Posted by 050412
I sit in a pod near the front of Air Canada flight 888. We are heading east. M’lady sits in a pod to my left, barely out of earshot as we individually occupy ourselves in the lap of aero-luxury. It’s difficult to type; when I’m not being offered drinks, snacks, or a gourmet menu I’m busy clining and reclining and occasionally being interrupted to receive such things as a tablecloth or an after-dinner chocolate. First Class problems, in every respect. Okay, Business Class, but still.
Though this trip had been booked for months somehow packing didn’t begin until the night before, which left all the pre-trip chores for the day of departure. We finished the list and shuffled the cat off to Chilly Camp with promises to write (he won’t) and with a final squish our luggage zippers were pulled shut and off to the airport we went, our fingers crossed that everything needed had been remembered.
It wasn’t.
After a prodigious amount of procrastination, when I had finally called aeroplan to book our flights I was shocked and amazed to be presented at the end of the call with a surprise, one-day promotion that upgraded us to Business Class for our entire journey, both ways. Unbelievable! And this was no small flight; we were flying halfway around the freakin’ world!
The lady on the phone seemed very happy for us, pointing out that under normal circumstances such an upgrade would have cost about $7,000 extra. To be honest, leading up the journey I found that this bonus surprise had become the part of the trip I’d been looking forward to the most, especially given the thirty-six hours of travel time we were up against. It was truly a rock star experience and we ate it up like a young Aerosmith, starting with a bee-line to the the Executive Lounge at the Ottawa airport and continuing through two extensive layovers, each with high-society lounges of their own.
Hell, when the stewardess came for my inaugural dinner selection I flashed my rock ‘n roll rebellion by ordering red wine with a chicken entree. She certainly didn’t see that coming.
Though I’d been lucky enough to find myself seated at the front of the plane several times before, this was my first ‘pod’ and man, they are amazing. After dialling my flip-out screen into the quite excellent Rum Diaries starring Johnny Depp I adjusted my seat/bed to full recline, pulled up my full-length wool blanket, and settled in like a swaddled baby in a crib. The pod was so dynamically comfortable that it was everything I could do to keep from giggling out loud every time I rolled over. My six-foot frame stretched out and effortlessly scrolled through all of my favourite sleeping positions. It was truly glorious.
Of course it was pretty much all for naught. With all the drinking and movie watching I ended up getting only the barest minimum of sleep before the cabin began to glow in soft red “psst-wakeup” mood lighting. We were still an hour out of Heathrow, but instead of my usual frustration with being awoken so unnecessarily long before touchdown I quite appreciated the extra time to enjoy fresh croissants, fruit salad, and a second cup of hot, robust coffee before landing.
Flying Business Class is one of the few things I can think of that makes me wish I was rich (that and the dream of having someone else mow my lawn). For those that have never traveled up front, well, believe me when I say that it’s immeasurably better up there. It’s so luxurious I’m surprised there’s not a hot tub. I tell you, flying Business Class all the time would make traveling Regular Human Class simply unbearable.
Which I suppose is one of the many blessings that come with not being rich (except the lawn thing).
