Author: JP

We pulled up to the front where we were met by the hotel staff and asked to proceed to check-in while they took care of the bags. The check-in desk was busy and we waited our turn. A staff member came over to us, took our passports and asked us to wait off to the side. After a minute, another staff member came over to us and escorted us to the Elite member desk for the check-in process.

Elite member check-in desk

The bell man was kind enough to inform us that there was a crack on one of our bags and taped it up. Once the check-in was done, we were escorted to our room located on the Club floor. The check-in agent informed us that breakfast was included on top of the 1000 points amenity gift along with access to the lounge for afternoon tea and happy hour.

Long way down

Complimentary fruit and wine

View of Parliament plus Presidents residence and administration buildings

We called it for the night. In the morning, we decided to walk around the area after breakfast for a self guided tour.

View in the morning.

We had breakfast at the club lounge and it was abysmal. Ate a few morsels to last for the day and then made our way out for the walk to the various attractions.

Our first stop would be the Presidents Estate housing the official residence plus administration buildings. As we were walking, 3 rickshaw (tuk tuk) drivers stopped by and were insistent on giving us a ride to the nearby attractions (for a negotiated fee ofcourse!) and even tried to dissuade us from walking towards that area due to protests by local residents around the issue with Kashmir losing its special status and the police barricading the area. We decided to press on and see for ourselves.

Don’t see any protests …

Maybe the protesters were in those cars … oh nope, just tourists like us.

We entered the area after showing our Canadian driver’s license to the cops manning the barricades.

One of four monuments that was gifted from other colonies (Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia) in the British empire.

The President’s residence – we were not allowed to go any further.

Looking back down the way we came from with the India Gate in the distance.

It took us approximately 20 minutes to walk down the main road to the India Gate. Lot more tourists here compared to where we just came from. We were approached by multiple rickshaw drivers along the way but politely said no.

Dedicated to those who served in the Indian armed forces and fell in combat.

From behind the monument.

Next stop was Connaught place. Since it was 11.30am, some shops and restaurants were open. The area was livelier at night but we made the best of it.

After a good 20 minute walk, we arrived and walked around the area.

Jai Hind

We decided to call it a day and made our way back to the hotel and relax before checking out in the evening.

Street vendor market

Hotel exterior in daylight

We couldn’t get a later checkout beyond 4pm, so we checked out of the room and went for afternoon tea till 5pm. After that, we took an Uber to the airport.

Next up – SQ F to SIN

Our ferry back to Port Blair was at 9.15am. We left at 8am for the 30 minute drive to the jetty. Once we checked in, it was another 15 minute wait to be allowed onto the dock. The ferry trip back to Port Blair was a bit choppy and caused nausea for a lot of us. Luckily, no heaving over the side. 🙂

Our seats at the front this time.

With a lot of time to kill before our 3pm flight to DEL, we pre-arranged with the Taj to have the driver take us to the Naval Museum.

By the time we finished the museum tour, it was 1pm and many places were closed for lunch time. With no other choice, we went to check-in for our flight.

The business class bouncer.

With nothing else to do in the airport, we made our way through security and waited until boarding was called. We were approached by the check-in agent who checked us in earlier and she escorted us to the bus waiting for J class passengers.

The entire bus to ourselves. Much better than the Emirate First Class bus. 🙂

Water as PDB

Once boarding was done, it was a super fast safety demo and take off right after.

For some reason, my wife and I both got a bland meal (may have been me fiddling around with the booking before we left). In any case, it was good.

Descent into rainy Calcutta.

We stayed on the plane again while security and cleaning formalities were taken care of, plus crew change. The crew on this flight were much more personable compared to the IXZ-CCU leg. We were offered a PDB and a dinner menu.

Both of us went with noodles/chicken dish and was tasty.

The flight was delayed leaving Calcutta for an hour due to the rain storm but we eventually made our way out and safely landed in Delhi.

Remote stand.

