Hello Kitty jet to the rescue!

When I was nine, Hello Kitty was one of my favorite things. I  started a Hello Kitty collection, amassing amazing finds such as hors d’ouevres forks, a pajama bag, and a toaster (I know!).

I still love Hello Kitty. She’s just so cute. It also helps that pink is my favorite color.

I had heard about the EVA Air Hello Kitty jet, but I never in a million years thought that one day I would get to fly in it. I couldn’t imagine how I would even be in the right country for a Hello Kitty flight to be a possibility…so what happened today was quite a surprise.

After a date-mix up that almost caused us to miss our flight altogether, we arrived in Taipei at 4:30 in the morning (local time). We spent a few hours in the EVA lounge, waiting for our final fight to Tokyo, which was scheduled to board at 8:20 am.

We left the lounge at 7:30 am and walked around the airport for awhile. Our favorite sight was a woman who had set up a portable speaker and was doing what looked like a combination of hectic karate and mellow Tai Chi, set to music. I wanted to stand and watch her forever, but she was clearly not hoping for an audience – she was just doing her thing – so instead we just walked politely by and tried not to stare.

Unfortunately, our flight was delayed, and no one could tell us when it would depart. The plane wasn’t even at the gate yet. My kids were exhausted and hungry, the boarding area was crowded and noisy, and we were all eager to begin the final leg of our very long journey. My kids were troopers, but this was definitely when the morning began to veer into shaky territory. There were a couple of sassy remarks and some pouting, and as we sat and waited, all of our cheerful travel energy was starting to wane.

It was at this precise moment that a small miracle happened: the Hello Kitty jet rounded the bend and began to make its slow, majestic way towards us.

It was incredible. At least fifty people leapt up from their seats and clustered around the window, angling for a glimpse or a snapshot or a selfie-with-plane-in-background. Josh and I stared at each other in amazement. “It’s like a tiger sighting in the wild,” he finally remarked.

I couldn’t believe that this was actually going to be our place. It just seemed like such a rare and special treat…but it was true! This was indeed our ride. 

Even Josh was excited to get on board. It’s not every day you get to ride on a themed plane – and the theming on this one was pretty amazing.

Once we were on board, there were Hello Kitty pillows on each seat.

My kids were so into these that at the end of the flight, the flight attendants gave them each a fresh, new pillowcase as a souvenir!

My kids each also got a little goodie bag filled with stickers, coloring pages, and a cardboard airplane.

Although my kids are a little too old to really use the goodies, they liked looking at them. Then they gave the bags to me. 🙂

The level of detail was amazing. Everything from the swizzle stick in my drink…

to the safety info card and welcome video…

to the garnishes on the meals…

to the bathroom products…

Everything was Hello Kitty.

I loved flying on this jet for so many reasons, but I thought it was especially appropriate when I read some of the mission statements of the jets: “to inspire happiness in the air,” “to whisk family and friends away on the adventure of a lifetime,” “and to ride the colorful, fluffy clouds to the destinations of their dreams.”

I couldn’t agree more.

Rock on, Hello Kitty. I  will always love you.