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Or, why can’t you just sit down?

In order to remain as politically correct as possible, I will refrain from divulging the ethnicity of the worst passengers although I will say that they are not from the US. Actually on the flight I am thinking of, there was one guy that was, which just makes him either stupid or arrogant.

Picture this. The passengers are boarding. One person walks on, stows their bag and sits down. The next person follow suit and so on. Then, the family of 8 (no young children) all foreigners traveling to NYC comes on. Aside from the fact that I felt like I should start playing some music for the musical chairs game, there was the bag situation. Maybe it should go at my feet? No, the overhead. No, my feet. No, a different overhead. Ooh, I forgot my book. Oh, you need your snack. Let’s just get the whole bag down again.

“Don’t mind me sir, I’ll just wait until you finish until I can finally take my seat”, possible thoughts of the passengers behind this guy.

Wait, I want to sit next to someone else for the next hour. No, I’ll just sit back over there.

Can I have my magazine out of that bag?

Maybe you should just put it at my feet? No, the overhead so I can stretch out my feet.

They all take their seats and two people pass them. And…they’re up again. It was one older male and one teenage girl to be exact. The others only needed 5 minutes to decide where they wanted to sit. The bag is out again.

I turned in my passenger count to the flight crew and began to grab my demo equipment. The main cabin door is closed. I turn and see Mr. Doesn’t want to sit down up again. At this point I simply yell out “Sit”! I turned my back for a second and the girl was up. Are you freakin kidding me? “Sit, sit, sit”!, as I walk to the back.

They look at me like I am the crazy one!

I stand there, safety card in hand only to realize that my exit row guy is now standing up. UGH! “Sit”!

“What’s the problem? We are not even moving yet”, he asks sarcastically. “Sir, the main cabin door is closed and the ramp agent will push us back at any second now”, I reply ever so kindly. “But I need something out of my bag”, says the DA in the exit row.

First of all, I think because the last 20 minutes wasn’t enough time and do I really want this idiot in my exit row?

“Since they care a lot less about my safety than yours, how about I get that bag down for you”?

With total disgust, he complies.

Of course, during the flight, the older male wanted me to leave drinks for the rest of the clan who were all passed out sleeping with their heads completely covered. Why not, right? Better get your monies worth before that 20 hour flight back to where you came from.

Manhattan, Central park, Times Square, 5th Avenue and Madison Avenue…nice people everywhere!

When I work flights other than those in and out of New York City and tell the passengers that I usually fly the NYC route, I get one response more than others, “…those New Yorkers…”. They’re rude, they’re in too big of a hurry, they’re this or that. Are you kidding me? These are some of the nicest people that I have ever met!

My past trip had over 30 hours in the Big Apple so the family tagged along and we went into Manhattan. This was what I considered my first full time adventure into Manhattan because the other times were at night and I really didn’t have the time or the courage to get around too much. This time, I purchased day passes for transportation for the three of us so that we could get onto the metro or buses any time we wanted all day long. I had a map, a plan and a preconceived understanding that if we didn’t make it to the things on the list of “like to see”, oh well! There will definitely be a next time.

Experience #1: The gal at the front desk told me to take the Q48 all the way to Flushing and then catch the 7 train to  42nd street. While discussing this plan with my husband on the bus, a gentleman there showed us that we didn’t have to go all the way to Flushing and could hop on the train at 111th Street. He even made           sure that we got off at the right stop and pointed to where to catch the train.

This worked out beautifully and we had the chance to see Grand Central Station and some of the other lovely buildings around the city. Grand Central Station was as awesome as I expected if not even better. Beautiful painted ceilings with various adornments around every corner. Grand staircases and people of all walks buzzing about on foot and bicycle. The whole area is more than just the one you see on television and in movies. Different areas weave through the building like a honeycomb offering different train departures and many ethnicities and levels of dining options. Need groceries before you head home on the train? Just pop into the Grand Central Market before you get onboard. Just don’t buy any more than you can carry! I think that I could possibly designate a whole day to just this glorious 1913 beauty.

