Day trip: Rhine Falls

It all started with a friend's discovery of a CHF10.20 super saver train ticket to Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall (Laufen Castle at the Rhine Falls).

So it was an uneventful train ride with a transfer at Winterthur, a surburb station outside Zurich, we arrived at Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall, the largest waterfall in Europe.

The waterfall feature a great view which was complemented by the deafening roar as the water gushed down, though certainly nothing as spectacular as the Niagara or Victoria falls. Perhaps it was because the volume of water flowing through is much less in winter.

It was unfortunate that the weather was really bad, the sky was gloomy, the ground was slippery with snow hardening into ice and the chilly wind cutting into the skin and lungs.

After viewing the waterfall, we ascended the steps to the castle, which was supposedly a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

The castle was fairly well preserved, though there really wasn't much to see within the castle apart from a small museum, a restaurant and a youth hostel.

We crossed the lake on the railway bridge and strolled to the other side of the waterfall.

As the trains stopping the Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall, which is the station serving the attraction are low in frequency and the last service back leaves at 1626hrs or 1831hrs in the Spring/Summer season, we took bus 643 to Dachsen, which is served by more trains.

So far so good: 3 Weeks in St Gallen

It has been 3 weeks since I first arrived in Switzerland (including the week when we jetted off to the Isles).

It had never occurred to me that I should write a post on my first impression of this city (or town, rather, but let's settle for city) of St Gallen. In fact, it was only after jotting down my thoughts on the trip to UK and Ireland that I felt it was only right to give due attention to the first city that I actually explored on this trip (Helsinki and Zurich are merely transits, though I expect to explore Zurich in depth soon).

My first impression of the city (as would be the case for most European cities) was its train station and the post office opposite it.

The staff at the ticketing counter was quite helpful and professional in giving me the directions to the University of St Gallen. Perhaps it would be great if they could just smile, though I am certainly grateful for the service I had received so far. I was especially grateful to an elderly bus driver who lead me across the bus interchange to find the correct bus.

Being a small city, the university was just a 5 minute bus ride from the train station. 

However,
On

And of course a scene at the library.

Flying: Ryanair B737-800 Dublin to Basel 2015

From yesterday's experience, we knew that Dublin's airport is just a 20 minute to half an hour drive from the city centre. So that gave us plenty of time to pack up, have breakfast, and do some last minute souvenir shopping before hailing a cab for the airport.

I was a little puzzled by the taxi fare of EUR29.70, which was significantly higher than the EUR20 we paid for the taxi from the airport to the city. I sincerely hoped it's because of the morning traffic (though I did not recall seeing any traffic jams) rather than a dishonest driver.

Nevertheless, we arrived safely at 11:08AM, with more than sufficient time to obtain visa stamps from the Ryanair counter and send out some postcards.

Ryanair 7356
Dublin (DUB) – Basel (BSL)
Wednesday, Feb 11 2015
Depart: 1:00PM
Arrive: 4:10PM
Flight time: 2hr10min
Aircraft: Boeing 738-800
Seat: 15E

After clearing security it was a long walk down the terminal building to gate 113. Thankfully, unlike the airport in Manchester and Basel, Dublin airport has free wifi.

Boarding was quickly announced a few minutes after we arrived at the gate, though the gate did not open until 10 minutes later.

As we descended the stair to the tarmac, it appeared that boarding had yet to commence, and we were again left in the cold wind waiting, although I took the chance to do some plane spotting.

Thankfully, this time round, we only had to stand in the cold wind for a few minutes.

I managed to catch an Aer Lingus ATR before boarding. Somehow I wondered if the variety of aircraft appearing at European airport is much more diverse in Asia. For instance, plane spotting in Changi would probably see me catching the usual Boeing and Airbus jets, but seldom an Embraer, or an ATR, or a Bombardier.

The engines were powered up soon after the passengers settled down. The captain welcomed us onboard and the cabin doors were closed shortly after. We pushed off from the gate at 1:05PM, and took off at 1:15PM after a quick taxi to the runway.

While waiting for the restroom to be vacated, I had a short chat with the flight stewardess, who was friendly and quite chatty. Sensing my foreign accent, she asked where I was from, and I was impressed that she did not assume Singapore to be part of China.

On the way back, I realised that there were a few empty seats at the emergency exit row, and moved over for more leg room.

