Let me introduce you to the wonderful Space Crew that made our Dallas layover one of my favorites EVER! I'll call them by their flags: Romania, Slovakia, Serbia (oh, that's me), the UK and Australia.
Direction: NASA
Space Crew: Romania, Slovakia, Serbia, the UK, Australia
Well, you know it from the briefing room: if you click with people from the very start, the whole journey is promising! And that's exactly what happened before that ultra long haul 14h flight from Abu Dhabi to Dallas. As usual we all met for the first time in our lives that same morning - perfect strangers. The fact that the layover itself was longer than usual (don't get comfortable, I'm talking about 48h layover) AND the interest we had in common about exploring the surroundings, probably helped boosting the atmosphere. We all wanted to visit NASA!!!! Yaaaaaaaaah!
Independence Shuttle on the shuttle-carrier Boeing 747
But after all, only a coincidence of that crazy people all in one place are assurance to have such a great time! So we rented a car that could fit 6 people and hit the road. It's a bloody 4h30 drive from Dallas to Houston, but that was the closest point we were flying to. So total of 10h drive in a day, back and forth from Dallas to Huston and back. By the end of the day we knew everything about each other and we created that special bond that only Crew know how. We had a great time all along: playing mind games in the car, listening to music or simply sharing stories of our lives. That's how Slovakia and I discovered we both worked in the past (actually in the same year, 2013) for the big commercial airline based in Dubai. Who knows if we EVER flew together before?! 👀
Space Crew visiting NASA
The visit to NASA was extraordinary, we learned so much and had a great fun. Space Center Houston is where you can see astronauts train for missions, touch a real moon rock and have fun all along. You can go on board of a full size shuttle replica Independence mounted on top of the original shuttle carrier aircraft (it's a Boeing 747). Just imagine these two birds flying attached: must have been a memorable sight for whoever got the chance to glimpse on it! I have Independence mission patch on my jacket since that day! But the huge hangar hosting the mighty and massive Saturn Vrocket is the most impressive thing you'll see or touch. Saturn V-like rockets flew from 1967 to 1973 and launched 26 astronauts into space with 6 successful missions landing men on the Moon What a power!!!
Saturn V rocket
Saturn V rocket
Rocking the rocket!
What a day!!! Since then this group of people is named Space Crew. Many things we've done together since that day, like running on Go karts in Yas Marina...
Go Kart at Yas Island
...Running (and falling into water) on Aquafun slide rafts on Al-Bahar beach. Oh, what a muscle ache we all had the day after, the only time in my life I felt every inch of my body in pain!... You wouldn't believe how tiring is to move around in and out of the water.
Floating slide-raft at Aquafun, Abu Dhabi
Aquafun at Corniche, Abu Dhabi
...Chilling in the pool with food, drinks and dj set at Montecarlo Saadiyat Island? Burst of happiness all in one!...
Montecarlo beach club, Saadiyat Island
...Exploring Al-Maya island during the National day Air Show Fighters F-16 jets exhibition? The Air Show usually takes place above the Corniche, which made it perfectly visible from Al-Maya island, while we were sipping our cocktails by the pool.
Boat trip to Al-Maya island
,,,and even celebrating New Years in the desert, on a private party in the newly constructed Masdar city with fireworks view on Yas Island (I remember that last minute run for the better view, the out of tune singing out loud in the bus on the way back and...me being the only sober because I was on standby the day after!)
I don't even know all this people, but we had a great Silvester party
...We flew together again both as passengers and Crew, working together like on that fabulous flight to Thailand with the layover in Phuket that deserves it's own story apart!
Phuket layover
But one special trip with the UK was to Dubai to see an interactive theater play of "the Great Gatsby" directly on the retired British ocean liner QE2 (because it was indeed the Queen Elisabeth II's cruise ship), converted since 2018 into a floating hotel and now docked in Dubai, after royally sailing around the world for 39 years. Hold on, too much information - did you get it right?!! Freely walking on an immense Titanic-sized ship used by the Queen Elisabeth II... while taking active part in an interactive theatrical play (meaning the actors and the spectators would mix in the crowds and you wouldn't be able to tell who's acting and who's just watching)... But the icing on the cake was that the play in question was The Great Gatsby!!! And we were all requested to dress accordingly (meaning 1920's style) so that surely helped a lot in mingling! What a show, it still gives me goosebumps! I'll just tell you I listened to live music, danced, had a great buffet, talked to countless unknown people, walked around the ship inside out, found a piano and played it, got arrested for playing the piano, got bailed out by the UK, got some more drinks and dance and I'll stop right there (it was all part of the play you silly! My criminal record is immaculate). Memorable evening!
