Seoul Airport has Soul, or at least Great Amenities.

Blearly-eyed, I arrived in Seoul at about 5:30am local time for my 12 hour layover before headed to Yangon.  I haven't left the airport but I already love Korea.  There are lounges and comfortable chairs everywhere and people are sprawled out all over the place.

They dimmed the lights so it's far more humane way to sleep through a layover than the intensely-bright fluorescent lights and cafeteria style chairs at most US airports.  Not that I'm comparing (Miami is the worst). 

I found this slice of heaven inside the airport where there are free showers, massages, tours into Seoul, movies, and a hotel inside the airport that you can rent for 6 hours.  My layover is like a mom vacation.  So many decisions...

Bound for Myanmar, the country formerly known as Burma

I'm choosing between udon noodles and petite four sandwiches (weird buffet combination) in the Korean Air lounge at LAX and it's finally hit me.  I'm on my way to Myanmar. This is a country that I couldn't locate on the map four months ago and one that I'm still not exactly sure how to pronounce.

Some trips are all about anticipation.  Others are "in the moment" trips.  This is one of those.  I'd love to say it's because I'm mindfully in the moment, but in truth, it's because I just don't do advance planning very well.  For example, I only realized yesterday that while my friend Rhonda and I booked flights on the same day, they are 23 hours apart.  Lucky for me, she is in Yangon right now and switching hotels for us to one that is actually in the city in which we are going to, rather than a small village 40 minutes away.  

I feel like I have an on-the-ground travel agent.  

Hopefully, when I land in Seoul, Korea for a 12 hour layover, she'll send me the address of the new hotel.  Otherwise, well.  It's going to get interesting. 

As a side note, I LOVE the Korean Air lounge.  I feel like I've already traveled halfway around the globe.