From there, we walked for a while before hailing a taxi to check out the Manhattan Toys R Us with the Ferris Wheel inside that I heard so much about and wanted to show my son. It’s located by Times Square which also is more impressive in person than on TV.

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Three floors of fun with areas for every age, a giant T-Rex that roars (and M is convinced is real because “the man said so”) and Superman holding up a semi truck from crashing into the floor. Unfortunately, the boy wanted nothing to do with the ferris wheel that spanned the entire three levels of the store. Oh well, on to the next stop.

Walking is definitely something that is not avoidable unless you really just want to take a taxi every where although walking gives you a great opportunity to check out all of the nooks and crannies that you may not other wise get to see. If you walk against the buildings, it’s a lot cooler from the AC blowing out every time someone opens the door! By this time, we were all pretty much ready for some lunch and although Dim Sum in China Town was originally the plan, my son wanted pizza. We started off looking at one of the street vendors offering Mediterranean food (that I was told was amazing) but the boy would not hear of it. One of the guys in line (experience #2) overheard the cries for pizza and recommended one that was not far away. Unfortunately, the day was so long that I can only remember some details other than the name! It’s on 38th, between Broadway and Fashion  and begins with an L. You go upstairs and down a small hallway with a door opening on your right where you are promptly greeted by a nice Italian guy. At least we were. “Have you ever seen a good pizza”?, he asks. “Sure”. “No”, he replies, “Have you ever seen a good pizza from here“? The server turns and leaves, to return with one of the crusts already made with sauce and square pieces of melted cheese. It’s slowly cooked and perfectly thin with out being too thin. You order what you want added to the top and then it’s baked the rest of the way. Fantastico! One whole pizza, two Italian Peronne beers and a lemonade came to $29. Not bad for a restaurant in the area. The server said that a beer around the corner at a local bar sells for $12!

So far, everyone that we came in contact with was more than helpful and joined in to do everything possible to make our day easier and enjoyable. I was really excited to find out that starting the day we arrived, the artwork of top fashion designers like Issac Mizrahi line Broadway Avenue. Some of the designs are fantastic and some are, well not my taste.

Next, we were headed in the direction of The Empire State Building. What visit to Manhattan is complete without a visit to the top of this world known attraction? I thought that it was a bit farther away than it actually was so we decided to take the metro down a few stops. Standing in front of the train, I wondered if we were going to be going in the correct direction. Enter NYC woman.

Experience #3: While we wondered which was we needed to go, a young woman asked where we were trying to go. I told her the Empire State Building and not only did she tell us that we were only couple of blocks away, she showed us! She was going to get onto the train when she actually took us back through the turnstiles, up the stairs and started walking down the street with us. Who does that? It was amazing that she would take that much time to show a stranger how to get somewhere.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t going to pay over $50 to see something that I see almost all of the time from the aircraft while landing at the La Guardia airport! So, off to Central Park and more walking. Actually, we hopped on the bus this time after walking a few more blocks. I asked the bus driver if that particular bus would be going straight down toward the Park and not making any turns. Yep. Another passenger on the bus (experience #4) asked where in Central Park we wanted to go after correcting me that we were going up. I had no idea. Just wanted to go. I found out that the park runs from 59th street to 110th Street! A great starting point is about 72nd Street, where the park opens up to a museum and a playground filled with nannies and “their kids” enjoying the cool water of the kids fountain and shady play areas. A woman talks on her phone with one hand, pushes a stroller back and forth with the other all while encouraging another young one to enjoy the watery fun.

