I am in South Africa. I can hear the crash of the surf and a variety of unfamiliar birds. I am wary as the giant spider that was in this room has disappeared....I am having the time of my life, here with my 22 year old son who treated me to this experience.
We flew to Cape Town to visit my friends in nearby surf town Kommetjie with Turkish Airlines and I'm ashamed to admit I did not have high expectations of my experience with them.
But from the instant we boarded the (on time) plane I was wowed by the standard even in economy while obviously wishing I was in the business class cabin we walked through. One day.....
The seats seemed spacious and there was an adjustable headrest you could wrap around to support your head- I was very pleased to see this with 14 hours flying time ahead overnight.
A quick flick through the entertainment on offer on the screen in the back of the seat in front showed I would have plenty to occupy me with films, music and tv shows on offer but the facility which both my son and I loved was the map function.
This not only let us track our progress but had two live cameras, forward and forward and down which gave even my aisle seat a birds eye view out of the aeroplane.
Now regular readers will know that food is very important to me and Turkish Airlines did not let me down. I had ordered a lactose free meal and on our first leg to Istanbul was given a lovely meal with a tender moist chicken breast, tasty rice and vegetables. I also had a roll with non-dairy spread, a salad and a fruit salad.
My son had a choice of beef or pasta and chose beef which was like two mini burgers, again with rice but with the addition of a ratatouille. He also had salad and a creamy coffee pudding which I was very envious of. A small taste proved it was delicious.
On the second leg from Istanbul to Cape Town which departed at stupid o'clock in the morning we were quickly served a meal - I received a beautiful piece of fish with potatoes and roast vegetables. There was another salad and another fruit salad. My son was too tired to face his meal.
In the morning a wonderful steward offered me my lactose free breakfast which was another nice piece of chicken with an omelette, parmentier potatoes and a roasted tomato. This came with - guess what? A salad and yet another identical fruit salad. Very refreshing through.
We were offered complimentary drinks throughout the flight and I enjoyed a nice white wine and plenty of water and fruit juice to keen me hydrated.
So what about the staff? For most of the flight they were fairly inconspicuous- not in a bad way, in the way that good staff are there when you need them but not hovering or pestering when you want to be left alone.
But they really came into their own halfway through my second flight when I suddenly started to feel unwell.
I felt nauseous and dizzy and feeling like I might vomit I grabbed the sick bag and headed to the bathroom at the rear of the aeroplane.
The bags are sealed and I started to panic as I could not focus enough to rip the paper open. Luckily there was a stewardess there and as i felt myself starting to lose consciousness she guided me to her seat and opened the bag for me.
Within seconds another member of staff came and swiftly created a bed on the floor with a pillow and blanket and raised my feet up on a padded bag. I started to feel a lot better almost immediately.
They offered to find a doctor but as I already felt better I asked them to wait. They took my blood pressure and found it was low - very low. My blood pressure normally runs a little high so it was no wonder I felt so ill.
Their professionalism and their care and concern was outstanding. I was slightly mortified lying on the floor as passengers tried to get to the toilet and spotted me in the way but was soon reassured by the lovely staff who's only priority was to help me feel better.
After a rest on the floor and a recheck of my blood pressure I headed carefully back to my seat and managed to sleep for a few hours and woke feeling much better.
By the time we arrived in Cape Town my sky high drama was almost forgotten but I was so impressed by my treatment by the staff I felt I must sing their praises publicly.
We flew to Cape Town to visit my friends in nearby surf town Kommetjie with Turkish Airlines and I'm ashamed to admit I did not have high expectations of my experience with them.
But from the instant we boarded the (on time) plane I was wowed by the standard even in economy while obviously wishing I was in the business class cabin we walked through. One day.....
The seats seemed spacious and there was an adjustable headrest you could wrap around to support your head- I was very pleased to see this with 14 hours flying time ahead overnight.
A quick flick through the entertainment on offer on the screen in the back of the seat in front showed I would have plenty to occupy me with films, music and tv shows on offer but the facility which both my son and I loved was the map function.
This not only let us track our progress but had two live cameras, forward and forward and down which gave even my aisle seat a birds eye view out of the aeroplane.
Now regular readers will know that food is very important to me and Turkish Airlines did not let me down. I had ordered a lactose free meal and on our first leg to Istanbul was given a lovely meal with a tender moist chicken breast, tasty rice and vegetables. I also had a roll with non-dairy spread, a salad and a fruit salad.
My son had a choice of beef or pasta and chose beef which was like two mini burgers, again with rice but with the addition of a ratatouille. He also had salad and a creamy coffee pudding which I was very envious of. A small taste proved it was delicious.
On the second leg from Istanbul to Cape Town which departed at stupid o'clock in the morning we were quickly served a meal - I received a beautiful piece of fish with potatoes and roast vegetables. There was another salad and another fruit salad. My son was too tired to face his meal.
In the morning a wonderful steward offered me my lactose free breakfast which was another nice piece of chicken with an omelette, parmentier potatoes and a roasted tomato. This came with - guess what? A salad and yet another identical fruit salad. Very refreshing through.
We were offered complimentary drinks throughout the flight and I enjoyed a nice white wine and plenty of water and fruit juice to keen me hydrated.
So what about the staff? For most of the flight they were fairly inconspicuous- not in a bad way, in the way that good staff are there when you need them but not hovering or pestering when you want to be left alone.
But they really came into their own halfway through my second flight when I suddenly started to feel unwell.
I felt nauseous and dizzy and feeling like I might vomit I grabbed the sick bag and headed to the bathroom at the rear of the aeroplane.
The bags are sealed and I started to panic as I could not focus enough to rip the paper open. Luckily there was a stewardess there and as i felt myself starting to lose consciousness she guided me to her seat and opened the bag for me.
Within seconds another member of staff came and swiftly created a bed on the floor with a pillow and blanket and raised my feet up on a padded bag. I started to feel a lot better almost immediately.
They offered to find a doctor but as I already felt better I asked them to wait. They took my blood pressure and found it was low - very low. My blood pressure normally runs a little high so it was no wonder I felt so ill.
Their professionalism and their care and concern was outstanding. I was slightly mortified lying on the floor as passengers tried to get to the toilet and spotted me in the way but was soon reassured by the lovely staff who's only priority was to help me feel better.
After a rest on the floor and a recheck of my blood pressure I headed carefully back to my seat and managed to sleep for a few hours and woke feeling much better.
By the time we arrived in Cape Town my sky high drama was almost forgotten but I was so impressed by my treatment by the staff I felt I must sing their praises publicly.