We are flying British Airways from Phoenix, Arizona to London, England and then on to Frankfurt, Germany.
Flying business class again. Seated up in the bubble section of this 747-400. This is my favorite place. Well, first class actually is my favorite but this is a close second. Twenty of us are being pampered by two attentive attendants.
We had time before the flight to enjoy refreshments up in the club lounge. There was a very nice cheese selection, salad offerings, sandwiches, desserts, etc. I love soups so I enjoyed the bean and kale soup with meatballs. I know it is difficult to imagine the taste but it was quite delicious.
This time of year, the flight takes off at 8:45 which is an hour later than when we leave in September.
As soon as we reached our cruising altitude, the ladies were off preparing for the dinner service so people could eat and then get some sleep.
These were the dinner choices:
Starters choices:
Crab rillette with creamy Old Bay vinaigrette, toasted bread bâton
Tomato and feta soup tapénade
Fresh seasonal salad Arcadian Harvest ruby blend, heirloom carrots, black radish, creamy lemon dill dressing
Main choices:
Pecan crusted haddock caramelized onion scalloped potatoes, heirloom tomato collisions, broccolini
Pan roasted fillet of beef creamy spinach risotto, toasted baby carrots, roasted pepper demi-glace
Goat’s cheese tortellini green asparagus, piquillo pepper, Pecorino Romano cream
Dessert choices:
Chocolate salted mille-feuille cherry coulis
Warm sticky banana sponge pudding caramel sauce
Cheese board:
Point Reyes Original Blue
Bûcheron
Prairie Breeze Cheddar
On a long trip it is nice to be able to stretch out and sleep comfortably. The mattress pad and bottom blanket add to the comfort. The top comforter is both cool and warm.
Breakfast an hour thirty minutes before landing.
Starters:
Chilled fruit juice
Raspberry mint smoothie
Fresh seasonal fruit
Greek yoghurt mango cherry compote
Bakery
Selection of warm breads and breakfast pastries
Selection:
Traditional English breakfast
Omelette sweet potato hash, sautéed spinach
Banana waffles blueberry compote, almonds
We landed in terminal 3 and had to switch to terminal 5 for our flight to Frankfurt. To give you an idea of the size of Heathrow, it took 20 minutes to get to our gate after we touched down.
Hustle and bustle abounds at Heathrow’s terminal 5. No “Love Actually “ music playing and no Hugh Grant but there still is plenty of excitement and action. I expected Christmas music and was a little disappointed not to have any. The sounds I heard were people talking. My sense of smell, however, was working overtime. Ladies were spraying small strips of paper with perfume and handing them out as the crowd walked the concourse. The combination of perfume smells made quite a few people sneeze as they walked by. I enjoy people watching. There were ladies dressed in long heavy fur coats; businessmen carrying attaché cases, children carrying toys, etc. I remarked to Michael that the main color of dress was black. I should have bought a black coat to fit in.
Before we went to the business lounge, I had to stop at Fortnum and Mason which is my favorite tea store. I needed to replenish my Royal Blend and English Breakfast.
Thomas Parker Bowles was selling his cookbook. He is the son of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.
Store fronts were festively decorated.
Terminal 5 even offers a personal shopper to help with your shopping needs. Really?? I assume there is a demand for this as we saw two girls waiting to help. There are many high end stores: Harrods, Tiffany, Cartier, Burberry, Prada, Rolex, etc. to shop at.
Cute idea to have a place where children can have a holiday memory of Heathrow.
After a few hours at Heathrow, we were off to Frankfurt. Even though the pilot said it would be a short taxi out, it seemed like forever.
It is a short hour and a half flight from London to Frankfurt. Again, we landed at the most remote location and had to taxi in for 25 minutes.
Max picked us up at the airport. A short two hour ride and we were at the house in Belgium. We were able to catch up on all the news.
Axel, Heike and Max's ninety-one year old paternal grandmother greeted us at the house : plus the two dogs and the cat. Axel had prepared such a delicious pumpkin soup as a snack. This recipe, as I say, is a keeper. After a short visit, we were off to bed.
In the past, we have stayed in Max's room but we stayed in the guest room this time. Lit candles gave the room a cozy glow. So beautiful! Yes, it was quite romantic! Out the window we cold see the Christmas lights and the lights of the town off in the distance.
A wonderful start to our Germany and Switzerland adventure!