Greetings from Thailand

On Friday, I boarded a Delta 757 from West Palm Beach to Atlanta. I was able to move my seat to an exit row 24-hours before the flight. The weather wasn’t the greatest and the flight attendants would not shut up. Every time someone got out of their seat, the flight attendant would make the announcement about how the fasten seatbelt sign had not been turned off. The plane circled around for about 30 minutes but I made the connection in Atlanta. The flight attendant came by with the smallest bag of peanuts I’ve ever seen with a small cup of coffee.

I flew on Korean Air from Atlanta to Seoul, Korea. They used a 747 and moved my seat assignment to the first row of economy. It was a middle seat. There wasn’t much room to put anything--especially during take-off and landing, but there was a bit more leg room--and no one was reclining in my area. They served a lunch and a dinner during the 13 hour flight. The flight path went over Chicago, Hudson Bay, Canada, Northwest Territories, and north of Barrow Alaska. The plane went south over Russia, and China and very obviously went around North Korea. The Video on Demand System worked great, but they carried the films in several languages so many channels were used. Their flight path channel carried a lot of commercials--something I’m not used to. They didn’t offer wine for dinner--just lunch and used a very small glass. I guess not everyone serves wine in a 24-ounce glass. The flight was pack and had a large number of young Korean men and boys. One was sitting next to me who is a senior in high school in the Boston area. Korean pushes Duty Free shopping on their flights but I wasn’t a taker. The plane had electrical outlets at all seats but would not take a North American ground plug. They had free toothbrushes and paste in the bathroom--a nice touch. Announcements were in Korean and English but were so soft and few, I had trouble hearing them. A nice change after the Delta flight.

Question: What airport would one land at if there was an Emergency when one is flying over the North Pole? Could Barrow, Alaska take a 747?

The airport at Seoul was beautiful but it was cold outside--below freezing. I was able to get a free shower; I brought my towel and soap. The cheapest bottle of wine I saw at the duty free stores in the airport was USD 29.

Flying from Seoul to Bangkok, Korean Airlines used a 777-300. The plane didn’t have Video on Demand and some of the overhead monitors looked 30 years old. They even had a projection screen. They served a meal, chicken or beef, ice cream, rice, and wine. The flight attendants are flawless and I just love a flight attendant that carries a bottle of white wine in one hand and red in the other. The flight attendants always had a nice smile--even when one was in their way. The ladies looked like dolls--so thin. The video choices have been very limited on this flight. The did have CNN International in English and they had a video on how to stretch, but they are not offering the great movie selection as was had on the Atlanta to Seoul flight. There were four toilets near me and one was for Ladies only. I’ve never seen that on a plane. The flight went over China, and Vietnam.

I arrived in Bangkok at 11:00 p.m. Saturday evening (11:00 a.m. Saturday in Florida), went to the ATM machine and found cash. The airport was a madhouse. Many flights had just landed. Immigration took about 20 minutes. I took the metered taxi to my downtown hotel for 700 or about $22.00. For a 40 minute trip, the price was cheap. I went to bed Saturday night at 1:00 a.m. and did not wake up until 7:30 a.m. Sunday morning.

Hope you all have a great Christmas.