In the Uber to the hotel.

Up next – Le Meridien and quick tour around the neighbourhood.

The first two mornings were spent diving. The Larca Dive Centre opened a month ago on the resort and I was their very first customer! They were still working to get their boat license plus getting an actual boat. In the interim, they partnered with another dive company for boat dives. The first day would be a shore dive at the Nemo Reef. The 2nd day would be two boat dives near the ferry channel.

Shore dive to Nemo Reef at 8am!

The dive centres located on this area of the beach do a lot of business with mainland tourists wants to do scuba for the first time. It’s a constant barrage of newcomers and local dive masters were red in the face doing back to back to back dives.

Getting our gear prepped.

Visibility was poor on all 3 dives.

After my dives were done, we would relax either at the beach or in the room for the remainder of the trip. We even had the chance to celebrate Independence Day and there was a flag raising ceremony at 8.30am. Fun fact – the Indian National Anthem has to be sung in 52 seconds or less. Anything over is considered an offence. The next set of pictures will be a guided tour of the overall resort.

The welcome pavilion with the guard/gate house off the left.

The aforementioned dive centre (to the right of the pavilion).

This building next to the dive centre housed the lobby, gift shop, gym, lounge area arounds the sides of the building plus on the second level and pool.

Lobby area.

Looking out from the lobby area.

Lounge area on the sides of the main building.

Lounge area on the 2nd level.

Pool on the 2nd level as well.

Pictures of the villas and the grounds

Jiva Spa

Plaques around the property describing different tree species.

The restaurant building was split into two. The main restaurant (the Shoreline) on the top, where you could have breakfast, lunch and dinner and the dinner only restaurant (Settlers) on the bottom towards the back left. I missed breakfast twice as I was out diving early morning and didn’t get back till 12pm but my wife took full advantage. Breakfast is split between a modest buffet and ordering mains off a menu.

Breakfast menu.

Masala chai and Filter Coffee to start the day.

Bengali Egg Curry.

Egg Bhurjee with Pav.

Dum Aloo with Puri.

Scrambled Eggs Benny

Pork Ham Eggs Benny

Catching the flag raising ceremony plus singing of the National Anthem after breakfast on our 3rd day.

Movies to celebrate Independence Day (playing back to back to back) plus some mementos to take home.

One of the staff members took our pic after the ceremony.

We had lunch and dinner at the Shoreline on some days and the menu is the same as the room service menu. Interesting to point out that dining at the restaurant cost a couple dollars more than ordering room service.

Evening ambience.

With live music.

Poppadums to snack on.

Some sugary alcoholic drinks.

Tandoori prawns

Seafood risotto.

For lunch – biryani, spicy chicken curry and aloo ghobi

On our last night, we made a reservation to dine at the Settlers restaurant which is a chef’s table style dinner. The table had a seating for 10 and we dined with another couple from Dubai. The pacing of courses was well done and the waiter serving us was engaging throughout the service. She explained that all the courses were from different cultures in India who moved to the Andaman Islands. She even explained about the geography and history of the Andamans. Overall, the service was fantastic but the meals itself left a lot to be desired.

Deep fried pumpkin chips and sardines.

Shrimp.

Pineapple soup.

Dry masala chicken to help cut the sweetness of the soup.

Guava sorbet as a palette cleanser

Main course – kingfish poached with mustard in banana leaf accompanied with greens

For dessert – caramelized banana topped with coconut shavings and mixed with nuts and raisins

While we were not eating or sleeping, we took every opportunity to spend time on the beach. Since we came to the resort during monsoon season, the tides were obviously higher but still safe enough to go for a dip. The best time to come is around December to February (summer) when the waters are calm. We were lucky to get a couple sunny days during our stay.

As mentioned before, there was a private area to lounge before entering the public beach.

High tide at 9am.

