An Exit Row Kind of Day...

Sometimes when you travel, nice things happen. You get to the airport on time – even a little bit early. There are plenty of spaces in long term parking and just as you walk up to the shuttle stop, the bus arrives to take you to the terminal. Which isn’t really that crowded, all things considered. People are reasonably polite, the security line is reasonably efficient, and nearby children are reasonably subdued. It’s not like it’s the best day of your life or anything, but it’s not bad.

And then a kind of magical thing happens. You know the flight attendant. He isn’t a super-close pal, but he’s a neighbor you wave to and who has a nice dog you give a pat when you’re walking by. You look up from your cramped coach seat and there he is, demanding your boarding pass and telling you you’re in the wrong seat. Suddenly, you’re in an exit row. An empty exit row. Leg room! Fanny room! Spreading out or curling up room. And at that moment, my friends, life is good.

I like to travel. Even when I don’t have a magical exit row day, I like to be heading towards a city I’ve never seen or revisiting a place I want to explore further. Call it wanderlust or call it nosiness – I just want to find out more about people in other places. I want to see their monuments and taste their cuisine and try out a bit of the local lingo. Today I’m heading to Philadelphia. First time and I’m totally frustrated ‘cause I’ll be there such a short time I won’t get to do much of anything but attend the meetings that are the reason for the trip. No Liberty Bell, no Constitution Hall. But I’ll get a glimpse of the skyline and of course, I’ll get the best bit – I’ll get to meet a room full of people from this foreign land called Pennsylvania. I am hopeful that with their guidance I will uncover the perfect example of what is known in their language as a “cheese steak”.