On a flight to somewhere, I was seated next to a young mom with a fussy baby of good size and strong lungs. I could sense the mom’s angst as she saw the eye rolls nearby. I was a fairly new grandmother, so I started winking at the little one. Her wails seemed to melt into hiccoughs, and soon she was smiling at me, then reaching out to me. I didn’t want to make things worse for the mom, who was clearly exhausted with getting into this flight with all the trappings a little one demands. I introduced myself as a grandmother, and to Mom’s surprise - “she never goes to strangers!” - Babe settled into my lap for a good hour of finger play, claps, little songs and then nodded off for another hour of sweet sighs. Mom fell asleep and the eye rollers- a couple anyway - sent me thumbs up. Shortest flight ever.
When my 6 month old son (now 33!) and I were on our first flight together, I had a sweet grandmother help me out just like you did! I will never forget her kindness in helping me out and bringing a smile instead of tears to his little face!
Reminds me of the first time I traveled with my infant son. He didn't cry but I was so anxious. This gorgeous, well-put-together woman sat next to me and all I could picture was my son spitting up all over her. We chatted and it turned out she was mom to six! There was no incident, but I was able to let go of my anxiety!
Sep 18·edited Sep 18Liked by Mel Joulwan & Dave Humphreys
Same, but very well-dressed man in a three piece suit. He was a dad and missed his 3 year old at home. He was so helpful and kind to me. My guy was maybe 6 months old and in my Baby Bjorn front pack. No incidents either. :)
Fabulous! My mom was a preschool teacher, her entire family was in Europe so we flew there every few years and everytime my mom would help parents with babies and toddlers, evening switching seats with an obviously disturbed gent who was seated with a mom and baby, thank you for reminding me of these instances❤️❤️
On the way to Vienna for the Taylor Swift concert that didn't happen I took the TransAlpin train from Zurich to Innsbruck. There's one departure in each direction each day that has a panorama car - and, my word, going through the Arlberg pass in broad early-August sunshine, seeing the full sweep of the mountains from those huge windows... absolutely stunning. Would highly recommend.
Just arrived in Venice with a friend, stood outside the train station, queuing to buy tickets for the Vaporetto. Stood back to let an older gentleman pass by with his suitcase. He stopped, thanked me in Italian for being kind, then handed me two unused tickets for the Vaporetto, which once activated, gave us one week of unlimited travel. We were there for 3 days and let me tell you we visited every island in the Venetian lagoon 😊
Well I have two!! One was in 1989. I was on a high school band trip in Europe. We flew back to JFK on Lufthansa Airlines. I was 17. Not feeling well. Nausea and ears popping. Stewardess took me to the cockpit. I sat with the pilots and watched them LAND THE PLANE. The views were amazing. I will never experience that again in a 747. As you know all cockpits are locked! Nobody goes in!😂 The 2nd time was an outdoor boat tour of Les Calanques from Cassis to Marseille. At the end of the calanque is a memorial rock with a cross for St. Exupery, beloved author of the Little Prince. Oh how I wish I could snap my fingers and be back on a boat in Les calanques!
Whoa! Those were the days... when you could go in the cockpit with the pilot! My dad was a charter pilot for a while, and he flew my mom's flight from London to Malta, and she got to join him for a few minutes in the cockpit. So cool. —Mel
Way earlier than your flight but same Lufthansa airlines going to see family in Germany I always got airsickness and stewardesses would take me to sit with them make me tea and fed me chocolates???? And I always felt better and had such a special time
Love reading all of these en route stories. First one that came to mind was taking the Eurostar to Paris. I was quite nervous about being in the depths of the English Channel. A couple of nights before, our family had attended a midnight release event for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I cried most of that train ride as I read the very satisfying end of the series finishing just as we were arriving Gare de Nord. I have reread Deathly Hallows several times over the years, and I always remember where I was the first time I read it.
My sister, who lives 2500 miles away from me, and I took advantage of a buy-one-get-one-free Amtrak roomette from Tampa to Virginia. It was our first overnight train ride and an adventure for both of us. The best part, however, was the time we spent together—chatting, reading, eating, and enjoying the view.
