flyin emirates

Apprehensive. That’s the word to describe my feelings about flyin on an airline other than MAS. Apprehensive about the food, the whole transit procedure (2 hours plus in Dubai). But I felt optimistic about transit, for I’d be able to get out of the plane for a while…the restlessness and stress of being in the confines of limited space is quite unbearable. I was glad the transit would break my journey into two.. and I’d get to see Dubai.

Now just about half an hour from landing in KLIA, I’d pass a verdict in favour of the airline. The staff are pleasant and helpful. In fact, the standard of service offered can match that of British retail outlets. Meals are served promptly (compare this to my agonising experience on MAS, Manchester-KL first time around when they wouldn’t serve dinner two hours into the 8pm flight.I was seriously starving). Overall, I guess they are actually a better airline than MAS. For despite their better-looking crew with more glamorous outfits, some of the MAS can be quite haughty/pretentious.
They also had a wide selection of movies. Notably, there was a tasteful Indian film called Parineeta (I think : P), The Cave, Goal!, The Dukes of Hazzard, Romeo & Juliet (the ‘90s movie starrin Leo DiCaprio and Claire Danes), The Skeleton Key starrin Kate Hudson, and even a Cantonese film in the Dubai-KL flight : 千杯不醉 (Drink Drank Drunk)(unfortunately, by the time I realised it’s showin, it was already halfway through : it wasn’t listed under the programme for the flight)。
Parineeta was quite an insightful film for me. Set in Calcutta in the ‘70s (? – cos at some point, Shenkar’s friend bought a newly released LP by Elvis), it tells the tale of young Lolita, her love for the spoilt musician (the scene of him on the piano in his lavishly decorated colonial home, on another passenger’s tv screen, was what prompted me to watch the film in the 1st place) cum son of tycoon, Shenkar. And charming older man Girish’s love for her. We see the contrast between Lolita’s practical down-to-earth character, who put her family first; and the spoilt ways of Shenkar. The setting is quite stereotypical in a way – rich guy falls for poorer girl, heartless tycoon (Shenkar’s father Navin), some tragedy (death of Lolita’s uncle), some singing (mostly Shenkar). But the actors make it a delightful watch : Lolita is played by a charismatic young actress with such beautifully soulful eyes, her aunt is just so lovable, Girish as well.
The Cave was still exciting second time around, and I was still touched by Jack’s sacrifice and steadfast leadership, and still curious bout the ending where Catherine reveals that the parasite is inside her as well – is it just a typical ending for an action film slotted in at the last minute, or if not, why do I not see any forewarnings throughout the film of Catherine’s condition, or that some of her actions were due to her parasite (like, perhaps, she wanted to get rid of Jack to up her chances of survival)?
The up-close shots of the football game at the climactic end of the film (the only part I watched), which, I’d say, brought the audience right down to the pitch with the players, was really exciting. If only football telecasts on tv were filmed like that haha.
So I only watched 2 films, cos I was too busy feelin unwell and restless : nauseous throughout the Dubai-KL flight due to the seemingly endless turbulences…also irked by the fact that my earphones didn’t work, after I’d spent a few hours early this morning burning MP3s to disc…
The selection of in-flight radio channels was impressive as well : the Engish programmes ranged from rock to Fully Reclined to chart hits to Chill-Out, jazz and some others. Only had one Chinese channel though, so there wasn’t a separate Cantonese channel like on MAS.
Witnessed a spectacular view when we neared Dubai : I watched the sun rise over The Gulf! Can you imagine?! Vast blue sea, a horizon that stretched unhindered for as far as I can see, and layers of fiery colours lining it. It was about 6.30am when I woke up, so I actually missed the beginning, twilight (urgh!) but it was dazzling nevertheless – truly makes up for my never havin watched a real sunrise on the beach : D. Also, as we were approaching KLIA, a thunderstorm was brewing, so I could see flashes of lightning (from the sky haha), and dark clouds hovering over the brightly-lit city.
But arriving in KLIA lifted my moods altogether. Could hardly contain my joy of seeing my family again : guess they could tell too, from my chattiness despite the long-haul flight.
It’s very nice to be home again. I could actually smell home…