So after a lengthy story blog on my first one, I wanted to break it up a little bit, so here's day 2 of trying to get to Japan. This date should be July 18th, 2007:
After staying up all night, trying to get the pictures together on my website from the event I went to on Sunday, it was time for me to head to the airport, again. Again, I was a little late, and arrived at about 5:15, even less time than the 2-hr window from the day before.
I did basically the same thing on day 2, got a ticket, went through security and sat at the terminal. Luckily this time, my flight wasn't delayed. Since there was much less drama this day, I can paraphrase everything that happened. I got on the flight, it was an hour, and I landed in Atlanta.
Good thing I didn't try to rush the day prior. I began walking to my terminal in the Atlanta International Airport. I saw a sign the indicted that my gate was in this direction and I was off. I went downstairs to find a subway system, but the doors were closing. The sign above me said my gate was 6000ft away. That's not bad I thought, I'll just walk. Of course I got about halfway through and remembered that 5,280 ft was a mile. No big deal, I'm almost there might as well keep walking. I got the escalator that took me to the floor I was supposed to be on. I hear a call on the loudspeaker:
"Attention all passengers on flight D55F from Jacksonville, FL, please return to the terminal to claim your belongings"
I looked at everything I was carrying. I had it all, and there was no way I was making that walk back to the terminal. I found my way to the appropriate terminal for my flight to Narita. Of course, it was only 7:50AM and the flight was at 10:15, the terminal was basically empty. I set up my computer, ready to complete my post to my website, so that everyone could see my fantastic pictures. I turned on my laptop and I had full green service bars for the internet I clicked connect and went to my design program. The internet didn't load. I clicked home, and got a link to PAY for my internet time while in the airport. I guess the free stuff is only limited to the smaller less international airports. This was OK, I could still set up my design program and have it ready to upload once I got to my destination.
I started noticing more and more people at the terminal, a lot of them with short hair cuts and tattoos. They must be in the military, I'll just ask them what to do. I was running up the minutes on my cell phone trying to get my last phone calls in, knowing that it would be the last time I ever use this phone, or this service. As the time grew closer to boarding I realized that I had all this American money, and I'm getting ready to go to a foreign country. So I found one of those stand out military guys and asked him. Which he told me, it's easier to just exchange here, and not worry about it once I got to Japan.
I boarded my plane, found my seat, and it finally hit me. I was going to Japan. The land of the rising sun. A place that I've wanted to visit since I was 10 years old. Now I'm going to live there for 3 years.
For anyone who has never been on an international flight, here's the scoop. The pillow, blanket, headphones, eyemask and wetnaps were free. That was just the beginning. There was a TV monitor on the seat in front of me, ready for me to play with. I started pushing buttons and found that all the movies were free. Good movies too, recent movies. So once we were airborne, I knew it was going to be on. I got comfortable in my seat and selected my first movie, 300. About 10 minutes into the movie, the cart came around and I got my money ready to buy some snacks. Only these snacks were free! So much for the customer service the day before, or the delay in flight, who cares! Free snacks and movies, how could you be mad at that.
I finished my movie and decided it was time to take a nap. It was at that point I realized that my flight would never be dark, even though it started at 10:15AM and it was a 14 hour flight. I think I was able to sleep 4 hours, I woke up, only to look at my on demand screen and see there was still 8 hours to go.
"Well, I guess I have time for one more movie," I thought.
It was at that time I realized that the plane knew that I was awake, because here came the lunch cart. Chicken Parmesan and some buttery noodles, can't go wrong there. I ate my dinner while watching my second movie, The Number 23. Not a bad movie, but not a great one. Gets your mind going on different things in the world that could add to the number 23.
Once that was over, the flight clock still said 6 hours and some change. What else is there to do on this plane? Can't exactly go outside for a stroll. I feel bad for the people that smoke. I guess I get to watch another movie. This time it was Disturbia. Another half scary/creepy movie. Not bad, again, not great. It was at this point that is was time for another snack. Here came the snack cart and it was a free for all. No peanuts on this flight, only sandwiches and chicken.
