IST-JED (3h 50m)
Airbus 330-343R
ETD: 3.30pm (GMT + 3)
ETA: 7.20pm (GMT + 3)
Welcome back! Before anything else, let's continue the story regarding my journey from Istanbul, Turkey to Jakarta, Indonesia via Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabian Airlines, or Saudia in short, is said to be the third largest in the Middle East in terms of revenue. No prize for guessing, but it's behind Emirates and Qatar Airways.
From the
SkyTeam Lounge at Istanbul Ataturk Airport, my BFF and I made our way to Gate 216 for immediate boarding.
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| By the time we reached the gate, most of the passengers had boarded the aircraft. |
The Business Class cabin, having a 2-2-2 seating configuration, looked fresh.
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| There are 30 recliner seats in total. |
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| We've teleported to Istanbul! xD |
As soon as I was seated, one of the flight attendants came to offer newspapers.
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| We'll soon be able to explore Saudi Arabia with the introduction of tourist visas. :) |
Afterwards, these came in succession: hot towel, welcome drink and menu booklet.
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| I had a glass of lime juice, while my BFF had orange juice. |
The safety video was then shown, followed by Islamic journey prayer.
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| Flying briefcase! :P |
See you again at the end of the year, Istanbul!
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| Has anyone flown with Pobeda, a Russian low-cost airline? |
Flying with Saudia exposed me to something new. Never had I tasted Arabic coffee before, which I found to be unique. I also had the best date I've ever eaten in my life.
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| Kudos to that guy who went several rounds to offer us coffee and dates! |
I checked out the In-Flight Entertainment (IFE) on Thales i5000 TV while waiting for the meal to be served.
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| My favourite animal! <3 |
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| What a lovely sky! |
Head to the
post in my food blog for a review of the meal served onboard.
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| Main course #1: Lamb Biryani |
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| Main course #2: Chicken Stuffed with Sage and Mozzarella |
I should've gone to take photos of the lavatory much earlier.
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| Never leave stagnant water, they say~ |
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| Aim properly, guys! =X |
After the tray table had been cleared, I continued watching a travel show. The sun began to set along the way.
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| Pretty, eh? |
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| Going to fly over the Red Sea~ |
Before I could fall asleep, the seat belt sign had been switched on again in preparation for landing.
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| Approaching Jeddah~ |
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| My BFF said, "Remote parking, it seems." |
Indeed, it was remote parking.
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| Stepped my feet on the Kingdom for the very first time in my life! |
At the transit counter, each of us was given a transit card to be filled up and passed to the staff at the boarding gate later.
We had more than four hours to kill at King Abdulaziz International Airport.
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