Finally, the service – in one word, P H E N O M E N A L! From the moment we arrived to the moment we left, we were looked after in every way. The staff at the resort, ranging from management to wait staff to grounds crew, were all engaging and genuinely inquired about everything during our stay. Whenever I came back from diving, everyone who passed me by would ask how the dives were. When we had breakfast, lunch or dinner at the Shoreline, the wait staff would come by every now and then to make conversation with us. If we needed anything during our meals at the restaurant, the staff would magically appear out of nowhere to attend to us. Our rooms would be cleaned during the time we went out for breakfast which is amazing considered it didn’t take us more than 30 minutes to have our meal. Remember I mentioned they took our picture during check-in? We came back from dinner one night and we found a frame with the picture inside! I will be bold enough to say that the service at this resort is on par with Amankila Bali (if not better).

Would we come back? In a heartbeat but with better planning next time. 🙂

Next up – SpiceJet J to DEL + 1 night at the Le Meridien

Once we pulled up to the front, we were welcomed by an army of resort staff and were escorted to the pavilion right after the main gate.

There were other guests who arrived at the same time as us and we were all asked to take a seat. Some resort staff were standing and waiting while we were all being ushered in. While we were waiting, we were offered coconut water as a welcome drink.

Once everyone was seated, the assembled staff sang a delightful welcome song. Another member came by to each group and took a picture (we didn’t know why but went with the flow). We were also presented with (plastic) shark teeth bracelets which they put on our wrists.

Once the welcome song was done, the manager of the rest welcomed us all and introduced herself and all staff i.e. doctor, IT guys, head chef, yoga instructor etc and gave a quick overview of the resort. Once done, staff members individually came to each group and escorted us to our rooms where check in would be done. On the way to the room, the staff member came us an overview of the resort and description of the architecture of the resort. The Taj was built with being an eco-friendly resort – so everything from building materials to specific products (soaps/shampoo canisters, reusable straws etc) was procured to reduce as much waste as possible. All villas were built to mimic the Jarawa tribe who live in the South and Middle Andamans. They even planted trees back in specific areas of the property.

Walking by the main lobby building on our way to our room.

Electric vehicles used for cleaning staff and food delivery.

We were assigned to room #23. This is a garden villa but there are other higher villa categories.

Loungers on the left and right side of the entrance deck.

We were treated to this when we walked in the front sliding glass door.

Kudos to stealthy service – our suitcases (in background) were already in the room when we walked in.

Closet area on the left side of the main room.

On either side of the bed night stands were two sliding doors that led to this …

On the left side of the bathroom area was the toilet area, equipped with fancy reading material.

On the right side, was the shower stand and soak tub.

The staff member gave us a tour of the room, then asked us to review some documents and sign our life away, then took our passports to process the rest of the check-in. We freshened up and then went for a walk to the beach while there was still daylight left.

Surrounded by lots of nature.

The resort is located right in front of Radhanagar beach (voted Asia’s best beach in 2004) which is a public beach and therefore there are no chairs or loungers on the beach itself. Regardless of it being a public beach, there was little to no people on the beach anytime we were there and it felt like our own private beach. The beach itself was super long and gave the perfect opportunities for long walks.

Oh hi.

As it was getting dark, we decided to make our way back to the room, have dinner and retire for the night.

Part 2 to follow.

The Andaman and Nicobar territory is made up on 572 islands. The main island is Port Blair and the Taj Exotica resort was located on Havelock Island. Access to other islands as restricted for various reasons including indigenous tribes living on some of them and do not want to be ‘disturbed’. Don’t believe me? Have a read here. Other islands that are worth visiting are Ross Island, Neil Island, North Andaman, Diglipur etc. Since we only had 4 nights, we chose to stay put at the resort. From the main airport, you need to take a car to the ferry terminal, then a ferry to Havelock and then another 30 minute car ride to the resort. When you book your stay through the resort, they take care of all transfers. If you book through a third party site like Expedia, ground transfers are included but ferry transfers are not included. In my zeal to save money, guess which option I went with? Anyhoo, booking the ferry was easy enough but there were huge gaps in between the flight into and out of Port Blair.

