MAXimum Chicagoan (Mis)adventures via WN Y
Feb 27, 2018, 9:26 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 47
MAXimum Chicagoan (Mis)adventures via WN Y
MAXimum Chicagoan (Mis)adventures via WN Y
Hello everyone and welcome to my sixth trip report. You may remember me from my other trip reports:
[FIXED] A Birthday Trip to Remember: Calgary via AC/AA in Y/Y+
A 5-Day Cali Jaunt via WN Y
Flying Solo: A Broke College Student Takes the UAE via DL/KL/AF Y
Austin, TX via UA/AA Basic (oh no!) Y
D.C. on a Dime: The Nation's Capital via UA Basic Y+ (Seriously!)
If not, welcome! My name is Jeremy and I’m a freshman at Arizona State University.
Introduction
Several months ago, I noticed I had some unused travel funds to use on Southwest. I immediately thought of my friend at Northwestern University who has been asking me to visit her. A quick check of SWA’s easy-to-use website showed me exactly what I hoped: cheap President’s Day weekend flights. I booked it for Thursday through Sunday because somehow my public, taxpayer-funded university doesn’t give us President’s Day, a state and federal holiday, off. I’m not bitter…
In this trip report:
I. Amazing PHX Airport Experience
II. WN1657 PHX – MDW Boeing 737 MAX 8 Y
III. Taking an ‘L’ on the ‘L’
IV. Evanston & Chicago!
V. WN2597 MDW – SDF Boeing 737-800 Y
VI. My Favorite Layover EVER!
VII. WN2597 SDF – PHX Boeing 737-800 Y
15 February 2018
I packed my bag with all the winter essentials I thought I might need (even though it was 70F in Phoenix that day!). I went off to Spanish class downtown, then straight to the airport. I was reminded of just how nicely our airport is placed, with access from several major freeways plus the general downtown area. It’s centrally located and close to everything. I really do love PHX. I suffered through some long, snaking lines of cars heading through, and actually managed to get lost trying to get to the East Economy lot. If you know me, you know that I know PHX like the back of my hand, how embarrassing! I managed to make it into the lot and found a spot quite a far walk away. I got to try out the SkyTrain for the second or third time ever, which was nice.
It’s very cool how they feature art in each station. This one even had some designs on the floor! (Get it? The wet floor signs are the art!...Yikes)
I uneventfully made it to the beautiful Terminal 4, and to my surprise, my flight would be departing out of the D gates, one of the smaller, newer, and more beautiful concourses in PHX. I tend to fly out of D quite often, which makes me pretty happy!
I. Amazing PHX Airport Experience
I first visited my gate and found that my flight was delayed…alongside nearly every other Southwest flight. RWY 26 is closed for repairs which has been destroying every airline’s schedules. I started to walk away towards another concourse just to planespot when I was caught off guard by two fire trucks resting in front of a taxiway. Could it be?! Was I going to see a fire cannon salute?
I stopped immediately, along with several other people, and watched the fire cannons go off, first without a plane under them. I was beyond excited. Many people must’ve been able to gauge my excitement because I was fielding questions left and right about the firetrucks.
I waited, and waited, and waited, until I saw a sparkly new Boeing 737 MAX 8 come towards the gates in a unique pattern that the previous planes hadn’t. And that’s when it happened. It passed through that taxiway and was generously doused by the fire cannons. I had chills and was sweating; what a cool experience!
Then, just when I thought the day couldn’t get any better, the MAX pulled into MY gate! I had an equipment change from the 737-800 to the MAX. WOW! I was giddy as any avgeek. I ran off to the gate to try to figure out why there was a water cannon salute. After standing there and watching everyone disembark, the gate agent came on the intercom and told us that the pilot was retiring after 20 years and asked us to applaud him. A few short minutes later, the pilot, with his entire family, exited the jetway and was met with a concourse full of applause. I recorded the moment and it still gives me chills when I watch it.
II. WN1657 PHX – MDW Boeing 737 MAX 8 Y
Southwest Airlines Flight WN1657
PHX – MDW // Boeing 737 MAX 8 // N8712L
We all lined up to board shortly thereafter, and walking onto that plane was an awfully surreal experience. There was a bright red, purple, and blue tint across the cabin, some pretty great indie music playing to set the tone, and upbeat, excited flight attendants. The day simply couldn’t get more perfect.
Unfortunately, the fun really ended there. My seat mate was incredibly obnoxious, always complaining to me in the window and the other seat mate in the aisle. Additionally, the flight attendants seemed to be confused about who served who, so we were entirely skipped the first round until the attendant realized her error. I was then given the incorrect drink. Oh well. Everything can’t be perfect. The flight was uneventful, getting us into MDW around 10:30PM.
