CanarsieApproach
07-31-2008, 03:31 AM
Well for my vacation I completed a total of six flights. As my worst fear revolves around thunderstorms because of flight from LGA to DCA during a hellish summer storm in DC, I was worried, imagining all the terrible storms that monsoon in SE Asia could throw at me. And of course a typhoon was in the middle of my Tokyo to BKK flight path. yet I did it, and I learned something about myself. Sorry no flight pics but many vacation pics will be coming soon.
17 July JAL JFK - NRT Boeing 747-400 aisle seat.
I was ready to cancel but thought my wife would kill me as she was already in Thailand.
Before take-off, captain Watanabe warned us that the flight would be bumpy. A beautiful and surprisingly fast take off considering heat and fuel and we were flying north west over New York. As I was getting my drinks, we hit some clear air turbulence. Cabin crew were instructed to stop service and take seats immediately. I imagined the plane slicing through the air the way a speedboat slices through the waters, I visualized the air holding us up. The turbulence lasted the better part of two hours, and it just became reality. I dealt with it and it wasn't so scary after that. I slept most of the rest of the flight. Woke up over Hokkaido, more CAT plus showery weather in Tokyo meant for a few bumps, but I was unphased.
18 July JAL NRT - BKK
Five hours during monsoon season and I imagine dodging one thunderstorm after another - which we did, yet it wasn't so bad. We did hit some pretty good turbulence as we dodged the afore mentioned typhoon. Strong enough to wake some people up and elicit nervous glances amongst other pax, but visualizing myself and my plane slicing through the rough air like a killer sub was re-assuring. On the FF scale ANY bump is severe, but I can say judging by whether or not I felt any strain on my seatbelt, a pilot would report only one or two instances hitting moderate. Bumpy again dodging storms near the end - saw some lightning as we were on final approach to BKK - thankfully at the other end of the airport (JAL has this pilot's eye view thing on the video screens), but by then my visualizations were working so well, I was reading or looking out the window. Success indeed.
Still it is a royal pain not to be able to go to the bathroom on a six hour flight. Especially when you had two beers at the airport. lesson for dealing with turbulence, go before you go!
Bangkok was wild, wonderful, and much wealthier than I remember even ten years ago. The skytrain was like out of science fiction, the food, crowds, and the great Thai people were the same.
20 July Bangkok Airways BKK to REP (Siem Reap, Cambodia)
Short hop raining in BKK, but really only minor turbulence as we went through it. On this 40 minute flight they actually managed to serve breakfast.
Angkor was amazing and gorgeous. Siem Reap (town near Angkor) is well on its way to being the Las Vegas of SE Asia; forget any wild lonely planet adventures. But then again, if I were a desperately poor country with mouths to feed, I'd Vegas it out for the tourists to spend bucks too.
24 July Bangkok Airways REP (Siem Reap Cambodia) - BKK
My first flight on a 717. fast take-off, great views, not a single bump.
27 July JAL BKK - NRT
Well I was nervous as BKK became the typical rainy showery hot and humid city. Yet we took off and nary a bump until outside of Taiwan where *another* typhoon meant we had to dodge again. This was actually a bit bumpier than the one going down and my seatmate was visibly nervous. Language barriers meant it was difficult to impart my newfound wisdom, but I did manage to pee before takeoff, so I just put on relaxing music and was one with the dancing plane. Rest of the flight was smooth as silk.
Why you should always tell the gate agent you are a fearful flyer - we came to the airport VERY early to get good seats and my wife was insistent for an aisle in the back, so if the plane was empty she could sleep across several seats. I told the agent that I was a fearful flyer and if there was an aisle as close to the middle as possible, it would help me out and I didn't necessarily have to sit with my wife. Well she booked me into an aisle in economy plus, while wife was in back in steerage. Of course being a chivalrous gentleman I would've switched but I honestly thought since it was a new plane that they just duded up economy! I had no idea I scored an upgrade. Wife was pissed!
28 July JAL NRT - JFK
No luck with economy plus but I did get the top level, which on Japan airlines is economy. only light bits of CAT over Hokkaido and from Detroit to JFK, which we were warned about before take-off, but honestly, by that point I read and slept, didn't even care, I didn't even fell like a fearful flyer anymore. I felt like those people who go on a plane the way I take the subway to work.