I finished my movie, and my snack and saw that I only had 2 hours to go. I looked at the map and realized we were flying over Alaska. Of course, my own local time felt like 8PM, but it was who knows what time there, because the "Local Time" on the map said 8PM, which was obviously Atlanta time. So I picked another movie and realized it would be my last, hope it's a good one. I picked Shooter, the Mark Wahlberg version of Bourne. It was decent, action packed and had you paying attention. Dinner time! Dinner was served throughout the cabin, and this was either Ravioli or some type of noodle dinner. I stuck with Ravioli, at least I know what's in there.
The movie came to a close, my dinner was done, and it was 20 minutes from landing. The captain came on and gave his speech about thanks for flying, have a safe time in Japan, please put your trays in the upright position, remember Delta next time you fly.
Since we were the only flight coming in at the time, the airport was mostly empty, it was 12:30PM local time almost a full hour ahead of schedule. I had filled out my customs forms, ready to produce everything I owned, and get naked like the security check point in Jacksonville. No such luck, they looked at my passport, took my form and pointed me in the right direction. I picked up my baggage, and made it to the bus ticketing office.
Had it not been for the information my wife found on the internet, I might have been lost when I got there. It told me exactly where to go, and what to ask for when I got there. I got a bus ticket to Haneda, to catch my 6:15PM flight to Misawa. I was hoping to bust out my camera and take lots of pictures, but it appeared as if I was in the back of the aiport, there was nothing to take pictures of. Construction maybe, but everyone has seen that.
The bust ride was about an hour to Haneda, and there wasn't much site seeing on the way. I did see the top of a "Super Autobacs" which is a WalMart for car parts if you don't already know.
When I got to Haneda, it seemed as if I really stepped into Japan. The women were wearing kimono's, the guys were bowing, an everyone had "hachi" (chopsticks) in their hair. The woman at the counter said "Hello" and there's about where her English stopped. Somehow she was able to tell me I need to go to window 30 to get my ticket. I was that special case from the day before, and my ticket wasn't available.
I learned to say a few things in "Nehongo" (Japanese), like "Hello, goodbye, sorry, excuse me." It's a shame I didn't learn how to say "I missed my flight yesterday from Atlanta to here, so today I am supposed to be on a flight out of here to Misawa. I spoke with "some guy" on the phone and he told me it was good to go." The woman at the counter spoke no English at all, just made sounds that seemed like English, maybe she thought it was English. Somehow I got my ticket, and I headed to my terminal. It was only 2:45, and my flight wasn't until 5:45. Maybe I'll take a nap.
When I woke up, the terminal was completely full, and there were buses waiting. Some girl was rambling on the loud speaker in Japanese. Everyone seemed to know what they were doing, and I just got into the line that said "Misawa." I got on the bus and I was shuttled to my plane. A small MD-87, much smaller than the 777 I flew in on. I fell asleep on the flight, so I couldn't tell you what happened.
I got to a cold, muggy, foggy Misawa at around 6:45. I entered a room with a baggage claim that looked like it was from the 1950's. They locked the doors and once we collected our baggage, which surprisingly mine was there from the day before, they collected our tickets. I went through the doors to find a sign with my name on it. "This must be the guy picking me up, how cool is this to have a sign!" I thought to myself.
We got in his car and he took me to the base to check in. I got into my room, got my stuff unpacked and just wanted to sleep.
