Now a little over three hours since departure flying along at 35,000 feet and at nearly 550 mph over Wisconsin. I just finished watching the movie The Class (French with English subtitles), all about the travails and frustrations of teachers getting little respect for their efforts to teach a multicultural group of students in a Paris middle school. The cabin lights have been turned down and I'm typing on my netbook aided by the reading light on a flexible stalk next to my seat.
Our five course dinner started a dual appetizer plate: Cumin-scented Braised Beef empanada with Shaved Fennel and Kumquats, alongside a Poached Lobster Tart served on a bed of Spanish Chorizo, Tiny Corn, and Olive Oil Poached Tomatoes. Curry Tomato Lentil Soup, and Fresh Seasonal Greens with Plum Tomatoes, Cucumbers and Seasoned Croutons followed.
The main course choices were: Grilled Sea Bass and a Cardamom Carrot Galette with Three Onion Ragout (which I opted for), Wild Mushroom Lasagna, Pan-Seared Filet Mignon with Green Peppercorn Sauce (Cindy's choice), or Sate Spiced Chicken. Both of us washed down the meal with a nice Artesa 2005 Napa/Sonoma Meritage blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, poured from a full bottle by the flight attendants, not self-served from those tiny bottles that get passed out at the back of the plane.
We passed on the Red Grape and Cheese dessert option (not a separate course as would have been the case in France) for good old American ice cream sundaes. The meal ended (for Dick) with a class of port and a chocolate truffle. The food preparation was quite outstanding and a far cry from the best of the "good old days" when coach passengers were served a full (albeit TV dinner style) meal.
As the bird in those Western Airlines commercial used to crow: "This is the only way to fly."
It's now 12:15 am in London and only a little over six hours until we land. Breakfast will be served in five hours or less, so it's time to sign off, shut down the computer, hit the "Bed" button on my seat and sleep lying flat as we continue eastward towards the Atlantic.
