Ian's Circus Carnival Party Featured in Majalah Ibu dan Anak!

I was pleasantly surprised when Majalah Ibu dan Anak reached out to me via my official Facebook page. They wanted to feature Ian's circus carnival party for the Party of the Month section of their April 2015 edition! 

I am guilty of only publishing Part 1 of Ian's party, hence some pictures featured in the magazine have never been shared within this blog! As you can see, our family and my party crew were dressed in matching t-shirts, we had a clown shaped pinata and also a clown to entertain the crowd. And of course, we were blessed with Aiden's huge grin and Ian's signature expressionless face in every picture. *chuckles*

So if you see this magazine at your local bookstore, do grab one! If not for our feature, but maybe for the handsome outfits these boys are donning on the cover. Just check out that leather jacket, cool boots, sunglasses and their immaculate perfectly waxed hair styles! I once showed Aiden a picture of one of The Guerilla Kids and asked him whether he wanted to dress up like that, and he said yes! Oh, kids nowadays...

Thank you Majalah Ibu dan Anak for the opportunity! Grab the April 2015 Majalah Ibu dan Anak today!

Farewell Restoran Rose 911...

I last wrote about this place back in 2011...

Despite moving to house to Shah Alam and moving office to KL Sentral, every time I have a meeting scheduled in KL, I would make it a point to have lunch at Restoran Rose 911. This authentic masakan Nogori will never fail to impress; good food, efficient service and fabulous dessert!

I was very surprised when Hubby sent me a short article about how the restaurant was closing down for good. I never thought the day would come when I would have to bid adieu to my favourite ikan sardin goreng, tempoyak daun kayu and daging salai masak lemak.

Well, I have known Kak Ros since I was in my teens. Now that I am no longer muda remaja, dah anak dua dah pun; Kak Ros must be at the age where she wants to enjoy her grandchildren, not slaving in the kitchen for my scrumptious lunch hour! *grin* I'm just puzzled at why she hasn't taught her children the art of her trade so that she can pass down the business to them to continue her legacy. I guess maybe she is a perfectionist who needs to be in the kitchen to supervise and taste each and every one of her signature dishes? Because I have witnessed how she painstakingly makes the badak berendam with her own two hands for her customers. Well, whatever the reason is, I am certainly very sad that she is closing down her restaurant for good. *sigh*

Last week Hubby and I made it a point to visit her restaurant. Here are the pictures! Warning: pictures may make you salivate for food.

The dessert corner. Scrumptious badak berendam, lepat pisang and buah melaka (not in picture). I would usually have them all! 

We arrived before 12 that day... If you come after 1230pm, the restaurant would be jam packed with people!

Definitely a Negeri Sembilan restaurant. Look at all the lauk kuning! More than half of the dishes served were yellow in colour! 

Here's a close up. The different variants of masak lemak served that day were daging salai, rebung, ikan keli, ayam, ketam and even siput sedut. Not to forget, my favourite tempoyak daun kayu.

These were our picks for the day. Both of us had the crunchy ikan sardin goreng (see my previous post on how I raved about this fish). I had the daging salai masak lemak while Hubby had the tempoyak daun kayu. We shared the siput sedut masak lemak. Then we had badak berendam as dessert, and lepat pisang to go!

Dear fish, you will be sorely missed. *cries*

Restoran Rose 911's last day will be on 2nd of April. If you are craving for some Negeri Sembilan malay food, you have less than two weeks to try them out. Read Malay Mail's fabulous write up on the restaurant and their imminent closure, here.

By the way, Kak Rose has started a lunch box business to serve her good food. I doubt the lunch box can replicate the crunchiness of my favourite fish, but one can always wish for the best. *cries again*

Farewell Restoran Rose 911. I wish you luck in your future endeavors.

Camera Shy

I was recently approached to do an advertorial for a positive parenting experience involving Aiden and me. However, that is not the subject of this post.

As part of the advertorial, our family was invited to meet the video production crew. I was assuming that it would be the same as any other meets - talk, chat, shake your hand on it and leave. Imagine my surprise when we arrived, and was informed that the crew wanted to have a pre-shoot with Aiden and me! It would be sort of a get-to-know-you session between them and me, plus a familiarization shoot for Aiden so that he gets to know the crew in preparation for the actual filming.

