I had the honor of being a guest of Turkish Airlines for their brand new Boeing 777-300ER ceremonial flight from Seattle, Washington, to Istanbul, Turkey.  During my few days in Seattle, Boeing provided us a wonderful tour of their factories in Renton and Everett. I was able to see the 777, 787, and 737 being assembled in stages, starting with the building of the shell, placing the wings and finishing the interior of the cabins. Until now, I never thought of the intense man-hours and intelligence that comes with every piece of the planes we fly on so often.  After our tour of Boeing, we were provided a guided city tour of Seattle. It’s a beautiful city with so much culture and vibrancy . . . and best of all, it did not rain once during our stay. The press conference and ribbon-cutting ceremony were sights to be seen. There were hundreds of Boeing and Turkish Airline executives giving thank-you speeches; and finally, with hundreds of press taking pictures, the keys were given to the chairman. Before I knew it, we were rushed onto the plane and about to take off. But what made me really impressed with the 777 was the support of 50 craftsmen who showed up to wave us off. I was very humbled to be on a plane that was built with so much care. I was seated in the business-class cabin, just a few rows behind the executives. Champagne was served right away, and our three-course dinner and breakfast were excellent, made by the hands of the three chefs on board. I must say that knowing I was the first to sit in that seat and recline my seat was very fun. I felt it was my duty to touch every single button for my seat and every single program on our widescreens in front of us. Before we knew it, our 11-hour flight was done. In Istanbul, we had dinner with the CEO of Turkish Airlines, Dr. Temel Kotil. He was very jolly and spoke English very well. We only had one full day in Istanbul, and I managed to squeeze in the Topkapi Palace, the Blue Mosque and the Grand Bazaar. Coming from a newer city like Los Angeles, Calif., I was never able to see such rich culture and history as in the palace, which was built in 1465 and lived in for some 600 years.  The culture of the old and the young was seen everywhere, including the intense nightlife, where crowds of locals and travelers swarmed into downtown to visit the many restaurant, clubs and shops. Needless to say, I had a great trip . . . and I am ready for my next one! — Carly Allen, account executive, western region