I hadn’t flown since the 1990’s, so I was a little apprehensive – again, no problems with making it from point A to point B. Before you relax too much, look at how much time you’ll have between landing and boarding for the next flight. Budget at least 20 minutes to get off the airplane with all your stuff and walk to a concourse. From there, the trick is to know where you’re going and what you’re doing. In most cases, your boarding passes or tickets will have all the information you need on them – flight numbers, time you’re leaving, and sometimes what gateyou’re leaving from. If confused, lost, or worried, ask your fellow passengers – most people will help if you ask nicely.
Another thing I noticed while flying was the food. The last time I flew, the meal while on-board was something purporting to be meat that tasted like room-temperature cardboard. While flying from Detriot to Tokyo, I was handed a card with the meal selection and options for the flight. My options were the following:
“Beef with black pepper sauce, rice, and vegetable mix”
or
“Roasted chicken breast with asiago and parmesan crust, carrot and rice mix, green beans”
It was hardly a five-course meal of fine dining, but it actually tasted decent – like a meal you nuke for a few minutes after getting off of work…
Deep vein thrombosis sucks – just ask anyone who’s flown on a long flight. Deep vein thrombosis (also known as economy class syndrome) is what you get when you sit in the same position for hours at a time on a long flight. It’s basically a clot in your leg that is created from inactivity. I had heard about it before I left, and the pilot warned about it before the LOOONNNGGG flight from Detroit to Tokyo (over 6,000 miles and 12 hours+ in the air). Like many of the other passengers, getting up to use the bathroom turned into an exercise – use the bathroom, find an empty spot and stretch what you can. If you’re of the self-conscious nature, now’s the time to get over it – a little odd stretching is better than having the visit the hospital of wherever you’re going.
Now, for some pictures…
The Detroit International Airport.
The overhead light at Detroit International Airport through one of the concourses.
Alaskan mountains underneath while flying from Detroit from Tokyo-Narita.
Welcome to Japan baby! I made it – even though I’m only here for a little over an hour between flights.
Welcome to Korea 🙂
