This flight from Osaka to Hong Kong via Taipei is the one I almost missed, thanks to being out until the wee hours with friends in Kobe. A Japanese businessman saw me looking lost during peak hour at a train station when I needed to change trains on the way to the airport. He not only took me to the correct platform, but came with me to make sure I got where I had to go. That kindness is just one of the many reasons I love Japan. You can read about my flight from Hong Kong to Tokyo here.

CX565 – Osaka to Hong Kong via Taipei (KIX-TPE-HKG)
4 April 2005
Airbus A330-300
Seat: Business Class 14K

I arrived at the boarding gate at 10:32am for my 10:35am departure, which meant I didn’t have any time to visit the lounge. Boarding commenced on time and I was on board and having my coat taken within minutes. Pre-departure drinks were served, and I had a champagne, and a water.

On Board Entertainment

We were in the air on time, and I was unimpressed with the fact that the entertainment system contained no movies. As this was classed as a domestic inter-Asia flight, it was only television shows.

On the first sector, I watched the British show, Faking It. It’s where you’re taken from your career and have to fake it doing something else. In this episode, a factory worker was taken to fake it as a London fashion designer. I was disappointed that there were no movies offered, because Cathay have a really good selection of movies for April!

Food And Drinks… Or Not!

The memory of the food I had was sketchy – mostly because I had been drinking heavily until well after midnight the night before and woke at 7am for my mad dash to the airport. I forgot to take the menu, though I do remember that I had garlic bread, salad, ice cream, and was offered the chocolates but didn’t take any.

I also experienced the Pacific Sunrise. This is a Cathay Pacific Signature Drink with champagne, Drambuie with the zest of orange and lemon in the bottom of the glass. The taste is interesting to say the least!

A Short Stop In Taipei

The service was as good as usual, and I enjoyed my hour in the lounge in Taipei on the way. Taipei airport is very old and reminds me of a 1950s school – not the nicest place, but the Cathay lounge is like all the rest, chic, modern and with brilliant Internet access.

The second sector began, and I decided to have a Cathay Delight as one of my pre-departure drinks – which is a non-alcoholic blend of kiwi fruit and coconut. Interesting taste and texture, and very nice indeed.

More Trying To Jog The Memory

I watched another television programme (E! News) and ate a light meal. This one had a lot of prawns in it, that much I remember, and noodles. I ate sparingly as I knew I’d be having dinner on my next flight.

The flight attendants were quite friendly. They joked with me when I would be first up front to leave and things like that. I was asking some questions and the head flight attendant said that he thought I’d only come up early to chat to his crew. All in all a good flight.

Overall Thoughts

Apologies at this point for the above, it’s not on par with my usual detail, it’s all a bit hazy. From here, the memory is better!

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And that is how I wrote about flying Osaka to Hong Kong during 2005. Flying with a hangover from the night before is something I’ve done on three or four occasions and I really don’t recommend it. I generally prefer to be well rested the night before travel day.

My other memory of this trip is the stopover in Taipei. I was writing an e-mail to family back in Australia and the computers were programmed to filter out curse words. No matter which one I used, the computer in the lounge automatically deleted it, which is something I have never come across before or since!

Anyway, you can read about the next flight from Hong Kong to Beijing right here if you like. Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image by Aero Icarus from Zürich, Switzerland via Wikimedia Commons.