So that's it. Allow me to crow a bit. I might have a short hop to Florida to visit parental units, else it is my next big trip to India in October (company's global IT conference) can't wait. Really, can't wait.
17 July JAL JFK - NRT Boeing 747-400 aisle seat.
I was ready to cancel but thought my wife would kill me as she was already in Thailand.
Before take-off, captain Watanabe warned us that the flight would be bumpy. A beautiful and surprisingly fast take off considering heat and fuel and we were flying north west over New York. As I was getting my drinks, we hit some clear air turbulence. Cabin crew were instructed to stop service and take seats immediately. I imagined the plane slicing through the air the way a speedboat slices through the waters, I visualized the air holding us up. The turbulence lasted the better part of two hours, and it just became reality. I dealt with it and it wasn't so scary after that. I slept most of the rest of the flight. Woke up over Hokkaido, more CAT plus showery weather in Tokyo meant for a few bumps, but I was unphased.
18 July JAL NRT - BKK
Five hours during monsoon season and I imagine dodging one thunderstorm after another - which we did, yet it wasn't so bad. We did hit some pretty good turbulence as we dodged the afore mentioned typhoon. Strong enough to wake some people up and elicit nervous glances amongst other pax, but visualizing myself and my plane slicing through the rough air like a killer sub was re-assuring. On the FF scale ANY bump is severe, but I can say judging by whether or not I felt any strain on my seatbelt, a pilot would report only one or two instances hitting moderate. Bumpy again dodging storms near the end - saw some lightning as we were on final approach to BKK - thankfully at the other end of the airport (JAL has this pilot's eye view thing on the video screens), but by then my visualizations were working so well, I was reading or looking out the window. Success indeed.
Still it is a royal pain not to be able to go to the bathroom on a six hour flight. Especially when you had two beers at the airport. lesson for dealing with turbulence, go before you go!
Bangkok was wild, wonderful, and much wealthier than I remember even ten years ago. The skytrain was like out of science fiction, the food, crowds, and the great Thai people were the same.
20 July Bangkok Airways BKK to REP (Siem Reap, Cambodia)
Short hop raining in BKK, but really only minor turbulence as we went through it. On this 40 minute flight they actually managed to serve breakfast.
Angkor was amazing and gorgeous. Siem Reap (town near Angkor) is well on its way to being the Las Vegas of SE Asia; forget any wild lonely planet adventures. But then again, if I were a desperately poor country with mouths to feed, I'd Vegas it out for the tourists to spend bucks too.
24 July Bangkok Airways REP (Siem Reap Cambodia) - BKK
My first flight on a 717. fast take-off, great views, not a single bump.
27 July JAL BKK - NRT
Well I was nervous as BKK became the typical rainy showery hot and humid city. Yet we took off and nary a bump until outside of Taiwan where *another* typhoon meant we had to dodge again. This was actually a bit bumpier than the one going down and my seatmate was visibly nervous. Language barriers meant it was difficult to impart my newfound wisdom, but I did manage to pee before takeoff, so I just put on relaxing music and was one with the dancing plane. Rest of the flight was smooth as silk.
Why you should always tell the gate agent you are a fearful flyer - we came to the airport VERY early to get good seats and my wife was insistent for an aisle in the back, so if the plane was empty she could sleep across several seats. I told the agent that I was a fearful flyer and if there was an aisle as close to the middle as possible, it would help me out and I didn't necessarily have to sit with my wife. Well she booked me into an aisle in economy plus, while wife was in back in steerage. Of course being a chivalrous gentleman I would've switched but I honestly thought since it was a new plane that they just duded up economy! I had no idea I scored an upgrade. Wife was pissed!
28 July JAL NRT - JFK
No luck with economy plus but I did get the top level, which on Japan airlines is economy. only light bits of CAT over Hokkaido and from Detroit to JFK, which we were warned about before take-off, but honestly, by that point I read and slept, didn't even care, I didn't even fell like a fearful flyer anymore. I felt like those people who go on a plane the way I take the subway to work.
So that's it. Allow me to crow a bit. I might have a short hop to Florida to visit parental units, else it is my next big trip to India in October (company's global IT conference) can't wait. Really, can't wait.