Here was my original itinerary which was scheduled for Wednesday, August 3rd.
Sioux City (SUX)-Chicago O'Hare (ORD)
ORD-Miami (MIA)
MIA-Santiago (SCL) (arrive on Thursday, August 4)
There were two things about this itinerary that made me very nervous. First, I was flying through ORD and I had consciously avoided ORD as a connecting airport since 2006 when I spent twelve hours there and lost out on one day of a trip to Philadelphia. When booking this itinerary, I figured that maybe my 2006 episode was just bad luck. Second, I only had a forty minute layover at ORD. In retrospect, I shouldn't have been nervous about that layover. I should have been nervous about the ORD-MIA flight being ninety minutes late. My flight from ORD-MIA landed at 8:45 PM when it was supposed to have landed at 7:30 PM. And my MIA-SCL flight left at 8:50. No problem I thought, there were still two more flights to SCL that night. Of course when I call the reservation center the first time, the lady told me both flights were sold out and that I would be stuck in Miami until Friday...two days!!!! Then I went to talk to some agents at the check in counter and they also told me the flights were full. So I got back on the phone with the reservation center and the guy was trying lots of different combinations and it wasn't looking good. However, he finally found me something that would work! On Thursday, I could fly from MIA-New York (JFK) at 1:00 PM and arrive at 3:30 PM. Then I would leave JFK at 8:00 PM and arrive in SCL at 6:30 AM Friday morning. And both flights would be in first/business class! So even though I would be a day late, this would be a new experience and one that I had always wanted to do, but would otherwise not been able to afford.
After I arranged my flights, I got a room Wednesday night near the Miami airport. I thought about going down to South Beach to look around, but I was very tired, frustrated, and didn't have the appropriate attire. I woke up Thursday morning refreshed and looking forward to my travel experience. I headed to the Miami airport early because one of the perks of first/business class is complimentary lounge access and I wanted to make sure I ate and drank "my money's worth." I had some snacks for breakfast and then some snacks for lunch and a few drinks. Then I headed to the gate early because I wanted to board early so I could watch the proletariat be herded to the back of the plane. My immediate surprise about the front of the plane is how much room I had--even more than I had imagined!
I also had a full meal on the plane!
I landed at JFK on time and proceeded to the lounge. Even though I had just had a full meal and drinks on the plane, I had a small meal and drinks at the lounge. As I said, I was getting "my money's worth."
I boarded the flight to Chile on time and the plane from JFK to Chile had even more room.
And it had season 5 of Game of Thrones as an entertainment option!
I didn't take any other pictures from this flight because my phone fell under the seat while I was eating and it would have been too much hassle to try to get it until after I was done eating. But I think I used more silverware for my three course meal than I have in my entire house. After the meal, I finished an episode of Game of Thrones I enjoyed the lay-flat seats. I didn't sleep very well or very much, but I was comfortable and uncramped and the nine hour flight went very quickly.
From my journey in first/business class, I experienced many benefits: lay-flat seats, more room, complimentary drinks, better food, better service, better looking flight attendants. I was aware of these perks before but experiencing them first hand certainly made getting stranded in Miami much more tolerable.
Now as for my bags...It's Monday and I haven't seen them since Wednesday. Hopefully, they'll be here today!
After I arranged my flights, I got a room Wednesday night near the Miami airport. I thought about going down to South Beach to look around, but I was very tired, frustrated, and didn't have the appropriate attire. I woke up Thursday morning refreshed and looking forward to my travel experience. I headed to the Miami airport early because one of the perks of first/business class is complimentary lounge access and I wanted to make sure I ate and drank "my money's worth." I had some snacks for breakfast and then some snacks for lunch and a few drinks. Then I headed to the gate early because I wanted to board early so I could watch the proletariat be herded to the back of the plane. My immediate surprise about the front of the plane is how much room I had--even more than I had imagined!
 |
| I can't even reach the front! |
 |
| I don't remember exactly what this was but it was good! |
I landed at JFK on time and proceeded to the lounge. Even though I had just had a full meal and drinks on the plane, I had a small meal and drinks at the lounge. As I said, I was getting "my money's worth."
I boarded the flight to Chile on time and the plane from JFK to Chile had even more room.
 |
| What am I going to do with all this room? |
 |
| Of course I'll watch Season 5 for the third time. |
I didn't take any other pictures from this flight because my phone fell under the seat while I was eating and it would have been too much hassle to try to get it until after I was done eating. But I think I used more silverware for my three course meal than I have in my entire house. After the meal, I finished an episode of Game of Thrones I enjoyed the lay-flat seats. I didn't sleep very well or very much, but I was comfortable and uncramped and the nine hour flight went very quickly.
From my journey in first/business class, I experienced many benefits: lay-flat seats, more room, complimentary drinks, better food, better service, better looking flight attendants. I was aware of these perks before but experiencing them first hand certainly made getting stranded in Miami much more tolerable.
Now as for my bags...It's Monday and I haven't seen them since Wednesday. Hopefully, they'll be here today!
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