Friday, August 10, 2012

Going Abroad....

I was traveling on a buddy pass, from a friend of a friend who worked for the airlines.  My travels thus far had taken me to Hawaii, Washington State, Canada, and back to the East Coast of the US for my road trip.  My road trip was an enlightening experience, working through the mixed feelings that arose while traveling alone.  Mostly, I got to know myself more and felt as though I had grown having dealt with those issues, and the issues that came from family and friends related to my nomadic lifestyle.

I was in Boston, visiting my long-time friends, who remarked how much better I looked after my travels.  Remember, my travels started in a burnt out state of mind, body and spirit.  I did feel lighter, and I was physically lighter as well.  It felt good to reconnect, yet, I was also ready to continue my travels...not really ready to be back home again.

I dropped my car off, arrived at the airport, this time traveling much lighter than my original departure experience.  My first stop was in Atlanta, GA, visiting a friend before leaving for Scotland and England.  The visit was sweet and short, and I was back at the airport waiting for a possible seat to England.

The buddy pass means that your are flying standby and only if a seat opens up then you get on the plane - and it is a much cheaper ticket, especially for a multi-destination ticket.  I had only paid about $300 for all of these destinations.  A gift.  One that I am still grateful for...thanks Jeff and Olin.

It was late in the evening, and the possibility of flying out was dim.  A woman, originally from England, but living in the US now, was in the same situation as I was...waiting for a seat.  We were told that there were no available flights for that night around 11:00 pm, so we started to consider our options.  I called my friend to ask him to come back to get me, while simultaneously the woman offered me a place to stay at her home since she'd be coming back to the airport anyhow in the morning.

As I was on the phone with my friend, and, as I was receiving this woman's offer, the flight staff informed us that we were on this flight...moving us quickly into the plane, and me still on the phone with my friend, we realized that we were being put in first class, being seated with an offer of champagne.  How great is that!  This flight is several hours, and traveling first class was such a gift.  The woman (whom I don't remember her name now), quickly became good acquaintances, settled in and enjoyed our unexpected pleasures of first class.

Unexpected pleasures...I was opening myself up for them, and as I did, they were increasing in frequency.  There was such joy in that journey to the UK and I arrived in London well rested and filled with good food and champagne.  To jump to the end of my stay in Scotland, I received the second gift of traveling first class on my return flight as well.

Although, I wish that there wasn't really a separation of classes on airplanes, since I believe we all deserve to be comfortable on planes, especially with such long flights.   But, since I don't have a say in that, I was glad to have the experience and not have to pay a ridiculous amount for it.

Expect the unexpected and life is filled with so much joy and gratitude.