Through a comedy of errors, my originally-scheduled Delta/Northwest/Pinnacle flight from Wichita to Atlanta to Raleigh was delayed by 19 hours and magically changed into an American Airlines flight from Wichita to Dallas to Raleigh. As an added bonus, somewhere along the line of running from airline counter to airline counter and back again (for about 2 hours) in Wichita, a kind sir bumped me to first class. Outta sight.
I had never flown first class, and I may never get the chance again, so I have to document it for posterity. There are things I didn't know about those people we see as we board our tiny economy seat thirty rows back.
Thing one: You get your own flight attendant, just for the first-class section. She also knows your name and refers to you as such.
Thing two: You are seated so fast you can read through all three magazines before the rest of the plane fills up. Yes, I said three. In first class you get Sky Mall, the American Airlines magazine of the month, and then another special fancy-pants American Airlines mag just for first-class passengers. It has ads for plastic surgeons and spas and resorts and such.
Thing three: As a result of being seated so quickly, you are offered ice water to sip as the rest of the passengers board, in case you're parched. It's actually the passengers waiting in the heat of the crowded jetbridge who probably could use a sip of water, but the flight attendant makes you feel worthy of the beverage for the inconvenience of all this waiting on everyone else.
Thing four: You are almost immediately offered a drink (in a REAL GLASS) and a little bowl of warm mixed nuts (in a REAL CERAMIC BOWL). This is thrilling.
Thing five: You can't have salty fingers after said snack, so of course you must take the warm towel.
Thing six: Minutes later the lunch cart arrives. Lunch?! Being a first-class rookie, I grabbed whatever I could find in the terminal for lunch before boarding my second flight. After all, it was a 2:30-6:00 PM flight and I didn't think lunch would be served. But in first-class, there will be meals. I was offered a BBQ Chicken Salad or a Calzone. I declined, and was then offered:
Thing seven: WARM, GOOEY, DELICIOUS COOKIES. Served directly off the baking sheet. Heaven.
Thing eight: I believe that those who chose to partake in the adult beverages were not charged as one would be in economy class. I saw no credit cards or cash exchange hands as wine goblets were refilled and drinks were mixed.
Thing nine: Leg room. Hip room. Arm room. Headrests that you can push up on the sides to support your head and help you sleep.
Thing ten: Blankets.
And just like that, I did not experience any full-on spewing illness on the way home from Kansas. I told Jonthan that I just need to fly first-class and everything should be fine.
Comments