South Pacific – Getting to Papeete

EK432 was on board this Boeing 777

 As soon as I had made it to my suite I was greeted by one of the ladies who would be looking after my cabin with a glass of 2004 Dom.

Next up was diner, the menu for the flight

À la Carte Dining

Canapés

A selection of hot and cold savouries, including lightly fried prawn tempura, chicken tikka skewers, vegetable spring rolls with sweet chilli sauce, herbed goat’s cheese, marinated green and black kalamata olives

Appetisers

Caviar perfectly prepared chilled caviar presented with a traditional selection of  finely chopped onion, chopped boiled egg, sour cream and lemon, served with crisp melba toast and soft blini pancakes

Traditional Local Arabic Mezze the flavours of our home, presented as a generous spread of traditional Arabic savoury dishes including hommous, moutabal, muhammara, labneh, Arabic salad, artichoke salad and stuffed vine leaves, with warm kibbeh, cheese sambousak and spinach fatayer, complemented by local garnishes and breads

Smoked Chicken served with feta cheese, roasted pears and a citrus dressing

Smoked Tuna sliced tuna loin with a crunchy sour Asian-style coleslaw, fresh orange segments and a wasabi-flavoured dressing

Main Courses

Angus Beef Tenderloin with Rosemary Jus served with potato gratin, green beans and courgettes

Seafood Medley seabass, scallop and prawns in a fish velouté sauce, with braised peas and fennel, herbed pappardelle pasta and a red pepper coulis

Singapore Chicken poached chicken, served with steamed rice with brown onions, baby pak choy, oyster sauce and chilli sauce

Pumpkin Tortellini tossed in an Alfredo sauce, served with sautéed mushrooms, sugarsnap peas and fresh pumpkin, topped with parmesan shavings

Poached Cod Fillet served with a light red pepper coulis, roasted potato with parsley and  green peas à la Française

À la Carte Vegetables our chefs have paired each meal with their ideal accompaniments, but we offer a variety of  alternative vegetables to your taste, including steamed broccoli, stir-fried vegetables,  roasted potatoes with rosemary and basmati rice with saffron

Bread Basket choose soft, crusty, granary, garlic or Arabic from our variety of freshly baked rolls and breads

Light Bites

Seasonal Salad crisp fresh garden salad leaves and vegetables, tossed in your preferred dressing

Cream of Carrot and Orange Soup with baked cheese straws

Beef Consommé with mushrooms and parsley

Cheese Board a carefully chosen assortment of the finest boutique cheeses from around the world, served with a selection of crudités, crackers, dried fruits and nuts

Selection of Sandwiches including chicken roulade with asparagus, roasted vegetables, smoked salmon with cucumber and cream cheese with walnuts

Beef and Mushroom Pie tender pieces of beef with mushrooms, encased in pastry

Assorted Dim Sum a selection of steamed siu mai, prawn mousse on toast and steamed vegetable dumpling, served with chilli sauce

Sundried Tomato and Black Olive Penne garnished with dried herbs, topped with parmesan cheese

Sweet Delights

Chocolate Brownie served warm with vanilla ice cream

Blood Orange Mousse Cake served with raspberry coulis

Selection of Fruits a seasonal assortment of the finest fresh cut fruits

Selection of Continental Pastries chocolate brownie, apricot financier and black cherry tartlet

Chocolates a luxurious rich chocolate selection provides the perfect finale

For my Appetiser I had the Caviar with a glass of 2013 Grosset Springvale Riesling

For my main the Angus Tenderloin was recommended, so went with that and a couple of glasses of Chateau Giraud Larose 2001, enjoyed the first glass, but not the second, not sure why but the second glass was not as aromatic or fresh as the first. Guess I will have to try it again a sometime.

The Angus was not bad, very good for an airline, although I would have enjoyed it more if it had been a bit rarer

Between the next course I tried the Lamborn Family 2009 Cabinet Sauvignon. Not my sort of wine, too dry and not enough fruit, guess I am more a Coonawara Cabinet Sauvignon person.

Before having the cheese, I tried the 2002 Chateau Guiraud Sauternes. The packaging was very different, they use 100ml wine tubes, which, to me works well. I enjoyed the wine, great nose, well balanced sweetness and acidity with a great finish. Hope to get to try this wine again!

Next up it was cheese plate with a glass of 1976 Grahams Tawny Port, a great way to finish off a meal.

A few random photos from the flight

In Brisbane I had an 8 hour lay-over, luckily I had access to the Emirates lounge where the attendants went out of their way to ensure that the other passengers traveling to Auckland were comfortable and in an area where we could sleep, which, surprisingly I was able to.

EK434 being readied for boarding.

Yours truly on board EK434

 On board Emirates A380’s they have two shower suites for first class passengers. Always a nice way to freshen up on a long flight, EK434 is not a long flight, around 3 hours, but I could not pass up on the opportunity for a shower at cruising altitude.

Thankfully Emirates had checked my bags through to Papeete so all I had to do was clear a security checkpoint and head for the Air New Zealand lounge to wait for my flight from Auckland.

The Air New Zealand flight was on time and uneventful, which was just what I needed, I was already into my second day of traveling by then.

ANZ 40 on the ground in Papeete

Arrived in Papeete at around 12:30am and was through customs and immigration fairly quickly so made it to the hotel by around 1:15am. Only issue is that the 5 minute drive from the Airport to the hotel cost me USD20.

Check in at the Intercontinental was quick and I was in my room, after a 5 minute drive, by a little after 1:30am. Time to catch up on some sleep.