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As I previously wrote, I frequent cafés often to write. Caffe Bene is where I most often go. Cafés should have good WiFi, convenient power outlets, and something nice to eat or drink; loyalty point cards too are important.
Coffeesmith has a much more generous point plan (four times the amount of points-per-purchase!) than Caffee Bene, and their red velvet cake is good. If they were more ubiquitous and close to where I live, I'd frequent much more often than I do. The only drawback is their point cards can only be used at specific locations, meaning you'll have to register for a new card at each new one you visit, and the points aren't transferable between Coffeesmith franchises, unlike at Caffee Bene, which you can use anywhere and only register once. As with most of the point cards I use, you'll have to know Korean well or have a Korean friend do the registration work for you online.
Best Online Shopping:
"Best" may not be the correct word choice here, but certainly the most convenient and comprehensive place to find anything online is still Amazon. I rarely have problems with them, but on my last purchase, a tablet I wanted returned was said to be unqualified for return online, yet, in fact it was. I ended up giving that tablet to someone, and worse, Amazon hasn't responded to my email (I sent two). That was months ago, and still no reply.
Also, especially if you have friends in your home country who dutifully mail things to you, as I do, shop around for the best prices for items you want. Sometimes, I've found substantial discounts on things like toiletries outside of Amazon on websites that specialize in certain categories, like Walgreens, for example.
Best Business Class and Lounges:
When traveling by air, (except for award tickets) I always go business class or first (if in America).
The worst first class service I've ever experienced was with American Airlines, when I visited America last February of 2014. This was a one-way flight from Baltimore, Maryland, to LAX, California. In-flight service was horrendous. I fell asleep before breakfast was served. Upon awakening, all food options were eaten, except oatmeal. The flight attendant acerbically said I was sleeping when meals were served, and this is all they had left. In first class? For the few passengers in the forward cabin, they should have had enough servings to satisfy either breakfast dish for the passengers; most airlines plan for meal choice redundancies, particularly for those in that class of seating. The oatmeal was dry, yet slimy, by the way. I had a vodka martini and crackers instead. Ridiculous.
Much worse than the poor food service was American Airlines' lounge policy. Literally, all airlines I've flown with, except AA, allow first or business class passengers access to their lounges. Apparently, I'd have to purchase a special membership ($50, last I checked) to access AA's lounge. The smart thing to do would be to add that fee into the purchase price of the ticket, instead of nickel and diming me about purchasing a club membership at the lounge entrance.
I wrote a letter complaining about this policy and my entire experience with them, and the reply was long, but unsatisfactory. I'll never use AA again, and that goes for ANA (All Nippon Airways), who, despite the business class fare, won't allow any changing of the departure times, unlike JAL (Japan Airlines), its chief Japanese competitor.
JAL, Korean Air, Delta, Hawaiian Air, Mongolian Air, and Asiana Airlines all have good or better in-flight service and amenities. Their lounges are satisfactory, with a modern aesthetic, adequate food options, and mid-shelf (or better) liquors, with the exception of Hawaiian Air, whose hub in Hawaii has décor from the 1970s, and the food at their lounges: soft drinks and processed cheese spread with crackers. Atrocious. But their in-flight service, especially the food and timeliness, makes up for their sad lounge.
Korean Air's lounges and in-flight service are satisfactory, but not better than the aforementioned airlines, yet prices for their business class are routinely 2-3 times more than all their competitors. Especially since airlines often share lounges, (Korean Air and Asiana share their lounges with other airlines at Incheon and Gimpo Airports) you can get a better business class fare with another airline and still enjoy the superior lounges.
All of my airfare tickets, with the exception of award miles tickets, are purchased via Orbitz.com, by far the best place to purchase tickets and hotels on a consistent basis.
With this knowledge, go forth and be fly in 2015!
Deauwand Myers holds a master's degree in English literature and literary theory, and is an English professor outside Seoul. He can be reached at deauwand@hotmail.com.
