BOS-BHX via ATL, FRA, and BRU, January 1999

I usually have at least three months to plan for a trip to Europe. But on the morning of January 4 my world changed. I got the call from England that my beloved Grandmother, Helen Rose (yes, we shared the same name) died in the wee hours of the morning.

No time for grief, the first action was finding flights home for the funeral. I had two tasks: flights for my husband and myself BOS-BHX, and flights for my parents and my sister CLE-BHX. My poor parents had just returned from two weeks in England (see previous "CO trip from hell" post) and were not looking forward to getting back on a plane ("I'm NOT getting stuck in Newark again", my mother insisted).

I had known my Grandmother was quite ill and in hospital. My husband and I were planning to take a long weekend to England over the Martin Luther King Jr weekend in the middle of January. At that time we found that there were "M" class (or in DL terms "upgradeable") fares from Boston to Zurich and Brussels. Once I heard that we had to go on no notice, I decided to find out if those "M" class fares were available for a reasonable price (before asking about bereavement fares). After all, if you have to go while upset, you may as well go in relative comfort...

I rang DL and found out that yes, those M class fares were available for much cheaper than the bereavement fares ("as long as your dates are firm", said the agent). The agent was *really* nice, but of course, not as nice as my Delta Guardian Angel!

I actually got my parents' and sister's flights locked down before mine. CLE-BHX dep Friday Jan 8 return Wednesday Jan 13, $552.92/each. I even ordered them seafood meals ("I hear it's pretty good!" said the agent :-), rather than the usual strict vegetarian. I checked with my mother after the fact and she seemed rather excited about the prospect (perhaps she's just sick of brown rice!).

I spoke with several DL agents, only one of whom was any good (by "good" I mean "friendly" and "courteous" and "solicitous"). I actually got desperate enough to try a travel agent. Those of you on rec.travel.air who know me know that I am skeptical of travel agents. Well, I've found one travel agent who I like!

I got the number of an agent from one of the guys I work with. He says "she's dynamite, very straightforward". Since most agents I've dealt with are slimy and self-serving, I looked forward to having a possibly pleasant interaction with a travel agent. I was on the phone with this agent for 30 minutes, and at the end of it all, I had seats reserved on the flights I wanted for the price I wanted. She had to do nasty things to the reservations computer to get it to disgorge the seats.

After I got off the phone with her, I called DL right away and was able to secure upgrades for both of us on the return flight, and just me on the outbound. My DL GA informed me that there were plenty of open seats in C on the outbound so that he suspected my husband would clear from the wait list. I hoped so...

Our planned itinerary:

Jan 8
DL 1865 dep BOS 1500 arr JFK 1613  MD-88
DL  140 dep JFK 1900 arr BRU 0825  767-300
SN  711 dep BRU 0920 arr BHX 0930  Avro 85

Jan 13
SN  712 dep BHX 1055 arr BRU 1305  Avro 85
DL 2701 dep BRU 1510 arr BOS 1710  A340

My parents itinerary:

Jan 8
CO  278 dep CLE 1435 arr EWR 1615  737
CO   26 dep EWR 1850 arr BHX 0645  757

Jan 13
CO   27 dep BHX 0915 arr EWR 1210  757
CO  279 dep EWR 1340 arr CLE 1518  737

Off to Logan we go, evening of January 6, to get our upgrades processed. We had plenty of time that evening, while we knew we'd be tight on time on Friday. The ticket agent was surprised (in a good way). "most people just wait until the last minute". Heh, we're not most passengers. :-)

The next task was Seat Selection. DL has dumped their International First Class in favour of "Business Elite", a combined First/Business class. Well, most of the fleet hasn't been refit yet (only two planes have!), so if we were lucky, we'd be able to get business class upgrades but first class seats! My husband and I were actually allocated seats apart (his upgrade cleared after mine and he was allocated a seat in row 2 immediately, while I would have to see on the day of flight if I could get into row 2).

The next obstacle was to be the weather. The morning of Jan 7 showed that snow was bearing down on both Cleveland and Boston. I was not sweating it (we have 3 hours in JFK, that should be PLENTY even if we're late - heh, I was being optomistic. Read on to find out why :-). My mother, on the other hand, was biting her nails down to the knuckles in terror.

