Travel: Will there be PJs?

Singapore Showers, Changi Champagne, and Beautiful Butterflies

Transit in SIN

From research in this forum, I find that the Qatar lounge consistently rates high out of those available to oneWorld members, at least those at my oneWorld Sapphire (Qantas Gold) level.

I found the place without difficulty — up the first set of escalators, turn left — and when I ask about the showers a series of smiling staff wave me through.

Welcome sight for weary traveller — image by author

My, but that’s pretty!

Bathroom beauty — image by author

Somehow I had mislaid the little ziploc bag with my fluids. Toothpaste, shaving oil, etc. I’d put it in a safe place for convenience and then forgotten the place. It seems that they don’t bother with that nonsense any more but still, here was I needing to shave and brush my teeth after the shower.

So I swiped a couple of the freebie packs. Quite a good Schick razor, I noticed, but I had my own so I left the razor in my AirBnB a bit later on, a cut above the disposable Bics the host had supplied.

Later on, I found that I’d put the ziploc bag in a side pocket in my backpack, but hey, more little tubes of stuff to carry around!

Feeling vastly more human with one of the last spritzes of my ZZegna aftershave wafting out, I looked into the dining room. In theory I had over two hours until the Melbourne plane carrying my friend Megan arrived and it was time for a decent dinner.

I have to say that the Qatar lounge looks the business. Qantas is a bit basic, at least the standard lounge, but Qatar is snug and elegant.

The menu can be accessed online by a — heh — QR code: https://www.qatarairways.com/content/dam/hia/pdf/qr-singapore-lounge-en.pdf

Qatar’s menu; one of each, please! — image by author

Easy choice for me:

Smoked salmon with capers — image by author

Rose Champagne — image by author

Lamb rack — image by author

Divine, all three, presented with impeccable service to a bloke in rumpled clothes with a toy bear poking out of his backpack.

I could have taken a few more hits of the Rose and maybe a spot of dessert but on checking with Singapore arrivals it looked like Megan from Melbourne was arriving on QF 35 a lot earlier than I’d calculated, like about five minutes from now.

I picked up my lamb chops in both hands, gnawed the meat off, drained the pink bubbles in a gulp, wiped my lips with the tablecloth, and hurried out, waving at the staff in passing.

QF35 arriving — image by author

She was just pulling in as I hurried up to the gate and then it was a bit of a wait until she emerged from the back of the bus. Still, there’s no point in taking a chance of missing her, and I’d be able to guest her into the lounge after we’d seen a bit of the airport. Finish off the bubbly, maybe get a dessert or two …

You know the airport scenes in Love, Actually? Friends and family overjoyed to see each other. Genuine emotion on public display.

When you get down to it, what we have are memories. The body changes with the years, skills and interests and opinions decay or grow or develop, but what really makes us the person we are are memories.

I see Megan walking toward me with a smile on her face — mirroring the one on my own, I know — and I’m thinking of all the adventures we have shared around the world, all the magical moments, the glasses of wine, the books, the sights, the friends.

So many shared memories of good times.

Later on, I make Megan cry, but we’ll get to that.

For now, I grab her carry-on bag and we head off into the magical tourist resort of Changi.

She wants to show me the Butterfly Garden and I reckon that’s another bit of magic I could add to the total.

It’s an AirTrain and a few questions away but we know when we get there. The air and the vegetation are tropical, and there are butterflies fluttering around, gorging themselves on pineapple slices, and people pointing phones everywhere.

Butterfly beauties — images by author

Not a great variety but they are certainly pretty good to look at.

After we’ve had our fill of flutterers we make our way back to the Qatar Lounge. Our boarding passes are scrutinised carefully. “You may come in, sir,” the gate guy says, “but your friend is travelling Economy and this lounge is for Business Class passengers.”

I feel I’ve been scammed again but after some careful reading of the access policy I find that he’s right.

Oh well, Qantas is available as a nearby backup, and we sit down, recharge our devices, chat, and enjoy a latte or two until it’s time to board the Finnair flight to Helsinki and find out if my careful preparation and yummy chocolate gifting has paid off.

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