Flying Back To Manila From USA

We boarded the Etihad Airlines A-380
at JFK in New York headed to Abu Dhabi in
our "economy space" seats. The highest speed
recorded during our flight was 750 mph.

Etihad Airways Dreamliner,
Abu Dhabi to Manila, Philippines

We were in rear facing Business Class seats on
the Dreamliner from Abu Dhabi to Manila

We enjoyed champagne, meals, movies and
then five hours of sleep on our adjustable
seats. With the push of a button our seats turned into
comfortable flat beds. Covered with
 the complimentary duvets we slept well.

A review of Business Class.

 Beginning of Etihad Airways

We had to fly back to the USA to sign some documents in person.
In this age of electronic signatures, we found that not everyone accepts DocuSign. Banks do not. Well, we had a lot of other business to take care of anyway.

Our good friends loaned us a waterfront condo to stay in while in Florida. They drove us around to several appointments and we hired Uber drivers for more rides.

We are Vegans so we bought a lot of Vegan food to enjoy at the condo. Healthy Choice hot dogs (with catsup, mustard and pickle relish), Italian sausages, cream cheese, frozen Chickun, Pizza and more. We shopped at Walmart, Publix and at our favorite fruit stand.

After about six weeks we were finally ready to begin our journey back to the Philippines.

We flew economy on Jet Blue for a short flight to JFK in New York.

We left New York flying in our "economy space" seats on the A380. It was great to have more legroom for this eleven-hour flight to Abu Dhabi. We slept on and off during this flight.

Upon arrival we checked into the airport hotel, showered and then got several more hours of sleep. I awoke early and caught up on some of my administrative duties at my Facebook groups.

After checking out at the airport hotel, an airport porter accidentally caused a minor scrape on my elbow. It was treated and bandaged by paramedics in the boarding area. My wife, who had bid on an upgrade to business class, talked with the boarding agents. They informed her that her low bid had been accepted! I think because we were on the last flight for the day to Manila. We gladly paid the minimal extra charge.

We boarded our Etihad Dreamliner and, after being escorted to our seats, were offered complimentary champagne. I have read reviews saying that Etihad Airways business class is the best. Having never flown business class before all I can say is that it was a fine experience. We did not have time to order Vegan food before this last leg of our journey. No problem. The flight attendants rustled up some Vegan food for us. Vegan appetizers (an assortment including hummus, stuffed grape leaves and more), pasta with sauce, rolls with olive oil and balsamic vinegarette. Fine dining at 39,000 feet.

After eating we lowered our seats to bed mode, covered ourselves with the complimentary blankets, and enjoyed five hours of comfortable sleep. After an eight-hour flight we were awakened by the captain announcing, "We are approaching Manila." We deplaned and headed to the baggage claim area. When we got there our luggage was nowhere to be found. After spending an hour at the claims desk, we learned that the Jet Blue clerk in Tampa, where we boarded a flight to New York, had mislabeled our luggage tags. She marked Abu Dhabi as our final destination. So we were now in Manila, but our suitcases were still in Abu Dhabi! Well, the claims clerks in Manila did a very good job. The next day they called to tell us "Come pick up your baggage." It was about an hour and a half drive back to the airport, but we got all our suitcases! Happy ending to a long trip. 

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This post will be expanded upon. Check back for more information about flying back to Manila from New York. Updated December 2, 2023.