III. Taking an ‘L’ on the ‘L’
I walked over to the L station for the long ride up to Evanston, expecting to be at my friend’s dorm by midnight at the latest. I took the orange line over to Roosevelt, where I expected to make it onto a red line train bound for Howard. I stood on the Howard side of the platform and got on the first train. “Next stop: Cermak-Chinatown.” Huh…that’s strange…that’s the opposite direction of Howard. I got off in Chinatown, a rather sketchy area to say the least, and waited with someone else who made the same mistake I did.
A train actually bound for Howard showed up, but we sat there for 20 minutes! The conductor said that this is normal at this time of night as only one track is in use. Now, getting on the wrong train didn’t make me feel as dumb. We stopped and went until eventually the conductor told us it would be an express train to Morse, then to Howard. I was so thankful; I was tired and my phone was only at 5% and I really just needed to be in a bed.
We FINALLY arrived at Howard at 1:09AM. I saw my purple line train and started to cross over the bridge to that side of the platform. Unfortunately, it left right in front of me. Even more tragically, my gut feeling that the 1:10AM train was the last one was correct! Oh no…
Don’t panic Jeremy, don’t panic! You can call an Uber. But your phone is only at 3% now! I called an Uber and my phone immediately went down to 1% before anyone even picked up my ride…I was so, so scared. Fortunately, it lived until I made it to my friend’s dorm, to both my surprise and delight. I was finally there, at 1:30AM. My entire L train experience took 3 hours. At this point, as I fell asleep, I wasn’t too optimistic about Chicago or the rest of the trip.
16 February 2018
I woke up and checked my messages and noted an updated Uber receipt. My trip fare had increased $80 due to a mess I had made in the car. ARE YOU KIDDING? There was a photo which showed a tiny bit of surface-level dirt on the LEATHER seats. Easy to clean. Simple. But apparently worth $80. I tried to appeal it to Uber, three times, and am currently disputing it with my credit card company. And I’m switching to Lyft from now on.
IV. Evanston & Chicago!
My friend and I went down to the dining hall, which was at least 10,000 times better than mine at ASU, and then roamed the campus. What a beautiful place! My friend went to class; meanwhile, I made some calls and caught up on some work. After class, we made our way to the beautiful Baha’i House of Worship, one of the most stunning buildings I’ve seen.
Afterwards, we headed to downtown Evanston to a new Parisian café to get a feeling of what New Year’s 2019 would look like! We chatted and caught up on so many different subjects, it was a lovely time. It was all delicious food as well.
We then went to Giordano’s for some deep-dish pizza (when in Rome…er…Chicago). No photos of that though, silly me. Then, we retired to the dorm for the night, where we did some work, watched ice skating, and sat around the fireplace (an experience I don’t ever get to have here in Phoenix!)
17 February 2018
We slept in a bit and then went to downtown Chicago for brunch. We went to the beautiful Allis at Soho House. The décor was stunning and the food was simply incredible.
Next, we met up with one of my friend’s friends and visited the Art Institute. I’d love to spend some more time there as it was quite impressive.
We moved onto the next touristy destination—Millennium Park. First, I just have to say that the Bean was much smaller than expected. And from what I gather, that’s a common sentiment. We started walking to Navy Pier but quickly turned around when it started to snow. SNOW! What a strange concept to an Arizonan. We then went to Restoration Hardware, an interior design firm that features a restaurant and coffee bar. Oh my gosh, everything there was so perfect. My friend and I enjoyed the homemade chocolate chip cookies and coffee and then explored, criticizing the rooms and mentally designing our future apartments. We spent several hours there, and could easily spend a few more had we not had plans that evening.
To cap off the night, we headed to Andy’s Jazz Bar to catch a performance. Other than the saxophonist truly looking like he wanted to die, it was quite good. The food was also pleasantly surprising!
We made our way back to campus and settled in for the evening.
18 February 2018
We woke up rather early (8AM…yikes) and went over to Lincoln Square for breakfast at Nighthawk:AM, part of a California-based chain serving order-at-the-counter comfort food. The cookie dough, breakfast sandwich, and frosted flake-covered French toast sticks are all to die for. And it’s all quite affordable! The place was adorable and I definitely plan on visiting again.
Afterwards, we bid one another goodbye at the L station and I made my way back to Midway for my flight home through Louisville. Despite the busy nature of Midway on a Sunday morning, precheck was quick and easy. I also liked how the airport signage showed which gates you should use the moving walkway for. Maybe I’m just not intelligent but I used to always overshoot my gate because of my laziness.