Walking down just one of the pathways through the park, you’ll find children learning soccer, dogs learning new tricks and sunbathers unfazed by the hottest day of the year so far. Yards of green dotted with grand trees and sculptures used to delight both the senses and the photographers spirit. The path we chose opened to a pond filled with sailboats at the hand of kids sailing around the water by remote control. Another lovely well dressed woman enjoying a beer in a glass and pretzels (not homeless) while overlooking the fun offered with delight to take our picture. What example does this make? Okay, so I know that people around the country, or the world for that matter, would be willing to take your picture if asked but what about these “rude New Yorkers”? Can’t exactly say that anymore can you?

Since our feet could barely take anymore steps, we decided to take the bus back to the train that would take us back to the hotel. Just enough time to take another notice at how beautiful and serene the park is located in the center of such a loud and bustling city. The best of both worlds all in one place and I know that we didn’t even come close to scratching the surface of the park at all.

On the bus ride back to Grand Central Station, I saw a large net over part of the park.” Ooh, maybe that’s a zoo”, I joke only to find out that it really was a zoo. I thought that was just in the movie Madagascar! You mean to tell me that the park has a Music Museum and a zoo in it? Amazing. I have to wonder if one whole day in the park would even be long enough to see it all?

On the train ride back, another woman sitting next to us told us where we can get off to get something to eat. I had Philippine cuisine for the first time and it was amazing. The service wasn’t very good but the place was filled so I thought the food must be good. glass cases were filled with pastries and desert representative of the Philippine delights. At the bar, I saw some glasses filled with colorful treats that I discovered were avocado milkshakes and one made with honeydew.  I ordered chicken cooked in coconut milk with fresh slices of ginger. Fantastic.

Ice cream for the second time that day finished it off perfectly and back to the hotel for a good nights sleep. I cannot wait to go back!

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So,  you won your case with the three hour rule did you? Fools. If only it were that easy.

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As a non revenue traveler, I understand that one minute there could be a plenty of seats left over for me to get one and five minutes later, nothing. Passenger seats vaporize as if in a magic trick when passengers suddenly decide that they need to go on that flight or they didn’t get to the airport in time and have to take the seat that you wanted. So, what happens when Mother Nature decides to add in a storm or two?

Like yesterday when storms caused delays and cancellations left and right with heavy storms affecting areas from the US to Canada. Whoa that was a wild ride! Good thing I wasn’t one of those poor suckers stuck on the tarmac when no one could take off due to thunder clouds above the La Guardia (NYC) airport. We were the lucky ones that just circled 30 minutes outside of the area waiting for THE AIRPORT (not the airlines) to let us land. IU was told that the ones already out there had to cancel and return to the gate. I actually feel sorry for the reasonable ones who know better and understand the situation yet still got screwed by this rule.

Okay, so what now? That ONE flight gets cancelled due to “the rule”. They return to the gate. The passengers get off. The gate agent attempts to rebook them on the next flight that is already full of other passengers that are trying to get to that destination and your butt will be lucky to get out that day at all!

Next question: What happens if you only had one plane in front of you or maybe two? Do you really think that the airlines will chance being fined $23,000 per passenger for people that totally screwed them in court? I mean who knows, perhaps they will depending on how many planes are in front. However, I wonder how much ticket prices will go up? Hey, wait a minute. When did those baggage fees go into effect? I wonder if it’s connected?

So many questions, so little time. All together now: Thanks a lot flyersrights.org. What about my rights?

FYI: You would NEVER sit on one of my planes for more than 3 hours to begin with if unless we were that close to taking off

and I always serve whatever I have, especially during those waits. I really do hope that things improve in the passengers favor because guess what….it helps me too! I don’t want to sit there anymore than you do if not less. Perhaps once JFK finishes their runway construction or Mother Nature takes a holiday?

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Yes. I made it on time to work. Sounds like something so simple and yet if you saw the procedure to “get to work”, it wouldn’t sound as easy as you would think. Unless you show up half an hour early to work just to sign in! The tram no longer goes to Concourse A in Cincinnati since they closed it to the public and usually the escalators are not functional either, which means that all of the employees from more than one airline have to share one very slow elevator to get up to the top level. Pull heavy suitcase, flight case, lunch bag and whatever else through thick carpet up a hill and past the “people movers” that also are out of service. Add in one coded turnstile (not made for a person and their bags), three coded doors and a set of stairs and you’re almost there.

