2025 1st Class Lounge Holiday Special part 1 – E244

Welcome to part 1 of the annual CX Passport holiday tradition… the 1st Class Lounge Holiday Special. I take a little break during the holidays, and while I do, I love sharing some of the most fun First Class Lounge moments from earlier in the year.

This episode brings back lively lounge moments from Michelle Pascoe, Sean Cherry, Rachel Sheriff, and Vinay Parmar. Travel dreams, favorite foods, quirky dislikes, and simple joys… it’s a festive, easy listen for your own downtime.

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season and a fantastic New Year. Enjoy part 1… part 2 arrives next week.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Welcome to the 2025 1st Class Lounge Holiday Special
 00:47 Michelle Pascoe enters the First Class Lounge
 04:46 Sean Cherry enters the First Class Lounge
 09:20 Rachel Sheriff enters the First Class Lounge
 14:32 Vinay Parmar enters the First Class Lounge

Listen: https://www.cxpassport.com

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@cxpassport

Newsletter: https://cxpassport.kit.com/signup

I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only. The views and opinions expressed are those of the hosts and guests and should not be taken as legal, financial, or professional advice. Always consult with a qualified attorney, financial advisor, or other professional regarding your specific situation. The opinions expressed by guests are solely theirs and do not necessarily represent the views or positions of the host(s).

Transcript

Rick Denton (00:00)
Welcome to the 2025 holiday first-class special that we do every year here at CX Passport. I want to lead off with just saying thank you to the CX Passport traveler, the listener, the viewer. Y'all are what make this show what it is. Thank you to the great guests that have been a part of 2025. It has been a wonderful year and an exciting time to be a part of CX Passport.

Coming up, you're gonna get to enjoy first class lounge sections from Michelle Pascoe of Australia, Sean Cherry from the US, Rachel Sheriff from the US and Benet Palmer from the UK.

I hope you all have a wonderful 2025 holiday season.

Rick Denton (00:47)
distance is something that comes to mind when I think of Australia, because Australia to me is so far away. And that's where a first class lounge can be so important with a flight like that. So I want to invite you into the first class lounge here at CX Passport here with a little change of pace. We'll move quickly here and have a little bit of fun. What is a dream travel location from your past?

Michelle Pascoe (01:08)
Finland. I went for my first white Christmas at the end of 2023 and it was absolutely magical.

Rick Denton (01:15)
What a fun story that that was your first white Christmas. I make a joke that's the reverse. The only white Christmas that I ever want is a white sand beach Christmas in Australia. So I hope that I get to experience your version of Christmas sometime in my life. But Finland must have been absolutely delightful around the Christmas season.

Michelle Pascoe (01:34)
It's one of the, it's the most beautiful country. had a fantastic group, ⁓ Korea, you know, who has been there for 30 odd years. He had come originally from Chile and he was, he was, he made the trip. really did.

Rick Denton (01:49)
It is amazing how a guide, what that really can make the trip. What about the other way, looking forward, what is a dream travel location you've not been to yet?

Michelle Pascoe (02:01)
been to Canada, you know, I've always wanted to go to Canada. And there was an opportunity there, my nephew married a lovely Canadian girl, but unfortunately, my father became quite ill. So I had to cancel my trip. But I've always wanted to go there because, you know, we hear about the Calgary Stampede and I've met so many Canadians over the years and just to, yeah, because I go to America quite a lot, you know, and I've been to so many of your states, but I think, ⁓ yeah, so I really want to

try to get to Canada sometime next year.

Rick Denton (02:33)
be ideal. hope that happens. It's been a while since I've been there. But I remember really enjoying but I mean, it's been a while it's been probably 20 years since I've been there. But it is a very delightful place. What is a favorite thing of yours to eat?

Michelle Pascoe (02:45)
⁓ hope nobody's listening. Chocolate. ⁓ We've got this wonderful chocolate shop in Barrow and the lady's name's Michelle. So we get on, who owns the place? So we get on like a house on fire, and it's all these beautiful handmade chocolates. So I go there once a week and I buy probably 14 chocolates and they cost about $37. So it's my indulgence. And that lasts me a whole week if my husband doesn't find them.

then I hide them in the vegetable crisp because nobody eats the vegetables and they're delightful. So yes, I'm prone for a chop.

Rick Denton (03:19)
What? And the danger of loving that and having such a great shop local to you is dangerous. What is something you were forced to eat when you were growing up, but you hate it as a kid?