As I layed in the bed, I thought about the days previous, all the headache just to get here. I thought about my family that I had left behind, my wife and step-son and wondered if they would follow me soon. I thought about my friends and wondered if they would keep in touch with me, or would I just one day be forgotten. All these things were going through my head, all the while I couldn't stop thinking about, I was in Japan! How cool this is going to be. The weather is 70 degrees in July, unlike the 100 degrees in Jacksonville. It was a bittersweet feeling. I knew that the negative feelings would pass in days time. I knew my friends wouldn't forget me. The situation with my wife and son would work itself out. The my family would miss me, but they would understand that I just wanted to be here. In the end it can't take away from the feeling I get being here in Japan. The faces, the signs, the sounds, the smell, it's all new, a new world, so many things to explore. This place is mine for the taking, and it won't be taken for granted.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Round 1: Trying to just get to Atlanta
This is a new idea to me, blogging, so I will just go back to my last major event in my life, and start from there. Of course, the dates will be off, so you just have to go along with it. This date should be July 17th, 2007:
I got my orders to Japan in May, and I was told to report in July. Not as much time as I would have liked, but I'm going to a place I want to be. I had not realized what a journey and adventure this would be. Once I recieved the orders my wife was told by her ex that she wasn't allowed to bring her son. This was of course a crushing blow to the morale of our family and people associated with us. Once we'd scrapped the money together to get our own legal consultation and Sheriff's officer shows up at our doorstep with papers to serve. He said she was an unfit mother, for reasons that were totally blasphemous and misleading. With this new knowledge my report date had still be unchanged. So we made plans for the best, and plans for the worst. Since we are not a pessimistic couple, but we always expect the worst, our plans were simple, go to Japan, and hopefully she'll be able to follow.
So as the weeks went by, the date came closer to my departure. I found it hard to be truly excited about leaving. I was leaving friends, family, my wife and step-son, and a life that I had become to know. I knew there would be many new opportunities and new things to see in Japan, but that part had not hit me yet. I was still in the "halfway" stage. I went to my school, while she worked, and the boy went running around the house half naked like little boys do. There were many times that it didn't feel like I was leaving. Finally the day came to pack up my things and head to an entirely different place, a new world.
My flight was set for 7:30 in the morning on Delta commercial. It was a much better idea than having to fly in a military C-130 and listen to that for hours on end. I had stayed up all night, thinking I would sleep on the 14-hr plane trip from Atlanta to Narita. I arrived at the airport at 5:50, which was a little shy of the "mandatory" 2-hours prior. Since it was an early flight, I figured there would be no problem to get a ticket, get through security and checked into my flight with plenty of time to spare.
"Sir, your flight is a little delayed this morning, is that OK?" said the girl at the counter
"Is that OK?" I thought to myself, what am I going to do, say no and then the flight is no longer delayed? Of course I just gave the automated response of, "That's no problem, I'm not in a hurry."
I received my ticket and proceeded to the security check point. Everyone who has flown in the past years, knows what an enjoyment this can be. I of course, had not flown in years, and I'm not the best "carry-on passenger." I had a backpack with a laptop, and inside that backpack was a carrying case for a camera, which held blank tapes, and another camera bag for my digital camera, because I felt like there was no way I was going to miss documenting my adventure. Little did I know, the adventure was from from the beginning.
As I sat in the terminal, trying to connect to the "Free Wi-Fi available at every terminal," which ended in frustration as apparently the Wi-Fi didn't work in my area. The flight was delayed at least until 8:00. Which was OK with me because I had no idea how long it would take me to make my connection in the Atlanta airport. My second flight was scheduled for 10:15. The flight out of Jacksonville was supposed to be 1 hour. So I figured I still had time. So 8:00AM shows up and still no boarding call, or a word from the counter. I noticed a line forming at the desk, for what I had no idea, yet. As time went on, the clerk at the counter came over the loud speaker to address the silent audience.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, as I am not exactly sure what's the problem, I would to extend my apologies for the delay. From what I am told, there was a bird strike last night, and there's a problem with one of the engines. They have to inspect the engine, and then do a test run, at which time we will be able to board, thank you for your patience."
It was now 8:30, and I was beginning to wonder what I am supposed to do. I stumbled into a conversation with the man sitting across from me who appeared to be a seasoned frequent flier. He basically told me that I should get on the plane here, and go to Atlanta and possibly get a later flight if it was available. If there wasn't one, I could stay in a hotel over night and catch a flight the next morning. That didn't seem to be an option for me, as I live in the Jacksonville area, maybe I can just miss this flight and catch one tomorrow.
