Business class
So it’s not every day that children fly in business class. I, myself, hadn’t flown in business since my dear Dad upgraded my ticket with miles when I was flying to London during college to study abroad. Also happened to be my 20th birthday. We try to get into economy plus whenever possible, but business class is a whole different story, not to mention expense!
Well, we showed up in the Newark airport (after a 1.5 hr. delay in Kansas) and had to go to the gate for our boarding passes. Turns out the plane that showed up was smaller than the one that was booked, so all the seat assignments had to change. When it was my turn, the kind lady explained they would have to refund the extra money I paid for economy plus as they were full. She moved me to her colleague. This was not sitting well with me as it’s an overnight flight and both kids sleep better the more room they have. The other woman started to work on it and I just casually asked how they decided who got to sit in economy plus (those who paid for it like me or those who were upgraded to it for status)? After a few moments, she handed me my boarding passes and said very quietly, “I’ve upgraded you to business class, please don’t broadcast this.” Wow!
When we got on the plane, the kids were a hoot! “These seats are HUGE!” “Mom, you get your own light for reading!” “Did you get a package with a toothbrush in it also? Free socks!!” Paul was trying his best to keep them a little quieter, but I just kept laughing. Within minutes of getting on the plane, we are offered water, juice, or champagne. Not one to turn down a glass of champagne, I’m now as happy as the kids! :) Then comes the trolley with magazines and newspapers. (Still wish I had taken a picture of Nicholas reading the sports section of the USA Today next to Paul reading the business section.) As we looked around it was clear the gate crew in Newark had no clue what they were doing.... no less than 10 of the 30 seats in business class had kids < 10 years old sitting in them. The “regular” business class passengers were noticing the same, and they looked a little nervous!
Warm nuts arrive, and I know this is going to be a great trip. I lean over to the kids and say, “Please do not get use to flying like this. This is a special day.” That sparked a lot of questions about how much the seats cost and why she moved us up here. (We looked it up and showed the kids when we got home: $1,100 coach vs $4,200 business... x4 travelers = NEVER AGAIN!) Paul is desperate to keep their voices down as he doesn’t want to alert the other passengers we didn’t pay for these seats. We are briefly excited to watch the movie “A Dolphin Tale” but then the flight attendant announces that while the January magazines were delivered to the plane, the January movies were not. December kid’s movie was “The Lion King” and not a huge hit in our row.
A warm towel is next and brings with it a sense of relaxation. We are given menus for dinner which include salmon carpaccio and a mixed green salad for starters; braised beef short ribs, or boursin stuffed chicken breast, or mediterranean style ravioli for the main dish; and either cheese/grapes/crackers or ice cream for dessert. (Yes, I did keep the menu. Had to get it correct for the blog!) White and red wine or beer are also offered, so you know I had a glass of that. Luckily, I had ordered kids meals and they arrived with chicken pieces, fries, yogurt, and animal crackers. Life was good! I cannot get over how many times they come by with wine while you are eating. One could get drunk if not paying attention. Not wanting to fall into this category while traveling with kids, I had to cut myself off after 2 glasses. Dessert arrived a little late as during the service we hit some bad turbulence and the flight attendants had to sit down. 3 out of the 4 of us didn’t want to go to sleep without our ice cream. :)
Three hours into the 7 hour flight, we convinced the kids it was time to sleep. Seats were reclined... and reclined... and reclined some more, eye masks (which were provided with the toothpaste) were put on, blankets tucked in. Kids and Paul were asleep in minutes. I was convinced this was going to be my best sleep on an overnight flight yet. I hate to tell you, this is where the joy of the flight in business class ended. On the other side of the plane a dad was either trying to teach his kid to cry it out without consoling him, force him to sleep without a pacifier, or the kid had an earache. Regardless, this child (who was not a baby, but at least 3 or 4 years old) cried uncontrollably for the next few hours. There were times of quiet, but they did not last long. I am sure there was not a mom on the plane within earshot that was getting any sleep. Even with the champagne, wine, and eye masks, I couldn’t relax. It was terrible. When the kid finally passed out, I did too, but then heard the flight attendants come around and whisper, “Would you like breakfast this morning?” I was delirious. The rest of my family was out cold so I kept at it. Next thing I knew, we had to put our seat backs and tray tables up in preparation for landing. And that, my friends, is the start to a bad week of jet lag!