We were met by the Taj rep outside in the waiting area and escorted to a car. He asked us if we wanted to do anything since we had a little under 3 hours to kill before checking in for the ferry. After reviewing options, we decided to go tour the Cellular jail, have a quick meal and get dropped off at the ferry terminal.

In the car leaving the airport area.

The driver parked a bit away from the building and it was a quick 5 minute walk to the site.

Constructed between 1896 and 1906, the jail was used for housing political prisoners and independence activists during the British occupation of India and Japanese occupation of the Andamans. After parting ways with the equivalent of $2 CAD total for the entrance fee, we entered the site and walked first into a gallery filled with visuals on the wall of prisoner testimonials and stories about the jail and life within. Reading the stories was definitely a sobering moment (if not stomach churning).

Model of the jail.

After that, we walked to the interior courtyard of the jail with access to the wings that housed the jail cells.

Memorial dedicated by the President of India in 1985.

The courtyard.

Don’t need to explain this.

The work shed where prisoners would have to meet their quote of either extracting 30 lbs of coconut oil, rope making etc.

With the self-tour done, we walked out and across the road to the Veer Sarkar park.

Hello friends.

Statues dedicated to those who individuals who made a lasting impression while imprisoned at the jail.

Um?

After a quick meal at a nearby resort, we made our way to the ferry terminal where we were met by another Taj agent. He escorted us to the front where we were ID checked by a military guard and waived though. After that, we passed through a security check for bags and then into a waiting area for all passengers.

We were a bit early and therefore had some seats but got full in 30 minutes.

20 minutes before departure, boarding was called and we made our way to the boat. We handed our suitcases to the crew at the back of the ferry and boarded at the front.

Beauty.

The ‘premium’ cabin. Next level was deluxe followed by first class.

Once under way, people would crowd the front to take pictures.

90 minutes later, we arrived at the Havelock jetty.

Met the Taj agent outside the main gates and we were handed off to the assistants who took our bags to the waiting car. The main road was a single paved lane meant to be shared with dual way traffic. After 25 minutes, we turned into a side road that was completely full of potholes and it took another 10 minutes of extremely slow, yet careful driving to get to the Taj.

Finally!

After immigration formalities were complete, we followed signs to the domestic transfer. Walked up to the Air India counter and the guy looked at our passes and basically told us to go up to departures and do a bag drop … sigh. Urge to kill … rising. Went up one level to the departures area, found the aisle for Air India and walked to the J counters. The agent re-issued passes on AI card stock and the bags were on their way. We asked if we had access to the lounge and she said we could pay for it. I asked why we would have to pay if we were business class and her response was “Oh, you’re business class?” and had to check our BPs again to make sure. My wife anticipated my imminent meltdown and quickly defused the situation by telling me it was time to go through security. Past security, we were spit into the main atrium with many shops and a food court above us with the AI and PP lounges.

We went to the upper level and walked through the food court, past the PP lounge to get to the AI lounge. We were scanned through, provided the WIFI password and were left to our own devices. We asked for shower rooms and the agent said he would find us when it was ready.

There was no food available except for wrapped sandwiches that did not look appetizing. The coffee machine dispensed ready-made coffee and it was good.

I really did not know what to make of the Maharaja cut-outs on the top shelf. Definitely tacky.

After 30 minutes of waiting, my wife went back to the front desk and asked again for shower rooms. The agent came by to collect us and told us the cost for the showers. I asked if the cost was applicable to business class and his response was “Oh, you’re business class?” and after showing BPs as proof, he escorted us to the 2 shower rooms. They were small and lacked sufficient toiletries like soap but it was enough to refresh ourselves and get the hell out of dodge. We headed over to the PP lounge to get some food. There were two separate entrances depending on whether you had a local AMEX card or PP card. With wifey’s PP card, we were told to head to the right side. Both sides looked the same to be honest.

