OBSERVE, ABSORB, EXPLORE, ENJOY

JAPAN 2024

Blog Post #1 - 2/20/24 thru 2/24/24

DAY ONE: Tuesday, February 20, 2024

Del Mar to Los Angeles

Our trip began on Tuesday with a drive to L.A. and a one night stay at the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. Generally I find Beverly Hills gauche and silly, and not nearly as opulent as it thinks it is. But the Waldorf is not just a luxurious veneer. It’s a hotel that embraces its theme, namely Old Hollywood Deco right down it's Lalique door handles.

Our stay was fully facilitated with Hilton Points. Upon check in we were upgraded to a corner suite with a panoramic view that included the hills of Beverly Hills, the Hollywood sign, the Griffith Park Observatory, and downtown L.A. (This is, I suspect, the second time we've enjoyed an upgrade on the heals of the exceptionally bad behavior of the person in line ahead of us. The last time was at the Avis rental car counter in the Durango airport. As the guy in line in front of us was getting the cops called on him, John and I were bolting through the Avis lot towards the only 4-wheel drive vehicle left in the airport fleet.)

We arrived in L.A. just as the rain was letting up. The sun was setting through breaking storm clouds and the city glistened all polished and fresh.

Our stay in this gorgeous room totaled 15 hours and in that time John took three baths. Three.

DAY TWO: Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Los Angeles to Seoul, South Korea

On Wednesday morning we made our way from Beverly Hills to LAX where we parked in reserved long-term parking. (So convenient.) We enjoyed some noshes and coffee in the KAL Presteeeege Lounge, and jumped into the Presteeege seats of our Airbus A380-800. I’m not exaggerating when I tell you that the leg room of the space John and I shared, would have allowed me a full yoga practice.

Having come of age in the era when 747s looked, sounded, and felt like they would never get off the ground, I tend to dread flying in really big planes. But that Airbus A380-800 took to the sky like it was sliding on buttah, all 575 tons of it (including it's 853 passengers). A miraculous engineering feat. (Obviously there’s solid science in all aspects of air travel, but to me, it’s always nothing short of a miracle.)

DAY THREE: Thursday, February 22, 2024

Still Los Angeles to Seoul, South Korea