I got in line around 9:15AM, still no boarding call, however I did hear the engines firing up outside. Great, they are making a ground turn, and I should be in the air. By the time I reached the counter, they had made a final boarding call and I began to get a little frantic as I didn't know what to do. The couple in front of me had already complained that someone had cut in front of them, so for fear of decapitation, I just stayed quiet. When it was finally my turn to speak, the woman told me I needed to board, or I'd miss this flight.
"It's not this flight I'm worried about, I'm supposed to make a connection in Atlanta to fly to Tokyo at 10:15AM" I said
"Oh, there's no way you'll make that connection." She replied
Are you sure? I thought to myself, as all the funny stories I've heard about airline counter attendants ran through my head, I felt as if I had a million witty comments to give her. I again, stayed quiet.
"Also, there's only one flight out of Atlanta to Japan a day, so you won't be able to fly until tomorrow" she went on to say.
"Well, what do you suggest I do ma'am, as I live here in Jacksonville it seems kinda silly to sleep in the Atlanta airport overnight."
"Just take a seat and we'll be with you in a few minutes." She concluded.
I took my seat and watched as they frantically typed into a computer getting all the names of the remaining passengers. I watched at the board went from 5 available seats to 35 available seats. So that's the line was for, makes sense now.
She handed me a "Flight Interrupted" ticket stub and told me to go back to the ticket counter and make another flight.
By this time, the line at the counter had tripled and the staff behind the countered seemed to be down to a third of the people from earlier. Many people were inline complaining they weren't going to make their flight because they were waiting so long and there wasn't any service provided. I guess they should have made their "mandatory 2-hr prior window."
I will take the time to say that the service at the counter was quite slow and odd. There were 4 or 5 people running around behind the counter just looking at things, not doing much. There were 2 people on the phone with "International Flights" as I later found out, that seemed to be on the phone for a very long time. I had already called my wife to come and get me, but I told her to take her sweet sweet time, and I was being honest. I finally got to the counter to encounter the rudest man on the face of the earth. I literally watched this conversation take place:
"Sir, is there a manager on duty, I'd like to speak with them" said a passenger
"Well, what in the heck do you want me to do about it" said the clerk.
"I suggest that you find out if there's a manager present and let me speak with him or her" he replied very calmly.
"Well, you are going to have to wait in line like everyone else, I'm kinda busy and don't have to deal with that right now" he responded.
I agree, the guy should have waited, but man, that's no way to be a customer service representative.
So back to myself and my own story, the guy called International Flights, said some things I audibly understand, he looked at me and asked "When do you wanna fly?" "Tomorrow's fine," I told him. "Is 6:30AM good with you?" I figured if I had MORE time to blow between the flights, that would be good, seeing as how Delta delayed 5 flights this morning. "Yeah, that'll be OK." He hung up the phone printed out another Interrupted Flight pass, and I was out the door.
I realized as I was standing outside, that my Delta flights were taken care of, but I had to make a flight on Japan Airlines, so I ran back and got the 800 number to call them. I was afraid I'd reach someone who didn't speak my language at all, but surprisingly, he was English speaking and our conversation was off.
"Umm, yeah I'm supposed to make a flight today, no, tomorrow, wait tomorrow is today there, crap. Sorry, I'm supposed to have a flight on your airlines sometime this week and Delta's flight just got delayed and I missed my connection to Narita to even get to your airlines" I told him.
"OK Sir, so if Delta delayed your flight, can I speak with them?" He replied.
I turned and looked at the angry mob forming outside the Delta ticket window and decided against going back into that crazy mix. Meanwhile my wife was sitting in the car in front of me, waiting for me to get in. Of course, I'm on an international call, trying to keep my flights booked.
"Sir, I don't think that's possible, as the person I talked to had a conversation on the phone with his International Flights department" I tried that, maybe that would give him enough reason to just change the flight. Somehow, that worked.
"OK sir, let me just make some changes and now your flight is for the 19th, not the 18th. Wouldn't want you to get confused with the days." He responded jokingly.
Great, I got a new flight and it's all taken care of. I was on my way back home again, to say goodbye to everyone, again, and try again in the morning. I decided that maybe saying goodbye twice would only be as bad twice over, so I just layed low. I went directly to sleep and slept most of the day.
