Sunday, June 28, 2009

Inside the A380


View of the inside...


Three cameras give you the front, back and downward view of where you are going, where you have been and where you are now.


View of the runway as we approached Dubai International airport. Quite an amazing sight to watch your take off and landing.
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Emirates A380 from Toronto to Dubai


When you first see the size of the aircraft, your first thought is, 'how on earth does this even get off the ground?'


This aircraft has two decks and therefore needs two aerobridges at different levels for passengers to get on board.


The on board entertainment system is probably one of the best in the world, if not the best. The system starts before you even get on, so you don't have to wait one hour after take off like other airlines. You have a choice of watching the latest movies, old movies and award winning movies. Cartoons, kids shows, documentaries, t.v shows and news channels are also available, as well as hundreds of music albums and songs that you can listen to. Earphones are placed on every seat....and you don't have to pay for them..unlike some airlines I know!


View of the inside of the cabin.
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The A380 experience


The Emirates A380 that we flew from Toronto to Dubai.

The kids schools closed for Summer vacation, which means that it is time to pack our bags and go back to India!! (No, not for good...but for six glorious weeks with family and friends)

June 27th, we left for Pearson and after getting our boarding passes, made our way to the Gate where we would take our A380 Emirates flight to Chennai, India. (via a short halt at Dubai airport)

We were there an hour early, which gave us enough time to get some dinner. Our flight was at 9.40pm, but we knew from experience that by the time they served dinner it would be past mid-night. We ordered some burgers and cokes and sat down at the mini-foodcourt they have near the gates numbered in their 70's. While there we saw a basket ball team and the Black Eyed Peas. Fergie spoke to my eight year old daughter, after my very inquisitive offspring, decided to go and ask if she was indeed someone famous. With a story that I will be telling for years to come......with no picturs to prove it happened....and a very happy little girl....we made our way to our gate.

Remember that the A380 is huge.....so it holds more passengers, which means that boarding now takes longer.

After boarding, we noticed that the on board entertainment system was already on and working, with headphones on every seat. You don't have to wait an hour for the movies to start like most other airlines. Talking about movies, Emirates has an awesome array of movies, songs, t.v shows, games and documentaries running the entire flight time. You also have access to viewing the front and back cameras and the camera underneath the aircraft. Watching the approach to the runway is something just amazing to experience.

Some families who checked in late, were spread around the aircraft, but managed to swap seats with other passengers so that their families could be together. This created a problem of sorts, because Emirates take meal requests online at the time of booking for special meals like vegetarian, non-lactose, child, diabetic, nut free etc. Stickers are put on the back of the seats with the meal requests ahead of time to facilitate faster service. With the swapped seats, meals got interchanged and some people didn't get the vegetarian meal they ordered and some children didn't get their meals either. After some confusion, complaints and apologies, all was set straight and dinner was served.

The food was fantastic. We had a choice of lamb or chicken for dinner, and they served drinks and gave out snacks too. Once the dinner trays were collected, the lights were switched off and most of us decided to catch up on the latest movies instead of catching up on sleep! With each passenger able to control what they want to watch, and being able to pause, forward or rewind......the entertainment system on board Emirates has to be one of the best.

The twelve hour flight was more or less comfortable for being stuck in the sitting position and occasionally being told to put the seat belt back on because of turbulence. I am just 5.2, so the seats had decent space for me to stretch out my legs, but I'm sure a taller person would find it slightly cramped.

Bathrooms...........they need to put in more bathrooms! With a flight full of children and the elderly, there were lines of eight to nine people at any given time waiting for their turn to use the bathroom.

Major Negative!!

After landing at Dubai, all of us were made to walk in single file past a thermal scanner. Yes, they were checking for passengers travelling with any signs of the Swine Flu. They did the same thing in Chennai too.

