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I'm back, and I kind of want to leave again. I shouldn't complain, it may be cold but at least it's ice-free.
No more Chile commentary right now; I'm just back, tired, and need to sort mail, get food, and a week of sleep.
Plane trips were as good as 24 hour trips can be; I've had 8 flights in a row with no problems. Dallas->O'Hare threatened a problem, re-scheduling an hour later, but then they scheduled back as I was hunting down the gate. I upgraded to first class for that segment, since it seemed like not that much and I've never experienced it before. It was nice. In some ways, though (not the seat space way) LAN (Chile's airline) is first-class relative to anything in the US: LED displays per seat, free wine... of course, that was the international flight; the short-hop wasn't that luxurious. But neither was the flight out of Chile, which turned out to be served by American in partnership with LAN. Chilean stew, but no wine or metal utensils -- and they confiscated my water bottles at boarding!
Instead of Bloomington Shuttle, I took Star of America home. $15 vs. $25 (well, $22 with the Shuttle's new online discount.) I'm somewhat suspicious, suspecting predatory pricing by a big company which may destroy something amazing (frustrating as the Shuttle's schedule is, that it exists seems a minor economic miracle) but I did save $10 and 40 minutes: Star leaves 20 minutes earlier and I got home before 4, vs. 4:40 deposit at the Courtyard Marriott. Oh, and Star has Wi-Fi.
No more Chile commentary right now; I'm just back, tired, and need to sort mail, get food, and a week of sleep.
Plane trips were as good as 24 hour trips can be; I've had 8 flights in a row with no problems. Dallas->O'Hare threatened a problem, re-scheduling an hour later, but then they scheduled back as I was hunting down the gate. I upgraded to first class for that segment, since it seemed like not that much and I've never experienced it before. It was nice. In some ways, though (not the seat space way) LAN (Chile's airline) is first-class relative to anything in the US: LED displays per seat, free wine... of course, that was the international flight; the short-hop wasn't that luxurious. But neither was the flight out of Chile, which turned out to be served by American in partnership with LAN. Chilean stew, but no wine or metal utensils -- and they confiscated my water bottles at boarding!
Instead of Bloomington Shuttle, I took Star of America home. $15 vs. $25 (well, $22 with the Shuttle's new online discount.) I'm somewhat suspicious, suspecting predatory pricing by a big company which may destroy something amazing (frustrating as the Shuttle's schedule is, that it exists seems a minor economic miracle) but I did save $10 and 40 minutes: Star leaves 20 minutes earlier and I got home before 4, vs. 4:40 deposit at the Courtyard Marriott. Oh, and Star has Wi-Fi.