One Hour

Flying from Manila to Seattle is a strange proposition. On paper, our most recent flight between the two points, with an aircraft transfer in Tokyo, required only one hour. That’s pretty astonishing for traveling 6,650 miles.

There are a few dynamics involved here. For one thing, you are flying against the sun, passing backward through various time zones. Also, somewhere near the midpoint, you cross the international date line and encounter the very beginning of the same day you just left behind.

In our case (see the photograph of our itinerary posted below), we departed Manila at 10:05 a.m. on Tuesday, April 2. After 16 hours in the air and in transit, we arrived in Seattle at 11:05 a.m. on Tuesday, April 2. One hour later, by the clock.

I can assure you, it did not feel like merely an hour had passed by the time we landed. Even now, two days on, things remain slightly out of joint. My Rocky Mountain days are still trying, stubbornly, to be Manila nights.

Our Itinerary

—Mitchell Hegman