El Cochinito
Oct 13, 02, 6:39 pm
Part 3 at: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum81/HTML/003144.html
Monday Morning, October 7
Porto Alegre, Brazil to ???
The hotel called the room at 7:00 a.m. to let me know that a breakfast buffet was ready and all of us Varig passengers were to leave for the airport at 8:15 a.m. I was already up, not sleeping particularly well. . . possibly my own fault for having stayed up late the previous night watching a dubbed version of “Escape From Alcatraz” on the cable TV.
At the reception desk I let the clerk know that I owed him for some telephone calls. He said that Varig was going to pick up the cost of the first call, but any remaining calls would be out of my pocket. As mentioned previously, I was expecting a hefty bill since I had called the USA several times, plus tried calling United Airlines in Chile and Argentina. The clerk printed out my folio and I owed 20 reals for the calls, less than US$7. As I paid, the clerk mentioned that he thought the exchange rate was going to change today because of yesterday’s presidential election. Sure enough, I later found out that the value of the real dropped over 30% against the dollar. So what was already inexpensive for holders of dollars in Brazil was now dirt cheap.
We were invited to partake of the hotel’s breakfast buffet, consisting of several hot dishes, an assortment of baked goods, and an superb selection of fresh tropical fruits. My little buddy Cesar and his family came downstairs to eat and we exchanged addresses and telephone numbers over breakfast. Next time I am in Santiago de Chile or happen to visit Lima, Peru I was told that I must call and plan on visiting.
The Varig buses were waiting for us and we boarded, leaving our luggage in the lobby for the porters to load per instruction from our concierge. As we pulled away I noticed that MY TRUSTY BRIGGS & RILEY was STILL IN THE LOBBY! I immediately jumped up and started pounding on the cockpit door of the bus (yes, the bus had a glass cockpit door separating the passengers from the driver). The driver hit the brakes and I, along with several of my fellow passengers, told the driver about my bag. He pops open the door and I run over to the lobby and tell the concierge that my bag was forgotten. They apologize profusely and a porter is directed to load my bag immediately.
Back on the bus we weave our way through rush hour traffic on our way back to POA. We passed through a residential area and then a commercial zone. What sticks in my mind was seeing a significant number of houses with security shutters along with security bars on their windows. I guess burglary is a problem here.
We’re dropped off at the POA terminal and told to get in line to check-in for the next flight to Buenos Aires. Since there are fifty of us, the line immediately grows. I spot a Varig Business / Star Gold check-in counter and tell my new South American family to follow me, we’re gonna beat the crowd. Two agents are working the counter; I ask agent #1 if he could please take care of my two “aunts” and my “nephew” while I start working with agent #2, a very pretty Brazilian woman who spoke fairly good English.
My agent clickity-clicks away on her keyboard and notices that my ultimate destination is Miami. She said that perhaps I could be routed via Sao Paulo instead of Buenos Aires, that way I am at least heading north instead of south. She asks if that would be ok with me and I tell her sure! As long as I’m already in Brazil, albeit illegally, why not see more of the country? The agent takes off to confer with her supervisor to see if they could make this happen. After about 15 minutes, she comes back with a big smile and says that everything is all set. She tells me that I would be flying from Porto Alegre to Sao Paulo on Varig’s noon flight and I have a confirmed seat from Sao Paulo to Miami. Here are your boarding passes Seńor, and I hope you don’t mind that I put you in the exit row to give you more leg room. When you get to Sao Paulo, please give United Airlines this printout (a bunch of codes that I didn’t understand). And please be our guest at our Varig VIP Lounge while you wait for your flight; let me personally escort you through airport security and introduce you to our concierge. And once you get to Sao Paulo, Seńor, you’ll want to take care of this little problem you have with your immigration status. But for now, don’t worry about it since this next flight is a domestic one.
Wow! I was impressed!
In the meantime my new friends had been rebooked on the very next Varig flight to Buenos Aires. It was time to say goodbye, hugs all around and promises to stay in touch. They went off to try and call their family waiting at the Buenos Aires airport and I followed my Varig escort to the security checkpoint. No problems here and we then went over to the VIP Lounge where she introduced me to the concierge.
