My first flight was 2 hours to Chicago, and it was the one and only flight to take off and arrive on time. The plane was so small that all of the carry-ons that were not personal item sized were gate checked for us to be picked up as we deplaned. Because I had decided to attempt to fight jet lag (even though I know it is impossible) by being a little sleep deprived, which meant I was asleep within minutes of taking off. I woke up to the announcement that we were starting our decent into Chicago, so an uneventful flight to say the least.
The Chicago airport, despite complaints, is a nice place for a layover. There is Jamba Juice, in terminal C for anyone who is looking for it, (by the dinosaur bones) which makes for a lovely dinner. During the four hour layover I also discovered that they are replacing some of their seats with fancy new waiting chairs. They were in sets of 3 in a triangle pattern each chair had a table and 2 outlets for charging convenience. I also had the slight heart attack of the sudden gate change an hour before boarding after waiting for 3 hours. We also didn't board until an hour after our flight was supposed to take off. Apparently the plane arrived late.
I think the flight to San Francisco was 4 or 5 hours long. I don't really know. I was not conscious for any of it save the take off and landing.
We arrived at the San Francisco airport at 2am, just in time to supposedly knock an hour off of my originally 9 hour layover. The San Francisco airport is not the most hopping of places in the middle of the night. They have one cafe that is apparently open through the night until 4am but it is outside security which means you have to be re-secured if you want to get tea or a bagel or whatever they serve at 3 am. Nothing else will open until 5am at the earliest, so if you know you are going to have a layover at San Francisco overnight and will want food, come prepared. They do have little desk stations with free wifi and charging capability, as well as an odd wing of 20s and 30s tribute display, for the art, fashion, lifestyle, etc.
Most amusing was a small "kid's science area" equipped with two large spheres that were filled with water and soap or some other non-mixing liquid. When you spin the spheres a specific pattern was supposed to appear. I may be willing to accept the excuse that I was too tired to see any such pattern. By far the most amusing was essentially an interactive tornado machine. I had a little too much fun playing with that one, but in my defense, it was 2:30 am.
Honestly lapping the airport is one of the best ways to kill time beyond the napping, reading, internetting trifecta.
This last flight boarded on time, which meant we waited for the unexplained hour and a half delay in the plane. Luckily I was comfy in my window seat and the guy next to me was nice. He was returning to South Korea for the first time in 9 years to attend a wedding for a friend.
This flight was pretty cool. I snuck peeks out the window all the time, even during "quiet time" because it looked so cool. We flew hugging the coast line, up the side of Canada, across edge of Alaska and Russia, over Japan, and finally across South Korea. There were some pretty spectacular views when the clouds didn't blind you.
Delays are the worst. Great pictures!
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