Monday, October 22, 2018

Sleep-Inducing Mood Lighting

Two days ago I wrote about our Business Class flight on Turkish Airlines - the class where your seats turn into beds.

This is what our cabin looked like once everyone was asleep.  There's a 2-3-2 configuration to the seats.  We were in the two seats on one side of the aisle, with a window.  In the middle was a pregnant woman flying with her two kids, ages 4 and 6.  And Marlaina and MacG were in the other two seats by the window.

My first thought when I got on the plane was, "Great.  We finally make it to Business Class and we still get seats next to two kids."  The universe is definitely trying to teach me a lesson.

I had the 4-year-old next to me.  And although he was squirmy, climbing in his seat, watching his iPad, and talking a lot, the drone of the plane drowned out his voice a little, and overall, he was extremely well-behaved.  And beautiful.  I think they were Turkish. Although the mother spoke English, she was speaking to them in their native language. He had shiny black hair, the most gorgeous black eyes, and skin that only a four-year-old can have.  He was even more beautiful asleep.

But while he was awake, he was so confident using his iPad to watch movies, and using the flashlight on his mother's iPhone to look for something under the seat, I thought he'd probably flown many times.  The mother told me this was the first time she's flown alone with the kids, that her husband was working.  When I told her they seemed like old pros, she laughed and said she hoped the next leg went as smoothly.

As for the seat-to-bed situation - it was infinitely better than flying economy, no doubt, but it wasn't as comfortable as a bed would be.  Or even a couch for that matter. I fully suspect the comfort level is directly related to my size, because even though it turned into a bed, the seat area and width of the "bed" was still 22" and there's no way this body is fitting comfortably into 22" of space.  Oddly, Ed, who is also larger than 22" seemed to sleep like a rock.

Still, I have to say it's amazing that this is even a thing - the flight attendants actually come around to prepare the bed for you, and you get slippers and a goodie bag with earplugs and eye mask.  Some airlines even provide pajamas.  We brought our own.

The leg room and the fact that someone isn't reclining into your lap for fourteen hours, is totally worth it.  





2007: Reflections

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