The lounge was not very big, but it did have high speed internet terminals (I quickly discovered that the Portuguese keyboard was easier to use than the Spanish keyboards I used in Chile & Argentina). There was a small selection of snacks, fruit, beer, juice, and soda. I spent some time on e-mail, updating friends and family as to my whereabouts, and got caught up on the news.
As the morning wore on and it approached a reasonable hour to call California, I went to the terminal gift shop and bought some phone cards. I called home and let my wife know that I was now flying to Sao Paulo and would be connecting on United to Miami that night assuming I was allowed to leave Brazil. I promised to call her upon arrival in Sao Paulo and also once I knew I was actually leaving Brazil.
A big thunderstorm blew in about this time and our flight showed “status pending”. Of course that would just be my luck, but the status changed to “confirmed”. We were scheduled to start boarding at 11:30 a.m. so at 11:20 I said goodbye to the concierge and walked over to domestic gate #6.
Monday, October 7
Varig 2318 – POA to GRU (Sao Paulo)
B-737-300 (535 MP Miles)
Our inbound flight was a little late, so we actually started boarding at 11:45 a.m. I found my way to seat 11C, right in the exit row as promised. The flight was half full; only a handful of middle seats were taken. The standard safety demonstration was given, in Portuguese, as we taxied out to POA’s single runway.
Our captain announced (in English and Portuguese) that our flying time was 70 minutes and we could expect an on-time arrival and nice weather in Sao Paulo. The next thing I know I was being offered drinks and what’s this? A hot lunch? On a short haul domestic flight?
We were served a Brazilian mixed grill consisting of chicken, beef, and sausage. Broiled potatoes and asparagus were the vegetables. A roll, salad, and a small flan for dessert completed lunch. Utensils were plastic and the meal was served in the usual economy tray setup. The food itself was good, particularly the chicken.
Before long we started our descent into Sao Paulo. It was a clear day, so I had a good view of one of the world’s largest cities stretching out in all directions. Our arrival into Terminal 3 was a few minutes late, but I had all the time in the world since the UA flight to Miami didn’t leave for another 8 hours.
There were plenty of complimentary baggage carts in the domestic luggage arrival hall. The bags took some time to unload, so I took the opportunity to check in again at home. I then grabbed my suitcase and headed to the elevator to go to the departure hall.
According to the airport map, United was in Terminal 1. Well, this was one way to see the airport I thought to myself. In Terminal 1 there was nobody at the check-in desks but the United ticket office was open. Finally I could actually talk to somebody at UA and get everything straightened out. Or so I thought.
Only one agent was on duty but I was the only customer. After some pleasantries we got down to business. My strategy was to first take care of my reservation then bring up my immigration status.
I gave the UA agent the printout that Varig gave me and said that Varig had arranged for me to fly to Miami from Sao Paulo rather than from Buenos Aires. Clickity-clickity went the keyboard and the agent tells me that while yes, that is true, the fact was that they booked me on the VARIG flight to Miami rather than United. Hmmm, that didn’t come up in the conversation back at Porto Alegre. So I asked what time Varig left for Miami and she said it was scheduled for 11:30 p.m. Since I had already missed one day of meetings, I told her that I would prefer taking the earlier United flight if at all possible. More clickity sounds and she said that I was now booked on United’s flight 872 scheduled to depart at 9:15 p.m. And I could even have my seat 17C back if I wanted. She then said that unfortunately I’d probaly have to pay a change fee of US$150. But in her opinion that didn’t seem fair under the circumstances, so she suggested talking to a supervisor later in the evening.
She then asked, "Was there anything else I needed?" Well, as a matter of fact I could use a visa and entry stamp for Brazil! I gave her the condensed version of my story and asked if she thought I would have a problem trying to leave tonight. She replied in the affirmative and suggested that the best course of action would be to let Varig deal with this problem since, according to her, Varig has a better relationship with the immigration authorities than United. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of that comment but took my UA boarding pass and started the long walk back to Varig in T-3.