Similar to any meetings, there was an exchange of business cards at the start; and when I read the card that was given to me by the director of the shoot – I was floored!! I may not recognize his face but I certainly recognized the name.

If you are a big fan of Malay movies with beautiful cinematography and sound storyline, you would know the name Kabir Bhatia. He is extremely talented! I loved his movies, such as Cinta and Sepi. Hubby and I also secretly enjoyed Nur Kasih, it was our weekly guilty pleasure at home. So having Kabir Bhatia at the meet, and having him suggest a pre-shoot cum interview with him, was.... such an experience!

I look soooo engrossed with my "interview" - eyes closed and all! *cheeky grin* Thanks for the fabulous picture, Hubby!

 

We started with my pre-shoot - I was asked to sit in front of a camera and answer questions from Kabir Bhatia, which revolved around introducing myself, my relationship with my kids and my daily life with them. During the shoot, Hubby, Aiden and Ian were separated from me, probably so that Aiden doesn't hear my responses as they wanted organic uninfluenced responses from him come his turn. It was quite a long interview, I didn't look at the clock but I believe I was interviewed close to an hour?

Next up was Aiden... this time it was my turn to be separated from him, while Hubby accompanied Aiden in front of the camera. I know for a fact that Aiden is camera shy - he doesn't have a problem sitting in front of the camera; but opening up and answering questions from total strangers are definitely not his forte. When questioned, he would usually look at me for help, or shrug his shoulders and say "I don't know".

Aiden looks so focused here!

Initially, I tiptoed up for a sneak peek, but as soon as Aiden saw me he clammed up and started to squirm left, right and center. Needless to say, I was politely asked to keep away from the area and was led to a quiet conference room, with Ian in tow.

Kabir Bhatia smiling at my attempt to sneak a quick look at Aiden.

Aiden warming up to the crew.

At the end of the interview, I anxiously asked Hubby how Aiden did. Despite a lot of squirming around, slumping on the chair and swinging his legs, they got quite a few funny moments from the shoot. He told Kabir Bhatia that his favourite past time with his friends is to play chess (Kabir was so surprised, he came forward to shake Aiden's hand and proclaimed him a genius!), he showed off his golf swing to the crew, he confessed that he didn't like numbers (despite my earlier declaration about his love for mathematics), he conveyed how he is not allowed to have cats at home because they would eat his rabbits... and since kids are honest and all that - I'm pretty sure he told the whole crew about the fact that his Mummy never cooks at home!

I wonder how child talents - the one you always see on TV, are so outgoing and confident? Is it part of their born personality, or is it a learned trait from their upbringing? Yes, Aiden is a social butterfly when it comes to making friends with peers his age - but it is always so hard to convince him to walk up to an adult - such as to ask a waiter to come to our table, or to say hello to an acquaintance of mine. I remember when I was small, my local KFC had this take away side window by their restaurant; and my mum used to force me to walk up to the window, order, pay and pick up our take away order. I was so small that sometimes people do not even think that I was queuing up and they would cut in front of me. The take away window was also quite high above ground so I had to tiptoe so that the KFC lady could see me. I know now, that my mum made me do all these to cultivate confidence in me. Unfortunately, no matter how hard I pressure Aiden into doing similar things, such as walking up alone to a clown to ask for a sculpture balloon... he simply wouldn't budge! Should I then be tougher and persist?

Anyway, the video pre-shoot was certainly a priceless experience for Aiden, and I sincerely hope that this exposure would teach him to be less camera shy. If you have any tips for me to help Aiden warm up and open up to the crew, please... do share!

ATV Adventure at Mudtrekkerz Paintball Park, Cahaya SPK!

I know this is over a month overdue, but how did you celebrate your 14^th of February?

Hubby is a big believer of not celebrating this date. His excuse is so he can shower his love at any day of the year. *scoffs* Uhuh, yes Hubby… I am totally believing this lame excuse.

Thank goodness Aiden made a card at school, so at least someone remembered to shower me with some love that morning. (Aiden actually came home from school, hid the card somewhere before I got home from work, woke up extra early the next morning to get the card and even prepared a simple breakfast of toast and jam for Hubby and I! Oh, my boy has certainly grown up!)

In turn, I also made some special arrangements of my own. Cahaya SPK has its own little extreme park just by the clubhouse. So I decided to surprise Hubby with an ATV adventure!

