SFO-JFK - AA000 – Seat 2A – 763 Wake up and the nuts are already out. Doesn’t everyone fall asleep while the plane is taxied around the airport? OK maybe having only slept a couple of hours the night before on the flight from KOA. The movie according to Jerrie was the Pursuit of Happiness starring Will Smith.
“The View From the Top” menu which would probably get a few votes in the “water” photo contest is a choice of Miso Chicken accompanied by a Tomato-Basil Potato Salad or a Warm Roast Beef Sandwich topped with Provolone Cheese served with a Salad and Dressing of your choice. Yummy. Both come with a Bread Basket and Chocolate Ice Cream with Blackberry Sauce topped with White Chocolate and Raspberry Brulee Squares which magic skips
and I take the Fruit and Cheese. Upon arrival the freshly baked on board chocolate chip cookies are offered.
Despite the fact the cabin heating system doesn’t work properly and it is freezing on the plane the flight is uneventful.
JFK-LIM-SCL – LA00 – Seat2A – 767 – Somehow transferring from terminal 8/9 to terminal 4 we miss the fact that the Lan Chile lounge is not located airside. By the time we get to the gate and inquire where it is we have only about 25 minutes until boarding begins. We choose not to go back through the trillion dollar security system. Also points out that perhaps not knowing where the lounge was I should have asked on FT.
I also ask the young lady at the gate on whether or not our luggage has made the transfer from AA and I learn a valuable lesson about the Chilean psyche. Ok my better half is one-quarter Chilean and she never tells a white lie. She just tells me something that she believes that will make me feel good hearing. Our luggage will arrive in Santiago at our hotel about 30 hours after we do. All in all the GA made the right decision as she has no idea if I’m one of those whiners that will go ballistic upon hearing such (what do they call it – devastating, nightmare, disastrous, etc. etc.) news. People it is only baggage and replaceable. In fact we get to have an adventure shopping for needed items in a Santiago department store. Everything important is in our carryons anyway. YMMV
Lan Chile is in the midst of refurbishing the interiors of the aircraft. For this flight we get one that has not been refurbished yet. Seats are much like business in an AA 777 except the seat controls are power operated. PTV comes out of the center armrest and there are several choices on movies but not OD. Having slept for sometime coming across the country I’m not sleeping yet and during the meal service watch a movie. “Night at the Museum” When we finally get to Easter Island a few days later Jerrie and I say “want gum dum-dum” the first few times we see a moai.
As a young child last century I recall seeing pictures of my father being initiated into the Society of Neptune. Know that it is a lot more common in this day and age for travelers to cross the equator, and this is not my first time either. Just don’t understand why they don’t make an acknowledgement when you bump over the line. ) Maybe it was just a big thing on naval ships in my father’s time to break the monotony of sea duty. Quien sabes?
Jerrie has some Salmon on the flight and I have some fresh pasta with vegetables in a white wine sauce. Snacks are offered during the night on the flight but neither of us partakes. In the morning we land in Lima for 50 minutes. Just enough time for half the plane to unload and reload with not quite as many passengers and we take off for the remainder of the flight to SCL. For breakfast we each have a cheese omelet, fresh fruit, cereal and yogurt. The flight attendant tries to give me a café con leche but I insist that it be café solo. Eventually he gives in and I get my coffee without any additives. Coming up to finishing my 60th year of life and still can’t figure out why anyone would want to ruin a fine drink such as coffee by putting something else in it. Of course we all know that Starbucks are doing quite well selling their concoctions and the magic111 chain of coffee shops was not a successful venture. Just goes to show you that “People are Strange.”
Arrive at SCL get in the line to pay the $100 reciprocity fee and then go to the luggage carousel for what reason I can’t comprehend. Oh that’s right it isn’t permissible to go straight to the lost luggage desk. One must first pretend like the airline has gotten the luggage delivered with you. Manage to get an agent who with my minimal Spanish and her minimal English we are able to communicate. After finally remembering that the luggage is all Jerrie’s name, know one has forgotten the odyssey of getting the boarding pass already we pass go collect the information and head for ground transportation after declaring this to be the 2nd of Jerrie’s pitfalls, remember Bambi’s mother.
It is about a 15-20 minute drive in a taxi (about $20) for the trip to Santiago. There is a big blue bus for about $5 to the main bus station in Santiago but after traveling for over 32 hours I’m not in the mood to save a few dollars.
Arrive at the Sheraton Santiago where we are asked if we are really paying for the room on points and than promptly receive the room keys. I ask about the Platinum amenities and Juan or Pablo or whatever his name was inquires if I’m Platinum. I show him my card. We than get a upgrade to a 2-room suite, no admittance to the lounge and to be honest I do not know if they even have one. But we do receive complimentary breakfasts.
I ask if it possible to get a toothbrush. Eventually I ask several times for a toothbrush, end up buying one and when the guest service manager ends up sending us a copy of Neruda’s writings as an apology. Nice gesture IMO. Also get the asked for toothbrush but had already bought one.
After unpacking are carryon luggage we are ready to head out to buy some things like another shirt or two and some underwear to carry us over until LA gets around to getting us our luggage delivered from New York. The concierge directs us to the Macy’s of Santiago, that is to say the Paris department store, about a ten minute walk, where I find everything I need in about 2 minutes and Jerrie takes somewhat longer. During that time I ponder the mystery of why men’s underwear is made differently in every country. Does anyone know if that is the same for women?