After one final farewell to family over lunch, Mark, Adalyn and I along with our 11 checked bags, 6 carry-ons, 1 stroller and a car seat later we arrived at the airport for our journey. Black and Veatch was gracious to put us in first class for our flights so we were well taken care of. We also only had to pay for 2 of the 11 suitcases so that was nice for our wallet. Upon boarding the first leg of our flight, KC to Atlanta, we enjoyed all the first class cabin had to offer. The extra wide seats and leg room was nice along with the personal service. Once landing in Atlanta we had a short layover, 1 hour, which was just enough time to get us to the next gate. The next leg of our journey from Atlanta to Johannesburg was long, 15 hours, but the new experience of flying first class internationally was a treat.
Once boarding the plane, we immediately realized that the seats or "pods" as I think they resembled, were not '"together" but had patricians between them so you could not see each other except across the aisle. We switched seats with a nice gentlemen so we would have better access to each other but little did I realize that there was really no good seating arrangement for taking care of a 2 year old on this flight. During "take off" Adalyn could not sit with us but had to be in her own seat. Had I thought of that I could have prepared her but since I did not she cried all during take off. I felt horrible for her as all she wanted was to sit with me. Once we got to the right altitude for seat belts to be undone, Adalyn enjoyed all the Disney TV she could take in. We also became friends with the couple behind us and after hearing they paid $13,000 per seat I prayed even harder this flight would go smoothly for Adalyn so the pour couple could get the experience they paid for.
After our take-off round of champagne, we were served a nice meal, then it was time for us to figure out how to sleep in these pods. It was nice that they layed down flat, but Adalyn was not about to sleep by herself. So our 2 hour "let's go to sleep" routine began. First with Adalyn and I together in one pod, then she wanted to be on her own which would last for about 10 minutes then she would join me for about 30 minutes and back to her own pod again......this routine went on for a while before she finally wore herself out. It is amazing how a mom can cram herself into any position just for the sake of her child. I was grateful she got a good rest and I could sleep a bit. I will say that I slept better crammed with my 2 year old in 1st class then I did by myself in Coach earlier this year. There is something to be said about being able to lay down and sleep versus in a reclining position.
With only 2 hours left in the flight and since it was 3pm in Johannesburg we figured we better wake Adalyn up so her sleeping patterns were not totally out of wack. A nice breakfast followed by more Disney TV because who wants to play with toys while sitting in a seat where there is a tv just for you right at your eye level. This time I was more prepared for the landing of Adalyn by herself in her own pod so I stacked it full of toys and snacks and she did wonderfully. Once the plan landed the people around us praised her for how well she did and thanked us. We just felt grateful it went smoothly. Sadly I was not able to enjoy all 1st class air travel has to offer. Though I was able to see about 4 Disney shows with Adalyn on my lap, they were all silent as only one head phone worked per pod and of course she monopolized it. So no movies or comfortable sleeping or even relaxing meals for me. I am sure you are wondering "where is Mark?", well since moving out of our house and quitting work, Adalyn has become super attached to me that even if he wants to help, all we here is "no, Mommy do it", so he was able to thoroughly enjoy the flight except for when he was my gofer.
Thankfully our trip was a success and uneventful. I hope to travel 1st class again, but next time I just might go without a toddler.
No comments:
Post a Comment