Business area.

Most of the seats were taken and people were catching up on sleep as it was roughly around 3am. We were told the breakfast buffet would start at 4am, so had some time to kill.

Dining area.

Empty bar.

What’s for breakfast?

Once we had our fill, we walked down to our gate.

Looking down when exiting the lounge.

Boarding was called with families and business class first but people just queued up and gave no room.

Another agent came to the next counter and we walked up and went through. Business class was arranged in a 2-2 configuration in 3 rows. We were the only J passengers plus a pilot who sat across us who was probably there for the return leg.

Service from the cabin crew was lacklustre as was expected (I really set my expectations low). Neither of the 2 cabin crew members working in J welcomed us. One of them came by during boarding to offer a drink. During the meal service, the same person came by ask if we wanted the veg or non-veg meal. At least the service was efficiently done. We never saw the other crew member who was constantly behind the curtain the entire time and only came on the horn to make announcements during takeoff and landing.

Boarding was done on time and we were on our way after what seemed like an eternity of safety checks. There was no queue for take off and we were off to the races once we turned onto the runway.

See ya in a few days, DEL.

The cabin crew member brought our meals shortly after take-off. The veg meal was way more appetizing that the non-veg. Yes, egg is considered non-veg.

An hour and change later, we handed in VTZ. We had a 30 minute layover where we would stay on the plane since we were continuing on to IXZ. After passengers got off the plane, security and cleaning crew came on board to get it prepped for the next leg. Security confirmed that the carry-on bags above us were indeed ours and moved down the line. Once that was done, new passengers boarded and we were on our way after.

Back in the sky.

Same crew, same service. We asked what the veg and non-veg meals were this time and the crew member described it to us – so we went with the non-veg option consisting of kebabs, meat pastry and deep fried veggie patty. The dessert of the top left was decent.

The rest of the flight was uneventful and we arrived at Port Blair.

The bus drove for all of 30 seconds to the terminal. While waiting for our bags, we checked in with local security and showed our passports/visas as per process. Once waived through, we collected our bags and made our way out to find the Taj Exotica rep.

Once we collected our bags from the van, we were escorted in an elevator and onto the tube. No issues with lineups in the tube and we were handed off to the cabin crew stationed at the door. In her infinite noobery, my wife stepped on the plane, said hi to the crew member by the door and turned right towards business class. She was half way through the cabin when I called out to her to come back and show the BP’s to the crew member. With one look at the BPs, the crew member laughed and said “Oh, you definitely don’t want to be going there” and pointed to J. LOL!

Our seats were on opposite sides of the cabin (2A and 2K) and the cabin was 6 of 8 full. Lucky for us, 2 D and F were empty which were turned into beds after the lunch service. Compared to the A340, the A380 F cabin is definitely more spacious with no overhead bins. There are lockers at the back of the cabin which have enough storage.

Both cabin crew members came by to welcome us on board and we were asked what we wanted as our PDB. I went with the usual.

Food menu.

Drinks menu.

Changed into PJs and boarding was completed by the time I was back at my seat. It was a quick 10 minute taxi to the runway and we were off. The engine roll up is quite smooth.

View out the window.

Lining up for take-off and spotted the SA A340.

While on the ground, the cabin crew came by to take our lunch orders. I was slightly full from the lunch at the FCT, so I kept it light on board. I went with the main course and a dessert that was served an hour after take-off. I nodded off during that time and my wife had to throw something at gently wake me up for the meal service.

The main attraction – Scallop and Prawn skewer with Thai curry sauce and coconut risotto. Just the right size and was filling.

The famous LH stamped butter.

For dessert – the gulab jamun cheesecake which was absolutely sensational.

View out the window.

With the meal service done, the crew made up our beds and I konked out for nearly 3 hours and rolled around for another 30 minutes. Forced myself to get up and had another quick meal before landing.

