Flying business class on MAS…

Last year during my London-Barcelona trip, I had the perk of flying back on MAS business class thanks to my dad who kindly 'donated' his Enrich points (hey, he offered! who am I to say no to a good offer??). I’d gone on business class for work once or twice but only on short trips, so this is the longest flight I’ve had – and I definitely made full use of it! :D

My last view of London before takeoff…gosh I miss this place!

One thing I noticed about business class is that they simply feed you from start to finish! The minute we were safely in the air, they served us dinner (even though my flight took off at 10pm!)

This is MAS’ signature appetizer – none other than Malaysian Satay! Succulent beef and chicken skewers marinated in fresh shallots, turmeric, garlic, galangal and lemongrass and chargrilled over a charcoal fire, served with cucumber, pulut rice and raw onion.

Breadroll (the garlic bread was exceptionally good!), fresh fruits and appetizer of smoked mackerel with horseradish sauce on fine mixed lettuce.

And if that hadn’t already filled me up, I had the main course to contend with! I had stir-fried black pepper beef with basil served with steamed rice and braised Chinese vegetables.

Dessert was blueberry cheesecake with raspberry coulis…*burp*

After that incredibly filling meal, relaxing in the large chair was such a sin but the massage features floored me. With the adjustments this chair can make, you can almost fully recline…just nice for sleeping on a night flight!

Couple that with a fully adjustable inflight entertainment screen and I was pretty much in heaven…they even had episodes of my favourite CSI show… :)

As always, even the toilet in business class was better than those in coach – this one was stocked with L’Occitane products. I can so imagine that if this was in coach, all these would have disappeared in an instant!

There are also shaving kits available for the men (this is separate from the toiletry kit they gave us when we boarded)

In the words of MAS, they advocate moments of total indulgence in its business class. Just check out the proposition they made in their menu:

"There’s nothing quite like a hot cup of tea or coffee when you’re lost in a good book or engrossed in a movie 39,000 ft in the air.

In addition to the range of teas and coffees to soothe and rejuvenate, we also offer a range of snacks both hot and cold. Whatever your fancy, from muesli bars to filled rolls, chocolate, fresh fruit or a helping of noodles in broth with shredded chicken, tofu and seafood, or just cheese and crackers, let us know.

Go on, spoil yourself!"

Well, I certainly spoilt myself on the flight, that’s for sure! They really weren’t kidding when they said they had an entire selection of coffees and teas – some of the beverages included Ceylon, Cameronian Gold Blend, Earl Grey, Oolong, Chamomile Herbal Infusion, South African Rooibos, Japanese Green Tea, Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee, Brazilian Santos, freshly brewed Nespresso Grands Crus Blends in Cappucino or Espresso (Roma, Volluto, Decaffeinato) as well as a selection of Nescafe Gold, Classic and Decaffeinated blends.

Heck, there’s even teh tarik and hot chocolate! The whole time on the flight, there was Ty’Nant mineral water on hand in either still or sparkling, a variety of juices, and soft drinks and mixers in regular and low calorie variants…*phew!*

I did spend quite a bit of the flight sleeping since it was a night flight, and boy, it was such a good sleep. They even replaced my bottle of water while I was asleep, so I woke up to a fresh bottle each time. Admittedly, this led to quite a few trips to the toilet but at least I stayed hydrated…LOL…

Once the rest of the passengers woke up, they served food (again!) which was termed as a light repast, but probably more appropriately considered breakfast.

Anyone for a tart yogurt drink, ginger ale or peanuts? *grin*

There was a choice of breads served with butter, jam, honey or marmalade…muesli with a choice of fresh full cream or low fat milk and fruits – and this was just the starter!

The main course was an option of scrambled eggs on a toasted English muffin served with chicken sausage, creamed spinach and baked beans; nasi lemak served with squid sambal, peanuts, anchovies, cucumber and boiled egg; or traditional waffles served with maple syrup and fresh strawberries. By this point I was way too stuffed to manage the entire main course, but silly me forgot to take a picture of my food!

Can you imagine having breakfast with this view? :O

Suffice to say, with business class you really do get what you pay for even if the tickets are pricey. Each passenger is called by name, and the stewardesses are a LOT politer than those back in coach. Behaviour-wise, I didn’t think this was very nice…it made me feel as if they were only nice because we were considered ‘upper class’. I’ve come across really curt stewardesses before on other flights!

But that said, I love travelling business class when I get the chance, even though it’s quite rare…now if only I had a chance to try first class! Anyone want to sponsor me for my next trip? Pretty please? :D