The Happiest Place on Earth is Not Disneyworld

It’s a Singapore Airlines flight. The rankings do not lie and this is definitely one of the best airlines in the world and better than our few experiences in first class. There is no need to buy a first class ticket on Singapore Airlines because, with the exception of a little leg room, you have everything you need back in coach. That said, factoring in the amenities the leg room was ample (far more civilized a space than any United Airlines flight we’ve ever been on).

To say we were dreading our flights from Christchurch to Singapore and then from Singapore to Beijing is an understatement. So you can imagine our excitement when we boarded the flight and pulled out the in-flight entertainment magazine and realized we would not be forced to watch crappy movie #1, movie #2 that we've already seen or Bio-dome with Pauly Shore. WE GOT TO PICK WHAT WE WOULD WATCH ON OUR OWN SCREEN. Even having spent the last 9 weeks in the western countries of Australia and New Zealand, this luxury was almost too much to comprehend. And the selection included 80 un-edited international movies (including Thank You For Smoking which hadn’t even opened in New Zealand before we left), 105 different television shows including American and British sitcoms, travel shows, and cooking shows, 180 international cds and probably at least 50 video games. Suddenly our 10 hour flight to Singapore seemed a bit short and Roger actually had to make a list of everything he wanted to watch so that he didn’t miss anything. Our plans to catch up on the blog and read our China guidebook flew out the window.

Along with a few classic episodes of the American version of The Office, Arrested Development and Scrubs, we discovered a couple of British comedies that we will hopefully be able to find again (but we suspect they may make their way to America like The Office did). One is called Extras and was created by Ricky Gervais (who created the British version of The Office) and is about an actor who spends his days as an extra on film sets and so each week involves guest stars and the episode we watched starred Samuel Jackson. The other is called My Life in Film and stars the guy from Love Actually who went to America to meet girls. It is one of the funniest shows we have ever seen and had us crying on the plane. It is about a guy who is a filmmaker who hasn’t made everything but who turns everyday adventures into movie scripts which means that each episode reworks the plot of a popular film. Top Gun was reworked in the episode that we watched so that the stars fifth failed driving test lead him to driving school where he finds an archenemy and lands the teacher. If there is a way to get your hands on this show from America do so. It is fantastic.

As if the in-flight entertainment wasn’t enough, the food was definitely a large step up from typical airplane food, you get a hot towel as well as socks, toothpaste and a toothbrush and the drinks are free. Guess who couldn’t pass up 2 free Singapore Slings? Who wants to sign our petition requesting that Singapore Airlines start a domestic route from Washington, DC.?

After as pleasant a ten hours of flying as we’ve had we were still groggy and a little disheartened at the five hour layover in Singapore and the six hour flight on to Beijing. Just as the Singapore Airlines offerings soothed our souls so has the Singapore Changi Airport. We thought the budget terminal was nice, but this place is like a Las Vegas hotel. There’s gaming, a mall, hotel rooms and lounges, showers, a gym, a free movie theater, massage chairs, a 7-11 (regrettably without a Slurpee machine), fish ponds, free internet, and high quality food. For more ambitious travelers they even offer city tours from the airport for those with layovers of four to six hours.

We’re posting this as we prepare to board our plane to Beijing. If for some reason the next time you hear from us we are still in this airport don’t be too surprised. We hear Beijing is quite hot just now and the air conditioning and the other goodies here may just wear us down….

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