A Day In Jakarta

AA domestic first class hard product has gotten pretty good (especially compared to the legacy US first class. I mean come on, no power outlets at all?), but the soft is still lacking a little (mostly in the food), so I was still hoping to make the upgrade list. Before checking in for my flight I took a glance at the upgrade list and found it was 12-15 people long… Not a good sign. However, apparently this status thing is paying off since I jumped to first, and was able to clear along with two other people.

It was lunch time on the east coast when I arrived in Chicago, so I immediately headed for a torta from Tortas Frontera (one of Rick Bayless’ joints), and was not disappointed (though I never have been with any of the food I’ve had from there).

A short while later I headed over to the Admirals club and enjoyed a Sam Adams Oktoberfest and watched the traffic on the ramp below. When I arrived at O’Hare I had checked what gate my next flight was leaving from and was glad to see that it was just down the hall from the lounge and should only be a few minutes walk. However, while looking out at the planes at their gates, I noticed an American 787 at the terminal across the way being fueled, catered, and loaded with cargo.

I’m not aware of other international 787 routes out of ORD other than the flight to Tokyo. Being extra cautious, I decided to check the gate once more and found that the plane across the way was the one I was going to taking, more than doubling my walk. I was planning on changing into shorts and a sweatshirt (my newly adopted long haul travel attire), but now I wasn’t sure I’d have enough time to finish my beer and change (I have a no beer left behind policy, and luckily didn’t have to break it). A very brisk walk over to the gate, and I found myself with just enough time to duck into a bathroom and change before boarding.

American has configured their 787s with business class and economy. The business product is similar to the one on the 77W, except that it alternates between forward and rearward facing seats (not sure how much is like to be sitting backwards…). However I would not be sitting up front, rather in the “main cabin extra” (MCE) seats at the front of the economy class. Now in the 77W there is an actual difference between MCE and regular economy (3-3-3 seating vs. 3-4-3). One seat difference doesn’t seems like much, but it’s a much nicer experience. On the 787 the only difference is a little extra pitch (both MCE and economy are 3-3-3). The seats weren’t uncomfortable, but I vastly prefer the updated JL 2-4-2 product on the 787s, and would recommend booking that where available (also their premium economy is pretty amazing, I’ve seen worse business class seats).

Anyway, back to the trip. The flight to Narita was pretty uneventful, and after watching a bunch of movies and taking a nap we were beginning our descent. I didn’t get any good views being in the aisle seat, but this allows me to get up as frequently as I want which is nice on these long flights. My transit time in Narita was not overly long, and I wanted to make sure I could take a shower so I booked it over to the JL Sakura lounge (much better than the Admiral’s Club). There was a wait for the shower, but I only had time to grab some water before it was my turn. I used to think that the best perk of having status with an airline and getting lounge access was the free food and drinks (which is certainly nice, CX has some good noodle soups, and JL has a nice self service bar), but those are no match to being able to take a shower after stepping off a 12+hr flight.

Revitalized I took a seat by the large windows overlooking the ramp and watched the planes arriving and departing. Soon it was my turn to head out, and I wanted to make sure to leave enough time to get out to the far terminal and grab a bottle of water for the flight to Jakarta. I got to the gate much faster than anticipated, so after getting some water I went in search of something to eat and found a little food court with some promising looking plastic food displays. Deciding on the tempura over rice I used some leftover yen from my last trip, and had a pretty tasty dinner(?). My flight was close to boarding so I made my way back over to the gate. [Side note, but the remote terminal 2 gates at Narita are starting to show their age… The near gates are nice enough, but the far ones are pretty gloomy and dark (and the facilities were definitely not designed for the number of travelers.]

Boarding with the rest of the elites I was surprised to see the even less dense 787 configuration (with premium economy). Japan airlines already has a very premium heavy configuration on their base 787s with a huge business class, but on some of the new planes they have also taken out the economy seats ahead of door 3, and made a very spacious premium economy section. AA seats 226 people on their 787s, JL has gone with an austoundingly light 161 seat configuration, almost 30% less seats!  For the trip down I was in economy and ended up sleeping for part of the trip, and then started to watch the mission impossible movies back to back starting with the first.

Arriving in Jakarta I was exhausted and just wanted to get to the hotel. There has been some confusion as to the requirements for US passport holders and visas. I can say I asked and was told I didn’t need one (which is the official policy) and made it through immigration without paying anything. Finally getting out of airports/planes, the warm tropical breeze was a literal and figurative breath of fresh air which I hadn’t had since arriving at Logan airport many many hours ago. I had asked previously if there was a hotel shuttle, but as I was arriving at 1am it was no longer running. After withdrawing some rupiah (with an exchange rate of over 13,000 IDR to 1 USD) I made my way to find a blue bird taxi (the most reputable company who’s drivers are the least likely to try and cheat tourists with inflated off the meter rides, or other scams). I was at the front of the line and had to repeatedly turn away other drivers who were trying to get me (and everyone else in line) to go with them.

