My Jakarta award via Flying Blue included CI679 from Taipei to Jakarta. When booking, there was no indication the flight was not non-stop. I later found the flight made a ground stop in Hong Kong. That meant even an even longer...
Wow! Great Flight on China Airlines A350 Business Class
Hello from Taipei. Fresh off a 12.5hr flight from AMS-TPE in China Airlines’ new A350-900 Business Class, I am pleased to report another great in-flight experience. China Airlines’ A350 is beautiful on the inside and out– The business class...
Review: Kiev to New York in Ukraine International Airlines 767 Business Class
My expectations for this flight were quite low. Lucky and Tiffany had just flown the same route a month earlier and posted a decidedly negative review. So it might surprise you that on the whole, I enjoyed the flight....
Istanbul to Kiev on Ukraine International Airlines 737 Business Class
Ukraine International Airlines uses new Boeing 737-800 for many of its shorthaul routes in Europe. Unfortunately, it looks west rather than east for guidance on how to configure its business class on short-haul flights. While Aeroflot and Turkish have...
Review: EgyptAir 737-800 Business Class from Cairo to Beirut
The point of this review is to showcase what EgyptAir’s shorthaul service is like. In case you missed my earlier post, this was my Scary Flight on EgyptAir. The weather was very rough and I will not rehash that...
Review: London to Cairo in EgyptAir 777-300 Business Class
My intro to this flight report still sums up my thoughts best, so I will stick with it. Let’s face it: mention EgyptAir and most instinctively grimace. The carrier does not serve alcohol, does not have cutting-edge seats, and boasts a poor safety...
Review: Los Angeles to London in Air New Zealand 777-300 Business Premier
I’ve booked my parents on it, my brother on it, dozens of clients on it, but now it was my turn. For years I have been wanting to fly Air New Zealand from Los Angeles to London and a...
Remorse & Resolve: Final Thoughts on a Month in Africa
My unexpected month in Africa will always be a two-edged sword: a treasured memory on the one hand and a painful and expensive exercise in futility on the other hand. Remember the purpose of this trip was to secure...
Review: Virgin Atlantic A340 Upper Class
There is mystique surrounding Virgin Atlantic, which I attribute to its superb advertising and marketing – including sexy tv spots, red uniforms, branding business class “Upper Class” and decking out its premium cabins with sparkling gold and classy walk-up...
Review: Bidvest Premier Lounge in Cape Town Airport
The Bidvest Lounge is one of three lounges in Cape Town’s international terminal, the other two being British Airways and Emirates. Open to business class passengers on non-BA/EK flights and to Priority Pass cardholders, the lounge is nothing remarkable...
The Robben Island Experience
No trip to Cape Town is complete without a visit to Robben Island, a political prison turned national monument that housed Neslon Mandella for more than 30 years. Buy Your Robben Island Tickets in Advance Online Same-day tickets are...
The Cruel Poverty of Cape Town
Income disparity is a fact of life. I am not a Marxist and I reject the notion that it is purely luck or at the expense of others that great fortunes can be made. But I do recognize both...
Johannesburg to Cape Town in South African Airways A343 Economy Class
I had neglected to assign seats in advance on this flight (did not even think it was possible) and my wife and I ended up in middle seats. The A343 economy class cabin has a 2-4-2 configuration and the...
Road Trip from Johannesburg to Lesotho
I am on a quest to visit every country in the world. My “first pass” through the world will often include more limited visits — sometimes just hours — but my goal is to experience a taste of life in every nation....
Review: Hyatt Regency Johannesburg (Suite)
Located in the Rosebank district of Johannesburg and surrounded by several shopping malls, my wife and I spent five nights at the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg to round out our time in Johannesburg. The hotel is a Category 2 property,...
Kasane, Botswana to Johannesburg on South African Airways (Airlink)
When planning out the routing for our trip, I was not even aware that Kasane (BBK) had an airport – credit to my wife for stumbling upon it when looking for accommodation. It worked out perfectly, saving a long...
A Visit to Impalila Island, Namibia
You know by now that I love to country hop…even if it is just for a brief visit to a rather ordinary border town. That’s what I thought the visit Impalila Island would be…but it turned into another eye-opening...
Review: The Old House Guest Lodge – Kasane, Botswana
After consecutive stays in Zambia and Zimbabwe in very modest accommodations, I was looking forward to a room with air and a comfortable bed. My wife stumbled upon The Old House Bed and Breakfast and though still pricey for Botswana...
From Hate to Great: Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
As we crossed over the border from Zambia to Zimbabwe, a word of advice – don’t hire the vulture taxi drivers waiting outside the Victoria Falls entrance for they will rip you off. Walk past the border control and...
Victoria Falls from the Zambian Side
Victoria Falls has been a part of my bucket list since I was amazed by Igaucu Falls in Brazil and I knew the moment we discovered the need to journey to South Africa, we would visit the falls. We...
