To Paradise by cattle truck

If you're planning a romantic honeymoon (as many visitors to the Seychelles are), a 9½-hour overnight flight in the economy class cabin of a 747 is not the ideal way to start. The flights are almost fully booked, meaning profit for the airline and crowding for the passengers. There are ten seats in each row across the cabin, with two aisles (3-4-3), meaning that most passengers are out of sight of a window. Dinner is served two hours after takeoff, and breakfast two hours before landing, giving everyone less than five hours in which to try to sleep (in the usual narrow seat with limited recline).

On the outward flight, I asked for a window seat and was pleased to get one; then I got on the aircraft and found myself sitting beside a blank wall. The window seat with no window was a concept entirely new to me; evidently one of the innovative design aspects of the 747.

I was also sitting in one of the few positions from which the cinema screen is not visible; but that suited me well enough.