Michelle Pascoe (03:30)
I grew up on a farm, on a turkey farm, and I remember for some reason, I have no idea, my parents got sheep's brains. And I went to a Bush school, so there were only 10 kids at our school. And I remember opening up my lunchbox, well, it like a little box, and my mother had made put brains on my sandwich. ⁓

Rick Denton (03:40)
yeah.

Oh my gosh. No, I can imagine I've got to imagine you were unsuccessful at trying to trade that lunch with others. You know, she brain sandwich. Can I have your turkey? Nope, that didn't work out so well. Michelle, we're gonna have to leave the first class lounge. But as we do, what is one travel item not including your phone not including your passport that you will not leave home without?

Michelle Pascoe (03:55)
⁓ never again!

book. I love reading. I absolutely love reading. And you know what I did last week quickly, I flew to Hong Kong, nine hour flight, I had a brand new book with me, 265 pages, and I read the whole lot. I never watched a movie. I went to the bathroom once, I didn't need a headphone. And I just sat there and it was wonderful.

Rick Denton (04:46)
Sean, you've talked a lot about relationships and I hear that woven throughout that, right? Even there as you're talking about with the product and service starting with relationships and then getting that connectivity back there. It can be challenging to build those relationships. It can be exhausting to build those relationships. And sometimes...

You just want to stop down and take a little break. And so I'm going to do that with you today. We're going to take a little break here as we enter the first class lounge. We'll move quickly here and have a little bit of fun. What is a dream travel location from your past?

Sean Cherry (05:19)
Dream travel location from my past. ⁓ You know, I would love to return to Montreal, Quebec. ⁓ Big hockey fan, love the winter time. ⁓ Lots of cool stuff to see and it's a beautiful town. The last time I went, I got to see my Philadelphia Flyers play, the Montreal Canadiens. Nice. A lot of fun. Yeah, it's just a lot, it's a great city with a lot of fun stuff to do and to see and the food is fantastic too.

Rick Denton (05:48)
Yeah,

definitely heard that. I didn't spend much time in Montreal. This is a long time ago when I was in Canada, maybe early aughts late 90s even like that kind of, but we went to Quebec city and I of course, you you go to the old town Quebec city. It's the old kind of European style, but that part of Canada is really, it's this really, it truly is. It's a taste of Europe in your Western hemisphere. And it's a lot of fun. I can see why you'd want to go back there. What about going forward? What is a dream travel location you've not been to yet?

Sean Cherry (06:15)
Yeah, so dream location that I've not been to yet. I think I would lean. This is tough, but I think I'm leaning towards Spain. ⁓ Similar reasons love. Well, not the hockey and winter. ⁓ But as far as as far as the food scene, the culture, ⁓ I've heard fantastic things. I've also heard the beaches are great. And my wife and I are, know, we love we love a good glass of wine. So ⁓

Rick Denton (06:29)
I'm to everybody.

Sean Cherry (06:44)
Yeah, there's a lot of reasons and we're foodies, a lot of good reasons to pull us out there.

Rick Denton (06:48)
Love it. Well, let's stay in that food space. What is a favorite thing of yours to eat?

Sean Cherry (06:53)
Wow, it'd probably be easier to list things that I am not, but ⁓ we'll get there. Yeah, I think lately, you know, we went to a French restaurant like a week ago and I've been thinking about it ever since. So that probably wouldn't have always been my answer, but right now I'm on a little bit of a kick. that.

Rick Denton (07:17)
the French influence in Montreal and beyond. went to that restaurant, so that makes sense. Okay. That's right. You said this would be easier. Let's see. What is something growing up you were forced to eat, but you hated as a kid?

Sean Cherry (07:28)
I hated as a kid vegetables and now I can't get enough. ⁓ Yeah. I mean anything green as a child. And as a new dad, I'm kind of going through it now. I my, I thought my, my kid was, I thought he was a really good eater and, and turns out he just kind of didn't have any preferences yet. And now that he's, you know, now that he's like had melted cheese and like a cookie and stuff, like good luck trying to get him to eat broccoli.

Rick Denton (07:33)
I don't

⁓ but pour that melted cheese all over that broccoli and somehow you can get that snuck in. Yes. Yeah. Love it. that's so funny.

Sean Cherry (08:01)
He's learning his preferences and it's making things a lot more challenging.

Rick Denton (08:07)
whole

episode not related to CX about how as kids to sever their preferences, it makes life a lot more challenging, but we're not going to go there because that would totally derail the episode. We're going to have to leave the lounge. What is one travel item not including your phone, not including your passport that you will not leave home?

