Having left from LAX on May 26th at 3:45pm and not arriving in Singapore until this morning (May 28th) at 3:30am, I am still trying to wrap my mind around how long I've been traveling and how time changes. No matter my delirium, it has been a really remarkable experience comparing the Los Angles airport, to the Tokyo airport (for a brief layover), to the Singapore airport and how each airport tends to reflect the culture of its location, naturally. There are definitely western customs strewn about Singapore's airport, more so than Tokyo's for sure, but that again is a mere reflection of Singapore's culture--a booming economic capital of the world that engages transnationally with different economies. I am not an apt judge of Tokyo's airport because I was only there for just over an hour, but I got to witness interactions with the store clerks, and the people working throughout it. The airport in Singapore was amazing. It far exceeded your typical Duty Free shops, and Hudson News (although there was that too). But, it also had sunflower and butterfly gardens, snooze lounges, cuisine from all around the world, and more designer shops than I could bare to walk through with my heavy backpack weighing me down.
Singapore airlines ran parallel to the elegance of the airport. When I first stepped on the plane, the flight attendants were very joyful and welcoming, and were all dressed to the nines in bright traditional dresses. They handed each of us hot towels once we got to our seats, and offered us free international newspapers, then Givenchy travel packs with socks, a tooth brush and tooth paste. The restrooms were equipped with all your basic amenities and the food was actually quite good (they served us 3 full meals between Los Angeles and Singapore). Wine was paired with each meal, and for dessert... personal Ben and Jerry's ice cream cups. It was very comfortable to say the least.
When I first took my seat on the plane, I heard the kids from Singapore behind me exclaim, "look at the beach!" as we we flew over California's coastline. At this moment it occurred to me that they were departing from an adventure that they just had in America, as I was about to find new opportunities for hoopla in their home country. They were so excited to see the beach for a final time; something that I can sometimes see as trivial and take for granted, but can compare to the elation I feel to be spending 16 hours in their home country (even if it is just in the airport) as it signifies the first phase of my journey. One person's everyday occurrences, is another's chance in a lifetime. Those kids were glued to the window at take-off, just as I was at landing--but we embraced completely different sensations, leaving comfort and clarity to uncertainty and new adventures.
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