Text 10224, 118 rader
Skriven 2007-01-09 08:00:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
Ärende: end of trip boohoo 847
==============================
1125 UA 840 SYD LAX 1615 1046 744 38JK

We were given the option of staying in the security area or
(threatened with the full screening afterwards) going out to
where the restrooms, shopping, and clubs were. A pretty easy
choice, that. Hightailed it to the Air New Zealand club
where we had been welcomed delightfully some years ago and
were welcomed equally delightfully by the same person.

I didn't care for the food, despite its being of greater
variety and quality than the United club; Carol liked the pizza
with chorizo and tomato slices (I had a piece; it was okay)
and the assortment of marinated vegetables; I had some of
the extremely gray roast beef, which was quite tough and
tasted rather high, and a piece of coconut-orange
gluten-free slice, which is as nasty as it sounds. The red
wines (I didn't try the white) were -

Oyster Bay Pinot Noir (Marlborough) 05 - light body, a
bit gamy or livery, some black cherry

Stoneleigh Pinot Noir (Marlborough) 05 - slightly rank,
more so than the above, reminding me of "hogget with mint
sauce," although I do not by any means recommend this
pairing, medium body, okay

Tatachilla Partners Cabernet-Shiraz 04 - I think they chose
this, the only Aussie red on the counter, to show off the
Enzedd product; or perhaps it is rather that nobody who
flies Air New Zealand drinks Australian wine, so it's sat
there open for weeks- it was notable for extreme greenness
on the nose, almost redeemed by chocolate and chile on the
palate but in general too vegetal for my taste.

Carol went off shopping for a sweater while I did this
research. In the end I opted for a nice cold Hahn Premium
Lager with my snack.

Having exhausted the charms of that lounge, we took the
elevator down to the Red Carpet Club ostensibly to check
on our flight (there are no monitors there); but waiting to
sign in, we stood behind numerous people each of whom was
trying interesting special pleadings about how they should
be allowed to get on our flight (apparently the previous
day's flight had been cancelled) instead of the replacement
plane, which was two more hours (making a total of 26) late;
so we went back to the gate instead for the threatened
rescreening. I tried to go to the Business line (which I
think I'm entitled to as a Star Gold), but was bodily shoved
(like, with physical contact, something that should not fly)
into the Economy line; interestingly, the Economy line had
3 people in it, counting us, and Business had over a dozen.

Sydney security humor (actual conversation) :
- Would you like the fast patdown or the slow one?
- [slightly surprised] Pardon?
- The slow one costs ten dollars.
- Okay, but only if I don't have to look at you.
- [slightly surprised] That bad, is it?

Boarded up smoothly and had a perfectly okay flight. Carol
thought that we might have some trouble as she recognized
one of the flight attendants as the dragon lady from a
previous trip we'd taken, but in fact neither she nor any
of the crew seemed to have any attitude problems this day.

Carol wanted multiple gin and tonics, so I pointed out one
flight attendant (I had encountered at least three of this
crew on previous flights) and told her that he would be
happy to provide them, which he was. He was unbelievably
cheerful, and at the end of the flight I gave him a
commendation form (only the Nobs get this, but I'm a Nob
by definition).

My meal was chicken stewed with green peppers, sided with
boiled potatoes - surprisingly good - followed by a rather
gelatinous chocolate mousse cake; Carol had tortellini
with meat sauce, which she found quite palatable. After
which, sleep.

The midflight snack box consisted of a roast beef sannie,
a tiny apple, and a lemon cookie from Chicago. I saved the
latter two for later and went back to sleep.

Breakfast was eggs or fruit. I turned it down. The jolly
flight attendant put on a little pout and asked, not even
a little fruit? I didn't tumble to this multiple entendre
until days later. Contented myself with a bite of a banger
from Carol's plate and the apple and cookie that I'd saved.

Customs and immigration were a total breeze; we did see some
young thing who was actually caught with something, probably
not horrible drugs, as neither she nor the official seemed
overexercised about it all - her pleadings were whiny but
not hysterical, and he seemed stern but not threatening. One
used to, as I recall, just turn left and go up an escalator
to the domestic gates; now you have to go outside and back
into Terminal 7. We saw a sign saying United passengers TURN
BACK, and of course we didn't, finding ourselves shortly at
Terminal 6 security, whose line was short, and which, other
than some screener making a public spectacle of someone who
had in some way violated the rule about three-ounce bottles
in one-quart clear plastic bags, was easy and fast, so we
had time for a visit to the club to do a round of e-mail
and get a slug of juice.

1125 UA 278 LAX BWI 1335 2121 752 10EF

A relatively quick and most uneventful flight. The only
notable thing was that Channel 9 was louder than the rest
of the channels and than the PA announcements. We landed a
bit early, our priority-tagged bags came out among the
first, and we were out to Super Shuttle long before they
were ready for us. But at length they were, and not long
thereafter we were home.
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