January 30, 2014 Wednesday

The journey home started in the evening of Tuesday, January 29 at about 8:15 PM when Jo and Lucia picked me up at 3-Sis to head to the Chiang Mai airport. Lucia and I are on the same Korean Air flights for both legs of the journey (1) Chiang Mai to Incheon, then (2) Incheon to Los Angeles. The first flight from Chiang Mai to Incheon, S. Korea (the main airport for Seoul) is scheduled to leave Chiang Mai at 11:55 PM. We got to Chiang Mai International Airport in plenty of time, a little before the Korean Air check-in counter opened at 9:00 PM. Lucia and I checked in together, and they were able to change my seat so I was sitting next to her – it is nice to sit with a friend on a long flight.

After we checked in and had our baggage checked, we went upstairs to the waiting area outside the international security. We talked to Jo for a bit, and then said goodbye, and she headed out for her home in Mae Rim, a little north of Chiang Mai. Lucia and I went through the security and the passport check with our carry-on bags, and then, as is the norm in airports, got to another waiting area. Here we waited to board, and found that our flight was delayed about 20-30 minutes. This was not a surprise, since the plane we would be on just arrived from Incheon at 10:40 PM, and it may have been a little late. It takes some time to turn around an Airbus A330-300 that holds over 270 passengers.

We left as expected, a little late. The flight to Incheon was about 5 hours, as scheduled. Being an overnight, “red-eye” flight, almost everyone went to sleep right away. I seldom sleep well on airplanes, so I started perusing the available movies. I watched two or three forgettable, mediocre or even poor films, while I tried unsuccessfully to sleep.

Incheon Airport

After arriving at the Incheon airport, all international transfer passengers must go through an international transfer security. This is common at the relatively few international airports in which I have transferred in the past. When I was here a year ago, I only had a couple of hours, but I had the impression that this was a well-organized, efficiently run airport. And I am not the only one, I learned that a group called the Airports Council International has rated Incheon the best airport worldwide for seven years in a row, 2005 through 2012.

Incheon’s history began with the clear need for a larger airport to serve Seoul, S. Korea after the influx of tourists and visitors following the 1988 Olympic games. Planning began, and construction followed, beginning in 1992 with the filling of land in Incheon between Yeongiong Island and Youngyu Island 40 miles west of Seoul. The construction took eight years, followed by six months of testing, and officially opening in March, 2001. Incheon is a large airport, with 74 boarding gates, 44 of which are in the main terminal building. Incheon is the main airport hub for Korean Air, and serves as a hub for international civilian air transportation and cargo traffic in East Asia. Incheon is the world’s fourth busiest airport by cargo traffic, and the eighth busiest airport in terms of international passengers.

Korean Air International Transfer Economy Lounge

Lucia and I had been told that after going through the international transfer security, to find the information desk, and take the escalator behind the information desk to the Korean Air Economy Lounge. When I heard this, I was a little skeptical, as there are often special lounges for business or first class, but not for economy passengers. We found it with no trouble, and it is indeed for Korean Air economy passengers. After showing our boarding passes, we entered. This is a really nice lounge!

There is an area with about 30 or more computers set up for checking e-mail or browsing the internet, a separate area with many (40 or more) large lounge chairs for sleeping, a cafeteria, and some other areas we did not explore. We found a couple of the lounge chairs, and once I settled in, I fell asleep almost immediately – I did not sleep on the plane, so I was really tired. Lucia was not as tired, and explored a bit and watched our belongings while I slept. She told me that I slept for almost four hours.

After waking, I took my carry-on bag in which I had clothes to an area in the lounge where you can check out a towel and go into a private bathroom with a shower! The bathroom is a decent size, with a sink, toilet, large mirror, good lighting, a strong low shelf for unpacking & repacking, and a shower! They give a small packet of body wash gel, a pack of shampoo, and a toothbrush with small sample of toothpaste. This was very nice! After checking out of the hotel at noon, walking over to Loi Kroh for a hot stone oil massage, having dinner, and being on the plan much of the night, a shower and clean clothes was really nice! Then Lucia did the same while I watched our things. Feeling refreshed, we selected one of many restaurants and had a small meal.

Incheon to Los Angeles on the Airbus A380

Our flight from Incheon to Los Angeles, Korean Air KE17, is on an Airbus A380-800. The Airbus A380 is the largest passenger aircraft made, with an upper deck that extends the whole length of the aircraft. The Airbus A380 was designed to challenge Boeing’s monopoly in the large-aircraft market, and is often configured to hold 525 passengers. There are about 120 Airbus A380 aircraft in service today, with firm orders for over 150 more to date.

Our flight leaves Incheon at 3:15 PM Wednesday, January 30, 2014, and is scheduled to arrive in Los Angeles at 9:05 AM Wednesday, January 30, 2014 … a full 6 hours before we leave. Traveling east across the International Date Line is an interesting time travel experience.

We did leave on time, and the flight was scheduled to be about 10 hours. It is a long flight. And, becasue I had slept for almost four hours in the airport, I was not expecting to sleep on the plane. But I was pretty tired, and after take-off, I started trying to read and watch the mind-numbing, boring movies in the hopes I could fall asleep. I did not sleep, and it was a long flight. Fortunately, we arrived early by over 30 minutes.

Welcome to Los Angeles

We are back in the U.S.A. It feels so good. What a trip!

Next: Reflecting on Winter in Chang Mai