I met a Swiss living in Edinburgh heading home to Switzerland, and to my surprise, he introduced himself in Mandarin Chinese! We had a small chat and he was extremely friendly and humorous, something I have learnt not to take for granted in Europe. He also cheerfully shared with me some information on an upcoming carnival in Lucerne, known as the Fasnacht.

A row in front of me, my friends had also struck up a conversation with an Irish gentleman heading towards Switzerland.

As the saying goes, time flies when you are having fun. Soon we were in the final descent, and I was told by another straight faced flight stewardess to return to my original seat. I was not sure why she would deprive my of last few minutes of comfort (perhaps because I did not pay for the extra legroom haha) but nonetheless complied.

We landed ahead of schedule at 4:03PM and had a short taxi to the terminal. Clearing immigration took a while, since there was only one officer each for the French and Swiss side, after which we headed straight for the train back to St Gallen.

Conclusion
I felt that among the three flights with Ryanair, this is by far the one that I enjoyed the most. 

Firstly, this was a flight "home", after a week in the gloomy Isles, so naturally I was happy.

Secondly, I managed to get some additional leg space. Well, at least for part of the flight.

Thirdly, I was fortunate to have such an entertaining seat mate.

Fourthly, and most importantly, the flight was on time.

So, will I fly Ryanair again. Likely, since the fares are really competitive. However, I will a lot more mindful to consider when the money saved is worth the inconvenience and discomfort.

I guess they do have a clear audience in mind, and it's a really feat to manage costs to the extend that they can generate profits despite such low fares.

Dublin: Prima facie impression

On the way from the airport to our residence, we had a small chat with the taxi driver, seeking his opinion on places of interest for first time visitors, and he suggested the Temple Bar area, as well as Trinity College.

The apartment was actually pretty good. In fact, it was the best among the three for this trip. 

As my friend aptly put, the price we paid per night for London, Manchester and Dublin was roughly identical, while the cost of living declined steadily. Thus naturally the quality of the apartments became better.

Coming out from the apartment, we realised that it was quite conveniently located near some of the iconic landmarks such as the Rotunda Hospital.

The Parnell Monument was also around the corner.

Dublin appeared to be quite a happening place, 

The Trinity College in Dublin, while not as grand as its counterpart in Cambridge, featured really beautiful architecture.

The famous Trinity College grass!

Coming out of Trinity college, we came face to face with the old Bank of Ireland headquarters.

Fallon & Bryne

After sending some post cards at a nearby post office. We headed for dinner at O'Neill's, which was highly recommended on both Tripadvisor and Lonely Planet.

The fish and chips was pretty good, though not as great as the one we had in London a few days back. The Irish breakfast was a hit and miss, while the sauteed  mushrooms were pretty succulent and tasty, the Yorkshire puddings were cold and hard. 

The stew beef was totally a disaster. While the beef itself was edible, and thus considered an accomplishment by English standards, the vegetable sides were downright disgusting. 

The beer, on the other hand, was actually pretty good. I was a little disappointed that the bar does not feature any house brews, though they do have a really wide rage of draught beer.

Flying: Ryanair B737-800 Manchester to Dublin 2015

Thanks to Uber, our journey to the airport costed £25, which worked out to be slightly more than £6 per person. Although slightly more expensive than the £4.20 train fare departing from Manchester Piccadily, it was well worth it since we do not have to drag our luggage all the way to the train station.

We pulled up in front of terminal 3, where our flight was departing from. This time round we learned our lesson and printed the boarding passes beforehand.

Ryanair 555
Manchester (MAN) – Dublin (DUB)
Tuesday, Feb 10 2015
Depart: 1:00PM
Arrive: 2:00PM
Flight time: 1hrmin
Aircraft: Boeing 738-800
Seat: 21F

Clearing security has always been a hassle, and particularly so in winter.The situation was only exacerbated by the security officer stopping us halfway and instructing us to go back to the Ryanair counter to get a visa stamp.

After all the unloading and loading at the security checks, I just realised I had forgotten to claim my VAT refunds! While I didn't really shop a lot in the UK, considering the exorbitant VAT rate of 20%, I still lost about £6 in forfeited VAT refunds. 

