Last week I flew from San Francisco to Hong Kong. Because of extra strong headwinds, the flight was a whopper in length–14 hours and 30 minutes! (that’s long, even for me) But I was rewarded with some VERY rare clear views of Siberia:
And I bet the real estate is cheap in this neighborhood:
Okay, on to the Hotel Diva thing. It’s all United’s fault. When we travel overseas, security and safety are important factors for the crew, and the airline takes this seriously, especially since 9-11. But in order to ensure the best security for the crews, top notch hotels must be selected. So wherever I layover internationally, it’s in a 4 or 5 star hotel. Over the years, I’ve gotten so used to this that when I travel with my family, I find my 3-star budget hampers my 5-star taste in accommodations! When I walk into the room, I expect thick towels, luxury soaps, granite or marble bathrooms, deep feather beds with loads of pillows… Anything less is, well, just mass-market. Now, if only I could figure out how to get my 3-star traveling budget up to match my 5-star tastes… Although these photos don’t do the views justice, I wanted to share:
That’s it for now. I’ll report in from Sydney at the end of the month.