We went to work as usual on Jan 8. I left the office at 1130 to arrive at my husband's at 1140, departing there at 1150, direct bus to Logan 1215 (arr 1230). It's funny, because we considered taking the 1315 bus instead of the 1215. As it turned out, it was a GOOD thing we did not...

The first thing we noticed upon entering the terminal was how BUSY it was. The second thing we noticed was the monitor. DL 1865 BOS-JFK was CANCELLED, as were flights to IAD and PHL (turns out it had JUST been cancelled. I had checked the flight status at 1120 and it was still marked "on time"). My husband got in the (long) Medallion/First line while I went and called DL on the phone (the line didn't seem to be going anywhere, but then they put another agent on the line and things moved quicker). The agent I spoke with on the phone said that it was "weather" and that "if the big jet wasn't going, the smaller props probably wouldn't, either". She suggested we try for a reroute.

We get to the front of the line and finally see an agent. And boy, did we ever get a gem! Her name was Carol Gould. She worked with us for an hour to find the best possible reroute available to us. The obvious reroute (EI BOS-SNN-BHX) was sold out. Likewise, at least one of the BA flights direct into LHR (although I didn't want to mess with LHR if I could help it. We had a ride organized from BHX and none from LHR. It would have meant either a coach or Heathrow Express LHR-Paddington and then tube to Euston. Eugh!). She checked flights via CVG (sold out), and ATL (early flight sold out, but late flight had seats available). Problem with the late flight is that it meant we'd miss our conx in BRU. Funnily enough, the DL agent had real trouble finding us *any* seats. You wouldn't think that many people would be trying to fly to Europe a random Friday in early January!!

After weighing all of the options, we chose BOS-ATL (DL 301) - BRU (DL 2886) - BHX (SN 717). We would be bound for a long (~5 hr) layover in ATL (unless we could manage to standby for the early flight - more on that later), and an even longer layover in BRU (arr 1230 dep 2200). We were given the choice of a SN (opb TV) flight into LHR, but the arrival would have been about 1700. London by 1900, train 2000, Birmingham by 2200. Or alternatively, we could layover all day in BRU and arr BHX 2200. We chose the latter option, figuring we could kill time in Brussels (six times through the airport and we've never *once* been landside. Plus, it would give us a chance to try my husband's recently attained European [Irish] citizenship to avoid the long lines at passport control).

During all of this mess, I wondered what was going on with my parents. They had elected to leave CLE at 1156 instead of 1435, and theoretically, they would have landed in EWR in the middle of a snowstorm (the BOS DL agent who rebooked us told us that when 1865 is cancelled, they usually book pax on the DL Shuttle to LaGuardia and then ground transport. But DL supervisors told BOS staff not to do that, as the roads between LGA and JFK were "impassable". Yikes). And would they get out? I had no idea (and no way to check their status from BOS). Nor did I have any way to contact them to let them know that we were going to be changing our routing. I chose the simple option and telephoned my England-residing Uncle instead. I figured if my parents didn't call him to let him know they were stranded, he could at least tell them when (if?) they arrived the next day.

The DL agent had tried to book us on the early ATL-BRU flight (which *would* have let us make our connection in BRU), but said that the flight was sold out. She told us that we could stand by for the earlier flight if we reached ATL in time.

We pushed back from the gate at BOS very late, 1440 (scheduled departure for DL 301 is 1410), and took off pretty quickly. Once we got to altitude the Captain pronounced our arrival to be "ontime" at 1710. The early flight to BRU was scheduled for 1755. We'd probably arrive Concourse A, and have to transfer to Concourse E. Worst case, we wouldn't make it. But our SN flight would undoubtedly leave out of E - and on top of that, the Int'l Biz lounge is in E.

It's funny, because I had liked the idea of flying through ATL - outbound only thanks - to an international destination. ATL is DL's biggest hub, and I hadn't yet had a chance to experience their international service. I was hoping that their business class lounge would be nice and big (and conversely, not very busy).

We land in ATL and are at the gate ontime (1710), but the gate isn't ready for us! We found out later that the gate we had scheduled had a plane going to BWI at it, and they were cancelling that flight due to weather. After sitting on the taxiway biting our nails (we had hoped to try for the 1755 departure to BRU), the captain came on the P/A and told us that we'd been gate changed to gate D36 (leper land).

