Flying with SAS

*Note: I am typing this blog from Evelina's laptop in Sweden, so not only are there additional letters on the keyboard ( like Ö Ä Å €), some of the keys are in unfamiliar locations, and since the computer is spell-checking in Swedish, all of my words are underlined in red. Please forgive any misspellings or typos until I return home to fix them! =)

An uneventful short hop from Louisville to Chicago prepared us for our international flight to Stockholm, Sweden. This leg of our trip was booked through Scandinavian Airlines (SAS). After our quick 4 hour layover in Chicago (syncing flight times is sometimes tricky when you are flying internationally), we were checked in and ready to head to Sweden! After boarding our flight, an extremely nice lady whom I later realize is the head flight-attendant (who knew there was a ranking system among flight attendants!?!?), comes back to where Paul and I have settled into our coach class seats. She very kindly smiles at us, and in an adorable accent, asks if I am the one who requested a vegetarian meal. (Just for your reference, I'm not really vegetarian and I don't think it is morally wrong to eat meat. I just would rather eat fish, seafood, or vegetables. I just really don't like red meat. Chicken is okay, but honestly I often prefer whatever the vegetarian option is. As you can see, it is a little difficult to explain and when you are purchasing tickets online, there are only two boxes to choose from for your preference in meals: regular and vegetarian. So vegetarian it is!) I smiled and nodded, not wanting to go into too much of an unneccesary explanation. Her next question, which would prove to be monumental unbeknownst to me at the time, was if I could eat fish. I love fish, so I told her that would be great. I hadn't intended to cause a big deal with the meal, when I registered our preferences online I assumed it would be like a wedding where the catering staff has a different option they can hand you. I felt a little guilty...am I a vegetarian imposter? This company was very accomodating and I hoped I wasn't taking advantage of their hospitality. The flight attendant smiled and nodded at us, handed us two newly printed tickets and explained that she changed our seats where I was sitting where the fish was an option. A little confused, not quite understanding what she meant, we followed obidently- all the way to an upgrade! She lead us past the other coach passengers, past the red curtain divider which separated comfort from coach. =) As I realized the seats we were handed had nearly double the amount of legroom, pillows and blankets with real fabric instead of the cheap disposable paper pillowcases, and a reclining back with attached footrest that came up as you recline I no longer felt guilty...this was great! Later, we realized that we had our own specific flight attendants and our meals were served on trays with dishes and real silverware instead of in paperbags with plastic silverware. I now understand the purpose of the curtain, as always a coach class passenger I never really knew the distict differences between the pricing for seats. And trust me, I was much happier as a coach class passenger not knowing. As I settled into my new comfortable seat, infront of me was my own personal tv with remote control and game controller with free access to DVR style movies, tv shows, and music. Alongside the emergency exit instructions, nestled in the seatback pocket was a bottle of water, earphones for my tv, radio, and games, and a package neatly wrapped and titled "For your Comfort". After unwrapping, I was delighted to find earplugs, a scented sleep mask, a toothbrush and toothpaste, and a shoe bag. Previously being in coach, I know these little perks were not in the pockets of coach. Several minutes into the flight, the stewardesses came on the intercom and instructed us to take off our shoes and get comfortable but to please use the shoe bag provided to keep them secure during turbulance. Wow! They encouraged us to be comfortable to the point of taking off our shoes! I LOVED the upgrade and I love SAS!! When dinner was served, we were given trays with real dishes, real silverware, a chilled glass to pour our beverage in, and our meal including grilled tallapia, mashed potatoes, steamed mixed vegetables, orzo pasta salad with shrimp, brie cheese with crackers, a hearty bread roll with butter, cheesecake and fresh strawberries. Amazing, and this is airline food! I came to the realization, relaxed in my comfortable chair, after sleeping reclined for nearly 4 hours of the flight whilst wearing my sleepmask to block any light, that I never want to be exciled to coach again. How am I going to afford to fly now with these expectations? =) More importantly, how can I possibly get an upgrade for the flight home?!?