It wasn’t particularly busy in Terminal 3 and I started looking around for someone to help me. I noticed an office called “Varig Special Services” and I figured, well I certainly could use some of that. So I walked in and the agent behind the counter asked how he could help. Once again I tell the story. The agent, Carlos, says that we’ll need to get a supervisor involved so I asked where I can find one. He says that she is over at counter 19 so I volunteer to track her down. I walk over to 19 and ask for the supervisor. She comes by and I tell the story again. She says that we’ll need to coordinate this situation through the Special Services office. Back we go and she and Carlos start discussing my problem "blah blah blah – visa – blah blah blah – American – blah blah blah – Porto Alegre, etc."
They couldn’t believe that all the passengers completely bypassed immigration in Porto Alegre. Carlos kept asking me, did they really do that? He said that Varig could have been fined, but I told him there was nobody there and it wasn't Varig's fault – the immigration offices were closed for the evening.
Carlos said that they would need to intercede with the Brazilian Federal Police (immigration) about my status. He would personally go talk to the Chief of Police at the airport, so in the meantime I should make myself at home in the Special Services office. Here’s the coffee machine and bottled water; there is a television over here if you want to watch TV. Carlos then took off, leaving me to wonder just what I had gotten myself into and whether or not “No fue mi culpa” (Spanish for “It wasn't my fault”) translated well into Portuguese.
After 20 minutes Carlos came back and said the Chief didn’t come on duty for another hour, so at 3:00 he would go back and find the Chief. I asked if it was ok to use the restroom and Carlos said sure, but it would be better if I stayed in their offices until everything was sorted out.
At 3:15 Carlos got up and said he was going to the Chief’s office. 30 minutes later he came back, and said the negotiations were going well but he needed my passport, itinerary, tonight’s United boarding pass, and the boarding receipt from Santiago to Buenos Aires. I told him that the POA agent had taken my SCL-EZE receipt, but I had my luggage claim on the ticket jacket. I guess that was sufficient because he took everything and disappeared again.
There is nothing quite like the feeling you get when you are sitting alone in Varig’s Special Services office without your passport, tickets, or itinerary.
Twenty minutes or so passed, and Carlos came back with a smile on his face. Everything was all set he said. The Federal Police were advised of my situation and that I would be leaving tonight from Terminal 1 on United Airlines flight to Miami. The Chief had my name and passport number, if we had any problems getting past the officers in Terminal 1 we were to call him over in Terminal 3.
Carlos then said that he was going to check with United Airlines to see if they would check my luggage in early and also advise them of my immigration situation. So he took off again for Terminal 1. After a short time he came back and said United wouldn’t check the bag in early; their counters opened up at 6:00 p.m.
He then said that I was to be his guest at Varig’s domestic (landside) VIP Lounge and he would arrange to have somebody pick me up from the lounge around 6:00 and escort me to United as well as through immigration. He assured me that even though he was going off duty at 6:00 that he would let his colleagues know what was going on. So I got my stuff and we walked over to the VIP Lounge where I was introduced to the receptionist.
The lounge was comfortable, much larger than Porto Alegre, with a separate TV room, internet terminals, open bar, and snacks. Since I couldn’t get the phone to work, I e-mailed a friend of mine and had her call my wife to let her know what was going on.
6:00 came and went and nobody showed up. At 6:15 I asked the receptionist and she called over to Special Services and said somebody would be there within 15 minutes. As I was reading e-mail, I was paged to the front desk where a nice lady from Varig said she was my personal escort. And she even brought over a luggage cart for my use.
Carlos had told her my story before going home for the night. I guess I was the source of some amusement to the staff. When we got to the United check-in area in Terminal 1, it was already a madhouse. I told my escort that I was Star Gold and could check-in business class, but even those lines were long. She told me to sit tight for a minute and went to talk to the United concierge. A short time later she came back and said that I could use the First Class check-in desk where there was no line.
