At the airport. More specifically, the business class lounge of Etihad airlines. Okay, this is going to sound really provincial, but why have I never before been in this magical kingdom? My coach self never even knew it existed! 

I had butternut squash and scallops for dinner. And they weren’t at all like airline food, but instead were absolutely amazing. And they were free! There are showers here, a prayer room, any magazine I could ask for in both English and Arabic, any kind of alcohol I want, and I’m sure some illegal things if I asked nicely. It’s a bit Stepford that all of the servers are wearing the same shade of lipstick and a similar wide smile, but we’ve shown them pics of the girls and gotten some personal stories so I feel a bit better. I guess for a ticket that cost as much as 3 month’s rent in my overpriced neighborhood this place makes sense, but I feel very guilty. It’s too much, too decadent, like I’ll have a toothache from how sweet it all is. This isn’t me-I don’t deserve this. But it’s so nice and cozy to sit on a clean leather chair in a quiet nook rather than a hard chair at the airline gate. So I’m going to “when in Rome” it for now.