, here's the picture. You've been flying for about 8 hours and you're feeling a bit, well droopy and you think to yourself that if only you could take a shower, you'd be fine. 100% better in fact. Then it suddenly occurs to you - you can take a shower. But wait a minute, this is an airplane and how on earth could you take a shower? Well it's because you're flying an Emirates Airlines gigantic, double decker A-380 and for First Class passengers they have not one, but two, yes two showers. Impossible, right? Well not exactly - I was aboard this amazing and totally luxurious airplane when she flew into Los Angeles recently for a two hour flight to nowhere to demonstrate not only the Airbus A-380, but also all the refinements and luxury that abound everywhere on this incredible and superb Emirates flying machine.

Yes, that really is the door to one of the two (!) showers aboard Emirates A-380. Mind you though, it is only for the 14 First Class passengers, but hey, can you imagine taking a shower at 41,000 feet!!! The floor is heated, there are flowers in vase (out of camera view) and the scents in the bathroom are both seductive and relaxing. Comfort is, as comfort does!

I've been very fortunate (some might even say incredibly lucky!) to have been invited aboard three A-380s, and I've flown in two of them. Yes, admittedly they've been demonstration flights, and not a journey to some far off exotic locale, but nevertheless once you fly aboard this gigantic bird you'll never want to fly in any other aircraft. The other two A-380s I was aboard were what's known as demonstration models - they were not configured to an airline's specific layout or interior design. This one was, and it can only be described as, well let's see, how about fantastic, amazing, luxury beyond compare, totally mind boggling, and a flying experience you never wanted to end.

The plane had flown from Dubai to New York with a full passenger load, and then flown across the USA without any fare paying passengers, but with a full complement of an Emirates crew of pilots' and flight attendants, to touch down in San Francisco where it hosted VIPs and the media, to an in flight demo. The following day it turned its lovely nose south, and landed at LAX for another VIP and media flight of two hours to nowhere. This was, as a colleague of mine remarked, "the hottest ticket in town, and THE one event that anybody who was anybody, wanted to be part of." As it turned out, that number was 150, with about 50 members of the media, plus other very lucky guests ranging from travel agents to high profile industry VIP's.

Going aboard this wonder of the skies was like going into a sort of Arabian Nights Fairytale or Dream sequence, where you're convinced you are in some marvelous Sheik's private palace - filled not only with all the goodies you can imagine (especially if you're flying First or Business Class) but also because the flight (at least this one) was brimming over with gorgeous, no I really do mean gorgeous flight attendants. They all looked as if they were either an Arabian Princess or a budding Hollywood starlet. And I'd guess that not one of them was over 30 years of age!!! Now tell me, how many flights have you been on recently (or indeed been on in living memory) when you could honestly say how gorgeous ALL the flight attendants were?

Here is one of the (at least in my view!) gorgeous flight attendants on board Emirates A-380. Notice the red lipstick? I've always thought that this shade of lipstick is (and let's call a spade a spade here!) very sexy. All of Emirates female flight attendants wear this as part of their regular attire, and it caused a lot of very positive comments on the flight I was aboard. Of the 24 flight attendants on my flight, all seemed to be under 30 years of age, and all were most attractive. How wonderful that someone in the hierarchy of aviation recognized the benefit of wearing a hat, plus a very stylish uniform, that combine for an over all stunning appearance - red lipstick and all!

There were several factors that made them beauty standouts. First, they all wore a stylish and smartly tailored uniform. They all wore small red berets. I don't know about you, but I recall the days when all airlines had their hostesses (as they were called back then) all wearing hats. And they all looked terrific. There is something about a stylish headgear that makes something ordinary look extra special. The next fact that stood out was that they all wore bright red lipstick.

Let's be right up front here and call a spade a spade. Maybe it's going back to the glamorous days of Hollywood of the 30s, 40s and maybe even early 50s, when any woman who was anybody in Hollywood, wore red lipstick. Heck it was, and still is, very sexy. If you then add in the fact that these lovely ladies provided top notch, very personalized service, you got the feeling you really were someone special. My goodness, what a flight, what a crew, what an airplane!

OK, back to the showers. Somehow the concept of real showers on a modern day jet seems ludicrous, and yet on Emirates they're fact not fiction. Located on the upper deck at the very front of the A-380 on both the left and right hand side of the first class area, they're luxury personified.

Each shower is "contained" in a separate cubicle with a water temperature /time control, where the water jets shut off after 5 minutes. Yes, the actual shower unit is small but hey, taking a shower at 41,000 feet, is truly the lap of luxury. Flying aboard an Emirates A-380 aircraft is a place where luxury is a given, which means that the floor of both showers is heated. In addition there's a vanity unit, gold covered faucets above a sumptuous wash basin, full length mirror (natch!) hairdryer and of course, a toilet. Leather seating in this sinfully opulent spa area is a natural, along with a vase of exotic flowers.

On the off chance that, in the middle of your shower, you wonder how the flight is going, there's a 15.4 inch LCD monitor so you can see where the aircraft is, along with any other relevant in-flight information. I mean there's no point in worrying if you have to towel off very fast as the plane is about to land, so Emirates gives you all the information you need to know. Plus, of course, there's a wonderful selection of cosmetics from some of the world's leading beauty suppliers.

How many airplane bathrooms have you seen? I've flown on a huge number of the world's most well known airlines, and I've never seen a bathroom like this! It happens to be one of the Business Class restrooms or WC's, and yes it is, it really is as luxurious as it looks. How about that wood looking paneling! Almost makes you want to spend a long time in there!