Sean Cherry (08:23)
not leave without my phone or my passport. Wow. Wow, wow, wow. You know, ⁓ probably, probably my AirPods ⁓ love, love to listen to music. I know there's this trend going on on social media where, where folks try to do, do their flights with no, no phone, no music, no book, no nothing. Yes. Look it up. It's like a point of pride. If you can, if you can just sit through a flight.

and do nothing but stare at the back of the seat in front of you. ⁓ Hey, more power to them. That sounds like ⁓ some really cool mindfulness or presence or whatever you want to, self-discipline, whatever you want to call it. ⁓ But it's not for me. I need my earbuds and I need my music to relax and get through the travel.

Rick Denton (09:20)
Rachel, let me come back to that value. I really did like that sentence. I want to come back to that, but we need to take a little break here. We need to enjoy some of the finer things in life. And so I'd like for you to join me here in the first class lounge. We'll move quickly here and have a little bit of fun. What is a dream travel location from your past?

Rachel Sheriff (09:37)
Mykonos, Greece. Now you'll, you have to go before the high season because then you're going to feel like you're in a nightclub, but there is a lovely little bar. believe it's still around called Caprice. It's in little Venice, which is a small area, small little, little town in Mykonos. And there's a seawall and you can go out to the seawall, look out into the sunset, have a cocktail with the water lapping on your feet. And it's a dream.

Rick Denton (10:07)
my gosh. Now, Rachel, I'm going to be really tempted to delete this from the episode because I don't want anybody to know what you just said. So that when I go to Greece, I can go there and it not be like a nightclub. Cause absolutely that pre or post season definitely is key given what I've seen from some of the pictures, but it's that's what a great, great little tip there. I really am. I really am going to be able to use that. So that's for me looking forward. What about you a dream travel location? You've not been to.

Rachel Sheriff (10:33)
So I have recently developed an obsession with at some at some point going to Japan. I'm to Japan to ski with my family. We're a family of skiers. really enjoy skiing. You know, we go out west. I used to ski on the East Coast when I lived out there and I've had a lot of friends that have gone to Japan and I would just that's a dream to be able to go there.

Rick Denton (10:59)
Longtime CX Passport listeners are going to know what I'm about to say, but we had the opportunity as a family to be in Japan in that winter season for about a week and a half. But my son was studying abroad there and he had the chance to go up. It was in the Sapporo region. I don't know if it was exactly Sapporo, but there's an ice sculpture festival taking place. So when you go there and go ski, make sure that you take time because some of the things that he showed were spectacular, like the size of houses type sculptures that he saw.

It is what a dream. What a brilliant dream location. And I hope that happens for you very, very soon. Thank you. One of the things we loved about Japan was the food in general for you. What is a favorite thing of yours to eat?

Rachel Sheriff (11:33)
Thank

love. So I'm from Louisiana and I love Louisiana food. anything from crawfish, etouffée to jambalaya gumbo. And unfortunately, I don't know how to cook it very well. There's like a, you know, you've got to have a max ice level of roux is really difficult to perfect. So I usually only get that home cooking whenever I'm with my mom or I think down to Louisiana. I'm very weary of

Rick Denton (11:57)
there is.

Rachel Sheriff (12:11)
Louisiana Cajun food restaurants in any place other than Louisiana. So I try to save it.

Rick Denton (12:18)
You know, there is a huge difference and I didn't know or appreciate it. My wife and I just went to New Orleans about a month ago and what we experienced there was ungodly as compared to the most obvious sentence, of course to say, but as compared to what we're experiencing outside of there, even with a huge, ex Louisiana ex-pat population like yourself still hasn't created the same level of restauranting that you can get when you're inside the state.

Rachel Sheriff (12:44)
people about being in the state lines and yeah, there's some.

Rick Denton (12:47)
There's just, there's a magic in it. There's something in the, in the vibes there for sure. Well, you mentioned your mom. What about growing up? Was there something growing up that you were forced to eat, but you hate it as a kid.

Rachel Sheriff (12:58)
So anyone who knows me knows that I have this really weird quirk and that I can't stand any type of white condiment. So mayonnaise, butter, sour cream, cream cheese, normal people like. have like to this day as an adult woman, I have a little aversion to.

Rick Denton (13:14)
Okay.

Rachel Sheriff (13:25)
That's awesome. It would drive my parents bananas because the only cook that doesn't have butter in it, right?