Great Gatsby interactive theater on QE2, Dubai
Last time I saw my Space Crew was when the World Pandemic 2020 separated all our ways (for now). So we met once more before parting, a tasty dinner and cocktail with lots of laughter and...well it's just funny that after all those years of friendship, only now (and JUST by chance) we discovered that...actually me and Slovakia DID fly together in the past in our previous airline! And that happened to be my suppy flight, a turnaround to Istanbul! So from my very first flight as a Flight Attendant, I had my Space Crew with me all along!!! Isn't that miraculous? How did we discover it only now? Because thanks to Facebook memories (you know, when the app is suggesting you some old memories of yours posted years ago) I posted on old photo of mine from my 1st ever flight and well...she recognized herself on it!!! Ahahaha it's unbelievable!
Once upon a time and now
We're still in touch, sharing updates on our lives that changed so much and we have our only survivor, Mr.Romania still keeping the flying flag high! Direct message: seeing you on Zoom party was fun, but I can't wait to hug you all again one day! Love you Mashallas!
Now we're gonna fly back to 2013 when I had my fist ever flight to South Korea. It was a memorable one, as every next one, so it became one of my favorite destinations ever.
Royal Palace
I already told you about my perception of this parallel amazing world, so I won't repeat that. (In case you missed it, go check out the article about wintertime in ICN).
DMZ on the southern part
What did not cross my mind even from far away is, that years later I would finally realize one of my dreams and start learning and practicing a martial art. And the art I would choose would be taekwondo! And cuddle of taekwondo is... well.. Korea! If I only knew back then, surely I would have visited Kukkiwon, world taekwondo headquarters. Next time, I'm coming! The rest is history: 5 years later I started training in Sangrok Abu Dhabi dojang and got so passionate about this martial art, that I even did a competition in poomse (pattern of defense-and-attack motions) and won the 2nd place in senior woman category held in Sharjah, UAE just before the world lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. My Master is from Morocco, the country which is only 2nd to Korea in taekwondo tradition. I was blessed to find this dojang (training hall in Korean) and Master Said, who's words are always with me: "keep kicking".
February 2020 - Poomse competition in Sharjah, UAE
Well back to aviation now!
Before learning about kimchi and generally about the spiciness of Korean food, I had a memorable experience that made me remember how to order food in Korea for the rest of my life. Our flight reached Seoul in the evening hours and by the time we were in the hotel, it was already dark and late. I decided to order some room service and go to bed early and leave the exploring for the next day, so I could be well rested and fresh to absorb everything I would see and smell and touch. I was starving after a long flight and generally a long day, so I took a hot shower and welcomed my food on a huge tray. It looked like it was full of cute little portions, besides the big bowl of the main dish. Yaaaaaaay! DelisciousssssssSpicyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!! OMG didn't expect THAT spicy! So after a pause I tried again. My eyes started crying and I finally caught some color different than my usual ghost-white. I couldn't go on. You need to know that I don't eat spicy AT ALL, so for me it was a huge shock. Moreover because it was past midnight, the kitchen was closed and I was left with no other option. Did it ever happen to you to be starving and having the food right in front of you, but not being able to eat it? Walla, I ate it with my eyes! I tried again several other times, but my tongue jut refused to get used to it. So I went to bed hungry. Every single next time I would order food, be it in the restaurant or room-service, I would stress on NO SPICY, just to have it very slightly spiced. There is no spicy-less in Korea! Lesson learned!
Room service in Crew hotel (my happiness before the surprise)
So the next day I explored downtown with my fellow crew, from the royal palace and gardens to the Gangnam quarter and market where we inevitably danced to the rhythm of Gangnam style. The market was overwhelming with cute articles of every kind. I could smell food and wanted to try it all. And I just love the tradition of small old style houses and big gardens, even though skyscrapers are there as well along with the well connected metro system.
Who can resist dancing to the rhythm of Gangnam Style?!