I finally made it to the hotel (ibis Styles) where my bed was waiting. The rooms were a little small, but I was really just looking for a place to crash, and at $30/night it fit the bill perfectly. I set my alarm for the next morning and quickly passed out. After several hours rest I got ready and went downstairs to catch the tail end of breakfast. Nothing looked overly amazing, so I started with a few bites worth of a few things. Returning to the table after grabbing a slice of toast and ordering an omelette (which I never received) I found someone had joined my table. We started talking and I learned he was from Germany, worked in commercial chicken farming, and was in town for business. He had some interesting views of the area/recent European events, didn’t like cities, and very much enjoyed the time he spent in the Midwest US while on business. After talking for a while we wished each other safe travels and went our separate ways.

Trying to figure out what to do I decided that is head into the city (my hotel was just down the road from the airport) and walk around. The National  Monument seemed like a good start, so I called a cab and headed into town. It’s a bit of drive but it gave me time to talk with the cab driver, and observe that there is no way I’d ever want to drive there. Like Singapore, it seems that lanes are more of a suggestion than a rule, and that driving in two at once is commonplace. There is also an entire language developed abound the use of the car horn. Every intent/action or recognition of someone else’s action/intent required a beep (but not in an angry way). Anyway, it made for a very noisy ride (and I can’t imagine what it’s like to live anywhere near a major street/highway!).

Arriving at the monument plaza it took driving around three sides before we found an open gate. It was already 90 something degrees outside, but the heat radiating off the pavement was what made it oppressive. I could feel the heat coming up through my shoes roasting the soles of my feet.Walking towards the monument I was approached by a man selling post cards, he chatted me up even after I declined to purchase anything, and let me know that since it was the weekend there were a lot more people than usual visiting and that he estimated the wait to be about 4hrs to go up to the observation deck. Now I had the time, but the thought of waiting outside in the sauna like heat was not at all appealing, so I took a few photos and instead headed to the National Museum located across the street. The museum was pretty small, but had a lot of really interesting information about the history and cultures of Indonesia. Having only minimal knowledge of the country it was quite informative, and it was literally cool thanks to the AC.

After tooling around the museum for a while (and almost sufficiently cooling down) it was time to head back to the hotel. I was feeling pretty tired and dehydrated so i didn’t want to stay out too much longer. The problem was that I wanted to find another blue bird taxi, but the only ones I was driving were occupied and a lot of other companies have started painting their taxis blue (which makes it much more confusing). Eventually I just started walking towards an area where I’d seen hotels, thinking that that would be the best opportunity. Passing a Starbucks I decided to grab an iced tea to try and help with the dehydration, and was surprised when they brewed and then iced my tea instead of using a pre made mix. I finally found a hotel, and was thankfully soon on my way back to the hotel.

My flight didn’t leave until later that night, so I decided to do some poolside reading while having a late lunch. A few of the local beers and a plate of what I would describe as Korean bulgogi hit the spot, and I lounged around until it was time to shower and finish packing. I thought that I’d give myself plenty of time to explore the Jakarta airport since I hadn’t seen much the night before. However, all the check in desks are communal, and one can’t check into flights more than 2-3hrs before departure so I spent about 30-45min waiting for the Japan airlines desk to open. I’d heard of being able to upgrade from economy to premium economy at check in, and decided that it would be worth it to check out the product. This involved being checked in, and then led over to a cashier’s desk across the way to pay for the upgrade. Once I was all checked in and paid I headed to the contract lounge that serves a variety of different airlines.

It’s cramped, dark, and not very inviting. I grabbed some food and an “air soda” (club soda).Now I swear that the chafing dish was labeled as chili eggplant, but when cutting a bite from one I very quickly realized that these were chili eggs(no plant), and were overcooked to the point where the outside of the yolk was a greenish-grey. The whites were fine, so I set about separating the yolks out, and only eating the whites with the garlicky chili sauce. There were also a few other dishes including a sweet and sour fish dish, rice, and some spanakopita-ish things with a sweet kinda eggy(?) filling. Eventually I decided that I’d spent enough time in the lounge and set out to explore a little.

First stop was a gift shop to pick up something for K (Indonesian chocolate and a carved wooden lizard). Then I realized that there really wasn’t any more terminal to explore… Luckily it was almost time to board, so I just headed to the gate instead. JL operates two flights a day to Jakarta, but I don’t understand how they are making any money on the flight I took back. The economy section looked pretty full (but it’s a small section and not very highly priced), the business class might have had 5-10 people (out of almost 40), and there were a total of maybe 7 people in the premium economy section (we could each have our own row of seats…across the entire width of the plane, not just in our little section). The service and flight was too notch as expected, and the time flew by as I continued my mission impossible marathon ( watched from MI:1 all the way to Ghost Protocol, there was one I don’t even remember…).

