Bangkok Here We Come

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We left home at 7AM yesterday and arrive here at 7PM. It was really only about 24 hours on the road (in the air) but we arrived!

Our first order of business is to find out if the Sky Train really does run from the airport to our hotel on Sukumvit. It doesn't yet. The superwsturcture is in place, the track is laid, the tet runs with the trains have been run, the Grand Openng was a month ago, but still not trains from the airport.

As I write this it’s about 3AM Minneapolis time and 4PM Bangkok time. I’m not sure if that qualifies for this still being the first day, or if we’ve moved on to Day 2. At any rate, we’re flying the third leg of our air travel, a 5-hour jaunt from Seoul to Bangkok on a Boeing 777. This is our second Korean Air flight. The first one was a lovely 14-hour marathon from Chicago to Seoul.

My memories from my last trip on Korean Air were confirmed as being one of my favorite air lines. The last time it was in Business Class and I think I’ve never had such wonderful service. This time, we’re in coach and short of being in Business or First Class, this was the best service ever also.

They also served a choice of entrées that included my favorite Korean meal, bibimbap. When they came around and offered a choice of meals, she told me bibimbap or … and I didn’t even let her finish, I jumped on my favorite. Loren says the other choice was roast beef, but you can get that anywhere.

Loren even got instructions to go with his and was so impressed that he took a picture of the instructions.

Bibimbap is delivered as a plate containing various vegetables, meats and delicacies artfully place in a low bowl. Accompanying is another container of white rice and packets containing sesame oil and Korean chili paste. You use a long-handled soup spoon looking thingy to mix the rice with the veggies and then add in the oil and chili paste. Once done, it is delicious. This has to be the best airline meal ever.

Korean Air stewardesses are all cute as little buttons and their ribbon in the back of their hair is most becoming. The ratio of flight attendants to passengers in cattle class has to be the highest in the industry. We were seated near the back of our 747 (Chicago to Seoul) and it seemed like the attendants where at our elbow all the time. The only complaint I had is that one of the cuter stews who came around with water and orange juice on a tray for the umpteenth time wasn’t adept enough to compensate for this clumsy old codger from Minneapolis (the one with the hair). We managed (I can’t blame it all on her) to spill first a little orange juice on my shirt sleeve. In trying to recover, another entire glass made it down the side of the shirt. Fortunately, I still had my throw-away sweater in my carryon and was able to dry myself off pretty well, change into the sweater and rinse out the shirt in the bathroom. She then found a hanger and a place to dry it out for the remaining 3 or so hours of the trip.

I’m convinced that on most other airlines I’d have been sitting in my wet shirt for the duration. But then on most other airlines I wouldn’t have had as many opportunities to spill orange juice on myself. Er, rather, for the flight attendant to spill …

Once we arrived in Seoul we had about an hour to get from our first Korean flight to our second. We had to go through security again and the lineup was ponderous. I was afraid that we would be cutting it short to get to our next flight. Not to worry, we had tens of minutes to spare and the signage at Incheon is impressive.

Oops, we’re nearly half way to Bangkok and here comes the dinner cart . I’ll probably put on five pounds before we ever get to Bangkok, where we can do some serious eating.

A half hour later: false alarm! The only choices were chicken and beef. The beef was pretty much an airline meal with a little extra spice. The food was merely passable, but the service is still impeccable.

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Photos

View from Loren's Back Door
yep, that's a lake out there an yep, it's frozen and covered with snow

Bibimbap
Loren's instructions for mixing his lunch