Review of Garuda Indonesia flight from Amsterdam to Jakarta in Economy

Good Morning / Afternoon / Evening folks!
This report is the continuation of the previous flight I took from JKT to AMS. This time, it’s AMS to JKT.
The flight code is GA 089, with GA codesharing it with Etihad Airways. The plane used for this flight is the Boeing 777-300ER (PK-GIA). From quick searches around the web, I found out that PK-GIA is the first B777-300ER GA receives in mid-2013. Does this thing is doing as well as its youngest brother I took on the Inaugural flight last week? http://flight-report.com/en/report-7139.html We’ll find out soon!
So it’s been 8 days since I’ve been in Europe. I went from Amsterdam to Berlin to Cologne and back to Amsterdam with several short excursions during the last leg of the journey. We went from Amsterdam to Berlin with EasyJet. The flight was rather uneventful, so I didn’t make the report about it. Then we went from Berlin- Cologne and Cologne-Amsterdam by ICE train. Since I’ve only been inside Thalys and Keisei Skyliner, I can say ICE train was okay. Europe has a lot to offer. Since I’m a self-learning cook/blogger, I gained a lot of inspiration for my cooking blog. If you’re interested, my cooking blog is http://mybigfatcookingblog.blogspot.com. Your patronage is appreciated :)
The journey began at around 8:30. Me and my Dad checked out from our hotel. We stayed at Sheraton Hotel at Schiphol airport due to its accessibility and facilities. Schiphol shopping plaza is very convenient for our needs; thanks to its supermarket and Asian food takeaway. We went on to grab our 3rd luggage from the locker between Arrivals 1 & 2. Paid a € 14 fee for the 2 day storage (it is surprisingly cheaper than the machine locker!), and arranged our suitcases so the weight is balanced between the 3.
We proceed to the Departures 3. GA is served at Check-in Row 30.

When we arrived, the Check-in is not open yet, so my father went to refund our taxes from shopping around here. Not bad, he managed to nab € 140 of taxes claim!
We went through check-in for the Business Class row. Since my father is travelling Business this time around, I can tag along to check in again. Too bad the agent failed to input my GarudaMiles into the system before she printed my BP. But she assured me that the number is still inputted, so I’m not missing anything.

The screen hasn't changed yet

Check in for the privileged

Check in for most of people

Sky Priority and First Class carpet

27C. Another aisle
So we got our boarding pass, went through the immigration smoothly (the immigration agent was very friendly, we got a good laugh !). Not much has changed in Schiphol since the last time I’ve been here. It was still bland, and not much to see or to do. Only grabbed a few Stroopwaffles as a gift for folks back home, and we proceed to the gate.

Gate G9 gave a really nice side view of our bird. I spent a good 15 minutes or so just admiring the bird.

PK-GIA, the first B77W GA receives in Mid 2013

Boarding was around 20 minutes late. Well, still acceptable I must say.

My seat was the second row of the 2nd section of Economy seats. Legroom somehow felt a little bit bigger. Or was it my imagination? Anyway, the seats were already accompanied by blanket and pillow (both of which I never use, never liked it). The content of the back pocket was the same as my last flight with the exception of the new IFE mag for June 2014. And in my seat pocket, I found the Middle East designated inflight magazine. Guess the cleaning crew missed a spot :) (UPDATE: as it turns out, PK-GIA is continuing towards JED, so i'm guessing it's there for a reason).

View from my seat

Seat pitch was very good this time around.

New GA IFE mag, renamed to 'STARS'

New June issue in-flight mag

This is actually magazine for Middle East bound flight.

Middle seat is empty for the rest of the flight :)
Take off went smoothly, with minor shaking along the way. We were given amenities kit. Remember how I said on my last report that GA gave a rather nicer touch with the pouch that has zipper on it? Well, they gave it inside this ugly plastic container. And the ear plugs are missing. Kinda disappointed :(

Long way to go ladies and gentleman

Nuts and Juice were given for refreshment.

Afterwards, FA gave us the menu for this flight. We will be getting Lunch – Refreshment Meal – Breakfast.

Browsed the IFE (see how it looks like on my previous report), there were new movie updated (I watched Robocop, Gravity, and Dallas Buyers Club throughout the flight), the live TV was also working perfectly, although according to the IFE, NHK is Al Jazeera :) (whoopsie!).

Oh, and contrary to popular belief, my regular A-Jays headset is working perfectly with the headset jack.

By having a proper headset, it helped me enjoy the IFE much better. In house headset just doesn't cut it. GA still has to improve their Economy headset, they’re uncomfortable and under performed.
Lavatory visit was okay. Nothing much has changed since my last flight, with the exception of an empty compartment.

Lunch was finally served. Boy oh boy, about time. I chose the Western menu. The Gnocchi was a bit overcooked, thus making it rather soft. The Greek salad was okay. The bread was pretty good quality, definitely better than Indonesian catering. The Butter was room temperature (bravo!). The soup was warm and savory. But for me, the highlight was the chocolate cake! I think it was a simpler version of Tiramisu. Light, airy, with just enough sweetness. Love it!

Flight goes on with minor shaking. Another set of refreshment was given, took me some Guava juice.

Then I helped myself to snack available at the galley. The chips were from the UK, and tasted good.

Then the refreshment meal was distributed out. I actually missed it because I was in the lavatory at the time. Asked an FA to get me one, but I think she got preoccupied and forgot my request :(
Asked another FA for one, and she gave me not just the Pastrami Sandwich, but also an energy bar and glass of water. Thank God for personal touch with common a sense, don’t see that a lot in Indonesia these days :)

Mood light in action

Lights out as I’m typing this, but don’t think I’m not gonna get some sleep.
WHOOP
I did get some sleep. I woke up around 5 AM (GMT +7) to the breakfast service. It was freezing, I was literally shivering and my teeth rattling.

Nearly there

Beautiful sunrise
But thank God for the breakfast. I made a choice with the Indonesian menu. The Nasi Goreng (fried rice) was decent. At least the rice is not too dry like Briyani, just the way Indonesians like it. The freshly cut fruit was nice, yoghurt was pretty good. The Croissant was surprisingly warm and flaky. Paired with the room temperature butter, it hits the spot!

As the captain announced that we’re approaching CGK, I spot a Lion Air B737-900 also in position for landing. I’m sorry kiddo, you gotta make way to the big guy :)

Landing was smooth, with a bit of a thump. Immigration in the morning is very pleasant. There were no queue, and it went by fast. Surprisingly, the baggage claim was pretty quick too! CGK is known to have one of the worst baggage claim experience ever. All of our luggage surprisingly came out first. And off we go home :D

Waved bye bye to the birdie :(