“These airport lounges are just too comfortable”.

When I hear these words, I look around to see if I can catch a glimpse of this obviously over privileged traveller. Then – I realise with horror that – it was me!

It’s Monday.  Nanette and I are seated at Brisbane airport, ready to depart on our long-awaited journey to see the family in Canada again. We’ve taken advantage of an unexpected offer from Qantas to upgrade the short Brisbane-Sydney leg to Business Class, in exchange for a few long-forgotten frequent flyer points.  “Why not?”, we said.  It will be great to see how those special people in the front seats feel when they jet about across the globe.  And – there’s perks!

Perk number one is a shorter security check line, and access to the special “Business” lounge.  We flash our boarding passes at the front desk attendant, then try to look nonchalant as we stroll on in what we hope is the right direction.  Like an episode of Bluey, we can’t help whispering to each other “Ooooh – look at the soft seats.  Aaaah – there’s food – and someone making real coffee!”

And so, here I am, sinking into my soft lounge chair after way too many trips to the buffet bar, listening to the soft music and idly wondering if the old guy in the Rip Curl tee shirt and jeans is a secret millionaire corporate mogul.  “These airport lounges are just too comfortable.”  Nanette gives me a shake.  “Don’t fall asleep!  We have to remember to board our flight in two hours.”

Update number one.

To our great relief, we did head to the gate at the right time.  As we board the plane, the grumpy attendant looks at our boarding passes, then breaks into a smile. “Welcome Mr and Mrs Graham.  Your seats are just around the corner to the left.”  It’s a small plane, so we probably could have found the seats on our own, but -it’s a nice touch.

Update number two.

Monday evening.  We’re in Sydney international terminal.  No magic upgrades for this flight, so, no special lounge for us.

We find there’s only so many times you can walk around the row of high-end shops pretending you really might buy a $5,000 pair of shoes, so we’ve grabbed the only vacant spot in the communal seating area.  The seats are rock hard, and we still have another three hours before boarding time for the Vancouver flight.  At least, this time, we know there’s no chance of missing the boarding announcement.

We’re not the only ones who aren’t buying anything