I was on a red-eye flight from LAX to Taipei. The other lady in my row (we had the middle seat free) and I got chatting. She told me she had been awake since 4:00am and that after her layover in Taipei, she had another five-hour flight to catch.

I may have been flying in economy, but I'm a Star Alliance Gold-status frequent flyer. This entitles me to business class perks even when I fly economy - including use of business class lounges. When I heard what a gruelling day my 'row-mate' was having, I told her I had lounge access and I offered to take her into the lounge to relax on her layover (I'm always allowed one guest).

I have access to two different lounges at Taipei Airport. I firstly took her to the Singapore Airlines lounge for a buffet of Singaporean delights. Then we ventured over to the EVA Air lounge for a buffet of Taiwanese delicacies - and one of the best airport shower facilities that I've ever tried (it has triple back massage nozzles, and L'Occitane toiletries).

My new friend had never been into an airline lounge before. She was so excited that she immediately texted her family and posted on Facebook about her experience. We even swapped numbers to keep in touch. She later messaged me thanking me profusely for the lounge adventure, and raving about the aforementioned shower.

I was just happy to have given someone that special experience and to have randomly made a new friend!