Over the past six months, we have travelled A LOT! Here are some weird, but we thought entertaining, things that have happened to us on some of our trips:
Story Number 1: Last October I flew from London to Austin for work. About halfway through the flight, a man got up to go to the bathroom. Well he must have forgotten that the door opens IN. After he finished his business, he kept trying to push the door out but it wasn’t opening, so finally he yanked as hard as he could and the door opened in… to his face! He started bleeding everywhere from a deep gash in his forehead. I heard all this going on because I was only sitting about 2 rows from the back of the plane. Almost immediately the flight attendants came over the intercom system and called for a doctor. I’ve only seen that done in movies! Unfortunately for the bleeding man in the back of the plane, there were no doctors on this flight. So then they called for “anyone with medical training.” The man in the seat in front of me was an army medic back in the day, so he volunteered to help out. He ended up wrapping his head in a ton of napkins and bandages and put him back in his seat. When we landed, there was an ambulance waiting on the tarmac and before anyone could de-plane, the EMTs came onto the plane to escort the man off. Back in December, on our flight to Egypt, David and I experienced another medical emergency and a doctor was called for again, but this must not have been that serious because we didn’t hear or see any commotion and there were no ambulances or EMTs when we landed.
Story Number 2: Each time I travel to Bratislava for work, I stay at the Crowne Plaza. It’s a nice hotel, but not that nice. It is across the street from the royal palace, though. In December, the King and Queen of Norway were visiting the same week I was in town. I checked in and headed upstairs to drop off my bag before making my way to the office. When I stepped off the elevator, I was greeted by 3 men in dark suits standing outside a hotel room down the hall from mine. The hotel room’s door was wide open and the guest inside was walking around brushing his teeth. At first I thought they were just businessmen waiting for their coworker to finish getting ready so they could go to breakfast or the office all together. But later that evening when I got back from work, the hotel door was wide open again and there were even more men standing in the hall. The guest was relaxing inside, lying down (and I only knew this because I glimpsed his feet dangling off the end of the bed). So then I figured this guy must be some super-important Norweigan official and the men in dark suits were his bodyguards ordered never to let him out of their sight, hence the open door. The next morning he came out of the room at the same time as a coworker. He was dressed in full military uniform and his guards refused to let my coworker in the elevator with him, even though there was plenty of room! We never did figure out who this guy was, but we assume he had something to do with the King and Queen of Norway across the street in the palace.
Story Number 3: As part of normal procedures, flights into the UK from Middle Eastern or African countries have to be de-bugged. So on the way back from Egypt, our plane was sprayed down with insecticide. This can only be done after the doors are sealed so nothing that’s flown or crawled in last-minute survives. But this also means all of the passengers are onboard when the chemicals are released. David and I had no idea this rule existed and were very surprised when the announcement was made. One of the flight attendants came onto the intercom to explain the policy and cautioned us that “although the spray is completely harmless to humans, you may want to close your eyes and cover your mouth and nose.” Really?? If it’s not harmless, why even say that?? So we closed our eyes and held our breath as an attendant came down the aisle spraying near the overhead luggage. Just when we thought it was safe, she ran back down the aisle toward us for round two! Well it’s been a few weeks since that flight, and on the bright side, David now has super-human hearing due to the third ear that’s growing in on his forehead!
Story Number 4: All of this travel does have its benefits! In November, I became a Silver Elite OnePass Member of the Star Alliance. David was crazy jealous because he has been a member of Continental’s frequent flyer program for 14 years and he didn’t get status until late December, but it only took me 6 months! Some of the perks of being Silver Elite include free seating upgrades on any flight, automatic upgrades to first class on domestic flights (when available), priority baggage check, and discounted lounge passes. David and I also received two free lounge passes, which we used to relax after dropping Kirby off at Cargo during our Houston – London flight in November. The lounge was great! Free food, free drinks (including top-shelf alcohol), and free Wifi. They even had a movie theatre. David and I hung out in the corner of the theatre watching Modern Family on hulu.com. On my way to Austin from Ireland in December, I was upgraded to first class… on the last leg of the journey – Houston to Austin. Even though it was only a 30 minute flight, it was wonderful! The chairs were big and comfy leather. Each seat also had its own screen, where I was able to watch live TV. I enjoyed some good ol’ American programming watching ‘Throwdown with Bobby Flay.’ Hopefully I can maintain my elite status this year! But I don’t think that will be a problem with my upcoming travel schedule…
And there will be plenty more stories to come, I’m sure!
