Double Decker to New York

I’ve recently got back from a ridiculous trip to New York city… as one does.
 
It was for research and inspiration for my upcoming projects and it was pretty darn awesome.
 
That place is all they say it is. It wakes up late, nothing is open until at least 10am – except breakfast and coffee spots – and it goes ‘til way waaay past my bedtime.
 
I blew up my Instagram and Twitter feeds with pictures from the moment I stepped into that gorgeous BA lounge at CT International.
 
It’s a place of unicorns I’m telling you. I have been ruined and it shall be said that I will never, ever be able to go cattle economy again.

It’s just too great to be able to swan around drinking bubbly, eating delicious morsels and sit in a comfy chair doing a spot of work on the free wi-fi.
 
The flight to London was just too short! I wanted to stay on at least 3 more hours and just enjoy the space and the elegant hostesses bringing me fabulous things – I mean Taittinger is the house bubbles *unicorns neighing*
 
From London to New York, again, too short! It’s a 7 hr flight and I had the most wonderfully cooked piece of British beef – medium rare to perfection – a rare thing on a plane you know.
 
Touchdown in a hot and wonderful Gotham City and I was ready to take on the world, with no need of a physio – oh me, oh wondrous flat-bed-on-a-plane, how I do love you so.
 
Ok, so then I spent the next 2 solid weeks doing New York – what a firework of a place, what madness, how cosmopolitan it is – the food, the design, the fashion, the edginess – it’s all there, not right on the surface to be sure, but if you scratch and poke a bit, the originality comes out –raw and brilliant, original and alive.
 
I’m compiling my findings in a whipping trends article coming up anon, I pinky promise.
 
After it all I dragged my New-Yorked (and highly indulged – I ate a lot) body onto the shiny and new double-decker A380 BA mama and swathed myself in some extra special attention.
 
You have got to get yourselves on one of those planes, I beg you. It’s so big and robust, it’s silent on takeoff and landing and it feels like you’re on a space ship, just floating, not colliding through the air at a gazillion miles an hour.
 
I enjoyed a really lovely last supper (before the end of my no-holds-barred away rule) – a gorgeous little fresh crab salad to start with, which I shared with my Taittinger and a little chilled glass of Rhône Chardonnay.

Next up, another medium rare piece of beef – the miracle has happened, planes can now serve you medium rare meat… more than once, hooray!

Cheeseboard (oh yes) of relaxed Camembert and some fig preserve which I shared with my glass of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and a happy little travel-pigeon was I.

So. How have they made it so good?

It must be something to do with those always-beautiful hostesses, do you think they turn into unicorns when they go behind that little curtain and make all the plane food delicious?

Hmmm, I’ll have to have another go and see if I can catch them in the act.
 
– Catch Caro de Waal on her social media streams @carodewaal.