Club sammich with turkey and chips. Too much cheese.

Had to have another cheesecake – when on vacation … right?

Landed in DEL around 30 minutes ahead of schedule which forced us to wait on the side due to our gate being occupied by the Air France flight that was due for push back soon.

Once off the plane, it was a mad dash to immigration by everyone for some reason.

Next up – DEL to IXZ via AI J

One can never get enough sleep while on vacation. This was to be the case again on this trip. With barely enough sleep on the flight and an ungodly landing time, we zombie walked allllllll the way to immigration and then walked to the FCT.

This route looks very familiar to some of you …

Excitement mounting.

Urge to giggle like a school girl, rising.

Into the elevator and one floor up to the reception area. Seating area to the right and reception to the left.

One of the two agents manning the front desks came over to greet us and escorted us through security and gave us a tour of the lounge.

Gotta catch ‘em all, Rubber Duckies! (admit it, you sang that line in your head)

Aint gonna lie, forgot to take extensive pictures due to lack of sleep plus warm conditions in the lounge. Will do my best to paint a good story.

After the agent gave us the full tour, my wife headed for a shower while I relaxed in front of the wonderful Samsung curved TV to watch the news about Brexit and the Donald. Was starting to fall asleep and decided to walk around and make good use of the time to take pictures as it was super quiet in the lounge – ‘twas 7am.

One day, I will have a bar like this in my basement.

Decent self serve in the cigar lounge.

My beloved finally decided she was presentable to society after her shower plus make over and we headed over to the restaurant section for breakfast.

Mmmmmm, ham.

Buffet.

I ordered the Bavarian breakfast.

She got the eggs benny which was the hands down winner.

After breakfast, we each got our own nap room and went down for about 2.5 hours. Wifey was grumpy when I woke her up, so I left her and made a beeline for the showers to refresh myself. It was around 11am when I emerged from the shower and we still had some time to kill before boarding for the 1.30pm flight. I assumed it was drinking time somewhere in the world and headed over to the bar. The staff member who served us for breakfast was also manning the bar and was very helpful when selecting whiskey. The conversation went like this:

Me: “What scotch do you suggest?”
Him: “Do you like less peat or more peat?”
Me: “Hmmmm …”
Him: “How about a tasting of least to most peaty?”
Me: “Works for me!”
Note to self – I don’t like peaty scotch. 🙂

Then he brought out a fourth bottle that was not in the bar and it was absolutely … I don’t even have words to describe it but definitely never touching it ever again. 😀

With that, we headed over to eat as my toes were starting to feel tingly. My wife decided to pick stuff from the buffet.

Everyone’s favourite dish.

Felt less tingly after lunch plus multiple glasses of water. We waited another 30 minutes before being picked up by the agent from the morning who then escorted us downstairs to immigration. With the formalities done, we hopped into our ride for the short drive to the plane. No Porsche as we had another passenger on the same flight – how inconsiderate. 😦

Oh … spoils from the shower rooms. 😉

Breakfast next day at the local Big Boy.

I heart you, Amurrica.

Checked out of the hotel for our flight LH flight to FRA and onto the free shuttle.

Outside the drop off area.

Economy check-in well under way.

No line up for us. 🙂

We were assisted right away by the contract staff for LH. Oddly enough, the agent asked to see my old passport with my OCI visa sticker even though India immigration did not need it anymore. Apparently, the rules has changed “2 weeks ago” that the old passport was mandatory *roll eyes moment*. With that sorted out, we were given our boarding passes all the way to IXZ and we were on our merry way to the lounge.

Highly coveted keepsakes.

Security was at either side of the check-in hall but we made a beeline to the right side as the left side was a conga line disaster. The TSA agent scanning our passes was even friendly and joking with us! Then I was randomly selected after going through the metal detectors to have my phone swabbed for drugs …

The lounge was close to where our plane would be departing from. It is also a PP lounge.