We pull into D36 and people are VERY slow getting off. Argh. We didn't actually manage to deplane until 1735, all hopes of the early flight to BRU are at this point, going out the window. However, my hopes are restored when we finally do deplane and who is standing in the jetway (JUST outside the plane door), but our Delta Guardian Angel. GA had things that looked like boarding passes in his hand and I said "are they what I think they are?" (thinking that he had managed to get us confirmed seats on the earlier BRU flight. He said "what do you think of Frankfurt?", and then asked us to wait out in the gate area while he retrieved and rerouted our bags.

He came out of the jetway, bag task complete. Then he gave us the details. DL ATL-FRA (DL14 dep ATL 1950 arr FRA 1030), and BA FRA-BHX (BA 1759 dep FRA 1155, arr BHX 1235, MUCH earlier than the 2230 or so we were expecting from SN). And to top it all off, he'd managed to secure the last two business class seats - in the old first class cabin (1E&F). He *is* a god after all!

We went to an unused gate and he did our reticketing ("can I borrow your computer?"). He checked the weather at JFK ("freezing fog" - UGH!). Then we wandered over to Terminal E to scope out the place (GA came with us). He pointed us at our gate, we grabbed a snack, saw the "corncorde", swept through the DL Int'l Biz Class lounge (where I had previously figured we'd be cooling our heels from 1730 to 2200), and we went back to the gate (E6).

We boarded late (due to an overbooking situation. They were offering $500 in vouchers for each volunteer. If only we had the time!). Departure was scheduled for 1950, we didn't start boarding until 1940. We departed late but the captain assured us that we'd be arriving on time. MD11, N801DE.

The old First Class seats are REALLY nice. Full leg support and the recline was pretty good too (not as good as DL's soon-to-be rolled out "Business Elite" with 170deg recline). But you take what you can get (no, I am NOT complaining, thank you very much :-), and I think we did pretty good on this leg, considering we'd planned to spend 5 hours in ATL followed by 13 hours in BRU.

I will now detail dinner options (I will not list the wine options but if you care enough, send me email and I will inform you). The dinner options were printed on a menu that was not just a couple of pages, but actually part of an entire information book about Frankfurt (and the menu was in both German and English). I was very impressed (coach had a similar booklet but with their own menu choices. I knew this because my husband got one by mistake). If my actual destination was Frankfurt I think I would find the guide part of the book pretty useful.

Appetizer:
Grilled strips of marinated chicken rolled in a tortilla with tomato relish, bell peppers, and arugula

Salad:
Romaine Lettuce accented by Caesar Dressing

Entrees: Cilantro and Cashew-Crusted Lamb
Lamb Chops presented au Jus and flavored with Cilantro and Cashews, complemented by Potato-Leek Gratin and braised Garlich Mushroom Caps

Roasted Lemon Chicken [My husband had this]
Breast of Chicken enhanced by Lemon and Rosemary, offered with Garlic Mashed Potatoes with Chives, Baby Carrots, sliced Beets and Leeks

Grilled Salmon
Fillet of Salmon coated wth Orange and Cilantro, acompanied by Black Bean Rice, buttered Broccoli and Asparagus Guacamole

Assorted Rolls and Butter

Fruit and Cheese

Dessert:
Ghirardelli White Chocolate Macademia Nut Cake
Raspberry Cheesecake

Spa Cuisine / Express Classics
("fully complete and available in minutes")

Corn Soup with Crab
Shaved Vegetable Salad
Omaha Steak Beef Tenderloin with Oven Roasted Vegetables
Orange Segments and Mango Slices with Pineapple Relish

Breakfast:

Fresh seasonal fruit (grapes, melon, kiwi fruit, prunes)
Assorted breakfast breads (warm croissants and bagels)

choice of: croissant filled with scrambled eggs and bell peppers
cereal (corn flakes) and yogurt (strawberry)

I managed to sleep through all of dinner (I did ask for and receive a bread roll, then I promptly conked out). It was my husband's turn to sleep during breakfast (not that we usually take turns, that's just how it turned out this time). Actually, they handled breakfast pretty well. My overhead light was on (only one in the cabin) so they came to me first and asked me what I wanted. Then, as others turned on their lights, they went to them to ask them what they wanted. Quite a change from the way Sabena handled it when I flew them in July (they just turned on the lights and told everybody it was time to wake up).

