yflyer]

The flight landed on time, with great views of the Singapore coastline and skyline out of her Suite...





From my hotel room at the Westin in Tokyo, where I had landed several hours earlier, I called her on the phone...

"How was your flight?"

"Great!"

"Good to know! Please send me your pictures...I'd like to write them up in a Trip Report, and include your experiences too."

And that's what you have here...her photos, and a 3rd party account of her SQ Suites experience based on her reflections and recollections as related to me in the days that followed.

Now if only I could persuade her to write her own TR!

Thanks for reading!

[SQ319]

"Good afternoon, Mrs yflyer, welcome onboard!" the suit-clad cabin crew member (Was he the IFS? She couldn't remember what colour his suit was) said as he helped her with her hand luggage, and deposited the bag into her suite.

The small details that our non aviation enthusiast other halves will never understand...

Should be the LS though, as there was both a female IFS and CSS in your pictures... unless there was a second CS...

You were very lucky to get such fantastic weather on the day you booked to go Mutianyu! My local friend actually told me to go to Mutianyu only on a day with clear skies to enjoy the views. And kudos for making it up to the 21st station! I went up only to the 19th and was already struggling up what felt like almost vertical ascent!

Great pictures as usual! And if you do head back to Beijing again, do try the Temple Restaurant (TRB for short). Very good, value for money fine dining in a beautifully restored temple.