(Okay who are you and what have you done to Liz??!!)

Anyone who knows me knows that I am not one for wild impulses. I order the same food over and over again (not adventurous). I can’t even ride an adult bicycle (scared of heights). Don’t even mention roller coasters (super scaredy cat)!

Truth be told, I actually booked the ATV adventure thinking that we were going to be driving on paved roads around our Cahaya SPK neighbourhood *can wave to neighbours and look super cool*. Little did I know that we would be going through mountains and valleys (exaggerating slightly here) in the Cahaya SPK unexplored terrains!

At the start of the track, just by the paintball park - oblivious to the rough terrain ahead of us!

Maybe I should have guessed it wasn't as easy as I expected it to me. I mean - look at the splatters of mud all over the vehicle!

We started our adventure by first driving the ATV through man-made rocky mounts. Sort of a familiarization session with the ATV. I actually chickened out the first time, but they wouldn't allow me to bypass the obstacles before going into the real thing. So round and round we went, up and down man-made mounts until we got a grip on how to handle the vehicle.

Here's me at the start of the actual ATV track. We were led by the guy on the scrambler. 

There was also a guy who accompanied us on foot. 

Hubby insisted that I went ahead of him... good thing he did!

Because I lost control of the ATV and rammed into the first tree I saw!!!!

Ohhhh the track was tough! Well tough by my standards at least! (Hubby barely broke a sweat). The incline and decline were steep and rocky. The track was very narrow - there were some spots where if you over shot your drive, you would go tumbling down a ravine. The ATV handling was heavy (no power steering... duhhhh *slaps own forehead*) and I kept losing control of the ATV every time I went over a rock or a tree root or whatever. It was crazy! I was like this close *shows tiny gap between index finger and thumb* to quitting, but the guy who accompanied us by foot kept encouraging me, saying "No problem Kak! Takpe... bolehhhh" and helped me dislodge and maneuver my ATV each time I collided into something.

Don't be fooled by this smile. I was already asking the guy, "Jauh lagi ke???!!!"

And don't be fooled by this innocent looking incline too!

Finally!!! We got to the end of the track. I was too whacked from all the adrenaline rush, so I asked Hubby to drive up to me for a picture. Really, all I wanted to do was to get off the damn thing!

We did it, partner! *proud smile*

I only noticed this at the end of the track, "ATV use can result in severe injury or death". Uhuh... never again for me!

The adventure park houses about 10 ATVs or more, so you can actually plan like a family day ATV getaway or something. 

Relieved smile!

Anyway, a month after our little adventure, and now that all the stress hormones and terrifying memories have been flushed from my body; I'm actually glad I took the plunge to do this. Another one I can scratch off my bucket list! According to Hubby, the track wasn't that tough, so I hope this humble post of mine hasn't deterred you from trying this out. Give it a try, you may be quite surprised by how much adventurous you are compared to me! *cheeky smile*

Revamping our Garden!

Remember our mature garden?

About a month ago, after the kids were fast asleep; Hubby and I had a late night heart to heart talk and oddly the topic was about our garden! Truthfully, our garden was getting a bit out of hand, with the weeds growing in between the carpet grass, plants that refuse to flower and bugs munching holes in our leaves. Our grass was also not perfectly flat; there were jagged parts due to incorrect use of the mowing machine, yellowed patches due to lack of sunlight, and damaged grass from people trampling on it during our recent parties. 

Hubby was keen to change the grass out... to artificial grass! Although I didn't exactly oppose the idea, I wasn't ready to fork out such a huge amount of money. Then we started talking about reducing the expanse of grass on our land, by putting wood decking or building a structure, which would in turn reduce the amount of artificial grass we were going to need. I suggested building a swimming pool *cue big laugh here* which was flatly rejected by Hubby *oh well, one can always wish big*. 

By coincidence, a neighbour recommended her gardener to us, so that weekend we called him over to our house. Mind you, this is not just your average Indonesian gardener who mows your lawn once a month. This is an actual gardener who works on landscaping gardens and even gives seminars to local entrepreneurs who are interested in garden and landscaping construction!

He asked a few questions on how we wanted our garden (I answered, "Yang senang jaga"). *grins* I guess it wasn't the exact answer he was looking for, because he explained that our garden was erm, to put it lighly - carca marba! We had Balinese garden fixtures, sharp edged leaf plants which looked more Oriental themed, cactus (cactus garden), miniature palm trees (local contemporary), and of course, Hubby's buluh which in the grander scheme of things, didn't match with any theme at all!

