On time: Delayed departure by 45 minutes as crew were stuck in heavy traffic on their way from the hotel to the airport.
How full: Business Class was full. Economy was probably full too, judging by the number of passengers in the departure lounge as we were boarding.
Fellow passengers: Mix of international guests — Australians returning from holiday in Thailand and Middle Easterners, Africans or Europeans travelling to Australia for holidays.
Quite a few guests of Thai and Indian ethnicity too. Difficult to tell who is travelling for work or pleasure these days as most passengers are dressed in comfortable, smart-casual outfits.
Entertainment: The robotically animated safety video was unexciting, and the flight attendants just stood in the aisle doing nothing — very boring.
The much-touted ICE (Information, Communication and Entertainment) system had about 500 movies to choose from and 1500 channels to switch between. You would have to be doing an awful lot of flying to run out of things to see or listen to! I liked watching the cameras mounted on the fuselage of the aircraft, which gave great views of the land or sea beneath us. Being a night-time departure, it was mainly lights as we flew over Bangkok, Southern Thailand, Vietnam and other small islands in the South China sea.
I actually managed to watch several movies: Unforgettable (very good) with Katherine Heigl and Rosario Dawson; Snatched (okay) with Goldie Hawn and Amy Schumer; Blind (very good) with Alec Baldwin and Demi Moore, and A Family Man (excellent and got me quite teary eyed!) with Gerard Butler and Alison Brie. The music selection was also excellent.
Service: Curt and efficient multinational crew (there seemed to be quite a lot of them, and there were 27 different languages between them). Rachel, the Business cabin manager, came around and welcomed everyone individually before the flight took off. She asked me if I was a medical doctor, just in case she needed to call on me in an emergency. We both crossed our fingers wishing this would not happen and I jokingly reminded her that I would prefer to remain off duty.
The Emirates uniform looked tired and ill-fitting on a few of the crew. I am a person who likes details, so a loose hemline on two of the women and ill-fitting white shirts on at least three of the men gave a distinctly dishevelled look.
There was little banter from the crew about the food and wine and any interaction with the crew after Rachel was monosyllabic. Thanks goodness for the constant top-ups of Cloudy Bay pinot noir!
Food and drink: Excellent selection of meals for dinner. I chose the Thai chicken curry but could have also had roast lamb (with thyme jus, semolina gnocchi and sauteed okra) or the pan-fried cod served with a grilled prawn, creamy lobster sauce, sauteed pak choi and mashed potatoes. For dessert: chocolate profiteroles, date cheesecake, seasonal fruit or a cheese board. A continental breakfast was served before landing in Sydney — very nice. Great selection of soft drinks, wines, cocktails and spirits continued during the flight. A few us walked to the rear of the top deck where there's a bar. Just a word on the cutlery. With most airlines using cutlery and plates that are lighter in weight and even plastic, I was surprised at the heaviness of the plates, cutlery and metallic napkin holder used to serve dinner and breakfast on this flight. Naively, I thought that it would add weight and fuel costs to these "big birds" but maybe this is not a concern to Emirates. Or perhaps they feel using the "real stuff" gives them an edge in premium seats over other airlines.
Toilets: Clean and tidy. I did not notice any of the crew cleaning them but with the constant stream of passengers using the toilets, I was pleasantly surprised that they remained in a tidy condition even towards the end of the flight. What's more, there was a choice of two Bulgari colognes.
Airport experience: The Emirates Club lounge had a lovely selection of food and beverages.
Would I fly it again? I won't say no — if someone else is shouting and especially if it is Business Class.
