Get me off this Plane..........Please

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Monday July 19, 2010

Traveling is never fun, or at least the part required to get from point A to point B. Our flight was due to leave Beijing at 6:50am the morning of Monday, July 19th. Which meant that we had to be up and downstairs by 4:30am. That is the middle of the night for everybody but Irene! Somehow I managed to get myself up and dressed and into the cab. Rich closed out our check at the hotel, and true to Chinese hospitality they had already checked our room. The hotel clerk said Mr. DeLuca you left a bottle of wine in your room did you want it, we said no because we had decided a $10 bottle of wine in our checked luggage was not worth losing clothes and gifts if it broke. She then said, oh ok. Oh you did have a coke out of your refrigerator so that is $3.00. Too funny this was exactly what the GM had said to us, that he could not get his employees to see grey areas. So Rich paid the $3.00 and we were on our way.

We arrived at the airport without any delays and proceeded to check in. Rich was in Business class and I was in coach, true to his ever present hospitality he offered me Business Class. It was for the first leg of our trip to Japan. You see since I am traveling on miles we end up sometimes not taking the most direct routes. So I graciously accepted his offer although I really did feel bad. Ok, ladies and gentleman it was Heaven. The seat folded out to a BED! So Rich thinks I am up there having cocktails and watching movies and I slept for most of the 3 hour trip.

We landed in Japan and proceeded to find the Delta Sky Lounge, you see we had a SEVEN HOUR lay over, once again due to my flying status which I think is one level below Domestic Animals we sometimes have to put with some minor inconveniences ! We settled in for the day and basically set up camp near a plug and the bar. Unfortunately due to Visa regulations etc. we could not leave the airport to see any of Japan. So we munched on the limited items available and had a few cocktails making the time pass. Our seats for the next leg were not together and neither of them were very good. I had a window seat in a row with three people and Rich had an aisle seat in the middle section of the plane. We tried to change our seats to at least be together but we were told that the flight was full and there were no other options. So much for Rich's flying status. So we say our goodbyes and proceed to our seats.

Now I am hardly a large person but I swear they have put these rows closer together. I literally had to fold myself up to get into my seat. I placed my Vera Bradley bag under the seat in front of me because that is where I always store all the items I need for a seven and a half hour flight, such as aspirin, wet wipes, books etc. It is also is a great foot rest. I take out my own travel pillow and travel blanket and proceed to try to get comfortable. It quickly becomes apparent this is going to be impossible. I tried every angle imaginable and just could not sleep or even get comfortable. I watched a couple of movies and honestly just prayed that this flight would end. By now my head was pounding, I was feeling dehydrated and you guessed it I could not even get my nice Vera Bradley bag out to reach my aspirin. I do not know why this leg of the trip was so hard, but when we finally got off and I saw Rich he said...How do you feel? I said like a piece of crap. Let's just say I looked so bad that the customs agent said to me, "You had a very long flight ? " I said yes, very long he said "you need to go get some rest !" Ok here is a custom agent that probably sees the worst of the worst entering Singapore and he takes one look at me stamps by passport and says Go to Bed! So Rich and I downed aspirin without water which made me almost gag myself to death and headed to our hotel. As soon as we exited the airport we were thrilled to see Singapore. Singapore is a beautiful city, it is very clean, green and safe. It is honestly one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been to. The first time we had visited Singapore I did not understand why so many people talked about how clean Singapore was. After seeing other parts of Asia, I truly understand.

We had decided to stay at the same hotel we had stayed at before because it is a wonderful luxury hotel in a great location. They have a great Executive lounge and go out of their way to make your stay comfortable. Upon our arrival at 3am Tuesday morning... we were told that they had upgraded us to a suite. Hello Singapore, we have missed you.

I cannot tell you how happy we were to get to bed. I am not sure what time I will wake up!

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Photos

Singapore
Yeah BED

Treat
This was waiting in our room for us........we ate all the chocolates..but this flower is all made out of white chocolate. Amazing

Singapore
Skyline View from Hotel Suite