Sept 4: The lap of luxury

It is effectively Sept 4th, although it felt very much like a never-ending yesterday because it is 2:39 AM in the morning. The wait at O'Hare Airport in Chicago was very long. I arrived at 5:45 PM and my flight to Seoul wasn't schedule to leave until 1:00 AM. The check-in counter for Asiana Airlines doesn't open until 9:00 PM. There is nowhere to go in Terminal 5. Besides the uninteresting food court, the only other entertainment is the duty free shop. Maybe the U.S. economy is to blame, I found the selection of cosmetics in the duty free shop very poor. Since I didn't have a boarding pass, I couldn't buy anything anyway.

I spent most of the 3 hours chatting with my new-found friend, a 17-year-old girl from Wisconsin named Christin. Christin is a sweet girl with dark hair and bright eyes. She is en route to Russia on her third Rotary exchange. I was a bit sheepish to admit that I knew almost nothing about the Rotary Club so Christin gave me a crash course. I will always be able to spot them now, from their unique blazer decorated with many pins from countries all over the world. Christin's first two Rotary exchanges were completed in Japan, for about 10 days each time. But this time she is going to a small town in Siberia for 11 months! Looking at her eyes brimming with enthusiasm, I have to admit that youth is a fabulous thing to have!

Finally the Asiana Airline counters opened up. Eight ticket agents assumed their positions simultaneously and bowed to us who were waiting in line. A good culture that speaks both team spirit and courtesy. I did notice that many agents are not Korean - the one who helped me is from Lebannon. However, they all greeted customers in Korean.

When the long wait was over, I finally got to see Asiana's first class cabin. Let me just say that I fell into the lap of luxury.

The first class cabin is located in the nose of the airplane (Boeing 747-400), right behind the cockpit. It is a spacious room with 10 seats, four single seats along each side of the aircraft and two joint seats at the back of the room. Each seat is angled at 30 degrees to the cabin windows. The actual seat resembles a huge armchair with high raised back to provide privacy. The angling design also creates a lot of counter space for anything you need to have at arm's reach during the long flight - books, magazines, drinks, personal-care kit, etc. About 3.5 feet in front of the seat is a cupboard space with a thin-screen entertainment unit for each passenger. When the "full-flat" button is pushed, the foot rest and arm rest extends and the back reclines, stretching to a true flat bed. I dream of the day when every single passenger can have a seat like this. Flying could be so much more pleasant if that happens!

As soon as I boarded the plane, I was given some comfy lounging clothes to change into. To be honest, I thought the clothes resembled Mr. Spok's costume in Star Trek but they were warm and soft indeed. I was also handed a pair of red cushy slippers and a Bvlgar personal care case. Since there were only four passengers in the cabin, the stewardesses lavished attention on us. Apart from being beautiful, they are always beaming and eager to help. That is the general impression I had with all personnel I have met along the way for Asiana.

The route spans 6544 miles and is 12 hours and 48 minutes in length at about 500 miles per hour. As soon as we reached cruising altitude, a meal was served. The presentation can rival most of the good restaurants I have been to in Ottawa or elsewhere. Taste is also very good for airplane food. Feeling rather adventuresome, I had caviar for appetizer and Bi-Bim-Bam (a traditional Korean dish) as my main. The stewardess was very kind and volunteered to mix my food for me when she found out it was my first try of the dish. It was delicious! Unfortunately I was full very quickly after eating half of my main course and I had to decline dessert.

The entertainment system was on-demand and all-encompassing. I managed to watch the Chinese movie "Warlords" that a few of my friends were raving about. I was amused to see their Classic selection of movies included "3 Days of the Condor", Kenny's all-time favourite! I must say whoever put together the program has good taste. I had the opportunity to sample some traditional Korean music and was also interested to find a CD called "Stops Crying". It is an album of soft baby songs with heartbeats. Now that is an idea! I cannot wait to tell my friends who are new moms this year.

I could have stayed up all night playing with the entertainment system but I used some discipline and managed to get 5 hours of shut-eye. I have to be ready for whatever is coming tomorrow...