I'm so tired I can't even think...
One of the downsides of getting rebooked on a different flight so close to departure, you're more likely to get stuck in a middle seat. And so it was for me. I'm an aisle person; I like to get up and walk around every couple hours when flying. Unfortunately, the best the ticket agent could offer was to suggest asking the agents at the gate counter or pay $49 to get a 'premium' seat. I decided to try the former.
Now that I was rebooked and had four hours before boarding, I hung out at the main terminal area where they have all the restaurants and shops. I found a rocking chair with a table right at the window so once settled, I finally had a chance to enjoy one of Anton's homemade cinnamon raisin bagels!
The week or two before I learned that Sally and I were departing and returning on the same dates from our respective trips. (Earlier this summer Sally, learned that the volunteer program in Russia where she had volunteered was closing, and before they did that, she wanted to visit the facility and people one last time.) When my flight got rebooked, I ended up on the same flight as Sally to AMS! It was nice having a friend to wait with at the gate.
Oh yes, at the gate...so after hanging out at the main terminal for a couple hours, facebooking and blogging on Amy's laptop, I grabbed my holiday usual from Starbucks - grande, single decaf soy gingerbread latte - and took the train to gate S1. There was a short line when I got to the gate counter so I patiently waited, trying to figure out what I could say that would guarantee a free seat upgrade. Once my turn came up, I stuck with the simple: I got rebooked onto this flight, any chance there is an aisle seat? The agent asked for my boarding pass and a few seconds later, she handed me a new boarding pass with a new aisle seat - score! What was even better - I moved from row 33 to row 21! I was so happy and thankful. In fact, I was so happy I forgot to ask if my vegetarian meal preference had also made the rebooking but decided not to worry about that.
Another upside to traveling with a friend, you can watch each other's stuff when taking a snack/bathroom break. It's always so cumbersome to have to walk into the bathroom stall with all your stuff or taking the chance that the person sitting near you will watch your stuff while stepping away for a few minutes.
...
Finally on the plane...I don't know if it's the sociology major in me, but it's always interesting to watch people as they board and see what passes for carry-on luggage nowadays with all the luggage charges. A lot of babies and toddlers on the flight, too. One older gentleman caught my attention. He was dressed full on western style, from the cowboy hat, plaid shirt, blue jeans and boots.
Once I was seated and settle, I went through my flight ritual - prayed, "read" through the emergency instructions, and looked through the airline magazine to see which movies were available. Boarding began at 12:30 and since my phone was off and I don't wear a watch, not sure how long it took everyone to board but I think we left late. The flight itself was uneventful. I've flown Seattle to AMS several times but for some reason, this time the flight felt extra long. The inflight entertainment options were just so-so. I ended up skipping through The Dark Knight Rises and Captain America. I started Brave but decided to nap a few minutes into it.
Food. Many of my friends know that my dad always packs a ton of food for my flights. As past photos have shown, there's usually enough for 2-3 meals. This time around, he kept it simple with a bag of fruit since I had already packed some stuff. The extra food worked out well for me this time because my meal preference didn't transfer with my new booking - sad. One of the best parts of ordering a special meal is that your food always comes out first. No waiting for the flight attendants to make it down to your row, because for some reason, they always serve from the front of the plane. Needless to say, as I watched folks around me getting their special meal, I realized I wasn't, and when I asked the flight attendant, she confirmed I didn't have any special meal requests recorded. Some times this can work out. There are usually two regular meal options and in my past experiences, one is always a pasta, usually vegetarian. However, before I could find out what was being served, the flight attendant returned with a vegetarian meal. "It's your lucky day," she said as she handed me a vegetarian meal tray, "Someone declined the meal so we had an extra." Yes, it definitely was my lucky day - from getting rebooked to a direct flight that would get me in early enough to make it to church to getting an aisle seat towards the front of the plane - my trip was getting off to a pretty good start. The snack didn't work out in my favor but the final meal (breakfast) did - plain bagel with cream cheese, banana, granola bar and OJ. It was a nice alternative to the cheese & egg breakfast muffin. However, since I had been thinking about breakfast sandwiches the last couple weeks, I took one of those too.
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