In the end, we agreed on a sum of money for his services; and in turn we gave him full responsibility of revamping our garden. We gave him the freedom to do whatever he wanted (within the budget, of course). The sentiment of letting someone else make decisions over a part of our house, was so exhilarating!

The first day, he literally stripped our garden bare. I got home, climbed out of my car with my jaw hanging... I was shocked at how much plants he threw away! Apparently, none of the plants we had originally planted in our garden suited his concept!

Remember that hugeeeee bamboo tree at the back of our house? That was the first one to go! *sob sob*

Check out our newly painted walls! Also in this picture you can see the jagged patches of grass.

This was at the end of the first day. By the end of the 5th day, we had filled this bin to the brim!

New plants purchased by the gardener.

Anyway, let's start with the front.

Remember the big beautiful leafy plants by the front door? Stripped off completely! Thankfully I managed to save the roses (in pots) and moved them to the back of the house. And at least the plant with the red leaves was spared, albeit transferred to the back of the house.

Only the plant with purple/dark red leaves remains; shaped into 5 round bonsai.

Happy Ian playing with the mess in our garden.

The fence between our house and the next house was previously bare, so he planted this as a sort of separation. Same plant was also used for our front fence.

Even our favourite corner was stripped bare.

Next up, the living hall area. Remember the shrubs that the rabbits used to gnaw on? Well that was stripped off too. Opposite the living hall, we used to have the ever flowering plant with white flowers. Sadly that one stopped flowering, so that got cut too. All of Hubby's lalang were also removed. The only one that made the cut was the same plant with purple/dark red leaves and another plant with purple flowers; but even then both were moved to the back of the house.

Now we have big beautiful round shaped plants here. Even the elevated vases were removed.

Opposite the living hall, miniature Christmas trees were planted instead. Picture on the right shows where the plant was moved to the back of the house.

Four Christmas trees in total, with small shrubs in between.

Next, the patio! Remember the huge leafy plants which shaded the patio? I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw that they didn't make the cut too. Instead, a willow tree now stands in its place. All of my herbs were also moved to the back of the house. Also, the patch of grass between the patio and the back door was stripped off too. Since it was slightly sloping, they added soil and sand to level the land again, and replanted new grass.

The willow tree at the patio. That plant with the purple flowers beside the willow tree is amazing! It flowers without fail every single morning!

While they were excavating the soil, they actually found that huge piece of rock. In my own garden! So it is now a decorative piece at the patio. 

Adding soil to level the land.

New grass. Tiny shrubs by the dining hall window too.

A sweet pokok kemboja took over what was previously the bamboo tree's domain.

What happened to my pokok kari, daun pandan, pokok pisang and miniature palm trees, you ask? Well, according to the gardener, they should be mixed with decorative plants in the garden hence they have all been moved outside my gate to the patch of land behind the PE. So in a way, I have officially mewakafkan curry leaves, pandan leaves and even bananas to my community!

Hey, look what came back! Yup, Hubby managed to coax the gardener to rescue his pokok lalang from the bin and back into the garden.

Anyway, the work is all done and despite our initial reservations about the drastic change the gardener made, we're actually liking the outcome! He even managed to make those irritating jagged patches of grass disappear! No pictures yet, because we're waiting for the grass to grow... but we absolutely love the minimalist and clean look of it all. However, since I'm itching to throw in some after pictures, here's a sneak peak:

This is right after everything was completed, so ignore the freshly cut grass. Our favourite corner now has plants with dainty flowers and a beautiful pot to match! And somehow, the garden looks more spacious.

Loving the big beautiful pot by the patio too!

Okay, wait for my next post on our revamped garden! 

Lizzieasamummy Hits Half a Million!

Well, you can choose to see the glass as half empty or half full. I prefer to see it as half full!

So instead of calling it as 500k (or five hundred thousand), I'm going to hype it a bit and call it half a million. Sounds way cooler, right? (I don't even know when I am going to actually hit a million so layan jer la tuan blog nie sekali sekala...) 

Half a million!

And it is all thanks to you!

Okay, time to go shopping for my giveaway! *smiles*

What Do You Want To Know About The Emirates A380 First Class?