Another time when I came back to Seoul I got sick on layover with my ears blocked and runny nose. It might sound as a common flu that is not enough of excuse for the ground people to miss the working day. Well for us flying creatures it is a big deal! Just think about the pressure and altitude and that dry air in the aircraft. If you have flu, besides putting everyone else on risk (imagine that flu being Covid, ok now you get the risks), but you risk to pop your ear drums and damage your hearing for the rest of your life! Besides the suffocating feeling of not being able to breath! Well we have a procedure for Crew getting sick on a layover, so you call a special number for the world Aviation Medics who are mostly based in Canada or US and they pretty much deal with all the major airlines in the world, both for cases on board and during the flight, and for the Crew on ground when they are outstation (out of their base). They found the closest hospital for me and arranged the taxi. When I got to the Gangnam hospital they already got my documents, so they knew in which department to send me. Nobody spoke English so the communication was quite difficult, but the good old body language helped us to understand each other. After running some tests, they gave me medicines and sent me back to the hotel for 3 days. My airline advised the hotel that I was staying longer than my Crew and the hotel staff made sure to give me a lot of hot tea with lemon and honey. When I was finally fit to fly back to base, obviously deadheading, I met the new set of Crew who took care of me. I flew as a passenger in business class, which was a privilege of the sick Crew on company expense, but nowadays it is only economy, regardless of the length of the flight, seriousness of your sickness, empty available seats in business versus full cabin in economy. Not fair, right?! On the bright side, we were able to book staff tickets in any class and I used that privilege as much as I could, obviously respecting all the company rules from the dress code to behavior. I got used to flying business so much that I am having a hard time not to imagine that in my future as well. First and Business class are similar with just some extra perks and even more space and privacy in First, but the big breakthrough quality-wise is from Economy to Business. Comfort, space, privacy and quality that truly make a difference in flying, sleeping and reading or writing on board. Or simply the entertaining system with the bigger screen and better headsets (even though I am always using mine, because there is no better than Bose Noise Cancelling headsets). Well let me tell you the last word about who has the last word: if the Purser and the Captain agree to put you deadheading in Business (space allowed), you can. They asses the situation and make a decision, that's all. Unfortunately there are many people who follow the rules blindly and ain't able to think out of the box. These people are in each industry and they usually make it to the top by putting the others down and backstabbing. History of the humanity.
Moving on, I want to tell you about that particular layover (we're still in 2013) when I decided to visit the DMZ (demilitarized zone). It's a 250km long buffer zone between North and South Korea which divides the Peninsula in half. Created in 1953, it is one of the most militarized borders in the world. In the Armistice agreement both sides agreed to move their troops back 2.000m from the front line, creating a buffer zone 4km wide. Within that buffer zone there are so called peace villages on both sides. In order to maintain their residency, the villagers are required to spend at least 240 nights per year in the village. They are the direct descendants of the people who owned this land before the Korea War (1950-53), at least at the southern part. According to the checks with modern telescopic lenses, it seems like the northern villagers are actually skeleton crew of caretakers in a ghost town preserving the illusion of activity. Ruins of the old capital city Cheorwon of the Taebong dinasty that ruled united Korea from AD 918 to 1392 are within the DMZ, therefor off-limits to everybody except soldiers who patrol it. Basically the ancient history of the country is inaccessible. There have been a number of incidents and incursions by both sides, but what is interesting is the discovery of 4 tunnels since 1974. These tunnels crossing the DMZ in a north to south direction are believed to have been planned as a military invasion route by North Korea. Today these tunnels can be visited by the civilians on the southern side in a guided tour, accompanied with the military as an admonition and security prevention. That is the unforgettable tour that I have done.
Guided tour in the 3rd tunnel, South Korea DMZ
Who knows if our generation is gonna get to see the change, to have the possibility to travel in and out of North Korea. There is so much more to learn about this country and I hope I will be able to do just that in the close future. In any case nowadays we're barely allowed out of our municipality and region and country and continent due to Covid, metaphorically like the North Korean freedom of movement situation, information freedom apart.
To close the article on a highly danceable note, here is the video that in 2012 exceeded 1 billion views on YouTube for the 1st time in the website history. I think you all know what I am talking about.
Last but not the least, my own little layovers sum up from 2013 to 2019. Seat back, relax and enjoy the video!
My last couple of times in South Korea happened to be in wintertime and it is damn cold in winter!
But I can totally say that it is one of my favorite destinations ever!