I was traveling with my 19 year old twins and our flight home was canceled. We were discussing renting a car and did so. Four people (all strangers) sitting near us overheard and asked if they could join us. My husband was very skeptical. We ended up renting a van and split the cost. Turned out that two of the ladies went to the same high school. And one of the ladies was college roommates with a family friend. Lots of great conversation and we made some new friends.
Three days on a Nile cruise (in one of the older, luxury boats) going from Aswan to Luxor with my husband and our 2 then-teenaged kids. We all have beloved memories of the food, our excellent cabins, other passengers (hello to Raoul and Juliette), Turkish coffee on the top deck, and the views.
We all agree that we would do it again in a second.
The dear hubbie booked us a cabin just below the wheelhouse on a cruise ship, with an outdoor deck of our own, and as we pulled out of the berth in NYC harbor, the ship turned south on the Hudson and steered for Ellis Island. Tears came to my eyes as I realized that this was the safe “space” where Captain “Sully” Sullivan had landed his airplane after it suffered a bird strike and lost all engine power. I turned to my dear hubbie, mystified at my emotions, and sobbed, “That’s what Sully saw!” It was truly overwhelming. Powerful. Thanks, Tom Hanks, for capturing this event in film.
About three years after I got out of college, I got a van and a dog and took off for the open road. My money only lasted about 3 months, but it was an amazing 3 months. I've wanted to replicate that ever since! (Especially now that #vanlife is a thing. I feel like I was a trailblazer, although I was an 80s kid modeling 60s kids.)
When my family and I went to Norway a few months ago, we didn't realize we had booked first class seats until we got on the plane. The airline classified them as premium plus. It was so nice and luxurious! It was the perfect way to start the trip, and given that it was my parents and my niece's first time traveling internationally, it made their travel even better!
I couldn’t limit my experiences to just one, so here are the best on each mode of transportation. Car - driving down the Pacific coast from Newport, Oregon to Santa Barbara, California; plane - flying from Ipiales to Cali, Colombia, seated in the copilot seat on an eight-passenger plane, ; train — Chicago to Denver in the observation car; bus- 12-hour bus ride from Neiva to San Agustin, Colombia through the Andes Mountains; boat - traveling from Valencia to Mallorca with my 22 companions. We were high schoolers, spending the summer on a study program in Spain.
My sister and I flew Air Kuwait from Paris to Rome for our grad school graduation trip and had the absolute best cup of coffee brewed in existence. It also came with a slice of quiche and a big KitKat which I think about all the time.
Watching Wimbledon final on ferry from England to Dublin....My only flight in Business Class, with a three month old baby (and the looks of displeasure from fellow travelers) who actually slept because we had space for her to be herself and then flirted with her delighted passengers that she was not a screamer...A train trip through the Chunnel, watching the royal wedding on the iPad, and announcing to our daughters midway that actually we were going to Disney Paris and their absolute delight....road trip from Texas to Colorado Springs where we actually found all 50 license plates in the classic road trip game...
On our honeymoon (over 20yrs ago), my husband & I took the train from Florence to Rome. We took a late afternoon train and brought along wine, cheese, charcuterie & bread for the ride…it was the tastiest & most comfortable train ride I’ve ever taken.
A few years ago my husband and I took a road trip through the fjord region in Norway, where a series of free, short ferries are part of the roadway system. At one point we missed the ferry in a fairly remote setting--and the next one wasn't for 2 hours! We were the only car there; there was no cafe or even ticket office, just a road that ended at the ferry dock. We debated turning back toward the nearest town, but then realized we had a front-row seat on some magnificent scenery. We gradually got into the rhythm of the place & spent an enjoyable few hours simply chatting and absorbing the view. It was totally unexpected and became one of my favorite memories of that trip.
Love everything about this. I think missed train-missed ferry 'disasters' can often turn into the best memories for exactly the reason you said: You're forced to slow down and just chill out. So good! —Mel
On a flight to somewhere, I was seated next to a young mom with a fussy baby of good size and strong lungs. I could sense the mom’s angst as she saw the eye rolls nearby. I was a fairly new grandmother, so I started winking at the little one. Her wails seemed to melt into hiccoughs, and soon she was smiling at me, then reaching out to me. I didn’t want to make things worse for the mom, who was clearly exhausted with getting into this flight with all the trappings a little one demands. I introduced myself as a grandmother, and to Mom’s surprise - “she never goes to strangers!” - Babe settled into my lap for a good hour of finger play, claps, little songs and then nodded off for another hour of sweet sighs. Mom fell asleep and the eye rollers- a couple anyway - sent me thumbs up. Shortest flight ever.
