21 January 2017 Saturday
Goodbye to Asia and Banyan trees with their sprawling roots. and packed my Wax Apples for the airplane ride. Too bad we cannot find Wax Apples in the States.
Taipei Airport is very new and very nice, the New Year decorative display had one of the swankiest to be seen. No escalators. Instead, the newest innovation and a much more practical one.:A moving floor ascends to the next level, eliminating all those clunky ribbed steps that are so hard to place your luggage on. Why did nobody think of that before? Maintenance must be greatly reduced.
The new upscale approach includes the shops, limited to Gucci, Prada, Coach, etc, just as in the Taipei 101 building. I paid $3 for one Godiva chocolate. It was good, but not that good, and I will not do that again, but it is all that was available. It almost makes one long for Sears & Roebuck.
At Taipei Airport, even United appears to be going upscale. At check-in, the staff was exceptionally gracious and helpful. The waiting area was beautifully decorated in soft grays and blues, with dark gray seating couches, cushioned, no less; indirect light, sufficient to read by but without glare. No blaring TVs. All quiet peaceful, except for a boisterous little boy, who was busy being a boy. Along the wall, in another area, were large lounges for stretching out fully.
All this elegance was rather diminished once we were on theUnited 747 with our forward neighbor’s back seat jammed into our faces. Seeing the consideration other airlines have for their customers raises questions about the United customer policy. Maybe their Board of Directors all moved over from Monsanto.
Back to Ashland and back to my beautiful Marnie-dog. It was a wonderful trip.
Waiting Area