During the flight, I had left "Airshow" running on my personal video all night (I like to see where I am :-). My husband had chosen to watch a DVD (Highlander). Unfortunately, I had neglected to pack my puzzle pack so had to find some other way to pass the time! By the time breakfast rolled around, we were just approaching the coast of Ireland.

I had the cold breakfast with a glass of milk and thoroughly enjoyed it. I suppose that's because the last "real" meal I'd had was a tiny cheeseburger at BOS (had a bite of chicken sandwich at ATL and then a bread roll when we first got on board).

I watched the sun come up - beautiful, but by the time we descended it had clouded over. We landed at FRA in bad weather (amazing how horizontal rain looks when you're descending through 10000 ft). Low cloud deck impeded most of Germany (first view, too!).

We landed and proceeded to dock at gate D3. The first thing to do was to look for a phone. The last time I had talked to my Uncle I had told him not to expect us until 2230. My Auntie picked up the phone and said "where are you?". She was VERY surprised when my response was "Germany!" (considering the last my Uncle had heard, we wouldn't be arriving until 2230 and then from Brussels!). That task concluded we went to sniff out the gate for the BHX flight (it was on the monitors but with no gate assigned). We ended up cheating by asking the BA agent at the desk for FRA-LGW flight. "D7" she said, so D7 we went to. This was somewhat of a relief to me as the DL flight attendant on board swore that DL and BA were in different terminals at FRA.

The agent hadn't opened the desk yet, so we visited the toilets, (scrupulously clean), and looked around a little. Then we checked in (no problems, phew!), and cleared through to the waiting area. Oddly enough, at the BA flights from FRA they take your ticket and boarding pass before you enter the waiting area.

We watched planes come in and out (including the plane at the gate we were at G-BNWI, BA 767-300 [non ER], we looked it up in JP Airline Fleets while sitting at the gate :-). Many LH planes (no surprise), a few DL planes. Each US airline seemed to have one there (we saw NW, US, AA. no CO or UA, but I suspect UA would have been at the LH "Star" terminal).

Boarding was called. Since there was no plane at the gate (G-BNWI having pushed back), we knew we'd be bussed out. And so we were. Down two levels to a bus, and across the tarmac to G-OFRA (737-300, not in JP Airline Fleets, but obviously based at BHX. Named "Rheingold").

Up the stairs. We were sitting in 19E&F (nobody in D), which was pretty far back in the plane. Club Europe (business class) was up to row 14. Club Europe had the moveable seats so that business class was 2-3. Economy was traditional 3-3.

We pushed back 1210 (scheduled 1155). The captain had kept us well informed ("we can't move as we're so close to the runway but we should still arive on time").

The flight was marked "snack", and the snack was pretty good:
cheese & crackers
bread roll
mineral water
salad with smoked salmon and lemon
some kind of lemon pie

offered drinks (cold first, then hot).

There was a (German) woman with a toddler and baby in 19A,B,C. The babies were very well behaved. The infant was in a belt loop (no carseat). The woman fed herself and the todder, then the three of them conked out. Very amusing. :-)

Landed at BHX 1230, docked at Eurohub (I've never been in Eurohub before!). I found this trip very "Alpha and Omega"-like. I last flew BA on my first trip out of the UK (BD BHX-LHR, BA LHR-BOS) in October of 1979. With my Grandma dying I felt very much that I was losing my best connection to the UK. Would the UK no longer be my home? Would I still feel English?

Through immigration (my husband got to use his new red Euro passport), and to baggage claim. The main baggage pickup carousel was out of order, so all bags came off on the "oversize baggage" claim. By the time we actually arived in the baggage hall, our garment bag (in DL box) had already arrived. This was somewhat of a relief to me, because while I did trust GA to retag the bags, I wasn't sure if a flawless transfer would happen between DL and BA at Frankfurt (even though we did as GA instructed and asked BA to put the bag claim numbers in their computer). A few moments later the claim started running again and our second small bag arrived. Phew!

Through customs (nobody there of course), and out to the meet & greet area where my Uncle and cousin were waiting (my Uncle lives 10 minutes from BHX. He watches teletext (p449 on BBC2) for flight arrivals and when the flight says "in customs" he gets in his car and goes straight to the airport. He then arrives PRECISELY at the right time, just 2 or 3 minutes before the people he is meeting emerge from customs). We were clear and home just fifteen minutes later.