Makes security sound like fun. What? Never!

Check in, back up the stairs, grab my bags, walk past the unusable moving walkway, through the thick carpet (luckily now downhill) through the coded door and down the escalator [which is for some glorious reason is working] past the tram that whizzes by with speed as if laughing, up the escalator and off to gate 5.

Okay, so that was a bit dramatic. I wrote it that way as a dramatic lead into the fact that the aircraft wasn’t even at the gate and the flight was delayed for at least an hour. Oh yeah, it’s nothing new. After all, it’s New York City. But, why NYC?

If you didn’t already know, New York City has some of the busiest and most congested airports in the country and JFK in particular is down to one runway, which only adds to the issue when weather is a factor. I was only on as a passenger going to work this time so I sat in the back and listened to the passengers talk as we boarded and then tried to get out of Cincinnati. I found it funny when the woman in front of us said “just put it at your feet and put your sweater over it”. Oh yeah, because that works every time. Really? A sweater simply suspended in air all by itself. It didn’t work and the passenger that was so ill advised still had to push the bag forward. She lived.

So, what happened to make the aircraft come in late in the first place thus delaying ours you ask? Weather. Since I am sure that you can understand a snowball, we’ll use that analogy. That aircraft was held up by Air Traffic Control due to weather. This in turn caused our flight to be delayed by an hour, which caused the next flight taking that aircraft to be late and the aircraft we were taking out to be late. See, just like a snow ball that starts out small and continues to grow, so do the problems affecting more than one flight. “But why don’t they just use another aircraft”, I have been asked? Unfortunately, the airlines cannot afford to simply have another airplane and crew to take flights just because it would make everyone else’s life easier. Actually, they do have other crew members [most of the time] that could come over if say I decide that I am sick and can’t go. However, we are a bit less expensive that an entire aircraft.

The bigger possible problem are the passengers that are either going overseas or to see a Broadway show. Luckily, JFK offers a lot more options to get to overseas destinations than cities like Cincinnati that only offers a flight to Paris. I found three flights to Rome, two flights to London and five flights to Paris. Unfortunately for the passengers last night, there is only one flight to Casablanca and it leaves out of Terminal 1 at 8:01pm (Delta leaves out of Terminals 2 and 3). At first I thought that they should have left earlier however, if you think about it, they actually had 4 hours to get there and it was only due to the delay that they probably missed it.

So what should you do if you are making such a long flight that only happens once a day? Check the weather that morning and always remember that by 4:00pm, the world of travel could have seriously deteriorated. This is especially true for big cities like New York City.

to be continued….

I have been going to Boston since I started back in 1997 traveling between there, New York City and Montreal; however, I never really took the time to get to know her. The times that I have actually stayed the night were mostly spent just passing the time in the hotel. Either I wasn’t there for very long or simply didn’t think that I could get to the city area by myself. I went once with my husband and once with my crew, both times simply looking at the buildings, grabbing a cup of Starbucks and watching the ducks in Public Park. Never really seeing Boston.

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Yesterday, I was there again except this time with my Mom who I wanted to show those same adorable duck statues and beautiful flowers that line every corner of Boston Commons and Public Park. I know someone who should be relocating there next year so I really took notice this time and actually felt a stronger connection to the place. I feel a bit silly that all of these years I stayed in the hotel instead of getting out and enjoying the view.

