Travel irritants – that I and others – cause

I did it again. I checked out on the wrong date of my hotel. Heading out the door one afternoon to sightsee – and turning in my key at the front desk (old school, like you see in the movies) the receptionist called out, “Mr. Stang are you checking out?” Stunned, I replied, no. She held up my receipt. Yup, it said, June 29th check-out. But my flight wasn’t until early June 30th. Luckily, I was able to book another night. But I’ve done this at least once in the past, somehow confusing the last full day with the check out date. Remember: the last day of your stay is your check-out day.

- At Frankfurt airport I bought a beer (yes, you can drink openly in the terminal), sandwich and bag of chips. I used self-check-out and scanned every item. But it only charged me seven euros seemingly for the beer. Well, I tried - not my fault if the machine doesn’t cooperate! As I was leaving the store threshold, the clerk suddenly appeared and asked how much I paid. Oh-oh. I told her honestly and we returned to the check-out. Seems it often malfunctions and she punched in the other items. No drama.  

- Frankfurt is one of the last airports where you can see a lot of Boeing 747s – “The Queen of the Skies” – still in use, as Lufthansa is about the last airline flying them. For an airplane geek – heaven! (photo)

- The nine hour+ trip westbound from Europe to Detroit was uneventful except, midway through, the gent in the seat in front insisted on reclining his chair full length (photo) which cramped me, since I hadn’t reclined mine. This kind of thing can lead to air rage. But I kept my cool. And reclined my seat in turn but not as much (feeling sorry for the person behind). After an hour I screwed-up my courage and – very politely – asked the gentleman if he could move his seat up “a bit.” He adjusted it fully and was good about it. Courtesy works.

- I scored another free gate check carry-out at Valletta (Malta) thru Detroit – two flights. It’s wonderful not to have even a carry-on to bring on board. (see June 22 post below)

- I always thought Air Canada was among the best airlines. (I know, the airlines’ critics are legion, and I often think knee jerk.) But Lufthansa – which I’ve flown before – has even better transatlantic service. A drink (incl alcohol) galley before dinner. Two quality dinner choices plus more alcohol if you want. And even wine on the snack run prior to landing. Plus, a decent size bottle of water – free – en route. The backseat entertainment also seemed as varied as AC. This is compared to a recent SAS flight which offered no booze and limited entertainment. Air Transat gives you wine but in a paper cup.

- My carry-on is Air Canada branded (bought at Walmart). And no, I didn’t buy it to advertise I’m from Canada, as a lot of Canucks do with their Canadian flag tags and clothing patches (to distinguish themselves from those awful Americans, right?). I bought it simply because the price was right and it’s durable.

- One last thing: I took Detroit's Smart bus 125 from my GF's house in Lincoln Park all the way to Detroit Metro. Only 50 cents (seniors), saving me a  bundle on airport parking. 

- Ron Stang, Windsor Ontario Canada, a frequent traveller