Itaewon district
I even had an uncomfortable adventure on my very last ICN flight linked to my passport: I changed it recently and informed the related responsible in my aviation company who hadn't done their job of updating the information in the system, so when I got to the passport control in Seoul, I risked to get deadheaded back as an INAD. Me, the Crew!!! It would all go well (we had a 24h layover during which the company could remedy the error in the system), if it wasn't for my Purser (the most senior Crew, basically our boss for a day) who got so scared of the situation that she felt the urge to amplify the situation by warning the whole hierarchy (up to God) of my situation and putting it all on my back. If I had listened to her, my very last layover in South Korea would have been spent in the hotel room! Thankfully I, at least. think out of the box, so after sorting the problem out with who was really in charge, I went out with my fellow Crew. And I am happy about it!
After the full immersion into the street food - and my oh my if there is plenty of it - we decided to visit a Cat Cafe. This is the only place on earth so far I've visited that has this kind of places.Basically it's a bar where you can take a drink and chat, BUT surrounded by cats and dogs! So instead of a kennel or cattery, this place is hosting homeless cats and dogs and offering them some attention by the animal lovers who are visiting. It was fun and enlightening!
Cat cafe
After this adventure there was some more street food and crowds with nice background music. You could hear it, smell it, feel it all. Let's not forget it was long before the pandemic, which feels ages ago.
Our final research before the closure of the shops was of course about the cosmetics. Have you ever heard about the Korean cosmetics?! They are famous about it. probably because the population starts using cosmetics very early and even the surgical interventions are quite common among the Korean youngsters. That's too far for me, but I do appreciate the endless brands of premium cosmetics of all types. That winter all my fellow ladies friends got a Korean cosmetic product for Christmas. Myself included!
Unleashed Crew
I have to tell you something about my first thought of South Korea, we're talking about 2013 when I had my first ever layover in this incredible country. Also that time was summertime, so I will do another post about it entirely. This is just a sneak peak of my first impression.
I had an adventurous layover and colorful exploring! Next day while I was walking at the airport, on my way back with the rest of the Crew, I saw a huge map. Unfortunately I didn't have time to take a photo, but I observed it carefully. It was the map of the world slightly different from what we're used to see at school. Or at least I thought everyone in the world was using the same maps. NOT. Apparently in Asia they suggest an Asia-centralized map, where Korea is at the very center, Americas at the right and Europe on the very left edge. It was so weird for me to see that! But enlightening as well! Why not, it's totally logical! In fact I made up my mind that Korea is sort of a parallel world to ours: it has the same standard and technology, but fashion, customs, music and food is totally different and what I loved is that - it is not copied from the western world! They have their own and they value it, which is awesome in my opinion. From that moment it became one of my favorite countries in the world. Right here is the answer to your question "what's your favorite destination?".
In my airline Athens flight was a turnaround: that means that you go and come back to base the same day. Time on ground is about 1-2h, just enough for the cleaners to reset the aircraft, for catering to load the food and for dispatchers and ground staff to give us info about the return flight. But in some periods of the year this destination becomes less frequent, therefor it becomes a layover. YAAAAAAYYYY!
I was lucky enough to get it in August, when as a tourist it would cost more, take more time to organize and crowding around. As Crew everything is organized by the company: hotel stay, transportation from the airport to the hotel and often enough a shuttle from the hotel to the city. So I just need to decide to go out and explore and that's what I have done!
I took a hop on - hop off tour around the city in order to see all the main attractions and understand the the geometry of it.
View of Acropolis on the top of the mountain
I already got excited! Loved the architecture, the colors, the atmosphere and the stories behind every single building! If I could time travel a little but further like...thousands of years, oh this would definitely be a place to visit! After all, this is where Europe was born!
As a first timer I couldn't miss to see the Acropolis from close by, so that was my main stop. It included a lot of walking and climbing, but it was all definitely worth it!
Climbing to the Acropolis
I love history, there is no better fairy tale, best seller than what actually happened on this little earth of ours. After all invented stories WERE often inspired by the reality, especially in times when it wasn't politically possible to tell the truth. Places like this HAVE seen many happenings and do INSPIRE more to tell!
Panorama from the Acropolis
Just imagine this white city and all the intriguing affairs. The first theater you will encounter is Theater of Dionysus. Today only the pavement and the grandstands are visible. Still it will give you the idea of the greatness.