I woke up at 8PM that night, thoroughly rested and ready to stay up all night again to catch my flight in the morning.
I got my orders to Japan in May, and I was told to report in July. Not as much time as I would have liked, but I'm going to a place I want to be. I had not realized what a journey and adventure this would be. Once I recieved the orders my wife was told by her ex that she wasn't allowed to bring her son. This was of course a crushing blow to the morale of our family and people associated with us. Once we'd scrapped the money together to get our own legal consultation and Sheriff's officer shows up at our doorstep with papers to serve. He said she was an unfit mother, for reasons that were totally blasphemous and misleading. With this new knowledge my report date had still be unchanged. So we made plans for the best, and plans for the worst. Since we are not a pessimistic couple, but we always expect the worst, our plans were simple, go to Japan, and hopefully she'll be able to follow.
So as the weeks went by, the date came closer to my departure. I found it hard to be truly excited about leaving. I was leaving friends, family, my wife and step-son, and a life that I had become to know. I knew there would be many new opportunities and new things to see in Japan, but that part had not hit me yet. I was still in the "halfway" stage. I went to my school, while she worked, and the boy went running around the house half naked like little boys do. There were many times that it didn't feel like I was leaving. Finally the day came to pack up my things and head to an entirely different place, a new world.
My flight was set for 7:30 in the morning on Delta commercial. It was a much better idea than having to fly in a military C-130 and listen to that for hours on end. I had stayed up all night, thinking I would sleep on the 14-hr plane trip from Atlanta to Narita. I arrived at the airport at 5:50, which was a little shy of the "mandatory" 2-hours prior. Since it was an early flight, I figured there would be no problem to get a ticket, get through security and checked into my flight with plenty of time to spare.
"Sir, your flight is a little delayed this morning, is that OK?" said the girl at the counter
"Is that OK?" I thought to myself, what am I going to do, say no and then the flight is no longer delayed? Of course I just gave the automated response of, "That's no problem, I'm not in a hurry."
I received my ticket and proceeded to the security check point. Everyone who has flown in the past years, knows what an enjoyment this can be. I of course, had not flown in years, and I'm not the best "carry-on passenger." I had a backpack with a laptop, and inside that backpack was a carrying case for a camera, which held blank tapes, and another camera bag for my digital camera, because I felt like there was no way I was going to miss documenting my adventure. Little did I know, the adventure was from from the beginning.
As I sat in the terminal, trying to connect to the "Free Wi-Fi available at every terminal," which ended in frustration as apparently the Wi-Fi didn't work in my area. The flight was delayed at least until 8:00. Which was OK with me because I had no idea how long it would take me to make my connection in the Atlanta airport. My second flight was scheduled for 10:15. The flight out of Jacksonville was supposed to be 1 hour. So I figured I still had time. So 8:00AM shows up and still no boarding call, or a word from the counter. I noticed a line forming at the desk, for what I had no idea, yet. As time went on, the clerk at the counter came over the loud speaker to address the silent audience.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, as I am not exactly sure what's the problem, I would to extend my apologies for the delay. From what I am told, there was a bird strike last night, and there's a problem with one of the engines. They have to inspect the engine, and then do a test run, at which time we will be able to board, thank you for your patience."
It was now 8:30, and I was beginning to wonder what I am supposed to do. I stumbled into a conversation with the man sitting across from me who appeared to be a seasoned frequent flier. He basically told me that I should get on the plane here, and go to Atlanta and possibly get a later flight if it was available. If there wasn't one, I could stay in a hotel over night and catch a flight the next morning. That didn't seem to be an option for me, as I live in the Jacksonville area, maybe I can just miss this flight and catch one tomorrow.
I got in line around 9:15AM, still no boarding call, however I did hear the engines firing up outside. Great, they are making a ground turn, and I should be in the air. By the time I reached the counter, they had made a final boarding call and I began to get a little frantic as I didn't know what to do. The couple in front of me had already complained that someone had cut in front of them, so for fear of decapitation, I just stayed quiet. When it was finally my turn to speak, the woman told me I needed to board, or I'd miss this flight.