The boarding gate was made known at 12:15PM, and the gate was scheduled to close at 12:30PM leaving us with only 15 minutes to make a dash for the gate. Thankfully, gate 51 was not that far from the lounge.

While waiting to board the aircraft, a gate agent approached me demanding my bag to be gate checked, presumably because they foresee a shortage of space in the overhead baggage compartments. Now, I understand that gate checking can be a common practice and a potential shortage of space in the overhead baggage compartments is a real concern. However, as far as my encounters with airlines go, gate checking is usually an offer, not a demand (unless it's a last resort). 

Furthermore, I made it clear to the agent that I have fragile items in the bag (cookies, which will definitely be crushed by the handling and heavier bags on top of it), and requested that she at least tag it with a "Fragile" label, which she shrugged apathetically, saying that's not possible and suggested I remove those items.

Thankfully, my friend offered to check in her bag of clothes instead, saving me the heartbreaking moment to see all my cookies crushed upon arrival.

Boarding was again conducted in open air, without aerobridge as expected. When I am not dragged down by a lot of carry on bags, I actually prefer to board from the ramp since it allows me to take pictures of aircraft without the reflection from the glass wall of terminal buildings.

Flybe E175 parked beside us

The doors closed at 12:49PM and we pushed off from the gate at 12:56PM. Following a short taxi, we took off on time at 1:02PM.

This time round, the flight was fairly smooth, with minimal turbulence. Despite the short flight time of less than an hour, I was probably asleep for at least 20 minutes.

We landed at 1:37PM, well ahead of schedule (which also goes to show how much airline schedules are padded) and had a short taxi to the terminal, stopping at the gate at 1:42PM.

Clearing Irish immigration took a while, and by the time we get to the baggage carousel my friend's bag was the lone one still lying on it.

Conclusion
Generally, this flight had significantly improved my impression of Ryanair, albeit with some qualifying disclaimers.

The boarding gate could have been made known earlier. Given the relatively small size of Manchester airport and we are four young adults, it had not been a problem to us. However, it could have a major challenge for elder folks or those carrying children. Furthermore, considering that budget airlines rely heavily on fast turnaround time to increase aircraft utilisation, it would be in Ryanair's interest to inform passengers of the gate as early as possible, so that passengers can reach the gate with ample time to board.

The gate checking, however, was a real PITA. For the record, while it was a fairly full load, there were sufficient space in the overhead baggage compartments. Probably because I am so used to the standards of service in Asia, I was taken aback by the agent's apathy. 

Understandably she was just doing her job, but a reasonable person would have tried asking if other passengers could gate check their bags instead, or if that was not possible, at least offer to inform the handlers to handle it with care. Instead, the message delivered was "No, there is nothing I can do, but you must check in the luggage, and I don't give a damn if anything breaks. Go take it out if you want, but that's your business."

I really hope it was an one-off experience, and the gate agent's attitude is a personal issue instead of a corporate culture.

Manchester: Home of The Red Devils

We took the 8:10AM train departing London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly. The plan was to take the Tube from Turnpike Lane to Euston. We almost had a shock when we realised that the Tube begins operation at a much later time on Sundays, though we managed to make it on time for the train.

Hopefully the Virgin train would as good as its airline sister, but nope it was mediocre. The train ride wasn't nearly as stable as the one we had in Switzerland, which was not a major issue with me but a big headache for my friends with motion sickness. The seats were stained and the hard plastic seat back scratched. I was initially pleased to find that wifi connection was available on board though was disappointed to find that it was no free of charge. Nevertheless it got us to Manchester on time.

Arriving at Manchester Piccadily, we were picked up by a friend of a friend, who brought us to a Chinese dim sum restaurant. The food was fairly authentic, and though certainly not comparable to Imperial Treasures or Crystal Jade, was a taste of Asia in a city thousands of miles from home. Thankfully, this is only my first week in Europe or I might seriously embarrass myself falling into tears.

The night was spent at a small bar known as "The Crafty Pig" trying out the Sunday roast. I actually liked the decor of the bar.

The seats also appear to be fairly cosy, so was the service. The servers had been friendly and helpful.

The actual Sunday roast itself, however, was downright disappointing. The meat was cold, so was the Yorkshire pudding and everything else on the plate, with the exception of the beetroot and the gravy.

I met my highschool friend the next day, and crashed one of his lectures on foreign direct investments. It actually felt good not having to take notes in lecture, for once.