Downtown Boston (and just about everywhere in the area) is unbelievably easy to get to. Right at the airport, there is a bus that will take you to the Blue Line, which can in turn get you to anywhere that you would like to go. Only $2 per person, per trip to start and very easy to figure out. If you are unable to read the map of train lines (red, blue, orange, ect.) I found the staff extremely helpful and knowledgeable. Take the train Inbound from the airport to get to the city center and don’t get too comfortable because it’s not that far away! We debated at getting off at State Street or Government Square but thanks to a fellow passenger, we chose State. That way, we were able to see Faneuil Hall , a tribute to the Holocaust and a lot of really great architecture. One of my favorite things about the city from what I is the diversity in not only people but the landscape. Old meets new, modern with classic. All sharing the space together and not phased by the other. Churches from the 1800′s are not uncommon next to all glass offices.

Finally, after asking a mail person or two for directions (they are the most knowledgeable people to ask for directions!), we found Boston Commons. It is a large park, much larger than anything I could find in Cincinnati (due to lack of space), with vendors and readers, sleepers, families and runners. As with any town worldwide, there was a person or two that really needed to put their shirt back on. Yes madame, I am talking to you. I fell in love with the fact that people were napping in the middle of the park without a care in the world. They didn’t appear to be intoxicated or disheveled, simply enjoying the warm sun on a beautiful day. This could be us Cincinnati at Washington Park. The park is laid out with green grass and flowers surrounding walking paths and statues like a tribute to the Civil War.

Different statues every few hundred feet or so, a small lake and even a Ferris wheel. Flowers and perfectly manicured  lawns, portable food including a pickle vendor who tells me, “These aren’t pickles. These are Grillo’s Pickles”!  Walking through the streets and past more than one local cemetery and then into the park, school children learned  from period dressed guides that taught them the history of the land. A large gated playground filled with children,  squirrels that looked light they may have been asking for food. But, where are the duck statues? Across the street at the  Public Gardens.

The first thing that you see is a beautiful black rod iron gate, flowers and a sign of what is expected and prohibited from the park. Walking into the park, I saw them. Mrs. “Duck” and her babies strolling along in perfect arrangement.. I think that I may like this park even more. To our left, we saw the Swan Boats gliding through the water with passengers in tow. Two live swans laying as if king and queen of the ducks appeared to be preparing for parenthood sitting on a bed of hay and feathers with ducks sleeping around them. Workers lay mulch and feed trees all over the park enhancing the work of natural art did not seem to disturb the park goers due to the size and layout of the park. The lake feels like the center piece to me and is a grand piece de resistance.

From the parks, we strolled the streets looking for something to eat. Not just anything but fare local to the area. Lobster anyone? I was hoping for something other than Legal Seafood only because it seems like just another franchise. Of course, that’s exactly where we ended up.

Before finding a place to eat, we headed into the mall for a quick look around. A truffle shop selling chocolates for $30/pound and a Gucci store, where we mistakes the security guard for a sales person he was dressed that good!

After not really finding anything other that a Legal Seafood in the Mall, at least two Starbucks and a bagel place, Mom and I started to head back toward the airport. She told me that there was a Legal Seafood located on the water somewhere where she stayed on time. After asking just one more person, we found it less than a block off the Aquarium exit ( MBTA station). And guess what.? It was fantastic. We ordered the trio roll  (lobster, crab and shrimp meat packed in to a toasted flat side hot dog roll) and a cup of Lobster Bisque. The cole slaw was a little too bland but the rest of it was fantastic and much more food than we could have eaten had we not shared. I also loved the fact that it was on the water, which made it even better.

A couple looks at the bay dotted with boats of all sorts and we headed back to take our flights. All in all a perfect day!

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I was supposed to work a trip that had me reporting in Cincinnati at 0530 that I was not looking forward to. I am not even sure if was a good trip because I couldn’t get past 0530. It’s not that I am too lazy to do it but my head hasn’t been too functional at that hour since the sinus issues started a month or so ago. Luckily, there was a great trip that didn’t report until 1230 and my scheduling department traded it for me.

