The thing about first class...
The thing about First Class is that it's just the way that people should be treated when flying. Not when flying for 10x the price of coach or for being lucky enough to win the frequent flyer upgrade lottery, but each and every time. Decent service seems like a fair trade off for putting your life in the hands of a bunch of strangers (who are probably just as sleep deprived and disgruntled as the rest of us) at 30,000 feet above everything that is normal and respectful of gravity.
For starters, someone offers you a drink when you get on the plane. Why of course I would like a drink after schlepping to the airport, probably running because I'm always just a little late to everything. Also, if it's alcoholic that would be even better to wash down my "for flying only" Xanax. Think about how much better flying would be if everyone were given a free alcoholic beverage upon boarding. Warm milk for the kiddies, of course...
Next comes the hot towel. I try not to think about how much bacteria is swimming in those warm towels and I just focus on how nice it is to have something to warm up my hands from the freezing cold airplane air. And whatever is on those towels couldn't be worse than whatever I picked up opening the lavatory door so they're more than welcome before the in-flight meal. Which brings me to the best part. Why shouldn't the average $300 or $400 plane ticket include a meal? It certainly used to back in the day. And even if the food wasn't stellar, the whole process of meal service really helps you pass the time. I believe that's why they still serve multiple meals on those long haul international flights. I am still new to flying first class, having only recently acquired enough frequent flyer miles to roll the upgrade dice and so I still marvel at some of the little things. The little black table cloth. The menu options. The real silverware. And the surprising fact that the food isn't half bad. Better than whatever they're serving in the to-go shops at the airport.
I like that they get the meal service done first at the front of the plane. The last flight I was on, they were taking menu orders while the plane was still on the ground. I guess the idea is to get you boozed up and fed so that you can knock out and sleep for the duration of the flight. I hear the flight attendants fight to work in first class the same way we passengers fight to sit in those seats. Oh, those seats... Once I sat in a seat that looked more like a pod that turned into a bed and included its own bench facing the seat (for a valet, I presumed). It was for a three hour flight for Miami which seemed wholly unnecessary but when I was chicken-boxed sitting in coach on an 18 hour flight to Hong Kong last winter sitting next to a fidgety 7 year old girl, I could only dream of having my own personal pod. Even if the valet bench is a bit much, everyone is deserving of a seat that reclines to a decent degree with enough leg room for your stuff and your feet at the same time. I mean it only makes sense that I would want my bag with my laptop and reading materials at my seat and not in a compartment above my head. It is not rocket science, it's just common courtesy.
That's the thing. First class isn't really that special, it's just kind of the way that you're supposed to treat people.