Emirates A380 First Class.

Interesting title, eh?

I don't know whether I have mentioned this here in my blog before, but the pinnacle moment when I realized that I had blossomed into an adult, was when I went for my first international business trip. All my previous trips abroad, were always taken with family or friends. Hence I never had to think about where to head to after getting off the plane. Just follow that fellow family member or that trusted friend!

In 2006, my boss sent me on my first international business trip. Oh boarding the plane from a Malaysia was not a problem at all. But as soon as I landed at the Manila International Airport, I realized that I had to find my own way through immigration, then find the baggage carousel, then get a taxi to the hotel. All on my own. Well, I am not saying that it was hard, nor am I saying that I failed. But it was at this moment that I realized that I was a grown adult!!!

Of course it got easier over time. With my experience boarding and offboarding planes during my Russia stint, I learnt how to time my arrival at the airport just at the nick of time before they closed the ticketing counter or the gate. I missed a flight or two. Maximized my frequent flyer miles. Asked for extra/better flight meals. Dealt with rude stewardesses. Showered in business lounges. I learnt how to travel the city during transits or even ask for favours whenever my luggage goes overweight (from all the shopping). I learnt how to snicker and laugh when someone is helping me with my oversized luggage and remarks "What do you have in here, girl?? A dead body??" I learnt that humility goes a long way, especially with the Malaysia Airlines crew - it earned me fabulous company, a specially prepared hot teh tarik and even extra sticks of satay! I learned how to read carriage codes. I learnt all the perks from travelling business class and used them to my advantage (Upon arrival at the airport, I would like to be chauffeur driven to my hotel. They are all my family members - can we all check in at the Business Class line/board the plane first? I would like to use my fast track pass through immigration... among others). I have even shamelessly sneaked Aiden into Business Class a few times! I guess if some people are called "street smart", I can then be called "airplane smart". *giggle*

Luxurious gold trimmings with leather and wood paneling.

But the A380 was a whole different animal. Apart from it being a huge plane, Business Class and First Class were separated from the Economy Class by literally, a whole different level. I wasn't used to the layout of the plane, hence I had to walk the plane first to get my bearings right. Also, in my experience, the Emirates crew was never in my list of "pleasant cabin crew". Yes, they are very professional, but unlike MAS, they have no qualms about telling you off when they think you need it (such as when yours truly attempted to sneak Aiden up the stairs to Business Class)! *grin* Boarding the A380, I felt like I was once again that 24 year old girl, going for my first international business trip!

Imagine how I felt, when on the way home from our Disneyland-Houston trip, I was stopped at the gate and handed a First Class ticket. First Class on the A380! Oh wow, this is something I can scratch off my bucket list! (I think it had something to do with my frequent flyer qualifying into Gold tier... which I have since lost; hence I guess this is a once in a lifetime experience!)

First Class! Thank you Emirates.

First and foremost, the cabin crew was extra nice to me. (What, you want to sneak your child up?? Ma'am, please do so! *chuckles* No, no I'm kidding!) They helped me with my hand carry, and when I used my pregnancy card (I was pregnant with Ian back then), they made sure I didn't have to carry my luggage anywhere. They found a special place to store one of my hand carry downstairs (I am allowed two for Business Class), and the other they carried upstairs and stored it below my feet. Yes, the First Class cabin has a vast underseat storage area, spacious enough for you to store a full size hand carry bag under your feet!

Check out the suite plan! *drool* 

At my seat, I was handed a woven bag and a Bvlgari beauty pack. Enclosed within the woven bag was a pair of bedroom cabin slippers and even a change of pajamas. There was so much to take in, and being a First Class newbie, I was quite overwhelmed by everything going on around me. Thank goodness there was a hefty “Emirates A380 First Class Suite Guide” booklet to explain how it all works - and I finally found the attendant call button! *smile*

Here's my next door neighbour with the woven bag and slipper in sight. 

Each First Class seat comes with its own privacy doors which you can slide close to create your own private suite. If you are travelling with a companion in First Class (hardly ever going to happen in my case), you can lower the half paneling between your suite and your companion's suite to convert it into a two-person suite! (You can't convert it into a queen bed like SIA's First Class, but still.....)

