[Fergie, "London Bridge."]I believe it is universally acknowledged that I am not a very spontaneous person, particularly when such spontaneity may require an outlay of cash. That has not changed since I moved here. But what also has not changed is how much I like my peeps. I have a great team here, but I still do miss my peeps in the US. And sometimes BlackBerry Messenger (hereinafter "BB") just isn't enough.
So fast forward to two weekends ago. After an exhausting week, I was headed to sleep late on Friday, but sent some BB shout outs to some of my peeps. One of them (codename, "Sage") responded that she was headed to London on Saturday for a project and would be there a few days and perhaps I should swing by. Yeah, right.
But the idea had been planted and my subconscious must have been thinking about it all night because it was still on my mind when I woke up Saturday morning. I headed to my computer to see if it was possible to get a same-day ticket at a reasonable price. Now, unfortunately, we do not use AMEX Travel at the German firm, which would have allowed me to do multiple searches at the same time. Carlson Wagonlit kind of stinks -- no online tool AND they make you pay €15 for the privilege of them booking a ticket if you do so for personal travel. So I was left to my own devices.
American Airlines/British Airways said they would be happy to ferry me to LHR for €750. Yes, Euro. How about, "Heck, no!!" Lufthansa? Their €720 received a similar response from me. Now, I don't know all the discount carriers over here yet (Southwest, please expand abroad!), but neither EasyJet nor Air Berlin fly between FRA and LHR. Hmmm.... Long story, I was able to find a Mr. Toad's Wild Ride flight for about €225. This involved taking Air France via CDG and returning through AMS on KLM. I hate connections... But for a peep and to save money, I did it. I should note that I left home for the airport around the same time that Sage left IAD, yet I only got to the hotel about 2 hours before she did. Did I mention I hate connections?
Somehow I was able to score an exit row aisle on both legs of the Air France ticket. (Ignore how many seats were available on the flight for now. While the AF 447 flight recorders have not yet been recovered, and probably never will, I do not have safety concerns about the airline. I can only assume that only a confluence of catastrophic conditions could down a big rig like the A330 when flown by experienced pilots as was the case with AF 447. My heart and prayers go out to the family and friends of the passengers and crew of that flight.) Nevertheless, I found it a bit creepy that they gave an awful lot of instruction on how to open the window exit, including specific instruction on how to remove the panel covering the handle on the window. And, on the second leg, the flight attendant asked me if I would be willing to move to the window seat as they needed someone on the exit window. Yikes.
A quick note on airlines. Air France and KLM merged in 2004 to become Air France-KLM, yet they still have very separate brands. Compare this with, say, the American Airlines acquisition. It seems to be that within a very short period of time, everything was all American including repainting the jets. You only knew you were on a legacy TWA plane if you looked at some of the badging near the cockpit as you entered or realized the seats themselves were really uncomfortable. (Sorry, TWA, but it's true.) Anyway, the planes of KLM and Air France are still painted differently (though perhaps with a shout out to "Air France-KLM" somewhere). And the uniforms of the flight attendants are also significantly different. Air France female flight attendants have a longer, lean-looking jacket that makes them look catwalk-ready on a moment's notice. KLM's light blue uniforms, on the other hand, look inexpensive and perhaps even homemade (no offense to great at-home sewers!) and the sensible navy shoes that are also apparently part of the uniform do little to dissuade the sensible look of the ensemble. Nevertheless, excellent service was provided by both cabin crews.
Anyway, I arrived safely at LHR and took the Underground to the city (you know, saving money and all). Sage was staying at the Sheraton Park Lane, so I had obtained a room there as well. Um, a bit down at the heels, shall we say? No upgrade, small and wretchedly hot fitness center, nearly non-functional air conditioning in the rooms, no club level lounge, no place to plug in the hair dryer unless you crawled partially under the bed, concierge was out of postage, and then there's that small matter of the shower head falling down, hitting my foot and drawing blood. Other than that, delightful.... It was, however, located right on Green Park, a short walk from Buckingham Palace, and easily accessible via Underground. "Value priced" perhaps? Well, let's not get carried away here....
Sage arrived late in the evening, so we met only briefly, then reconvened the following morning for a quick tour of the some of the tourist attractions that were relatively close. The official reason for the trip was, of course, to take my peep to afternoon tea at Brown's Hotel. Now, I got a lot of flack on Facebook when I said I was going to London to take my peep to tea because it sounded a bit (oh, let me recall some of the words) pompous, spoiled, posh, stuck-up, snobbish, and spendthrift. If you know me, you realize that I was joking. While I really enjoy afternoon tea after having been introduced to the tradition by one of my mentors (and having previously had tea at Brown's with my Mom several years ago), the real purpose of the trip was to spend time and reconnect with one of my favorite people. And, quite frankly, after the hellatious week I had had, I suspect reconnecting with someone from the US was of more mental benefit to me than whatever I may have provided in terms of guidance or whatever to Sage.
In any event, good times and well worth the short trip. And if you ever need to know how to pop the exit window/door of an A300, let me know....
(The photo is of a random shopping arcade. Imagine if strip malls could looks this classic....)
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