Following the lecture, my friend guided me on a tour of the University of Manchester's campus, which was beautiful.

We also stopped by the Rutherford Building, which used to house Ernest Rutherford's nuclear lab.

Even the cafeteria was cosy and ornately decorated. 

After the tour, he brought me out for lunch at the Curry Mile, which is an unique congregation of Indian and Middle Eastern restaurants in Manchester. Unfortunately, the Indian restaurant we wanted to visit was closed, so we visited another one beside it. The food was reasonably good, though according to my friend was not as good as the one he recommended.

While I was never a soccer fan, coming to Manchester without visiting the Old Trafford Stadium is like going to New York without visiting Times Square or travelling to Beijing without visiting the Forbidden Palace (which I was once guilty of).

The view of the stadium was gorgeous, and our guide was extremely passionate, informative and entertaining. It was a great representation of British humour when she mentioned that there were three cells in the stadium to hold soccer hooligans, one for males, one for females, and one for Liverpool fans.

The tour included a visit to the press briefing room and the players' changing rooms, where people snapped photos of the players' jerseys. Most of the visitors had a favourite player they liked, while I wandered around before deciding to follow the crowd.

Despite not being a soccer fan (or a complete idiot to it, to be precise), I really enjoyed the tour and shared, even if only for that one hour, our guide passion for the sport and her love of the club. I also got a chance to pose at the seat of the manager and the coaches, though I could not decide if I should wave my fist in a standing or seated position.

Coming out, we headed back to town and had dinner at Jamie Oliver's restaurant and drinks at the Alchemist, both of which were fantastic. 

It was really nice to catch up with ya. And thanks 少爷 for your hospitality! Haha really appreciated that you could still host me despite such short notice on my part. By the way your taste for new food really hasn't changed since we last met. 

London: 6 years later

It has been 6 years since I last visited, and the circumstances under I visited was totally different.

We got a hostel located at Turnpike Lane through airbnb, which although on the outskirts of the city is fairly convenient considering the connectivity in London.

Finding the hostel was a challenge, and unlike my previous encounters in Indonesia, this time I do not have the luxury of a driver. So we ended up travelling back and forth in the cold, trying to locate the hostel. 

After settling down, we went out to grab a quick dinner. While the English has never had a reputation for cuisine, they do feature some unique traditional dishes.

We noticed this pub and restaurant known as The Tollgate on our way to the hostel, featuring fish and chips at £6.25, together with an alcoholic drink. 

The fish was really good. The batter was fried to perfection and yet the fish within was flaky and soft. The butter pea paste did not look appealing initially, but was actually quite creamy and tasty.

The next day was spent touring King's Cross St. Pancras, where I had the chance to reminisce my younger days when I was an avid fan of Harry Potter.

After which we visited the Queen at the Buckingham Palace, hoping to get invited for tea.

As you can see, the Queen is at home! Sadly, she was busy and unable to host us for tea. In addition, we missed the changing of the guards, which was indeed unfortunate.

So thinking we might have better luck getting invited to tea at the Palace of Westminster, paying it a visit is in order. 

On the way there we happened to bump into a procession celebrating New Zealand Day.

After a quick tour around the Palace of Westminster and the Westminster Abbey, I parted with my friends and headed on a solo night tour of London.

Dinner was at a Chinese restaurant called the "Jade Palace", which claims to specialise in Cantonese and Pekinese cuisine. I had my reservations when I realised I was the only Asian sitting in the restaurant, but plucked up sufficient courage to order a wanton noodle and char siu nonetheless.

The wanton noodle was fairly good, so was the char siu, although it was an eye opener for me to see char siu stirred fried with baby corn, cabbage and other vegetable.

Flying: Ryanair B737-800 Basel to London Stansted 2015

Generally 10:25AM would have been an pretty ideal departure timing, allowing time for a normal morning routine before leaving to catch the flight.

However, since the flight leaves from Basel, we departed St Gallen on the 6:11AM Intercity train, changing to a TGV at Zurich and arrived at the Basel SBB at 8:37AM. So that means we had to wake up in the ealy morning. The train to Basel costed CHF28.50, with the half-fare card, which is more expensive than the plane ticket.

We arrived at the Basel airport at 8:55AM, well on time. 

