I Hate New York

Trip Start Apr 22, 2008
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Trip End Sep 01, 2008


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Flag of United States  , New York,
Wednesday, July 2, 2008

I don't really hate New York, per se, but I do hate JFK International Airport.  On my way from Tokyo I landed in JFK and was prepped for my 3 hour layover before heading up to Boston.  Might flight was eventually canceled and American Airlines could not get me on another flight until the following day....at mid-day....at Laguardia Airport...on a different Airline.  And in all of this they couldn't figure out how they could get me my bag, which was already checked through.  Without any money for cab fare or a hotel they sent me on my way with a ticket for mid-day the next day. 

I made it to Boston and, what a surprise, my bag was missing.  Because i had switched airports and airlines it was no where in the system and the lovely woman behind the desk at Logan told me 'honestly, it could be anywhere, its no where in the system'. Sweet.  3 hours later it showed up on a flight from JFK and I was able to relax for a few days at home without thinking that i would need to re-purchase every piece of trekking gear that i had with me....and that all the gifts i had bought would never reach their intended recipients. 

Flash forward a few days and I was boarding a flight from JFK to Maputo, Mozambique, via London and Johannesburg.  A long journey no doubt but I was looking forward to my African adventure.  What possessed me to leave from fucking JFK, the worst airport on Earth? My flight on British Airways was canceled and I arrived in London after my flight for Johannesburg already left.  The next flight for Joburg left 24 hours later and I was stuck in London for a night.  Needless to say I missed my connection in Joburg for Maputo.  Since my flight was on South African Airways, not British, I was told that they could not do anything to help me with that flight and that I would have to go about securing another one on my own.  WTF.  I also have a friend, Megan, working in the Peace Corps in Mozambique and she had planned to meet me in Maputo.  I got in touch with her and explained everything, thank god, but now JFK was not just fucking with my life it was messing up other peoples as well.  Everything was eventually re-booked, hotel rooms bought and canceled and itineraries changed.  I learned one thing from this entire experience: air travel in the United States is a total joke and completely unreliable.  I flew 18 sectors across Asia on airlines like Yeti Air or Air Laos and did not have a single delay or lost luggage.  Both transits through New York resulted in delays of greater than 24 hours and lost baggage.  What a fucking liberty.
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lizaeilers
lizaeilers on Jul 14, 2008 at 04:39AM

New York and USA, Land of the FRee?
Matt, so good to hear you jump on another big trip before your slave days begin. I just got back from OZ, had a few messy connections too and had to laugh when the No. Queenslanders called us 'terros' (aussie for terroist read tourists). We screw everything up here and there, don't we? Take care and use those wipes.
Liza

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