That has been a question a lot of people have asked us and rightly so. Everyone knows you don’t just pop over to China for a 3 day weekend. So how long did it take us? From door to door it took about 24 hours. The longest leg of the trip was 14 hours flying from Chicago to Shanghai.
I prepared myself for the tedium by purchasing magazines I reserve only for travel: In-Style and People. (Did you know Jennifer Aniston is finally engaged?). I treated myself to mango flavored gum just to be safe. Once aboard the plane I kept a close watch on the flight’s progress as we flew over the North Pole, Siberia, Mongolia. To be honest, I love watching that on the little screen in from of my seat; I just wish they could put it on fast forward.
I spent ten minutes unfurling the ear-buds the airline gave me so I could watch a movie; then another five minutes trying to figure out where to plug them in. By the time I figured that out I wasn’t interested anymore. I did faux yoga in the minuscule waiting area outside the itty bitty bathroom. While I was there I spied on the passengers in Business class to see if all the stories I’ve heard about the luxurious reclining seats and gourmet meals were true. Unfortunately, I had to keep ducking so that all the champagne corks whizzing around their cabin would not poke my eye out.
I went in search of water and sheepishly asked the flight attendant if I might also have another one of those packaged brownies that came with lunch. (She gave me two!!!)
But spending 14 hours at 34,000 feet is just not easy and all the mango gum and packaged brownies in the world won’t make it so. So, the best way to get through such a long flight is to imagine the real journey that begins once you land. —-Ann