Of course, the great report came with 4hour breaks each day in between flights. Even that doesn’t bother me anymore because I get to write on here! So my first day and first break comes and I whip out my computer to get some work done. Everything was going fantastic until I needed to charge it. I pulled out the charging cord and went to plug it in except one very important piece was missing. You know those two straight metal pieces that go into the wall to deliver the charge? They were gone. The wonderful people at Apple designed the plug so that you can take off the piece that plugs into the wall and attach an extension. The problem is that I never imagined that I would need to check to make sure that when I removed the plug from the wall the small removable piece was there. Unfortunately for me, it was still in the wall about 600 miles away.

There is a computer in the crew lounge so I just used that one while waiting for my 8:00pm flight to Houston, TX. It was 8:00pm until the aircraft was changed and wasn’t coming in until at least 9:00pm. Then of course the first officer found a small dent by the baggage belt so we had to wait for the mechanic to come and check it out. As the waiting game continued to play on, our time limit was running out. Flight crews can only work so many hours in one day and by then, we were going on over 13 hours.

I told the Captain that a lot of the passengers on board that night had already been stuck in places like Russia for 5 days so we had to get out of there. What happened next, made me so proud. He actually came out of the flight deck and went outside to hurry the ramp agents into getting us pushed back. Then he called on the radio to tell them that we only had 5 minutes before we couldn’t go anywhere. Those were the magic words!

By the time I made it to my room, it was 0130 in the morning. Central time.

Our day started off at 0930, which came way too early considering the time that we got in. The long haul back to New York City wasn’t actually that bad. I am seriously thankful to the aft flight attendant though who got me an Egg McMuffin while I went though security since it takes me longer with this man made knee. On board we had two passengers that were being deported back to their country for what reason I have no idea. I just know that they were really nice and yes, I did wonder why but would never have asked. When we landed, the guys from ICE started to come up the stairs to get them. I told them to go back down the stairs because the guys were in the back and I would let them know when they were coming. The funny part is that we use hand language a lot in this business do the noise so, when an elderly woman told me that she needed a wheelchair and I motioned for one, the two waiting at the bottom of the stairs perked up. Then someone else told me that they needed a wheelchair. I’m sure you know what happened. It didn’t take too long before the deportees were there to deplane. Not sure what to expect, those guys just walked right to the men waiting and introduced themselves making me even more curious. Oh well.

What I didn’t know was that the second passenger that requested the wheelchair was asking for it for his young daughter, possibly around 6 yrs old. They put their younger son in a stroller so I have a feeling they thought they could get away with not carrying one for the girl but they were sorely disappointed when that plan backfired. Of course, just because the child was bouncing around like a healthy little girl doesn’t mean anything. Have you ever read the spoon theory? I found it a little bothersome that they were more worried about not having to walk with her than her safety though.

The rest of the day went well and we even got to our overnight in Kansas City on early. That day went almost too well…

The next morning, I woke up and went to the gym after eating a package of oatmeal. I would usually have gone down for breakfast but it’s not free for crew members anymore and I refuse to pay $10 for a few bites of egg and a banana. That morning I decided to ride the stationary bike and actually made it to 20 minutes. My knees screamed at me in protest the entire walk back to the room.

A standard hotel phone sat conveniently next to the clock that showed ten minutes prior to my report time. Suddenly in rang over and over begging to be answered. Normally I wouldn’t have answered it, however, it was so close to the scheduled report time that I did. On the other end of the phone came the question from scheduling that would change the rest of my trip and plans I had made in Boston. “How do you like Kansas City”, he asked? Uh Oh. For some reason, my flight to New York City cancelled and I would have to stay in Kansas City until 0500 the next morning. Of course I didn’t bring anything but work out clothes, it was storming outside and the hotel didn’t offer anything except for the $10 breakfast.

My crew and I decided that since we were in Kansas City, we had to do barbecue. I have to admit that I didn’t even know that the state was well known for BBQ but it’s food so I was in. The woman at the front desk recommended a place called Smokehouse and the van driver could drive us there.The restaurant is located in the mega shopping area named Zona Rosa. Looks like it may be a nice place to go sometimes on a long overnight when it’s not pouring outside since the entire place is outdoor walking.