Story Number 1: Last October I flew from London to Austin for work. About halfway through the flight, a man got up to go to the bathroom. Well he must have forgotten that the door opens IN. After he finished his business, he kept trying to push the door out but it wasn’t opening, so finally he yanked as hard as he could and the door opened in… to his face! He started bleeding everywhere from a deep gash in his forehead. I heard all this going on because I was only sitting about 2 rows from the back of the plane. Almost immediately the flight attendants came over the intercom system and called for a doctor. I’ve only seen that done in movies! Unfortunately for the bleeding man in the back of the plane, there were no doctors on this flight. So then they called for “anyone with medical training.” The man in the seat in front of me was an army medic back in the day, so he volunteered to help out. He ended up wrapping his head in a ton of napkins and bandages and put him back in his seat. When we landed, there was an ambulance waiting on the tarmac and before anyone could de-plane, the EMTs came onto the plane to escort the man off. Back in December, on our flight to Egypt, David and I experienced another medical emergency and a doctor was called for again, but this must not have been that serious because we didn’t hear or see any commotion and there were no ambulances or EMTs when we landed.
Story Number 2: Each time I travel to Bratislava for work, I stay at the Crowne Plaza. It’s a nice hotel, but not that nice. It is across the street from the royal palace, though. In December, the King and Queen of Norway were visiting the same week I was in town. I checked in and headed upstairs to drop off my bag before making my way to the office. When I stepped off the elevator, I was greeted by 3 men in dark suits standing outside a hotel room down the hall from mine. The hotel room’s door was wide open and the guest inside was walking around brushing his teeth. At first I thought they were just businessmen waiting for their coworker to finish getting ready so they could go to breakfast or the office all together. But later that evening when I got back from work, the hotel door was wide open again and there were even more men standing in the hall. The guest was relaxing inside, lying down (and I only knew this because I glimpsed his feet dangling off the end of the bed). So then I figured this guy must be some super-important Norweigan official and the men in dark suits were his bodyguards ordered never to let him out of their sight, hence the open door. The next morning he came out of the room at the same time as a coworker. He was dressed in full military uniform and his guards refused to let my coworker in the elevator with him, even though there was plenty of room! We never did figure out who this guy was, but we assume he had something to do with the King and Queen of Norway across the street in the palace.
Story Number 3: As part of normal procedures, flights into the UK from Middle Eastern or African countries have to be de-bugged. So on the way back from Egypt, our plane was sprayed down with insecticide. This can only be done after the doors are sealed so nothing that’s flown or crawled in last-minute survives. But this also means all of the passengers are onboard when the chemicals are released. David and I had no idea this rule existed and were very surprised when the announcement was made. One of the flight attendants came onto the intercom to explain the policy and cautioned us that “although the spray is completely harmless to humans, you may want to close your eyes and cover your mouth and nose.” Really?? If it’s not harmless, why even say that?? So we closed our eyes and held our breath as an attendant came down the aisle spraying near the overhead luggage. Just when we thought it was safe, she ran back down the aisle toward us for round two! Well it’s been a few weeks since that flight, and on the bright side, David now has super-human hearing due to the third ear that’s growing in on his forehead!
Story Number 4: All of this travel does have its benefits! In November, I became a Silver Elite OnePass Member of the Star Alliance. David was crazy jealous because he has been a member of Continental’s frequent flyer program for 14 years and he didn’t get status until late December, but it only took me 6 months! Some of the perks of being Silver Elite include free seating upgrades on any flight, automatic upgrades to first class on domestic flights (when available), priority baggage check, and discounted lounge passes. David and I also received two free lounge passes, which we used to relax after dropping Kirby off at Cargo during our Houston – London flight in November. The lounge was great! Free food, free drinks (including top-shelf alcohol), and free Wifi. They even had a movie theatre. David and I hung out in the corner of the theatre watching Modern Family on hulu.com. On my way to Austin from Ireland in December, I was upgraded to first class… on the last leg of the journey – Houston to Austin. Even though it was only a 30 minute flight, it was wonderful! The chairs were big and comfy leather. Each seat also had its own screen, where I was able to watch live TV. I enjoyed some good ol’ American programming watching ‘Throwdown with Bobby Flay.’ Hopefully I can maintain my elite status this year! But I don’t think that will be a problem with my upcoming travel schedule…
And there will be plenty more stories to come, I’m sure!
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