Once past the lounge dragon, go right for First Class / HON circle etc.

The bar and food stations to your immediate left after entering.

Decent view.

Something to nibble before the flight.

We headed over to gate D5 where our bird was parked.

Our lovely A340 taking us to FRA.

Everyone decided to line up in front of the F point despite repeated announcements that economy would be boarding through D5B and First/Biz through D5A.

Seats next to the gate were free and we sat there waiting for our number to be called. The agent who checked us in, came over to us and informed us that we could go ahead and board. The death stares from the grandmother, who was first in line with her grandchild, was a sight to behold.

Flight deets.

We were met by the cabin crew at the door and were pointed in the direction to our seats.

Oh hi.

Our seats. The cabin would be 3 of 8 full for this flight.

There were 2 crew members working FC. One of them came by to introduce herself, welcome us onboard and asked if we wanted anything for a PDB.

Ahhhhhh. 🙂

Boarding was complete pretty quickly and were pushed back on time and it was a short taxi to the runway 22L.

Bye Detroit.

After we hit cruising altitude and the seatbelt signs went off, I changed into the LH PJs.

Not sure why a scarf was provided but when in Rome. Plus, the other passenger wore it as a belt. 😐

Let’s peruse the drinks menu.

Onto the food menu.

The FA came by to take our lunch order plus drinks to start. My beloved started off with a cappuccino while I started with Johnnie Walker Blue Label. The FA also asked for our breakfast order but I turned it down in order to maximize sleep. She said it was the best choice and that there would be a better selection of food at the FCT. LOL!

Followed by a cold towel.

Flipping through the entertainment system. Pretty responsive and the video quality was good.

Time for the main attraction.

My beloved was impressed with the cart service.

Caviar to start.

I made a mess …

Followed by the trio of appetizers which was meh.

Next was the lobster soup which was phenomenal.

Followed by the crab cake main course which was ok. Lacked salt.

Ending with some chocolatey goodness.

Service was complete 2 hours after take-off and had the FA make our beds.

Woke up an hour before landing. Changed back into regular clothes and had a coffee to wake up the brain. Landing in FRA was smooth and uneventful.

One last shot of the bird parked at the Z gates.

My wife landed a new job and in a spectacular blaze of glory, rage quit her old one. She negotiated some time off before starting the new job and it was a good opportunity to get away and get some down time. We burned all our points and this is what the flight route looked like.

Here is a breakdown of flights and hotels:
1. YYZ – DTW – AC Y
2. DTW – FRA – DEL – LH F
3. DEL – VTZ – IXZ – AI J
4. 4 nights at Taj Exotica Andaman Island, Havelock Island and touring in Port Blair
5. IXZ – CCU – DEL – SG J
6. 1 night at Le Meridien, New Delhi + touring
7. DEL – SIN – SQ F
8. 5 nights at Sheraton Towers + touring
9. SIN – TPE – SFO – SQ J + BR J
10. 1 night at SFO Westin + SFO – YYZ – AC J

Another sunny evening in Toronto with everything going according to schedule. We reached the airport around 7pm to catch our 8.40pm flight to Detroit.

Self check in was a breeze and no queues at the bag drop machine unlike the queue for those who needed assistance. Pearson security continues to amaze with mind boggling directions to get to the NEXUS/GE passengers line, only to end up in the line next to regular passengers for security. With that out of the way, we headed over to the PP lounge to kill time.

Only to be confronted by this sign …

Our backup option using a gift card.

Our ride would be out of the F gates where the CRJ’s are parked.

Boarding was called ahead of time.

Row 10 of 13.

Passengers were gate checking their trolley bags on the shelves.

With boarding completed on time, we pushed back and the pilot taxied like a bat out of hell to runway 23.

With a quick 40 minute flight time, we were in Detroit and made our way to the Four Points Sheraton Detroit Airport for an overnight stay.

Upgraded to a Suite …

Next post – LH F DTW to FRA.