Day 56 leaving sydney,flying Garuda Indonesia, hello Jakarta

Sun 25 feb

We both had a couple of dollars left on our opal cards and as all Sunday travel is capped at $2.60 using it, we could use public transport to get to the airport for our flight. There was a catch, we couldn't  use a train without  incurring the airport fee of $8 but as it would take the same time to use the bus (53 minutes) from where we were which didn't  incur the charge it didn't  matter. We wheeled our suitcases to the stop over the road and caught the 353 to the end of the line at Westfields shopping centre. From there we caught the 400 right to the airport with a closer drop off than we would have been able to get with a taxi or uber ( which would have cost us approx $30). Our total travel costs using the opal card for all 6 days were $45 (£25.20) each. Bargain.

It took ages to get Jono through passport control as the automatic gate wouldn't  recognise him and he had to queue to be seen manually. Finally we got to the skyteam lounge at 10am for breakfast. It was a bit busy but the danish pastries were delicious.  Our flight was to board at 10:30 for an 11:30 am departure which seemed a bit early but we dutifully rocked up to the gate shortly after 10:30. It didn't  take too long to get on board although there was a slight delay as the airline called for a passenger who needed wheelchair assistance to get on and who hadn't  appeared. Finally they just started boarding business passengers anyway.

We were flying Garuda Indonesia to Jakarta, one of only ten 5 star airlines in the world. My expectations were high.

The plane was a 330-200. It's not their newest one, this one has been doing service since 2009 inthe 2,2,2 configuration. The seats recline to fully flat beds with footrest options, one usb charging point to the side of the seat, tv screen ahead with remote control. We were brought drinks, Jono chose champagne and I had a juice.

loads of space

Jono had a problem with his screen, we notified the staff and they did the reboot which didn't fix it. So we moved seats back a row to row 8 and settled in. Strangely Garuda do not allow you to use mobile phones or tablets during take off even if they are in airplane mode so it's useful to get stuck straight into a movie or tv show. However a few minutes later my controller stopped working. The hostesses tried to reboot again. Rebooting meant everyone's screens got turned off so Jono lost his place in his film as did anyone else who had started anything. Unfortunately  it didn't  work. The only solution they had was to reboot the system again. They tried this 3 times. Jono gave up on the film he'd started.

Meanwhile they had come to take our orders for lunch. The menu was beautifully printed out with a wide selection of drinks and 3 choices for starters, mains and desserts. As I had preordered a special meal ( seafood) I had to wait and see what came. I always find it strange that they wouldn't just offer the fish option from the main menu, I always get something completely  different.

Jono then checked the screens on our original seats (we were either going to have to sit with one of us without a tv or sit apart, there were no other seats free for two people). All that resetting must have done something as they were both working so we moved quickly!

An amuse bouche was served with a choice of drinks. I don't  generally  drink  alcohol  on a plane but decided to have a glass of the chablis, Jono chose a chardonnay. The wine was brought out and poured with as much flourish as you would expect in any top restaurant.

Linen place mats were provided for the glasses too. Each course was immaculately presented on a linen tablecloth with each element carefully placed on our tables. It was lovely food.

I missed photos of the dessert and the starter ones were blurred- I blame the wine!

Hot snack served later. Crisps, chocolate etc were available whenever

I chose to watch Hidden Figures ( great film about african american women working for Nasa in the 60s) and Jono saw two Thor movies ( dark world and ragnarok).

Although it was a day time flight the cabin was kept dark and a lot of passengers chose to sleep. Blankets and pillows were provided and the excellent kit had body cream, face cream,lip balm, comb, eye blind, slippers,ear plugs, toothbrush and toothpaste in it. It also had a fragrance which was very male. I wouldn't  use it.

Our bags were first off the plane and waiting for us and we were soon out searching for our transfer to the FM7 hotel. The uniformed hotel bellhop had our name on a board together with another of the passengers.  We waited for the minibus to appear through the steady stream of beeping traffic approaching.

Jakarta traffic is mad. Hustling, beeping, incessant parade of vehicles with motorcycles darting around. It wasn't  far to the hotel but to get there we travelled through a shanty town. Poverty was right there before our eyes. The hotel was walled and gated, guards let people and cars in and out. Even the hotel shuttle bus had to have a ticket.

The hotel was lovely, we had a spacious room and I still find it hard to believe that a 4 star hotel with breakfast was only £45 a night

not a small room, lots of space

It seemed very overstaffed, eager employees were ready to cater for your whims everywhere. We had explore, the rooftop lounge bar, swimming pool with whirlpools, two restaurants, hairdressers, spa, two lobbies. They could change cash for us into rupees but couldn't give us cash from a card. They also confirmed the taxi we were getting the next day would only take cash. We would need to get to an ATM.

We sat and had a couple of drinks in the Porte restaurant. I have found my new favourite  drink, a lime juice on ice served with a separate jug of warm honey which you add to taste. So refreshing.

Neither of us was hungry and we kept our watches on Sydney time so although in Jakarta it was 7pm, to us it felt like 11. The good news was that by going to sleep according to our body clocks, getting up at 4:30 the next morning was going to feel nicely like 8:30 am. Perfect!