Rick Denton (13:31)
Well, that's I'm sitting here going, I'm with you on mayonnaise, not a big mayonnaise fan, but butter. I can't live without butter.

Rachel Sheriff (13:37)
Wow. It's the devil's condiment.

Rick Denton (13:40)
Well,

I'm with you there. Well, we won't I won't offer you any mayonnaise or any white condiment here in the first class lounge, but we are unfortunately going to have to exit the first class lounge. So I am curious. You mentioned London. I'm sure you've done quite a bit of travel. What is one travel item, not including your phone, not including your passport, that you will not leave home without?

Rachel Sheriff (14:00)
So do earbuds count? Can I say earbuds? Such a consumer of content, whether it is books on, I still call them books on tape. Books on tape or podcasts or watching shows. I just really enjoy just sometimes going back to my hotel room, of course on the plane, but just being able to escape from day to day business life

Rick Denton (14:03)
absolutely can.

Rick Denton (14:32)
Vinay, I want to take you on a place where I hope that our emotions and our psychology will not be elevated. I hope that we can have a little moment here, a little relaxation. I hope that this is an experience that you remember fondly and want to return to someday. I want you to join me here in the First Class Lounge. We'll move quickly here and have a little bit of fun. What is a dream travel location from your past?

Vinay Parmar (14:56)
I would say the Maldives. I went in 2006 and it's exactly what you see on the postcard. White beaches, beautiful water, snorkelled out there. It was absolutely beautiful.

Rick Denton (15:09)
I continue to hear Maldives as an answer to that question. And then certainly outside of CX passport, it's just such a journey for those of us that live in the U S ⁓ yet the descriptions that I hear folks like you and others saying it's certainly worth, absolutely worth the journey. want that overwater bungalow. want to absolutely experience nothing. ⁓

Got to get there soon as the sea levels continue to rise. What is a dream? Speaking of getting somewhere soon, what is a dream travel location you've not been to yet?

Vinay Parmar (15:41)
not been to Thailand and Japan, they're two on my list. I really want to go to Thailand for the culture. I want to see some of the temples and James Bond Island because everybody wants to see PP Island, right? And then Japan because I just think it's a fascinating place. Again, the history, the culture, the architecture, it's two places on my list.

Rick Denton (16:02)
And those are two very wonderful places that I actually have had the chance to go to. And it's interesting you mentioned them because I think sometimes we think, okay, well, you know, it's it's over there kind of similar read, at least I never get longitude and latitude, right? But you know, sort of on that that side of the globe, yet, it's a long way away from each other. So you know, somebody's trying to link those, you may need two trips out of that. But I would definitely recommend getting to both. One of the things that I loved about both countries, in addition to the culture is the food.

And so what is a favorite thing of yours to eat?

Vinay Parmar (16:35)
So I'm going to be super biased. love Indian food. I'm from, it's my heritage. I my wife is an amazing cook. My mother-in-law is an amazing cook, which explains why I was half the size before I got married. And then in those 25 years since then, I've just piled on the pounds and got bigger and bigger because the food is amazing.

Rick Denton (16:54)
⁓ I love, I absolutely love that. love the fact that not only is it a type of food, but it's a type of food you've got at high quality at home. That's awesome. What about the other way? Something you were forced to eat growing up, but you hated as a kid.

Vinay Parmar (17:07)
was thinking about this, not broccoli, cauliflower. I love broccoli, but cauliflower, yeah, I'm not a fan.

Rick Denton (17:16)
Any any traumatic stories that we need to process through here today? No,

Vinay Parmar (17:21)
I think my early recollection of eating it was just it, maybe I shouldn't say it for your listeners because I don't want anybody heaving while they're talking, but yeah, it wasn't a nice experience.

Rick Denton (17:31)
Hey, look, I've had a lot of heave-worthy answers to that one, so fear not. You're in a safe place to explore that pain, but we'll move past that, because remember, I said it was supposed to be a good experience. We do have to leave the lounge, however. What is one travel item, not including your phone, not including your passport, that you will not leave home without?

Vinay Parmar (17:51)
So this I'm going to attribute to a speaker friend of mine, Roger Harrop, who shared this tip. I now take on Holliday everywhere I go, an extension lead. And the reason I do that is instead of having to buy multiple converters, I now only need to buy one. I plug in the extension lead and then I can use my normal plugs for everything else. So I never ever leave Hollat home without an extension lead.