Travel Day — Leg Two En Route to Lima

Thursday — April 2

You know what the best thing was about the Crown Club at ATL? The thimble-size chocolate mousse cups and brownies Mui found at the buffet that was laid out shortly before we left the lounge. But those yummy goodies are things of the past; time to focus on the here and now aboard Flight 235.

We had our second travel hiccup of the day at gate E5 where boarding for our 6 hour and 6 minute flight to Lima was delayed by 20 minutes due to the late arrival of our aircraft from England. This in turn meant that the required security sweep for our flight got off to a late start. Then, like dominos, the delays started to pile up — a minor maintenance issue, late arriving connecting passengers, etc., etc. Before we knew it, the time was 6:45p — well past our scheduled departure of 5:15p. The silver lining is that we are terminating our travel in Lima tonight. But the delay means we’ll be losing a precious hour of sleep from what was already going to be a very short night. Good thing we’re staying at the Ramada Costa del Sol at the airport and not at a hotel in the city!

Once our Boeing 767-400 was free of the shackles binding it to terra firma, the overcast and drizzle that had followed us from DC to Atlanta was finally behind us. Flying over a bed of fluffy white clouds, we enjoyed the blue skies until they were replaced by the inky darkness of nightfall.

A sea of clouds stretches out as far as the eye can see.

I may be just 5'2" (1.5 m) tall, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t appreciate
the extra legroom that comes with flying in business class.

The flight was a bit bumpy until we got over Florida, causing dinner service to be delayed. The evening meal began with cocktails and warm-from-the-oven mixed nuts, which we enjoyed as we flew over Havana, Cuba. We were then served a delicious, spicy soup; humus and fresh rolls; and baby spinach salad. Next came the entrée — steak and shrimp for Mui; mushroom ravioli for me. The crowning touch was dessert — vanilla ice cream topped with hot fudge, nuts, and a dollop of whipped cream.

I have to say, it wouldn’t take much for us to get used to traveling like this on a regular basis .

For now, good night from somewhere in the skies en route to Lima.

Next Up: Travel Day — Welcome to Lima