Ponce, PR (PSE): Aeropuerto Mercedita, Ponce PR (PSE) to Newark-LIberty, Newark NJ (EWR)

CO337 13JAN08 Aeropuerto Mercedita, Ponce PR (PSE) to Newark-Liberty International, Newark NJ (EWR) 738 6:00a 9:10a N36207

Flight time: 3:44

I boarded from the rear of the plane as instructed, which is always a treat since that rarely occurs. I found my seat and settled in as others did the same. I looked out the window to my left and JetBlue was boarding as well.

JetBlue pushed ontime at 6:00a before we did as my flight had some seating issues; looks like some customers did not sit where they were assigned, so others were without a seat. Folks, please take your assigned seat when you board. The place to change your seat is not on the airplane, but when you check-in either online or at the airport on your day of departure.

The Captain had come on at about 5:53a and said that he did not foresee any delays; they were loading the last of the bags; the weather in Newark is at freezing, so 32F and that snow was expected later today. That is always daunting when you are leaving a place where the temperature is 85F.

Free headsets were passed out before we left the ground, then the safety video in English started followed by Spanish. Due to the seat issue, the pushback at 6:03a started just a bit after the English safety video started.

The engine started at 6:05a and we were off the ground by 6:09a. I could hear the JetBlue plane take off as we taxied down to the end of the runway. We will chase them up the Caribbean today. The takeoff roll was much faster and noticeably different than in Newark; we were airborne much quicker and started a pretty steep climb into the still dark morning.

The announced movie was the same as on the way down, so I don't think that is correct. If I read the Continental magazine correctly on page 84, it should have been "The Pink Panther." In the same vein, the movie southbound should have been, "Garfield Gets Real," "The Game Plan" is only shown from Houston to the West Coast and Canada. My guess is that the wrong movies were loaded on the aircraft last night, so the crew just made do.

Within an hour after takeoff, I was served a pita pocket cheese omelet, banana muffin, raspberry yogurt and a fruit cup (cantaloupe, pineapple and some other fruit I can't identify, it tasted like papaya, but I cannot be certain). it was all quite good, but my molars complained when eating the omelet so it was slow going. I topped it off with some water and tea with lemon.

As our departure time was so early, you could hear people snoring throughout the cabin. As I say this, I remember a little kid who had come with his parents to see his grandfather off as he was so sleepy, his mother made him kiss his granddad and then he reached for her, she lifted him and he passed out immediately on her left shoulder. 6:00a on a Caribbean island is way too early for a flight and that JetBlue fight was even earlier as I think its departure time would have been like 4:30a or so.

The battery low light came on so I had to shut down the computer; then I went to sleep. I awoke when we started our descent into Newark.

Again, when we landed there was clapping proper clapping when we cleared the runway and the airplane stopped braking. We taxied up to our gate where we waited a bit to get off the plane. We were quite early, I think it was 8:50a local.