Fortunately the UA agent and the concierge both spoke good English so I didn’t have a language barrier to deal with. As they were working on my ticketing, the airport security officer came over to question me about the contents of my luggage. He explained the process, indicating that he needed to ask me a series of questions about my luggage and my trip for purposes of security. He then asked me approximately ten questions while carefully gauging my answers and reaction to the questions. He finished up and sealed my Briggs and Riley for the flight.
My Varig escort then explained to security why I had no Brazilian visa or entry stamp in my passport and showed him some kind of printout which looked like an itinerary.
The UA agent handed me my boarding passes, note the emphasis on the plural. Eegads! He had booked my on UA 872 to Miami then continuing on to SFO and connecting back to SMF. He didn’t realize that I had a stopover in Miami on the way home. And, of course, that also managed to cancel my return reservation.
So everything had to go back in the computer, new reservations redo my upgrade certificates, etc. etc. I went over to my Varig escort, who was waiting patiently chatting with UA staff, and said that we’d be stuck here a while longer as my reservation needed to be redone. No problem, she would wait as long as it took.
The UA agent apologized profusely for the confusion and reworked my reservation. Finally we got everything all set, I was flying from Sao Paulo to Miami in economy seat 17C, then on Thursday October 10th I was confirmed Miami to San Francisco in upgraded business class with a connecting UX flight to Sacramento.
The agent then said there was the matter of the $150 change fee. He called over the UA concierge and they conferred; both said they thought the fee wasn’t fair and they would try to get it waived. To their credit they both went to talk to a supervisor, but came back somewhat crestfallen and said that I still had to pay the fee. We walked over to the ticket office where I paid the fee; the ticketing agent gave me two receipts and said I could ask Varig to reimburse me. I told him that I didn’t mind paying the fee and that given the wonderful service Varig had given me that I would be embarrassed to go and ask for a refund. The way I figured it, I got a side trip to Brazil and a neat travel story all for $150.
Ok, the change fee was paid, I have my boarding pass, and my bag is checked. Next stop: Outbound immigration.
Part 5 at: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum81/HTML/003147.html
[This message has been edited by El Cochinito (edited 10-14-2002).]
Monday Morning, October 7
Porto Alegre, Brazil to ???
The hotel called the room at 7:00 a.m. to let me know that a breakfast buffet was ready and all of us Varig passengers were to leave for the airport at 8:15 a.m. I was already up, not sleeping particularly well. . . possibly my own fault for having stayed up late the previous night watching a dubbed version of “Escape From Alcatraz” on the cable TV.
At the reception desk I let the clerk know that I owed him for some telephone calls. He said that Varig was going to pick up the cost of the first call, but any remaining calls would be out of my pocket. As mentioned previously, I was expecting a hefty bill since I had called the USA several times, plus tried calling United Airlines in Chile and Argentina. The clerk printed out my folio and I owed 20 reals for the calls, less than US$7. As I paid, the clerk mentioned that he thought the exchange rate was going to change today because of yesterday’s presidential election. Sure enough, I later found out that the value of the real dropped over 30% against the dollar. So what was already inexpensive for holders of dollars in Brazil was now dirt cheap.
We were invited to partake of the hotel’s breakfast buffet, consisting of several hot dishes, an assortment of baked goods, and an superb selection of fresh tropical fruits. My little buddy Cesar and his family came downstairs to eat and we exchanged addresses and telephone numbers over breakfast. Next time I am in Santiago de Chile or happen to visit Lima, Peru I was told that I must call and plan on visiting.
The Varig buses were waiting for us and we boarded, leaving our luggage in the lobby for the porters to load per instruction from our concierge. As we pulled away I noticed that MY TRUSTY BRIGGS & RILEY was STILL IN THE LOBBY! I immediately jumped up and started pounding on the cockpit door of the bus (yes, the bus had a glass cockpit door separating the passengers from the driver). The driver hit the brakes and I, along with several of my fellow passengers, told the driver about my bag. He pops open the door and I run over to the lobby and tell the concierge that my bag was forgotten. They apologize profusely and a porter is directed to load my bag immediately.