I hopped over to “Get Plugged In” and work on some accounting homework. It was actually a nice little place to get some work done until a family came and started playing some weird show for their daughter out loud. Yikes.
I made my way over to the gate for an on-time departure and settled into my seat.
V. WN2597 MDW – SDF Boeing 737-800 Y
Southwest Airlines Flight WN2597
MDW – SDF // Boeing 737-800 // N8309C
The flight was a brief 50 minutes. Drinks and snacks were still provided – props to the crew for that!
VI. My Favorite Layover EVER!
After landing, all continuing passengers were counted. Afterwards, we were told we could freely disembark and board again as we please. How cool! Of course, I had no intention of getting off the aircraft. I moved my luggage to seat 15F, an exit row seat with no seat in front of it. Though I usually fear being a burden, I embraced it and asked the captain if I could go check out the cockpit. She gladly obliged and actually chatted with me for about a half hour about being a pilot, the pilot shortage, and technical things about the aircraft.
After she exited, the first officer came in and I was able to watch him do a lot of the pre-flight ATC clearance items. We chatted about the industry as well. Unfortunately, the fun quickly came to an end when I was sent back to my seat after boarding started. I decided to bother the flight attendant standing in the exit row about her job as well. I felt really connected to this crew, which was a very cool experience. I love WN more than I can possibly put into words.
VII. WN2597 SDF – PHX Boeing 737-800 Y
Southwest Airlines Flight WN2597
SDF – PHX // Boeing 737-800 // N8309C
Boarding wrapped up and I was given the added bonus of not having anyone in the middle seat next to me! Woohoo! I had a total of two cans of cranberry apple juice (thanks to the crew for that as well) and one of my favorite flights ever. I tweeted to Southwest Airlines commending the crew, which I was told would be passed on to them. And I really hope it is; they deserve it!
After landing, I went to grab my car, pay the $48 parking bill (...) and then drove away, knowing that in just two short weeks, (or rather, this weekend) I’d be back at the airport, this time bound for beautiful Vienna. Stay tuned for that one folks, and as always, thanks so much for reading. Any and all feedback is much appreciated.
Hello everyone and welcome to my sixth trip report. You may remember me from my other trip reports:
[FIXED] A Birthday Trip to Remember: Calgary via AC/AA in Y/Y+
A 5-Day Cali Jaunt via WN Y
Flying Solo: A Broke College Student Takes the UAE via DL/KL/AF Y
Austin, TX via UA/AA Basic (oh no!) Y
D.C. on a Dime: The Nation's Capital via UA Basic Y+ (Seriously!)
If not, welcome! My name is Jeremy and I’m a freshman at Arizona State University.
Introduction
Several months ago, I noticed I had some unused travel funds to use on Southwest. I immediately thought of my friend at Northwestern University who has been asking me to visit her. A quick check of SWA’s easy-to-use website showed me exactly what I hoped: cheap President’s Day weekend flights. I booked it for Thursday through Sunday because somehow my public, taxpayer-funded university doesn’t give us President’s Day, a state and federal holiday, off. I’m not bitter…
In this trip report:
I. Amazing PHX Airport Experience
II. WN1657 PHX – MDW Boeing 737 MAX 8 Y
III. Taking an ‘L’ on the ‘L’
IV. Evanston & Chicago!
V. WN2597 MDW – SDF Boeing 737-800 Y
VI. My Favorite Layover EVER!
VII. WN2597 SDF – PHX Boeing 737-800 Y
15 February 2018
I packed my bag with all the winter essentials I thought I might need (even though it was 70F in Phoenix that day!). I went off to Spanish class downtown, then straight to the airport. I was reminded of just how nicely our airport is placed, with access from several major freeways plus the general downtown area. It’s centrally located and close to everything. I really do love PHX. I suffered through some long, snaking lines of cars heading through, and actually managed to get lost trying to get to the East Economy lot. If you know me, you know that I know PHX like the back of my hand, how embarrassing! I managed to make it into the lot and found a spot quite a far walk away. I got to try out the SkyTrain for the second or third time ever, which was nice.
I uneventfully made it to the beautiful Terminal 4, and to my surprise, my flight would be departing out of the D gates, one of the smaller, newer, and more beautiful concourses in PHX. I tend to fly out of D quite often, which makes me pretty happy!
