Over the Top of the World

We booked on Emirates Air for our flight from Durban to Los Angeles via Dubai. The flight plan called for 24.5 hours of actual flying time plus a three hour layover in Dubai. We would be traveling a total of  14,700 air miles… half way around the world. From Durban to Dubai, we'd fly on a Boeing 777-300ER, a big plane. On the non-stop leg from Dubai to LAX, however, we'd be flying on an Airbus 380, the world's largest passenger jet at close to the speed of sound (.8 of Mach 1).

The flight to Dubai was uneventful… the best kind. I'd stopped in Dubai on my way to and from Boston in December, but David had never been. Like me, he was impressed with the opulence and class of the airport. We particularly like the back-projected “tourist guide” in flowing white desert garb offering information to airport visitors. He was a bit unnerving as his eyes seemed to follow our every move as we passed.

After a coffee and croissant at Starbucks which put us back about $16 US and a stroll around the airport shops to stretch our legs, we headed to our departure gate. I got a kick when we got our seat assignments to Los Angeles. We were in seats 84H and 84K. Who knew any plane had that many rows? Talk about being in the back of the bus!

We left on time and had a chance to view Dubai from our 84K window seat. It looks to be a lovely city and we're hoping to have a little extra time on our return leg to explore, though a 14 hour layover from 8PM to 10AM doesn't afford the best touring times of the city.

We wondered what our flight path would be … east to west or west to east. Well, it was neither. It was over the top, flying the Great Circle Route. Take a piece of string and a globe, and place one end on Dubai and the other end at Los Angeles. The quickest, most direct route is over the North Pole and that's just what we did.

We watched several of the 400 movies offered aboard. We played games on our iPads. We dozed fitfully. We read. We noshed. Every meal and snack served was gobbled up. After what seemed like an eternity, I checked the time to destination … only 11 hours left. Time was flying … literally. When we neared the North Pole, we kept an eye on the flight map. We tried to get our iPad GPS to locate us, but to no avail. We had to rely on the flight map. By the way, there was no sign of Santa at the North Pole. We're thinking he might have been vacationing in the Carib somewhere.

We arrived in Los Angeles right on time. Waiting to debark the plane from our hinterland seats took awhile. All our luggage arrived with us and Immigration and Customs were a breeze. We still had a 4 hour drive to Las Vegas ahead of us. We knew we'd be tired and had booked a room in Barstow, California, about half way to Vegas. We picked up the rental car and headed out into the cool, brown haze of an LA afternoon.

Getting There...Boston-Nashville-Las Vegas

Lin dropped me at Boston's Logan Airport early at my request. I had two large duffels filled to capacity with boat parts and miscellany. Add to that a carry-on suitcase and a large “purse” which accommodated my new laptop, my iPad, my Kindle and then other less important stuff like my wallet, passport and ticket info. I had my hands full. Remember, I had originally planned to fly directly back to Perth, Australia. Stopping in Las Vegas was not the plan. Luckily Southwest offers two free checked bags up to 50# each (really!) that I was able to check at the curb, no less. I already had my boarding passes and headed straight to the gates. In all the times I've flown out of Boston, I don't think I've ever flown out of its “E” gates, usually reserved for international flights. Something new and different.  

The TSA security check line was long, but moved very quickly. A pleasant surprise was the line-up of white rocking chairs facing the planes and runways as I exited Security. Close to my departure gate, I spotted an empty rocker that seemed to call my name (it had a lobster painted on it) and I claimed it in a nanosecond. I sat down, rocked slowly back and forth and began to watch the show.

I spotted an AerLingus jet arriving next to the Southwest jet I would be boarding and I couldn't help wonder who might be coming or subsequently leaving on that plane. My Irish-American cousins make the trip to Ireland quite often. They stay in castles and cottages and roam the countryside and I daydreamed that David and I might sail there some day. It's easy to daydream while you're rocking.

I watched the tons and tons of luggage being shuttled around from plane to plane. No wonder my luggage barely survives one flight before giving up the ghost. These guys are not gentle. Then I spotted two legless, abandoned plastic pink flamingos sitting on the tarmac and wondered what their story was.

We boarded on time and were off. No drama at all. Though it was open seating and the flight seemed full, I got a great seat close to the front with plenty of room to stow my carry-ons and a good view of the city as we took off. I waved goodbye to beautiful Boston and felt a twinge of regret and sadness in my heart. Next stop … Nashville.

We arrived early. Figures … I had a 3-hour layover. I've visited Nashville in the past. It's a country music city: Grand Ole Opry, Honky Tonk Highway, Country Music Hall of Fame … nothing open at the airport though. After all, it was after 6PM on a Saturday night. Even the Burger King was closed. I finally found a place for a salad, dawdled a bit over my romaine lettuce and then set out to see whatever there was to see to while away the rest of my layover time. It turned out the comic strip character, Nancy, hailed from Nashville … at least her creator, Ernie Bushmiller did, and there was a display dedicated to her. That took up a good 10 minutes.

Next, I spotted some art on the ceiling. Entitled Spectrum Wind by Duncan McDaniel, this was a conduit and colored plastic cup artwork funded by Arts at the Airport. Hmm … I stopped to photograph it … looking up to do so. Several people stopped and looked up, too. We shared a few comments. Another 5 minutes gone … just like that.

The flight was delayed another 45 minutes. I waited impatiently. I fidgeted. We finally boarded and I got a seat next to an old codger who insisted on talking incessantly ... even when I feigned sleep. Nearly 5 hours later, my left ear numb from the chatterbox next to me, we arrived in Las Vegas. I made my way out of the security area, eyes peeled for that familiar face. And there was David with a big smile and an iPad sign for his arriving passenger. It's good to be home … and home is wherever David is.