Back on the bus we weave our way through rush hour traffic on our way back to POA. We passed through a residential area and then a commercial zone. What sticks in my mind was seeing a significant number of houses with security shutters along with security bars on their windows. I guess burglary is a problem here.
We’re dropped off at the POA terminal and told to get in line to check-in for the next flight to Buenos Aires. Since there are fifty of us, the line immediately grows. I spot a Varig Business / Star Gold check-in counter and tell my new South American family to follow me, we’re gonna beat the crowd. Two agents are working the counter; I ask agent #1 if he could please take care of my two “aunts” and my “nephew” while I start working with agent #2, a very pretty Brazilian woman who spoke fairly good English.
My agent clickity-clicks away on her keyboard and notices that my ultimate destination is Miami. She said that perhaps I could be routed via Sao Paulo instead of Buenos Aires, that way I am at least heading north instead of south. She asks if that would be ok with me and I tell her sure! As long as I’m already in Brazil, albeit illegally, why not see more of the country? The agent takes off to confer with her supervisor to see if they could make this happen. After about 15 minutes, she comes back with a big smile and says that everything is all set. She tells me that I would be flying from Porto Alegre to Sao Paulo on Varig’s noon flight and I have a confirmed seat from Sao Paulo to Miami. Here are your boarding passes Seńor, and I hope you don’t mind that I put you in the exit row to give you more leg room. When you get to Sao Paulo, please give United Airlines this printout (a bunch of codes that I didn’t understand). And please be our guest at our Varig VIP Lounge while you wait for your flight; let me personally escort you through airport security and introduce you to our concierge. And once you get to Sao Paulo, Seńor, you’ll want to take care of this little problem you have with your immigration status. But for now, don’t worry about it since this next flight is a domestic one.
Wow! I was impressed!
In the meantime my new friends had been rebooked on the very next Varig flight to Buenos Aires. It was time to say goodbye, hugs all around and promises to stay in touch. They went off to try and call their family waiting at the Buenos Aires airport and I followed my Varig escort to the security checkpoint. No problems here and we then went over to the VIP Lounge where she introduced me to the concierge.
The lounge was not very big, but it did have high speed internet terminals (I quickly discovered that the Portuguese keyboard was easier to use than the Spanish keyboards I used in Chile & Argentina). There was a small selection of snacks, fruit, beer, juice, and soda. I spent some time on e-mail, updating friends and family as to my whereabouts, and got caught up on the news.
As the morning wore on and it approached a reasonable hour to call California, I went to the terminal gift shop and bought some phone cards. I called home and let my wife know that I was now flying to Sao Paulo and would be connecting on United to Miami that night assuming I was allowed to leave Brazil. I promised to call her upon arrival in Sao Paulo and also once I knew I was actually leaving Brazil.
A big thunderstorm blew in about this time and our flight showed “status pending”. Of course that would just be my luck, but the status changed to “confirmed”. We were scheduled to start boarding at 11:30 a.m. so at 11:20 I said goodbye to the concierge and walked over to domestic gate #6.
Monday, October 7
Varig 2318 – POA to GRU (Sao Paulo)
B-737-300 (535 MP Miles)
Our inbound flight was a little late, so we actually started boarding at 11:45 a.m. I found my way to seat 11C, right in the exit row as promised. The flight was half full; only a handful of middle seats were taken. The standard safety demonstration was given, in Portuguese, as we taxied out to POA’s single runway.
Our captain announced (in English and Portuguese) that our flying time was 70 minutes and we could expect an on-time arrival and nice weather in Sao Paulo. The next thing I know I was being offered drinks and what’s this? A hot lunch? On a short haul domestic flight?
We were served a Brazilian mixed grill consisting of chicken, beef, and sausage. Broiled potatoes and asparagus were the vegetables. A roll, salad, and a small flan for dessert completed lunch. Utensils were plastic and the meal was served in the usual economy tray setup. The food itself was good, particularly the chicken.