As we had found out earlier, you need to check in for Ryanair flights online, since they place a surcharge for airport check-ins.

Ryanair 7974
Basel (BSL) – London Stansted (STN)
Friday, Feb 6 2015
Depart: 10:25AM
Arrive: 10:55AM
Flight time: 1hr30min
Aircraft: Boeing 738-800
Seat: 28F

Since we had no check-in luggage, we streamed through security and immigration and arrived at gate 25 in about 15 minutes. 

We had a little trouble at the gate since we did not print out the board pass after checking in online. However, the gate agents were very understanding that this is the first time we are flying with them and may not understand the rules clearly. Hence they printed our boarding passes at the gate free of charge, which we really appreciated.

The gate opened at 9.45AM. However, the incoming aircraft arriving from London was behind schedule. We were standing in the cold wind for more than half an hour waiting for the aircraft, with no information on why the aircraft was late and when it will arrive.

Thankfully, we found a Singaporean studying in Freiburg. We had a small chat on the tarmac. It almost felt like an episode of "Find Me A Singaporean".

Boarding was finally called at 10:33AM, and passengers boarded through both the front and back doors. The boarding was completed in about twenty minutes. 

Seat selection comes at a surcharge, so we went without it. The seat was extremely constricted. As we have already known earlier, the seat back does not recline. Since I boarded from the tail of the aircraft, I was surprised to find out that the last row is row 33. I consider myself pretty well acquainted with aircraft and I would say most of the 737-800s I have seen have 30 rows.

The captain gave a welcome address at 10:50AM, informing us the flight time of 1 hr 20 minutes and the ground weather in London. The engines we powered up at 10:58AM and we pushed off from the gate a 11:03AM. It was a slight long taxi of 15 minutes before taking off from runway 33L at 11:18AM.

Apart from a slight turbulence 15 minutes into the flight, the flight was smooth and I quickly dozed off. Perhaps it's just me, but I do have the gift of being able to fall asleep easily, even when flying in economy class.

I woke up about 20 minutes before landing, as we were approaching the English coast.

As the plane descended we approached some really thick clouds and I happened to snap a photo of our plane's shadow being cast on the clouds.

After cutting through the clouds the airport was in sight and we landed at 12:35PM, 45 minutes late. The crew welcomed us to Stansted, and apologised for the delay, wishing "it wasn't too much of an inconvenience". We had a short taxi and arrived at the gate at 12:40PM.

We got off the aircraft and took the transit system to the main terminal, where we cleared British immigration and boarded the Stansted Express to Tottemham Hale. This time round the train ticket costed GBP17.90, again more expensive than the plane ticket.

Conclusion
Ryanair is a budget airline, and we knew that. So we did not expect any onboard service. The flight was a smooth one, and we are satisfied that we are flown from point A to point B safely. The flight departed from Basel, a secondary airport in Switzerland, and landed in Stansted, a secondary airport in London, presumably to cut down on landing and handling fees. Again we understood this. 

The seat is constricted, and despite the fact that I'm tall by Asian standards, I still believe the seat is too small for the market Ryanair operates in, considering that Europeans are generally taller than Asians. Nevertheless, considering the low fare charged by Ryanair (lower than train tickets for a comparable, if not shorter distance), and that most of its flights are short haul, it is not unbearable to the budget traveller.

What I really hated (and hate is a strong word) is the fact that we were left to wait in the cold for nearly 45 minutes at Basel. I understand that London airspace is congested, I also understand that flight delays can be due to many reasons and will certainly not jump to conclusions, blaming the airline for the delay.

However, given the delay and the cold temperature in Basel (2°C), it would be common sense to not leave the passengers in the cold wind for 45 minutes while the plane has not even landed! I mean, yes I understand that one of key points in managing a budget airline is to shorten the turnaround time and maximise aircraft utilisation, so it is in the airline's interest to get the passengers ready to board

Furthermore, the apology was insincere at best and infuriating at worst. I seriously hope it's because I had misunderstood the British sense of humour, however to claim that "we hope it wasn't too much of an inconvenience" after leaving passengers for 45 minutes in the cold wind is plainly inappropriate.

To be fair, this is my first encounter with Ryanair and I will not be too quick to pass judgments. I still have two more flights booked on them and hopefully the remaining two will be better.