I didn’t know what to order so I asked the rib expert sitting to my left. I went with the baby back ribs, which was a good choice. The others chose the beef ribs that looked like human bones they were so big! The meat on the beef ribs was really tender and rich with the taste of prime rib. A little too rich for me which made me even more happy that I ordered the pork ribs. Very tender with good flavor. The coleslaw was so good that I had a hard time pushing it aside when I was already really full. I couldn’t even eat all of the ribs so I had lunch the next day. Not too bad for $14. A bit expensive for my budget but I really like to have at least one real meal, hot and filling during my trip and I didn’t spend any other money thus far since I brought food with me. Plus, that was lunch the next day also.

The next day [and the last day] was typical company crap. We worked the 0600 flight to New York City and then were expected to make it to a shuttle flight in 44 minutes! Let’s break it down. In that 44 minutes I had to deplane the aircraft (waiting on the gate agent to pull the jetbridge over), clean the airplane, get my bags out, get out of the airport and catch a bus that made at least 6 stops to get to some place called the Marine Terminal where the Delta Shuttle flights depart from. By the time we got there it was already 1045! The flight left at 1030. Okay, fine. Lunch!

This is what Marine Terminal looks like in case you ever need to take a Shuttle flight. It’s absolutely beautiful in it’s own right and reminds me of our Union Terminal here in Cincinnati, Ohio. Mural paintings on the walls and a statue set right in the middle of a large open space. The restaurant which actually looked like a cheap cafeteria stands on the right side as you walk in just past the store selling those last minute souvenirs. Since the next flight was not for almost an hour it was definitely time to eat. There had to be something in the restaurant, right? Oh my was I pleasantly surprised. Fifties style table and chairs held out bags while we went in search of something good. Although it was only almost 1100 lunch sounded really good. The choices: baked salmon or shrimp Parmesan with steamed rice and steamed vegetables. Fresh broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and snow peas steamed to perfection. I chose the shrimp that’s something I have never had. Absolutely fantastic! I recommend it over the lousy choices in the main terminal and you need to transfer over to the Marine Terminal.

We got on the 1130 flight to Boston just in time for me to get in a quick hug and hello from a friend that I haven’t seen in quite a while. She just happened to be in Boston on the same day. It’s only the second time and the first time was a total coincidence when work sent me to a different destination than originally scheduled. The flight home was uneventful as far as any trouble passengers except I haven’t had that much trash in a very long time!

So, a total of 5 flight attendants plus me (a different one for each overnight and every other flight), three pilots and a woman from the FAA and we made it through another 4 day trip!

I cannot remember the first time I heard that people from New York were obnoxious and rude. I have to say, that I completely disagree!

I have met people in almost every city that I have been to that were obnoxious and rude but to deem an entire population of people as such seems unfair to me. I think that people from New York (City) are busy and focused, kind and generous when given the chance. They can also be quite feisty, which has also been used to describe me so I like to think that I can fit right in.

I purposely bid for trips that go in and out of NYC because I love to  meet these incredible people. You can have the NYC airports but leave the people with me. Whether they live there, work there or are just visiting, there is something about it. The different cultures and walks of life, a melting pot in itself, New York City, I love you.

When I first moved up to Ohio from Florida, I wondered how I could like Ohio! No offense but I had no idea of what to expect. There are farms in Ohio and mountains (hills as I would soon learn). No beach and cold weather part of the time. I realize that there are farms in Florida, or at least cows, I had just never seen one up close until coming here. Since then, I have seen, touched and unfortunately smelled many animals at various events.