Theater of Dionysus
Panorama over the seaside from above Odeon
But the next one is still used today for the events: Odeon of Herodes Atticus. It is quite steep, with marvelous arcades and a splendid view on the city.
Odeon of Herodes Atticus
Odeon of Herodes Atticus
On the very top of the hill there is a selection of Temples: Old Temple of Athena is my favorite, but what distinguishes the city is Parthenon. It is indeed very suggestive and visible from any corner of the city. It is beautifully highlighted at night.
Old Temple of Athena
After my exploring walk, just by going down the hill, I found myself in Plaka, the very center of the city, full of cute restaurants and picturesque corners. It is always alive, very colorful and sweet intoxicating: by the music and the extended selection of restaurants.
I remember having an amazing team on board which made it pretty much one of the most memorable flights. Because the atmosphere on board is 50% set by the Crew. When you have a good team that backs you up and listens, you are more likely to perform better as well. It was our leader's birthday on the way back, so we went in the Cockpit and following the Captain's PA sang a disharmonic but fun happy birthday over the interphone, followed by the sonorous clapping and cheering by the passengers. Later on we also had a surprise cake and little made on board gifts to celebrate while above the clouds. Each and every Crew on this flight was a hard-working, enthusiast, heart warming and cheerful person that I will keep in my dear memories.
Correction. I went all the way to Beijing just to buy a mobile phone! ... Kidding 😅 Obviously I am talking about Huawei brand and I do use it for many years now! I happened to need a new mobile phone just the same month I had PEK on my roster, so I thought: let me go directly to the source! And so I did. I saw a new fancy model from my Taekwondo master, a purple/blue electric Nova3 and I decided I will go for the same, just a little cheaper because bought directly where it is produced.
I did all my research before the flight, knowing that Google and everything related is blocked in China, even with the VPN (at least with the free versions that I was using around the world during layovers). I went to the Huawei shop that my Chinese colleague advised me and it took me about 1h to complete the purchase, by using google translator, because nobody in the shop was talking not even a word of English! But hey, not only I made it, I also got a lot of extras for free (Huawei selfie-stick, 2 covers, LCD window shield) and I payed less than the cost everywhere else in the world, so it was definitely worth it and I am still using it!!! My Chinese colleague helped me out with the settings from Chinese to English and everything is cool.
Huawei Nova3, selfie stick and covers
Well this was the boring side of the story. Let's jump up to the exploring instead! Myself with a Crew girl from Mexico and our Captain from Spain went for the Great Wall tour: what a blast it was! In the morning we took a driver from the hotel, but forgot to ask at the reception what was the pickup time for our flight back that was happening the same late evening! So we tried to ask the driver to use his mobile phone (of course ours wasn't working), but again he didn't speak a word of English, so again google translator helped us out, except at the certain point it translated I LOVE YOU instead of something else and the driver was quite puzzled and maybe flattered? Who knows! At the end we made it to contact the reception and plan our time accordingly.
It was an 1h30' drive and finally we got to the Wall. After the visit of the museum, we started climbing. And right there I thanked God that I am training Taekwondo, a Korean martial art involving legs more than other body parts. I had a steady trekking, but people around me were stopping frequently to rest, had heavy breathing and were frequent drinking or simply giving up. Ok, maybe the fact it was August didn't really help with staying fresh, but hey, once in a lifetime you'll make that effort, right?
Dollyo-chagi
Crew
Endless panorama of green mountains, nature and this endless wall full of mysteries.
Who knows how many stories it inspired, how many feet have walked on it, how many lives were given to defend it and how many romances it was keeping in store?! The tradition, the history, the architecture: it all has a sort of timeless magic. No wonder it is one of the 7 wonders of the world, right? Wonderful!
Cableway
The Great Wall of China
safehouse
A new entertainment on the Great Wall is the 3-5min slippery slope for whoever is not afraid of the speed. You are by yourself on the metal slide sitting comfortably with your legs in the front with a joystick in the middle that is used for braking. I had a misfortune to have in front of me a 60 years old Chinese lady that was kind of afraid of the whole sliding (why didn't she take the stairs?!!?), so we were going quite slow. But she was creating a long queuing line, so I had to shout to her and ultimately push her myself. It involved a lot of laughing with my Crew and at the end we all had a lot of fun. Here's the video!
