(September 8, 2013)
Bear Sightings since last post: 0
Total Bear Sightings: 0
Sam and Liz dropped me off at the
airport and I got my bag checked and through security without incident. My itinerary
(the cheapest option I had found) took me from Detroit to Nashville to Dallas-Fort
Worth to Anchorage. We boarded the plane to Nashville and waited to taxi out to
the runway. And we waited. Finally the captain came on and let us know that
there was some instrument trouble and that they had a part coming over to try
and fix the problem. In the mean time, they would implement the time honored
tradition of “turning it off and back on again.” Powering down the plane didn’t
help, and neither did the new part, because the next thing we heard was that we
could deplane if we wanted, we wouldn’t be going anywhere for at least an hour.
BEAR FACT: Coloring is not an effective means of telling black bears and brown bears apart. Both bears have been known to have brown, blond, or black fur. The easiest way to tell the difference is the distinctive hunch that Grizzlies have over their front limbs that Black Bears lack.
At this point I was worried about catching my connecting flight in Nashville, so I went to talk to the airline representatives at the main desk. I told the lady my problem and that I needed to get to Anchorage that day and I was told that the best she could do for me was to put me on standby with four other people for an overbooked direct flight to Dallas. I accepted and rushed through the terminals to get to the new flight. When I arrived, they were about to start boarding, and the rep at the gate told me they’d be calling for volunteers to get bumped soon.
I was told I had enough time to grab lunch, so I did, then ate at the gate while the plane boarded. I was finishing my fries while volunteers were called for with the incentive of 400$, then 600$ vouchers for future travel. There was one voucher left to allow the last person on standby on(me) when I decided to go up to the counter. I explained my position again, that I just needed to get to Anchorage tonight, I didn’t care about going to Dallas. “Oh,” she said, almost without hesitation, “that’s easy. I’ll put you on a flight to Minneapolis where you can connect to Anchorage.” I happily accepted, then, as an afterthought I asked if I qualified for the voucher, even though I was one of the ones on standby. “Of course you are!”
The rest of my trip was uneventful. Unsurprisingly my checked bag did not arrive in Anchorage at the same time I did, they delivered it to the apartment the next day. I was picked up from the airport by friends who are also doing AmeriCorps work here in Alaska this year. Two of them have an apartment here in town, they’ll be positioned here in Anchorage; the rest of us are bound for other parts of the state after orientation ends this Friday.
The apartment here will be plenty spacious for two people and the menagerie of pets that accompany them (two dogs, a cat, and a rabbit), but it’s a little cramped with 4 people sleeping on the floor in the living room (and the luggage that accompanies them). Everyone is friendly though, and the cost reduction from having to rent a room at a hotel or hostel makes up for the small inconveniences. Most everyone was weary from their travels so we turned in fairly early (still about 2 or 3 AM according to my internal clock).
BEAR FACT: Coloring is not an effective means of telling black bears and brown bears apart. Both bears have been known to have brown, blond, or black fur. The easiest way to tell the difference is the distinctive hunch that Grizzlies have over their front limbs that Black Bears lack.
At this point I was worried about catching my connecting flight in Nashville, so I went to talk to the airline representatives at the main desk. I told the lady my problem and that I needed to get to Anchorage that day and I was told that the best she could do for me was to put me on standby with four other people for an overbooked direct flight to Dallas. I accepted and rushed through the terminals to get to the new flight. When I arrived, they were about to start boarding, and the rep at the gate told me they’d be calling for volunteers to get bumped soon.
I was told I had enough time to grab lunch, so I did, then ate at the gate while the plane boarded. I was finishing my fries while volunteers were called for with the incentive of 400$, then 600$ vouchers for future travel. There was one voucher left to allow the last person on standby on(me) when I decided to go up to the counter. I explained my position again, that I just needed to get to Anchorage tonight, I didn’t care about going to Dallas. “Oh,” she said, almost without hesitation, “that’s easy. I’ll put you on a flight to Minneapolis where you can connect to Anchorage.” I happily accepted, then, as an afterthought I asked if I qualified for the voucher, even though I was one of the ones on standby. “Of course you are!”
The rest of my trip was uneventful. Unsurprisingly my checked bag did not arrive in Anchorage at the same time I did, they delivered it to the apartment the next day. I was picked up from the airport by friends who are also doing AmeriCorps work here in Alaska this year. Two of them have an apartment here in town, they’ll be positioned here in Anchorage; the rest of us are bound for other parts of the state after orientation ends this Friday.
The apartment here will be plenty spacious for two people and the menagerie of pets that accompany them (two dogs, a cat, and a rabbit), but it’s a little cramped with 4 people sleeping on the floor in the living room (and the luggage that accompanies them). Everyone is friendly though, and the cost reduction from having to rent a room at a hotel or hostel makes up for the small inconveniences. Most everyone was weary from their travels so we turned in fairly early (still about 2 or 3 AM according to my internal clock).
No comments:
Post a Comment