 (love that wing flex)

It was early morning when we landed in Tokyo, and my next flight didn’t leave for 10hrs, so I decided to go and explore. Last time I took the train into Tokyo and had fun walking around, but it’s a kinda long trip and I didn’t want to go that far. Instead I decided to check out the prefecture of Narita (the city/town where the airport is). It’s a very quick train ride away, so I decided to head over after dropping off my carry-on at the luggage storage place, and grab a bite to eat at the 7-11. Much to my dismay I was robbed of my shrimp seaweed wrap by the lady in front of me, who I politely let cut in front of me, and she took the last shrimp roll! Crushed, I settled for salmon roe instead and washed it down with some green tea.

(don’t forget to hold on to something while riding the train!)

Narita is home to a large temple and garden as well as being known for the dish unagi (grilled freshwater eel). I like Japanese gardens and unagi, so this seemed like a no brainier. The temple is a 5-10 minute walk from the train station, but it’s all one road so navigation is pretty simple.

 (the Narita mascot, I got a little plush keychain one to bring home)

 (temple entranceway)

 Walking up the stairs there was a much larger temple where monks were in the middle of a service/ceremony, and I slipped off my shoes and joined in some other visitors sitting on a bench at the back and took it all in for a while before the monks filed out. There was a large number of school children running around outside (I think it was a class trip or something?), most of whom were using large drawing pads (like 2’x2′) to sketch. After consulting the map, I headed off towards the pathways which wound through the gardens. It was a little overcast and chilly, but it was also really peaceful and tranquil.

 (main temple) (not sure what this building is, but it’s pretty cool looking)

 (there were lot of pretty large spiders, this one was probably 4″)

 (pretty pond surrounded with cool trees, and a large group of kids)

 (not sure what these trees are, but they are awesome)

Once I’d completed my loop around the garden, I decided to grab something to drink before heading for lunch, especially as this also gave me an opportunity to scope out the different restaurant options. I had passed a 7-11 on the way over, so I doubled back to get some cold tea and use their free wifi (and pick up a shrimp roll or two for later). After a brief rest I went back to a restaurant where I’d seen them cleaning and cooking eels earlier. The eel fillets were served over rice as i’d seen them before, and were pretty delicious. The unagi I’m used to is the frozen kind one can get at almost any Asian supermarket, and this fresh dish was definitely better than the frozen variety. There was a much deeper grilled flavor, and the sauce tasted richer and had more complexity. Finishing up my lunch (and not leaving a single grain of rice behind), I headed back to the train for the ride to the airport.

Narita has a spotting area on top of the terminal pre-security, so I headed up there to see if there was anything interesting to check out. The clouds had lifted and it was nice and sunny out. The spotting area is pretty nice, and would be a good place to get some air if you only had a shorter layover in NRT. At that point I wanted to get to the lounge, take a shower, and grab a seat to relax. As an OneWorld Sapphire I could use the premium security line which is a total breeze. They are super polite and help you with everything.

I decided to head to the Admirals Club to give it another chance, since I hadn’t been in over a year. The club was pretty empty, and after taking a tour around and grabbing a drink, I headed back to the desk to see if the agents there could help me book an award ticket that I had on hold. For whatever reason they weren’t able to do it, but they dialed the US reservations number who was able to help me very quickly. Since the Admirals Club was pretty much how I remember, I headed back over the the JAL lounge for the rest of my layover. A quick shower and drink later it was time to head over to the gate to my flight back to Chicago. (pretty amazing how large the 777 engines are, person kneeling for scale)

While waiting in the gate area I finished my shrimp roll, and grabbed a bottle of water for the flight. The American 787 was not as comfortable as the Japan Airlines one, but it wasn’t too bad, and the flight went by pretty quickly (mostly because I slept through most of it). Landing in Chicago I cleared customs very quickly thanks to Global Entry, which is a must have for anyone who travels out of the country more than once a year.

Once again I headed to the Admirals Club to grab a shower before my flight to Boston, and left with what I thought was enough time to make another stop for a torta before going to the gate. I’d scored an upgrade to first, so I wasn’t too concerned about being there when boarding started. Once again, I found that my flight had been moved from the gate next to the restaurant, all the way down to the end of the concourse. I made it to the gate with a few minutes to spare (and a tasty sandwich), but there was no overhead bin space so my bag had to be gate checked (with a priority tag of course!). The flight from ORD to BOS was super quick (especially given the long length of the previous segments), and my sandwich was much better than what was being offered for dinner. Though a nice cold beer certainly added to the experience.

Overall it was a really nice milage run, and put me much closer to my goal of Executive Platinum status, as well as putting us over the top for miles to book our honeymoon flights to Asia. This was also the first time I’d been to Indonesia, and the first time I’d crossed the equator. After my previous trip to Tokyo (trip report coming soon-ish), this one seemed relaxing by comparison.

Cheers,

-N