I. Amazing PHX Airport Experience
I first visited my gate and found that my flight was delayed…alongside nearly every other Southwest flight. RWY 26 is closed for repairs which has been destroying every airline’s schedules. I started to walk away towards another concourse just to planespot when I was caught off guard by two fire trucks resting in front of a taxiway. Could it be?! Was I going to see a fire cannon salute?
I stopped immediately, along with several other people, and watched the fire cannons go off, first without a plane under them. I was beyond excited. Many people must’ve been able to gauge my excitement because I was fielding questions left and right about the firetrucks.
I waited, and waited, and waited, until I saw a sparkly new Boeing 737 MAX 8 come towards the gates in a unique pattern that the previous planes hadn’t. And that’s when it happened. It passed through that taxiway and was generously doused by the fire cannons. I had chills and was sweating; what a cool experience!
Then, just when I thought the day couldn’t get any better, the MAX pulled into MY gate! I had an equipment change from the 737-800 to the MAX. WOW! I was giddy as any avgeek. I ran off to the gate to try to figure out why there was a water cannon salute. After standing there and watching everyone disembark, the gate agent came on the intercom and told us that the pilot was retiring after 20 years and asked us to applaud him. A few short minutes later, the pilot, with his entire family, exited the jetway and was met with a concourse full of applause. I recorded the moment and it still gives me chills when I watch it.
II. WN1657 PHX – MDW Boeing 737 MAX 8 Y
Southwest Airlines Flight WN1657
PHX – MDW // Boeing 737 MAX 8 // N8712L
We all lined up to board shortly thereafter, and walking onto that plane was an awfully surreal experience. There was a bright red, purple, and blue tint across the cabin, some pretty great indie music playing to set the tone, and upbeat, excited flight attendants. The day simply couldn’t get more perfect.
Unfortunately, the fun really ended there. My seat mate was incredibly obnoxious, always complaining to me in the window and the other seat mate in the aisle. Additionally, the flight attendants seemed to be confused about who served who, so we were entirely skipped the first round until the attendant realized her error. I was then given the incorrect drink. Oh well. Everything can’t be perfect. The flight was uneventful, getting us into MDW around 10:30PM.
III. Taking an ‘L’ on the ‘L’
I walked over to the L station for the long ride up to Evanston, expecting to be at my friend’s dorm by midnight at the latest. I took the orange line over to Roosevelt, where I expected to make it onto a red line train bound for Howard. I stood on the Howard side of the platform and got on the first train. “Next stop: Cermak-Chinatown.” Huh…that’s strange…that’s the opposite direction of Howard. I got off in Chinatown, a rather sketchy area to say the least, and waited with someone else who made the same mistake I did.
A train actually bound for Howard showed up, but we sat there for 20 minutes! The conductor said that this is normal at this time of night as only one track is in use. Now, getting on the wrong train didn’t make me feel as dumb. We stopped and went until eventually the conductor told us it would be an express train to Morse, then to Howard. I was so thankful; I was tired and my phone was only at 5% and I really just needed to be in a bed.
We FINALLY arrived at Howard at 1:09AM. I saw my purple line train and started to cross over the bridge to that side of the platform. Unfortunately, it left right in front of me. Even more tragically, my gut feeling that the 1:10AM train was the last one was correct! Oh no…
Don’t panic Jeremy, don’t panic! You can call an Uber. But your phone is only at 3% now! I called an Uber and my phone immediately went down to 1% before anyone even picked up my ride…I was so, so scared. Fortunately, it lived until I made it to my friend’s dorm, to both my surprise and delight. I was finally there, at 1:30AM. My entire L train experience took 3 hours. At this point, as I fell asleep, I wasn’t too optimistic about Chicago or the rest of the trip.
16 February 2018
I woke up and checked my messages and noted an updated Uber receipt. My trip fare had increased $80 due to a mess I had made in the car. ARE YOU KIDDING? There was a photo which showed a tiny bit of surface-level dirt on the LEATHER seats. Easy to clean. Simple. But apparently worth $80. I tried to appeal it to Uber, three times, and am currently disputing it with my credit card company. And I’m switching to Lyft from now on.
IV. Evanston & Chicago!
My friend and I went down to the dining hall, which was at least 10,000 times better than mine at ASU, and then roamed the campus. What a beautiful place! My friend went to class; meanwhile, I made some calls and caught up on some work. After class, we made our way to the beautiful Baha’i House of Worship, one of the most stunning buildings I’ve seen.
Afterwards, we headed to downtown Evanston to a new Parisian café to get a feeling of what New Year’s 2019 would look like! We chatted and caught up on so many different subjects, it was a lovely time. It was all delicious food as well.