Each seat has a vase of fresh flowers, an illuminated vanity mirror, table lamp with dimmer, stationary drawer, magazine rack, personal mini bar, duvet and blanket. You can adjust the ambient lighting and ransack the mini bar to your liking. Of course, the other basics are there too such as the dining/writing table, power point and such. And the plush seats.... oh where do I even start with the seat. Not only is it electronically adjustable to convert into a flat bed (hint hint, MAS), it even has position memory, and you can set the seat to give you a back massage - all programmable from the touchscreen controller! The seat was even long enough for me to sleep straight, without having to curl up. As they dimmed the lights of the flight, stars were actually projected to the walls of the aircraft. I slept like a baby that night!

Forget about the window seat option; there is also a forward, downward and tail camera which allows you to see the unique view of your flight taking off, zooming through the skies and landing. And not to forget about the large cocktail bar/lounge which I didn't bother to visit - such a shame!

The touchscreen controller and my own fully stocked private mini bar. Just ask the cabin crew to restock when your supplies are running low!

Nestled inside the vanity mirror, was my own range of toiletries; either for sleep or for focus.

If you thought the meals at Business Class were scrumptious, in First Class they took it one step further. You can actually dictate what time you want your meals to be serve. Just like a restaurant; you call the crew (they greet you with your last name - such the personalized service), ask for the menu, order what you want to eat and they will serve it piping hot ready to eat. All the multi-course meals were served on bone china, on tray tables laid with fine linen. (Unfortunately, everything arrived in one tray, unlike SIA's First Class where they actually lay out every item individually, even your cutlery!)

This was my breakfast. It was served with a basket of crisp pastries and fresh yogurt (and an international cheese board which I didn't really care for).

Everyone knows Emirates offer one of the best in-flight entertainment. With over 1200 channels of entertainment, you can never run out of movies to watch. Sometimes I would have to remind myself to sleep so that I don't get jet-lagged when I arrive (or miss my connecting flight, like what dear Hubby did once.. uurrrggghhh). In First Class, your seat comes equipped with a 23" digital screen for a sensational viewing pleasure. The friendly cabin crew even provide snacks (such as nuts, chips, chocolates... oh how I wish they had popcorn too) for you to munch through your movie.

Oh, I forgot to mention that WiFi is free for First Class passengers, you know, in case you want to update your blog and all. (Work??? What work???) Unfortunately between the movie and the blog, the movie won hands down!

Total privacy.

Hey, look who sneaked into First Class! And forced Mummy to watch Disney movies throughout the whole flight!

Okay, so I saved the best for last. You can probably scoff about the earlier features I told you about and say "Any other airplane has that too in First Class!", but what I'm about to share with you next is definitely not available in just any other airplane. 

Emirates upped the ante for travelers significantly recently, by being the only commercial airline to offer two showers for its 14 (yes only 14 - I told you it's once in a lifetime!) First Class passengers. 

Taking a shower at 40,000 feet in the air??!! Whoa, let's do this!

The Emirates A380 shower spa.

How do I even start describing the shower?? Imagine a spacious shower suite, trimmed with blond wood with grey upholstery, equipped with heated floors, generous toiletries and more towels than you would ever need, every single travel amenity you could ever think of such as a loofah and a hairdryer, and yes - a hot shower! You can choose to have the shower at the beginning of your flight or just before you arrive at your destination. I chose the latter, and was allowed twenty minutes in the shower suite with five minutes of water. However, you can turn the water on and off without the clock "running", so even if five minutes sounded like very little water, I actually managed to shower both Aiden and myself quite comfortably, with 20 seconds of water left to spare. After the shower, the stewart graciously asked how I found the shower, and even served me a plate of fruit.

There were also two full time shower spa attendants to ensure that the showers are well maintained during the flight. Emirates, hands down, you have the best airplane bathroom ever!

The very impressive shower suite. Check out the gleaming glass surfaces!

The grey upholstery discretely covered the toilet bowl. 

Two lines of the Timeless Spa shower product range - to either relax or revive you.

Clean towels and fresh flowers, with Bvlgari scents of your choice.

Last but not least, here's a picture of Aiden doing his big business 40,000 feet in the air!

There you go, my one and only experience with the Emirates A380 First Class. Admittedly, I had a lot of fun telling people how Aiden did his big business up in the air!!! Thank you Emirates Skywards, for I am now no longer an A380 First Class virgin.