I have now lived in Cincinnati, Ohio for 12 years. Downtown for most of this time. We walk everywhere when we can and my son doesn’t even seem to mind it unless of course it’s snowing. We can walk to the park, the library, restaurants, even the ballet! Everything that one could need, you can get downtown.  The only problem is that most things used to close as soon as everyone that works Downtown goes home from work. I’ve noticed over the last couple of months that more and more businesses and restaurants are staying open later.

What about those who live here? So much emphasis is being placed on moving things downtown with renovations and new constructions however, I wonder if that’s enough. There is a new tattoo parlor that opened on Main Street… but how many people are going to get a tattoo? Hopefully  enough to keep him open since the African store that opened didn’t last that long. Nicola’s on Sycamore has been voted #2 this year and doesn’t seem to be going anywhere despite hearing that it’s a bit overpriced, probably due to the apparently amazing chef, Cristian Pietoso.

I have had the pleasure of attending the ballet a lot more that usual and love seeing the restaurants open quite late around the Aronoff Center. Other shops that seem to be staying open later are on Vine Street, which is an up and coming area with the Gateway Quarter. (View shops and restaurants here!) The motto of this area is Live, Shop, Play. I am still a bit concerned with the Kroger located just blocks from the area as well as what I call, “Little Vegas” across the street. The new construction and improvements are pushing down the street there so only time will tell.

Cincyusa.com writes about the expansive Duke Convention Center and the new Fountain Square Entertainment district. I personally stayed at a local downtown hotel with my Mom this past weekend (she’s allergic to my cat) and enjoyed seeing all of the buzz with a cheer leading and gymnastics competition going on at the convention center. What seemed like hundreds of sparkly haired little girls was not overshadowed by the beautiful attendees of a wedding or two. Shops and restaurants alike were open and full of shoppers and kiddies waiting to have their picture taken with Santa Claus. The ice rink had way too many skaters enjoying the ice for my comfort level even if I didn’t have a terrible headache.This is awesome though. Perhaps I can go sometime when I am both feeling better and it’s not so crowded since my skating abilities are not the best.

I hope that all of this excitement lasts long after the holiday season is done and gone. It’s not New York City and that’s fine with me but I would love to call this Cincinnati my home.

Okay, so flying off to New York City is not a big deal since I often do it at least once a week. After last weeks trip though, I wonder what’s up for us tomorrow!? My crew and I actually go through La Guardia twice tomorrow and if you read the last post on this airport, you may be shaking your heads.

Wish me luck and I hope that I have something interesting to report back.

More on that later!

Wow! The flight this morning went perfectly. We even got in to New York city 18 minutes early. At the gate, 18 minutes early! Don’t get too excited though. We were soon to find out that the FAA’s National Airspace Data Interchange Network based in Atlanta failed. Can you say delay?

It wasn’t too bad for us. Perhaps the direction that we were headed however, the return to LGA was a bit longer. With only one circle to view the New York area *insert sarcastic laugh here*, we didn’t get in all that late. Less than an hour. I actually tweeted that it was before midnight and I was already in my room. Woo Hoo.

I even noticed that it was the same flight as last week. Of course, this week it was just a computer issue and last week it was God! The latter is way more powerful (just don’t tell the FAA). Hee hee.

Hello World!

I got one post in on part of the first day of Italy. Right now I am actually in Dallas, TX back at work. I was up at 4:00am their time getting in some stretch time. OK, so that’s the time I finally told myself to just get up already! Which time zone am I on? I was up at 1:00 am the first time, which would be about 8:00am Italy, like “let’s go”. No, No, No. I still have to fly to the NYC today. That’s going to be a long flight. I’m sure that I will crash at some point and my feet hurt. NEVER wear your heels without something on your feet unless you are just a glutten for punishment.

Anyway, I digress. I can’t wait to share more with you about the Italy adventure. Thanks to my husband for going with me and taking me on an incredible adventure that I would have never experienced otherwise since no one wants ME driving over there. We are so going back to those Alps!

Go Armstrong, go. I certainly could never do it.