We then went to Giordano’s for some deep-dish pizza (when in Rome…er…Chicago). No photos of that though, silly me. Then, we retired to the dorm for the night, where we did some work, watched ice skating, and sat around the fireplace (an experience I don’t ever get to have here in Phoenix!)
17 February 2018
We slept in a bit and then went to downtown Chicago for brunch. We went to the beautiful Allis at Soho House. The décor was stunning and the food was simply incredible.
Next, we met up with one of my friend’s friends and visited the Art Institute. I’d love to spend some more time there as it was quite impressive.
We moved onto the next touristy destination—Millennium Park. First, I just have to say that the Bean was much smaller than expected. And from what I gather, that’s a common sentiment. We started walking to Navy Pier but quickly turned around when it started to snow. SNOW! What a strange concept to an Arizonan. We then went to Restoration Hardware, an interior design firm that features a restaurant and coffee bar. Oh my gosh, everything there was so perfect. My friend and I enjoyed the homemade chocolate chip cookies and coffee and then explored, criticizing the rooms and mentally designing our future apartments. We spent several hours there, and could easily spend a few more had we not had plans that evening.
To cap off the night, we headed to Andy’s Jazz Bar to catch a performance. Other than the saxophonist truly looking like he wanted to die, it was quite good. The food was also pleasantly surprising!
We made our way back to campus and settled in for the evening.
18 February 2018
We woke up rather early (8AM…yikes) and went over to Lincoln Square for breakfast at Nighthawk:AM, part of a California-based chain serving order-at-the-counter comfort food. The cookie dough, breakfast sandwich, and frosted flake-covered French toast sticks are all to die for. And it’s all quite affordable! The place was adorable and I definitely plan on visiting again.
Afterwards, we bid one another goodbye at the L station and I made my way back to Midway for my flight home through Louisville. Despite the busy nature of Midway on a Sunday morning, precheck was quick and easy. I also liked how the airport signage showed which gates you should use the moving walkway for. Maybe I’m just not intelligent but I used to always overshoot my gate because of my laziness.
I hopped over to “Get Plugged In” and work on some accounting homework. It was actually a nice little place to get some work done until a family came and started playing some weird show for their daughter out loud. Yikes.
I made my way over to the gate for an on-time departure and settled into my seat.
V. WN2597 MDW – SDF Boeing 737-800 Y
Southwest Airlines Flight WN2597
MDW – SDF // Boeing 737-800 // N8309C
The flight was a brief 50 minutes. Drinks and snacks were still provided – props to the crew for that!
VI. My Favorite Layover EVER!
After landing, all continuing passengers were counted. Afterwards, we were told we could freely disembark and board again as we please. How cool! Of course, I had no intention of getting off the aircraft. I moved my luggage to seat 15F, an exit row seat with no seat in front of it. Though I usually fear being a burden, I embraced it and asked the captain if I could go check out the cockpit. She gladly obliged and actually chatted with me for about a half hour about being a pilot, the pilot shortage, and technical things about the aircraft.
After she exited, the first officer came in and I was able to watch him do a lot of the pre-flight ATC clearance items. We chatted about the industry as well. Unfortunately, the fun quickly came to an end when I was sent back to my seat after boarding started. I decided to bother the flight attendant standing in the exit row about her job as well. I felt really connected to this crew, which was a very cool experience. I love WN more than I can possibly put into words.
VII. WN2597 SDF – PHX Boeing 737-800 Y
Southwest Airlines Flight WN2597
SDF – PHX // Boeing 737-800 // N8309C
Boarding wrapped up and I was given the added bonus of not having anyone in the middle seat next to me! Woohoo! I had a total of two cans of cranberry apple juice (thanks to the crew for that as well) and one of my favorite flights ever. I tweeted to Southwest Airlines commending the crew, which I was told would be passed on to them. And I really hope it is; they deserve it!
After landing, I went to grab my car, pay the $48 parking bill (...) and then drove away, knowing that in just two short weeks, (or rather, this weekend) I’d be back at the airport, this time bound for beautiful Vienna. Stay tuned for that one folks, and as always, thanks so much for reading. Any and all feedback is much appreciated.
Feb 27, 2018, 9:55 pm
#2
Join Date: Jun 2017
Location: MidSouth
Programs: AA; Delta GM
Posts: 728
Another great trip report! I haven't been to Chicago in ages, so it was nice to have a reminder of all the terrific things there to do.
I hope your billing issue is resolved in your favor, but definitely change services.
I hope your billing issue is resolved in your favor, but definitely change services.