During our stop at Dubai, we decided to use the lounge to send emails, have lunch and rest before our next flight out. The buffet was pretty good, and the kids got to eat something before our next flight. I also did some dutyfree shopping which is the best thing to do at Dubai airport. From perfumes to chocolates or liquor...Dubai dutyfree is one of the best in the world in terms of range and price.

We landed in Chennai at three in the morning and had to fill in two forms. One to be filled in with our immigration information and the other with our seat numbers, address and phone numbers. This was in case any passengers near us later experienced any symptoms of the swine flu, they would know how to contact us.

Once outside, we were greeted by my Brother and Mother......happy to be seeing us after our move to Canada.

Driving home felt the same...as if we never left. Some of the flyovers were new and the traffic felt a little heavier....even for four in the morning...but it was good to be back!

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Toronto events and happenings....websites info.......summer 2009




A wonderful website to check out if you are here in Toronto is
www. toronto.com


You can find information on everything happening in and around Toronto from music shows, art festivals, special movie screenings, garden shows, food tasting events, free events and exhibits.
There is also information on tickets to all the events, how to get to places, the best places to eat, child friendly places and places and things to do on a budget.


This summer for example, one of the things that we are going to see is the exhibit of the Dead sea scrolls at the Royal Ontario Museum. That should be great to see!

Other information guides you can also find on their website are:

Family Guide
Arts Guide
Contests
Visitor's Guide
Nightlife Guide
Club Guide
Golf Guide
Adult Guide
Travel Centre
Toronto Traffic

If you are looking for places to camp, fish and hike. Or other activities like paintball, golfing or even rafting.......check out the website: They also have information on rentals of canoes and cottages, and info on skydiving lessons:

http://www.playday.com/

From shopping to finding hotels and where exactly the happening bars and clubs are, go to http://www.toronto.com/ and see what this amazing city has to offer........................and while you are doing this, you can also check out the little weather guide box on the top right to make sure it isn't going to rain or snow while you plan your days outings!

For events in Canada, check out:

http://www.canadaevents.ca/

http://canadaeventscalendar.ca/

http://www.canada.gc.ca/whats-quoi/newevent.html (This website gives you details on up and coming Canadian Government events).

Hope these websites are of some help in planning your 'staycation' if you are here in Toronto or elsewhere in Canada.

Have a great summer everybody!

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Stunning sight of rainbows over the Toronto skyline...

Incredible rainbow over our home on the evening of may 30th...........there were actually two rainbows......one light and one dark...........you can see both in one of the pictures below.

















Two rainbows at the same time!


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Emirates A380 lands in Toronto!


The A380 has landed........................


The headlines on todays paper......'Colossal jet has star turn at Pearson'. I read the article with a lot of interest, as we normally fly Emirates on our way back to India or Canada, and was excited that we may get to travel in it too. But this flight, being the inaugural flight.....cost the priviledged passengers $10,000 CAN/- per head........with champagne, 23 inch touch screen televisions, leather couches, fully stocked bar, mini fridge for every business class seat and massaging functions on your seat.

Now, with the A380 coming in to Toronto three times a day, it opens up an entirely new style of air travel. Yes, there is even a shower on board........but don't get any funny ideas...there is a five minute limit!





The aircraft, the biggest in the world, has 489 seats and can land only in airports fitted with the third level aerobridge to allow passengers to reach the upperdeck. About sixty airports around the world are either geared up or are gearing up to take passengers on the A380.

Speaking of airlines.......having travelled on different carriers in the past, according to me.......the best three are: Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Jet Airways. The worst? Air France and Air Canada (sorry!!) This was based on the types of food served on board, in-flight entertainment and service. (Flights in and out of India) As far as airports go.....Dubai's International terminal with the duty free stores and first class lounges and Singapores Changi airport top as two of the best in the world.

Schools will be closing end of this month in Canada......and I'm sure many families will take to the skies...........no matter what airline you decide to take and where you decide to go.....have a safe trip and a terrific holiday!!