When my 6 month old son (now 33!) and I were on our first flight together, I had a sweet grandmother help me out just like you did! I will never forget her kindness in helping me out and bringing a smile instead of tears to his little face!
Reminds me of the first time I traveled with my infant son. He didn't cry but I was so anxious. This gorgeous, well-put-together woman sat next to me and all I could picture was my son spitting up all over her. We chatted and it turned out she was mom to six! There was no incident, but I was able to let go of my anxiety!
Same, but very well-dressed man in a three piece suit. He was a dad and missed his 3 year old at home. He was so helpful and kind to me. My guy was maybe 6 months old and in my Baby Bjorn front pack. No incidents either. :)
Fabulous! My mom was a preschool teacher, her entire family was in Europe so we flew there every few years and everytime my mom would help parents with babies and toddlers, evening switching seats with an obviously disturbed gent who was seated with a mom and baby, thank you for reminding me of these instances❤️❤️
On the way to Vienna for the Taylor Swift concert that didn't happen I took the TransAlpin train from Zurich to Innsbruck. There's one departure in each direction each day that has a panorama car - and, my word, going through the Arlberg pass in broad early-August sunshine, seeing the full sweep of the mountains from those huge windows... absolutely stunning. Would highly recommend.
Oh! I'm sorry about the Taylor Swift concert — but I'm glad the beautiful view softened the blow. —Mel
Just arrived in Venice with a friend, stood outside the train station, queuing to buy tickets for the Vaporetto. Stood back to let an older gentleman pass by with his suitcase. He stopped, thanked me in Italian for being kind, then handed me two unused tickets for the Vaporetto, which once activated, gave us one week of unlimited travel. We were there for 3 days and let me tell you we visited every island in the Venetian lagoon 😊
A ticket angel! —Mel
Well I have two!! One was in 1989. I was on a high school band trip in Europe. We flew back to JFK on Lufthansa Airlines. I was 17. Not feeling well. Nausea and ears popping. Stewardess took me to the cockpit. I sat with the pilots and watched them LAND THE PLANE. The views were amazing. I will never experience that again in a 747. As you know all cockpits are locked! Nobody goes in!😂 The 2nd time was an outdoor boat tour of Les Calanques from Cassis to Marseille. At the end of the calanque is a memorial rock with a cross for St. Exupery, beloved author of the Little Prince. Oh how I wish I could snap my fingers and be back on a boat in Les calanques!
Whoa! Those were the days... when you could go in the cockpit with the pilot! My dad was a charter pilot for a while, and he flew my mom's flight from London to Malta, and she got to join him for a few minutes in the cockpit. So cool. —Mel
Way earlier than your flight but same Lufthansa airlines going to see family in Germany I always got airsickness and stewardesses would take me to sit with them make me tea and fed me chocolates???? And I always felt better and had such a special time
I am such a plane geek--oh, to sit in the cockpit of a 747 while landing!!!
Love reading all of these en route stories. First one that came to mind was taking the Eurostar to Paris. I was quite nervous about being in the depths of the English Channel. A couple of nights before, our family had attended a midnight release event for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I cried most of that train ride as I read the very satisfying end of the series finishing just as we were arriving Gare de Nord. I have reread Deathly Hallows several times over the years, and I always remember where I was the first time I read it.
What a fun association to have with the book! (Sorry about the crying, though.) —Mel
My sister, who lives 2500 miles away from me, and I took advantage of a buy-one-get-one-free Amtrak roomette from Tampa to Virginia. It was our first overnight train ride and an adventure for both of us. The best part, however, was the time we spent together—chatting, reading, eating, and enjoying the view.
100% love overnight trains. What a fun adventure to share with your sister! —Mel
I was traveling with my 19 year old twins and our flight home was canceled. We were discussing renting a car and did so. Four people (all strangers) sitting near us overheard and asked if they could join us. My husband was very skeptical. We ended up renting a van and split the cost. Turned out that two of the ladies went to the same high school. And one of the ladies was college roommates with a family friend. Lots of great conversation and we made some new friends.