Before long we started our descent into Sao Paulo. It was a clear day, so I had a good view of one of the world’s largest cities stretching out in all directions. Our arrival into Terminal 3 was a few minutes late, but I had all the time in the world since the UA flight to Miami didn’t leave for another 8 hours.
There were plenty of complimentary baggage carts in the domestic luggage arrival hall. The bags took some time to unload, so I took the opportunity to check in again at home. I then grabbed my suitcase and headed to the elevator to go to the departure hall.
According to the airport map, United was in Terminal 1. Well, this was one way to see the airport I thought to myself. In Terminal 1 there was nobody at the check-in desks but the United ticket office was open. Finally I could actually talk to somebody at UA and get everything straightened out. Or so I thought.
Only one agent was on duty but I was the only customer. After some pleasantries we got down to business. My strategy was to first take care of my reservation then bring up my immigration status.
I gave the UA agent the printout that Varig gave me and said that Varig had arranged for me to fly to Miami from Sao Paulo rather than from Buenos Aires. Clickity-clickity went the keyboard and the agent tells me that while yes, that is true, the fact was that they booked me on the VARIG flight to Miami rather than United. Hmmm, that didn’t come up in the conversation back at Porto Alegre. So I asked what time Varig left for Miami and she said it was scheduled for 11:30 p.m. Since I had already missed one day of meetings, I told her that I would prefer taking the earlier United flight if at all possible. More clickity sounds and she said that I was now booked on United’s flight 872 scheduled to depart at 9:15 p.m. And I could even have my seat 17C back if I wanted. She then said that unfortunately I’d probaly have to pay a change fee of US$150. But in her opinion that didn’t seem fair under the circumstances, so she suggested talking to a supervisor later in the evening.
She then asked, "Was there anything else I needed?" Well, as a matter of fact I could use a visa and entry stamp for Brazil! I gave her the condensed version of my story and asked if she thought I would have a problem trying to leave tonight. She replied in the affirmative and suggested that the best course of action would be to let Varig deal with this problem since, according to her, Varig has a better relationship with the immigration authorities than United. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of that comment but took my UA boarding pass and started the long walk back to Varig in T-3.
It wasn’t particularly busy in Terminal 3 and I started looking around for someone to help me. I noticed an office called “Varig Special Services” and I figured, well I certainly could use some of that. So I walked in and the agent behind the counter asked how he could help. Once again I tell the story. The agent, Carlos, says that we’ll need to get a supervisor involved so I asked where I can find one. He says that she is over at counter 19 so I volunteer to track her down. I walk over to 19 and ask for the supervisor. She comes by and I tell the story again. She says that we’ll need to coordinate this situation through the Special Services office. Back we go and she and Carlos start discussing my problem "blah blah blah – visa – blah blah blah – American – blah blah blah – Porto Alegre, etc."
They couldn’t believe that all the passengers completely bypassed immigration in Porto Alegre. Carlos kept asking me, did they really do that? He said that Varig could have been fined, but I told him there was nobody there and it wasn't Varig's fault – the immigration offices were closed for the evening.
Carlos said that they would need to intercede with the Brazilian Federal Police (immigration) about my status. He would personally go talk to the Chief of Police at the airport, so in the meantime I should make myself at home in the Special Services office. Here’s the coffee machine and bottled water; there is a television over here if you want to watch TV. Carlos then took off, leaving me to wonder just what I had gotten myself into and whether or not “No fue mi culpa” (Spanish for “It wasn't my fault”) translated well into Portuguese.
After 20 minutes Carlos came back and said the Chief didn’t come on duty for another hour, so at 3:00 he would go back and find the Chief. I asked if it was ok to use the restroom and Carlos said sure, but it would be better if I stayed in their offices until everything was sorted out.
At 3:15 Carlos got up and said he was going to the Chief’s office. 30 minutes later he came back, and said the negotiations were going well but he needed my passport, itinerary, tonight’s United boarding pass, and the boarding receipt from Santiago to Buenos Aires. I told him that the POA agent had taken my SCL-EZE receipt, but I had my luggage claim on the ticket jacket. I guess that was sufficient because he took everything and disappeared again.
