I just arrived in Taipei, my transit point for the first leg. Tomorrow morning (at ohhhhh, dark-thirty), I fly to Manila to visit friends.

China Airlines, LAX to Taipei

Pleasantly, China Airlines did not live up to the negative comments on the web–we flew a very comfortable (and either new or newly renovated) 777 (seats configured for 3-5-3). The flight attendants were very nice, the movie selection was pretty good, and the seats in economy were comfortable. You might consider bringing your own food, though.

My key to surviving long flights is usually to ride my horse bareback after the fact. I’ve never done chiropractic, but I imagine that the tweaking and re-aligning that I get bareback is even more therapeutic, when you throw in the smells of horse and eucalyptus.

http://www.accorhotels.com/6701

Finding a horse in Taipei was going to be a challenge, though. My transit hotel is Novotel (just outside the airport and very comfortable). I checked in a half hour before the In Balance Spa closed, and the front desk very kindly reserved a half-hour massage for me.

Just the thing for tired bones and butt!