Today we'd be flying out of Brussels and travelling to Kuala Lumpur via Dubai with Emirates. The flight was due to depart at about 3pm.
We checked out of the hotel at 11:15am and got a taxi to the airport.
There is a strange arrangement for drop-offs at the airport. Initially, he took us to an official drop-off area and told us that we'd then have to walk about 400m to the terminal. The alternative was for him to drive us into the multi-storey car park next to the terminal for an entry fee of 3 Euros. I didn't want to try walking that far and so we decided on the second option.
After checking in, we went to the business class lounge (Diamond Lounge). Suzy then when back to the customs counter to claim a tax refund for goods she'd purchased.
The plane departed on time and the onboard service started well but wasn't always good. Sometimes we had to ask for things that should have been provided automatically.
Also the seating area wasn't well designed. Although there were two little cupboards for various types of drinks, there was nowhere to store things such as the headsets or your glasses case. They could have done away with the little cupboards and just provided space to store a single bottle of water etc.
More importantly there wasn't enough room for my feet when I tried to get some sleep. Although the seat folded down to a flat horizontal bed, my feet were shoved into a tiny space. So I didn't manage to get any sleep.
The plane landed in Dubai at about 12:15am (9:15pm Brussels time).
Unfortunately, they used stairs instead of an airbridge and so I had to carry my hand luggage down the stairs. It was even harder for the man in front of me who had a walking stick. He had to be assisted by his wife and a crew member to get down to the tarmac.
Then they used a bus to get us to the terminal where we had to go through security again. It was reassuring that the Find My app showed our luggage had reached Dubai.
We had time to fill in before the next flight and so we went to the business class lounge. Since we didn't know when meals would be served on the flight, we had a light meal in the lounge to keep us going. We don't normally have meals at this time of night.
It was a very long walk to the departure gate. They seem to be sending us to the farthest gate each time. I was struggling to walk that far. I probably should have tried to get a ride on one of the motorised carts they had in the terminal.
Staff at the gate helped me get down to the airbridge. But when we got onto the plane, we were faced with a staircase to get up to business class. Luckily a crew member carried my hand luggage up the stairs and other crew members took it to my seat and helped get it into the overhead locker.
The plane pulled back from the terminal at about 3:40am but it was about 4am before it actually took off.
They served a light snack after take-off and then it was time to get some sleep. This time it was easier because it was more comfortable. There was plenty of room for my feet. They said they would wake us for breakfast before landing.
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