You might wonder how much "shower water" is actually carried aboard Emirates A-380. Well in addition to jet fuel, a special water truck comes along and pumps 130 gallons aboard - which is why showers are only 5 minutes duration. Did I get to actually take a shower? Sadly, the answer is No; I did not as this was only a demo flight to showcase all the amenities and luxury. But I did go inside the shower cubicle to see what it felt and looked like.

So, now you've taken your shower and have to go back to your first class seat - well it's not really a seat, but is in fact a sort self contained penthouse or plush, lush elegant home of your own. There's a fold out table, flowers, literature pockets, wardrobe, a privacy divider, touch screen Wireless Integrated seat controller for IFE (In-flight entertainment) and seat operation, a 23 inch (!) LCD screen, a PC power outlet, dual USB port and a headphone jack. Let's call this what it is - your own personal suite that is 82 inches long, a seat/bed that reclines from upright to a sleep position of 78.87 inches, and seat cushions that are just over 21 inches.

Having flown "Up Front" (as well as in the back!) on many of the world's leading airlines, I can honestly tell you that First Class, Business Class and yes, even Economy, were all far, far better and more geared to total passenger comfort on this Emirates A-380, than on any airline I've ever been on. The amount of room, storage space, and personal privacy of Business Class was (almost) equal to that of First Class. It made me feel that I could have sat down and enjoyed what was offered, and then fallen asleep on my superbly comfortable seat/bed and woken up to more amazing things on this amazing plane of Emirates. And then rather than getting off, I would have asked if I could just sit there and relished everything for the next few weeks. If you're wondering about Economy, that too is special. Seats are more comfortable than so called normal Economy on other airlines, and are pitched at 32-33 inches apart, with seat cushions that are 18 inches wide. Plus such amenities as adjustable headrests, literature pockets, coat hooks, cup holders, your own individual 10.6 inch TV screen, laptop power supply and on and on.

There are so many nifty things, gadgets and innovations on this Emirates plane, that it's hard to remember them all. But yet another one that really got my attention was a small electrical outlet in the right hand bottom of the seatback in front of me. As I was examining it and trying to figure out what it was, one of Emirates stunning looking flight attendants leaned down towards me and said it was a special passenger amenity. As anyone who flies a lot knows, it's very frustrating to be watching a movie and then (before it's finished) have it "turned off" by the flight crew as the aircraft is about to land. The point being that you never find out how the picture ended. "But," she said, with a merry twinkle in her eyes, "Because this is Emirates, you can plug in your computer to the outlet, and download the rest of the move to watch later on." Is that nifty or what!

There are so many nifty little gadgets and gizmos on board, that one is hard pressed to remember them all, as there are so many! Emirates has a video camera in the nose and also high on the top of the tail, so you get to see incredible landings and take offs, as well as sideways and downwards looking views. It's all magical. You see that little black sort of square in the bottom right hand corner? Well, you just plug in your PC to that, and you can quickly download the movie for viewing at home!! Nifty, right!!!

Another benefit that I loved on Emirates A-380 is what they refer to as "seat to seat" calling - I mean just think what this offers someone who notices another "person of interest" and would like to get better acquainted? How cool is that! There are 14 FC Suites; with 76 lie flat beds/seats in Business Class in a 2-4-2 configuration; and 399 seats in Economy in a 3-4-3 layout. Economy is on the lower deck with first and business class on the upper deck. Still another passenger benefit that I also found delightful, was the spacious, comfortable and yes, very cozy Lounge and Bar in the back of the aircraft on the upper deck for first and business class passengers. There are two sofas - one on each side of the lounge that seat up to six people, and what I can only call "Mood Enhanced" lighting that creates a soothing and calming atmosphere. I relaxed on the sofa and chatted with numerous folks in the Lounge Bar, and found it to be another wonderful touch of luxury and a real passenger benefit provided by this amazing airline.

For First and Business class passengers only, here is the bar - it seemed to me to have an air of elegance of and real sophistication and yes, a great place to relax and meet interesting people.

When one contemplates how far aviation has advanced over all these years, it's interesting to recall that the venerable DC-3 had a passenger capacity of 28, or 14 in what was the luxury over night version, in a journey across the USA from coast to coast of 17 hours 30 minutes, with just one toilet in the rear. Fast forward to today, and the Emirates A-380 has 10 toilets in just the Economy section alone, with a passenger total of over 500! In the same line of thought it's a real exciting moment (no, it really is!) when you realize that the A-380 has a staircase so wide at the front of the aircraft that 3 people can walk down in line abreast at the same time - and at the back of this giant jumbo there's yet another staircase, but this time a spiral one. My goodness, would the Wright Brothers be blown away by all this technology, luxury and in-flight amenities!

Most people never get to see this sort of "thing," which is why I've included it with this story. But to support the massive weight of the A-380 there are a total of 22 tires. 20 in the center section and two in the nose gear. It may be hard to see in this photo, but if you look closely you'll see a sort of red outline in the forward part of the photo. When the plane takes off there is a huge Emirates logo underneath the aircraft! How about that for clever and subtle advertising! I don't know how long it is, but I'd guess at least 20 feet in length, and it's as wide as the aircraft itself.

Emirates' A-380 costs $327 million at today's list prices, and they've ordered (are you ready for this?) no less than 58 of this stunning big bird. For those readers who love statistics, let me share with you that the A-380 has 22 tires - 20 in the middle and center section, and two in the nose gear. The plane develops 280,000 pounds of thrust on take off, which is the equivalent to 2,500 family cars of 110 hp each. Each wing is held in place by 8,000 bolts, and she can take on 81,917 gallons of jet fuel - which equates to 21 of those gasoline hauling tankers you see on our highways. Maximum takeoff weight is a mind boggling 560 tons. Emirates A-380 has a range of 7,456 miles, and a 13 ton (!!!) capacity for cargo in its hold, and the airline now operates to 101 destinations around the world.