On My Way to the USA

I said I would pack two days in advance of my flight. Patrick smiled and called 6am the day of the flight. I wish I could be that person, the one who is perfectly packed and ready for anything at a moment’s notice, alas, that is not my life. In reality, I packed my bag (yes just one) around 10:30pm the night before departure and left it open for a few early morning additions. Inevitably, I’ll hate all of my clothes when I unpack and I’m sure I forgot something of minimal importance. Packing does not agree with me, whether it be for a week long business trip or a relocation, I’m just not good at it. Maybe I should rephrase that because I am good at squeezing a lot of stuff into a little space. As I finished packing for this trip, I could feel my heart beating fast. I couldn’t sleep. All I could do was think about what I may have forgotten – USD, a dress, pants, shoes, pills. These things were on my mind but I knew if I got out of bed to pack them I’d never get to sleep so I fought off the urge and tried to make mental notes for the morning. I sit on the plane now, hoping I have everything, knowing it is too late to go back and counting on a bit of shopping time to make up the difference. I’m on the plane now with about 5 hours left in my flight. The flight attendants are picking up our lunch trays and serving Bailey’s or another aperitif. As I sit here with my second glasses of wine and water and add Bailey’s I wonder why people complain about airline food. I just ate chicken with vegetables and rice in a mild curry sauce with a roll, small salad and lemon meringue with strawberry sauce – all in economy. I’m not dissatisfied. Maybe I’m spoiled as I’m flying Lufthansa but I’ve had an equally enjoyable experience on Virgin before my Lufthansa days. The last intercontinental flight I took was miserable. The plane was full to max capacity and I was sitting in a middle seat next to a woman who continuously farted. I couldn’t sleep a wink and I was flying east. This time I was able to choose my seat when I booked the flight and I got 55J. If you are ever flying on a (Lufthansa) 747 in economy, pick seat J55. It’s a window seat but you have about a foot of space between your seat and the window which is great for storing your carry on and gives you some room to breathe. I was not as lucky on my return flight. For India being a developing country there are always a substantive amount of Indians on every transatlantic flight I’ve been on.