I used the Thanksgiving weekend as an opportunity to get away from New York and gain some perspective on what’s going on around the world. I decided to spend the weekend in London. I flew Virgin Atlantic’s Upper Class for the first time, and I have to say, Virgin Atlantic keeps the fun in flying while still catering to the business traveler. The experience started at the Virgin Lounge at JFK, which featured a soothing waterfall, a spacious and comfortable layout and a menu of hot food. As it was Thanksgiving, I had actually brought a sandwich full of yummy leftovers. After take-off I had the flight attendant flip my seat into a full 180 degree bed and settled in for a comfortable night’s sleep. It was a 7:50 p.m. flight and I managed to sleep for two hours and then on and off again for the remainder of the flight. I wasn’t ready for sleep so early! As comfortable as the bed was, I did find it a bit uncomfortable to watch a movie while lying down. I decided I prefer the flat-bed seats. In that type of seating you sacrifice some of the seat width, but you don’t have to get up and down to flip the seat into a bed and vice versa. Another highlight of flying Virgin has to be the new lounge in Heathrow’s Terminal 3. It is phenomenal. When you walk in, you can’t help but feel like a rock star. The space is huge and there is so much space for seating, I can’t imagine it feeling crowded, even if flights are delayed. The lounge has private rooms, a hair salon and spa, a billiards area, a state-of-the-art business center and an entertainment area. Entering the lounge after security is a seamless, high-tech experience. I scanned a bar code on my boarding pass and was allowed entrance through a set of doors. This led me into a private security area, then to the shops at Heathrow and into the lounge. I enjoyed seeing the excitement of the staff as they led me to the lounge! I highly recommend any traveler – business or leisure – leave extra time to get to the airport and take advantage of the lounge to work, rest or unwind. As for London, I was pleasantly surprised to walk around the city and see every store packed with shoppers. The streets were full as well. There were some sales going on, atypical for London at this time of year, but there were no signs of a recession in the stores. From talking with people, from cab drivers to folks in the publishing industry who have been following the situations in New York and London, I have found the general consensus to be that people may be worried, but they aren’t changing their day-to-day lives yet. Hopefully, when back in NYC, I will see consumers putting some dollars back into the economy and we will all get back on track sooner rather than later. Lastly, my heart and thoughts go out to friends and colleagues in India who have lost loved ones. I encourage people to travel to India and for everyone to read. Read about history and educate the next generations to understand what goes on in the world to help prevent atrocities in the future. -Alex Young, vice president and associate publisher