Upon arriving at my Auntie & Uncle's, I found that my parents' flight from EWR did leave but left very late. They only arrived into BHX about 0945 (some 3hr late). And my mother raved about the seafood meal :-). Because of the bad weather at EWR the plane which was supposed to be very full was very empty! My sister had three seats to herself. :-)

13 Jan

After the mess on the way out, I took no chances. I rang SN first thing in the morning, and yes, SN712 BHX-BRU was scheduled on-time. My parents departed for BHX before we did (small English cars being small!). We left my Uncle's at 0840 and arrived BHX at 0854. Check-in 0900 (we were the first ones to check in). Then we did our traditional visit to the BHX observation deck/hobby shop (didn't buy anything). After that, we cleared through to the departures lounge. My parents' flight departed on time. My Grandmother being at rest must have settled the karma gods (every time my Grandma flew to the USA she would get stranded somewhere. It became something of a joke. We tried to book her LGW-DTW-CLE [on the direct Delta flight] and Delta promptly dropped the CLE tag end. We booked her LGW-DTW direct, and her flight was delayed in DTW and she had to stay overnight in a hotel anyways).

SN 712 called for departure at 1025. It was funny, because my husband and I were the first ones down the hallway, and before we even reached the gate (talk about leper land, SN is at gate 42, which is the furthest away at BHX), they were broadcasting "final call" over the PA! oh well. On board, and sitting down. Sabena owned, Delta Air Transport operated Avro Jet ARJ-85, OO-DJK (the very same plane we were on BHX-BRU last July!).

We were sitting in row 10, 10A&C (the pair), the first row of coach. Before takeoff, one of the FA's came around with newspapers (we took a Financial Times and Daily Torygra^H^H^H^H^H^H^HTelegraph). Pushback was a few minutes early, and we were quickly en route.

Two FA's (for about 30 pax, 20 of which were in back, just 10 in front). As soon as the seatbelt sign was off, one of them did the economy meal (turkey sandwich, bigger than last year!, and a piece of chocolate), while the other did the economy meal (mince pie and something else. I dunno what the something else was but I would have killed for a mince pie!). Drink service after that - cold drinks, then tea, then coffee (my husband and I both had coke. quick note: coke is still made with sugar in England!). The flight attendants then came around to offer second sandwiches for anyone who wanted them (!).

Landing was early, 1255 (scheduled for 1305). We taxied and docked to a jetway which we couldn't use. I soon found out why - it was Concourse C, the Schengen-only concourse! We went down stairs and onto a Sabena bus, who bussed us across the tarmac and to the base of Sapphire concourse. When being bussed we noticed the Sabena A340 in new livery down B concourse. With any luck that plane would be ours! After all, it's our trip for new liveries....

Upstairs and through the shopping area (no excitement!), and through security to the business class lounge. I was desperately behind on my trip report so I chose to stay and write while my husband went to scope out that Sabena plane (looks like ours, at least from the gate assignment we'd received for SN533/DL2701 from the staff at BHX). I managed to secure a good vantage point (both with a power outlet and by the window!), while sipping orange juice and nibbling pretzels and crackers.

1425 and we roll out of the lounge for gate B38 (the agent in the lounge confirmed that indeed was the flight for Boston). We arrive about 7 minutes later (at least it was B38 this time and not B40 like last time. Of course, it was still a bloody long walk!). Not long after arriving at the gate, the SN gate agent makes an announcement that all American citizens had to come and get a contact information form. Odd, as we'd submitted that information directly to GA in ATL. Is the information only kept "per leg" and not for the whole itinerary?

1440 and boarding is called for business class passengers. The boarding area looks pretty empty. We settle onboard into 8A&C (second last row of the front business class cabin). The captain comes on the PA and tells us that the flight will be especially long (8hr) due to horrible headwinds, and that we were detouring via a northerly route, touching the southmost part of Greenland. Pre-takeoff drinks are offered on a tray (champagne, orange juice, and water. My husband and I both have OJ).

Door closed ontime at 1510, and we pushback. I note that the business class cabin is VERY empty. Figure 40 seats and perhaps 15 people in it. We taxi over to the runway and we're soon airborne. The plane seems to takeoff very quickly - I figure coach must be empty too!

After takeoff, the flight attendants come around with newspapers (I take a Times. I hate Murdoch but there was an interesting story about Crypto on the cover), amenity kits, and menus. Another drinks service follows.