There is nothing quite like the feeling you get when you are sitting alone in Varig’s Special Services office without your passport, tickets, or itinerary.
Twenty minutes or so passed, and Carlos came back with a smile on his face. Everything was all set he said. The Federal Police were advised of my situation and that I would be leaving tonight from Terminal 1 on United Airlines flight to Miami. The Chief had my name and passport number, if we had any problems getting past the officers in Terminal 1 we were to call him over in Terminal 3.
Carlos then said that he was going to check with United Airlines to see if they would check my luggage in early and also advise them of my immigration situation. So he took off again for Terminal 1. After a short time he came back and said United wouldn’t check the bag in early; their counters opened up at 6:00 p.m.
He then said that I was to be his guest at Varig’s domestic (landside) VIP Lounge and he would arrange to have somebody pick me up from the lounge around 6:00 and escort me to United as well as through immigration. He assured me that even though he was going off duty at 6:00 that he would let his colleagues know what was going on. So I got my stuff and we walked over to the VIP Lounge where I was introduced to the receptionist.
The lounge was comfortable, much larger than Porto Alegre, with a separate TV room, internet terminals, open bar, and snacks. Since I couldn’t get the phone to work, I e-mailed a friend of mine and had her call my wife to let her know what was going on.
6:00 came and went and nobody showed up. At 6:15 I asked the receptionist and she called over to Special Services and said somebody would be there within 15 minutes. As I was reading e-mail, I was paged to the front desk where a nice lady from Varig said she was my personal escort. And she even brought over a luggage cart for my use.
Carlos had told her my story before going home for the night. I guess I was the source of some amusement to the staff. When we got to the United check-in area in Terminal 1, it was already a madhouse. I told my escort that I was Star Gold and could check-in business class, but even those lines were long. She told me to sit tight for a minute and went to talk to the United concierge. A short time later she came back and said that I could use the First Class check-in desk where there was no line.
Fortunately the UA agent and the concierge both spoke good English so I didn’t have a language barrier to deal with. As they were working on my ticketing, the airport security officer came over to question me about the contents of my luggage. He explained the process, indicating that he needed to ask me a series of questions about my luggage and my trip for purposes of security. He then asked me approximately ten questions while carefully gauging my answers and reaction to the questions. He finished up and sealed my Briggs and Riley for the flight.
My Varig escort then explained to security why I had no Brazilian visa or entry stamp in my passport and showed him some kind of printout which looked like an itinerary.
The UA agent handed me my boarding passes, note the emphasis on the plural. Eegads! He had booked my on UA 872 to Miami then continuing on to SFO and connecting back to SMF. He didn’t realize that I had a stopover in Miami on the way home. And, of course, that also managed to cancel my return reservation.
So everything had to go back in the computer, new reservations redo my upgrade certificates, etc. etc. I went over to my Varig escort, who was waiting patiently chatting with UA staff, and said that we’d be stuck here a while longer as my reservation needed to be redone. No problem, she would wait as long as it took.
The UA agent apologized profusely for the confusion and reworked my reservation. Finally we got everything all set, I was flying from Sao Paulo to Miami in economy seat 17C, then on Thursday October 10th I was confirmed Miami to San Francisco in upgraded business class with a connecting UX flight to Sacramento.
The agent then said there was the matter of the $150 change fee. He called over the UA concierge and they conferred; both said they thought the fee wasn’t fair and they would try to get it waived. To their credit they both went to talk to a supervisor, but came back somewhat crestfallen and said that I still had to pay the fee. We walked over to the ticket office where I paid the fee; the ticketing agent gave me two receipts and said I could ask Varig to reimburse me. I told him that I didn’t mind paying the fee and that given the wonderful service Varig had given me that I would be embarrassed to go and ask for a refund. The way I figured it, I got a side trip to Brazil and a neat travel story all for $150.
Ok, the change fee was paid, I have my boarding pass, and my bag is checked. Next stop: Outbound immigration.
Part 5 at: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum81/HTML/003147.html
[This message has been edited by El Cochinito (edited 10-14-2002).]