"It's not this flight I'm worried about, I'm supposed to make a connection in Atlanta to fly to Tokyo at 10:15AM" I said
"Oh, there's no way you'll make that connection." She replied
Are you sure? I thought to myself, as all the funny stories I've heard about airline counter attendants ran through my head, I felt as if I had a million witty comments to give her. I again, stayed quiet.
"Also, there's only one flight out of Atlanta to Japan a day, so you won't be able to fly until tomorrow" she went on to say.
"Well, what do you suggest I do ma'am, as I live here in Jacksonville it seems kinda silly to sleep in the Atlanta airport overnight."
"Just take a seat and we'll be with you in a few minutes." She concluded.
I took my seat and watched as they frantically typed into a computer getting all the names of the remaining passengers. I watched at the board went from 5 available seats to 35 available seats. So that's the line was for, makes sense now.
She handed me a "Flight Interrupted" ticket stub and told me to go back to the ticket counter and make another flight.
By this time, the line at the counter had tripled and the staff behind the countered seemed to be down to a third of the people from earlier. Many people were inline complaining they weren't going to make their flight because they were waiting so long and there wasn't any service provided. I guess they should have made their "mandatory 2-hr prior window."
I will take the time to say that the service at the counter was quite slow and odd. There were 4 or 5 people running around behind the counter just looking at things, not doing much. There were 2 people on the phone with "International Flights" as I later found out, that seemed to be on the phone for a very long time. I had already called my wife to come and get me, but I told her to take her sweet sweet time, and I was being honest. I finally got to the counter to encounter the rudest man on the face of the earth. I literally watched this conversation take place:
"Sir, is there a manager on duty, I'd like to speak with them" said a passenger
"Well, what in the heck do you want me to do about it" said the clerk.
"I suggest that you find out if there's a manager present and let me speak with him or her" he replied very calmly.
"Well, you are going to have to wait in line like everyone else, I'm kinda busy and don't have to deal with that right now" he responded.
I agree, the guy should have waited, but man, that's no way to be a customer service representative.
So back to myself and my own story, the guy called International Flights, said some things I audibly understand, he looked at me and asked "When do you wanna fly?" "Tomorrow's fine," I told him. "Is 6:30AM good with you?" I figured if I had MORE time to blow between the flights, that would be good, seeing as how Delta delayed 5 flights this morning. "Yeah, that'll be OK." He hung up the phone printed out another Interrupted Flight pass, and I was out the door.
I realized as I was standing outside, that my Delta flights were taken care of, but I had to make a flight on Japan Airlines, so I ran back and got the 800 number to call them. I was afraid I'd reach someone who didn't speak my language at all, but surprisingly, he was English speaking and our conversation was off.
"Umm, yeah I'm supposed to make a flight today, no, tomorrow, wait tomorrow is today there, crap. Sorry, I'm supposed to have a flight on your airlines sometime this week and Delta's flight just got delayed and I missed my connection to Narita to even get to your airlines" I told him.
"OK Sir, so if Delta delayed your flight, can I speak with them?" He replied.
I turned and looked at the angry mob forming outside the Delta ticket window and decided against going back into that crazy mix. Meanwhile my wife was sitting in the car in front of me, waiting for me to get in. Of course, I'm on an international call, trying to keep my flights booked.
"Sir, I don't think that's possible, as the person I talked to had a conversation on the phone with his International Flights department" I tried that, maybe that would give him enough reason to just change the flight. Somehow, that worked.
"OK sir, let me just make some changes and now your flight is for the 19th, not the 18th. Wouldn't want you to get confused with the days." He responded jokingly.
Great, I got a new flight and it's all taken care of. I was on my way back home again, to say goodbye to everyone, again, and try again in the morning. I decided that maybe saying goodbye twice would only be as bad twice over, so I just layed low. I went directly to sleep and slept most of the day.
I woke up at 8PM that night, thoroughly rested and ready to stay up all night again to catch my flight in the morning.
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