Not long after the drinks, meal service starts. Here were the options (again, food only):

Hors d'ouvres
Smoked Duckbreast with wild mushroom bavarois (my husband had this)
Goose liver with its crab and zucchini garnish perfumed with coriander and mint

salad of lettuce and chopped hardboiled egg

warm rolls and butter

Entrees:

Prune stuffed pheasant breast, sauteed Brussels sprouts and red cabbage mix, endives and celeriac mousse

Veal fillet with cassoulet of white beans, chanterelles and cauliflower, decorated with squid slivers

Red snapper with onion-anchovy chutney and pine kernels

Light Option: Brill (white fish) with puffed wheat and vegetables Oriental style [my husband had this]

From the Cheese Board:
Fourme d'Ambert cheese
Camembert cheese
Belgian Beersel cheese

Desserts:
Apple charlotte on a raspberry mirror [we both had this!]
OR
fresh seasonal fruits

Belgian chocolates

Once I saw that entree selection, I was stumped. I have never been fond of wild bird, don't like veal on principal (and even if I did like it, I can't stand white beans, chanterelles, or squid), and I don't like fish. What's a girl to do? Luckily, the Delta FA was serving our section and I asked her, and I managed to order a selection from economy (beef). Not SN's fault that I don't like "haute cuisine"! They certainly did their best to accomodate my pickiness....

They came around with appetizers on the cart. I passed (don't like duckbreast or goose liver!) so I ate a salad and part of my husband's salad. Then they came around with trays with each of the four entrees on it. This was nice, as you could also see what it *looked* like, and not just how it was described.

Airshow on again, and boy, we ARE going north. We passed south of Godthab and the route had us going over a significant part of eastern Canada. Greenland was spectacular as we flew over it (it was clear during that part of the flight). Before reaching Greenland I managed to snooze, but woke up with still half of the flight to remain!

I chose to watch my own movie ("Circle of Friends") rather than any of the Sabena-provided movies (which all looked lame). I tried to stay hydrated (drinking many of the tiny glasses of water), and I think I partially succeeded. After the movie I was getting hungry so I went back to the galley to ask about "between meal snacks" (which was noted in the inflight timetable). Turns out all they had was fruit and desserts from dinner. No thanks!

I waited for the snack, and it was a rerun of the one we had on DL2701/SN533 last July. Some chicken pieces, an egg roll, cabbage stuffed with some meat, fruit (this time it was cut up oranges, kiwi, and pineapple), and two chocolates (once again I gave my husband my dark chocolate in exchange for his milk chocolate).

Due to horrible headwinds our arrival time at BOS was estimated at 1735 (25 min late or so). I hoped that immigration & customs would be quick (if the SN plane was empty, would every plane be empty?).

At 1705 the captain came on the PA and said that although our landing was scheduled at 1735, due to "traffic" (read "weather") in Boston, we would not be cleared to land until 1755 (he hoped it would be earlier). As it turns out, we didn't touch down until 1805.

We deplaned through door 2 (with the flight attendants stopping the coach pax until the business class pax had left), and were quickly enroute to immigration. That done (we were through in seconds "how long were you away for?" "we left on Friday") we headed downstairs. The bags were a little longer in coming (and we got to see a labrador in action sniffing for something - drugs, I think). We loaded them onto the cart and went through customs where we were stopped - by an agricultural agent! She asked us if we had any fruit (no), meats (no), or prosciutto (we didn't come in from Italy, we came in from England! [the Alitalia flight came in just before ours]).

Out to the curb and in a cab. Coming home took a while because of the snow and the Sumner tunnel (grumble).

All in all, a good if quick trip. I really enjoyed our unplanned visits to ATL and FRA. Our Delta Guardian Angel transformed the change from painful to enjoyable. And luckily, the return went without a hitch (I don't count snow in Boston in January a hitch, just a fact of life).

Delta's International Business Class (while sitting in the first class seats) was very nice. "Personalized" service (like serving me breakfast without waking anybody else). Sabena's business class service was almost one-to-one! Of course, that may have been because BRU-BOS had only 15 pax and some 4 crew members! But I really liked how often the SN FAs came around to offer water (I am a big fan of water :-). The way that the SN FA's offered entrees really appealed to me (even though I didn't choose one :-).

Thumbs up to DL, SN, and lastly, my DL GA!

Next trip report: unknown, but no more funerals on the horizon (thank goodness).

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