Such a sweet story! It's like a real-life version of 'Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.' —Mel
Three days on a Nile cruise (in one of the older, luxury boats) going from Aswan to Luxor with my husband and our 2 then-teenaged kids. We all have beloved memories of the food, our excellent cabins, other passengers (hello to Raoul and Juliette), Turkish coffee on the top deck, and the views.
We all agree that we would do it again in a second.
That sounds amazing. All the fun parts of Death on the Nile, and none of the murdery stuff. 😆
Oooh, a Nile cruise is one of my daydream trips. This is so swoony: https://www.steam-ship-sudan.com/en/ — Mel
If I’m allowed two responses…
The dear hubbie booked us a cabin just below the wheelhouse on a cruise ship, with an outdoor deck of our own, and as we pulled out of the berth in NYC harbor, the ship turned south on the Hudson and steered for Ellis Island. Tears came to my eyes as I realized that this was the safe “space” where Captain “Sully” Sullivan had landed his airplane after it suffered a bird strike and lost all engine power. I turned to my dear hubbie, mystified at my emotions, and sobbed, “That’s what Sully saw!” It was truly overwhelming. Powerful. Thanks, Tom Hanks, for capturing this event in film.
Wow. That's pretty cool — and don't you love when you have a big emotional response like that? So cleansing. —Mel
About three years after I got out of college, I got a van and a dog and took off for the open road. My money only lasted about 3 months, but it was an amazing 3 months. I've wanted to replicate that ever since! (Especially now that #vanlife is a thing. I feel like I was a trailblazer, although I was an 80s kid modeling 60s kids.)
Van + dog + open road sounds amazing. —Mel
When my family and I went to Norway a few months ago, we didn't realize we had booked first class seats until we got on the plane. The airline classified them as premium plus. It was so nice and luxurious! It was the perfect way to start the trip, and given that it was my parents and my niece's first time traveling internationally, it made their travel even better!
I couldn’t limit my experiences to just one, so here are the best on each mode of transportation. Car - driving down the Pacific coast from Newport, Oregon to Santa Barbara, California; plane - flying from Ipiales to Cali, Colombia, seated in the copilot seat on an eight-passenger plane, ; train — Chicago to Denver in the observation car; bus- 12-hour bus ride from Neiva to San Agustin, Colombia through the Andes Mountains; boat - traveling from Valencia to Mallorca with my 22 companions. We were high schoolers, spending the summer on a study program in Spain.
My sister and I flew Air Kuwait from Paris to Rome for our grad school graduation trip and had the absolute best cup of coffee brewed in existence. It also came with a slice of quiche and a big KitKat which I think about all the time.
Watching Wimbledon final on ferry from England to Dublin....My only flight in Business Class, with a three month old baby (and the looks of displeasure from fellow travelers) who actually slept because we had space for her to be herself and then flirted with her delighted passengers that she was not a screamer...A train trip through the Chunnel, watching the royal wedding on the iPad, and announcing to our daughters midway that actually we were going to Disney Paris and their absolute delight....road trip from Texas to Colorado Springs where we actually found all 50 license plates in the classic road trip game...
On our honeymoon (over 20yrs ago), my husband & I took the train from Florence to Rome. We took a late afternoon train and brought along wine, cheese, charcuterie & bread for the ride…it was the tastiest & most comfortable train ride I’ve ever taken.
That sounds just perfect. —Mel
A few years ago my husband and I took a road trip through the fjord region in Norway, where a series of free, short ferries are part of the roadway system. At one point we missed the ferry in a fairly remote setting--and the next one wasn't for 2 hours! We were the only car there; there was no cafe or even ticket office, just a road that ended at the ferry dock. We debated turning back toward the nearest town, but then realized we had a front-row seat on some magnificent scenery. We gradually got into the rhythm of the place & spent an enjoyable few hours simply chatting and absorbing the view. It was totally unexpected and became one of my favorite memories of that trip.
Love everything about this. I think missed train-missed ferry 'disasters' can often turn into the best memories for exactly the reason you said: You're forced to slow down and just chill out. So good! —Mel