It has been three months since I have flown on United Airlines—it seems like yesterday that I was running for my connection in SFO—but today I took to the air again, flying from Los Angeles to Newark. In the...
An Important Decision Resolved
Let me give you a bit of advice that probably goes without saying—if you wish to do well on something, you have to put in the effort…unless you happen to be naturally brilliant of course, which few of us...
Singapore, My 100th Country
I never got around to posting that I recently surpassed the 100-country threshold in my quest to explore as much of this world as humanly possible. Last month Singapore became my 100th country visited, as I spent about 28...
The United Merger: One Year Later
One year has passed since the day United and Continental officially tied the knot and what a year it has been. I predicted in a blog post late on March 2, 2012 that the transition would be bumpy and...
Seven Words You Can Never Say on an Airplane?
George Carlin famously claimed there were “seven words you can never say on television.” In light of the controversy over my recent ejection from a United Airlines flight, I want to pose the following question today— Are there certain...
Independence from the British…and the Germans?
For the second year in a row, I am spending 04 July–the American Independence Day–in Frankfurt, Germany. Today while thinking about the American Revolutionary War that followed the signing of the Declaration of Independence, I recalled that Frankfurt played...
When Rules Should Be Overruled
Let’s have a debate about rules today. I’ve touched on the issue before and it usually draws a number of comments, most of them negative, stating that rules are on the book for a reason, we all should follow...
Crisscrossing the World: 33K Miles of Travel to Begin 2012
Hello from the Turkish Airlines Lounge in Istanbul–I’ve still got 21 hours of flying ahead of me today and tomorrow, but the end is in sight. I like to get a jump start on status requalification each year and...
A Christmas Remembered: 25 December 1941
Let’s go back in time today 70 years to Christmas Day, 1941. Just a few weeks earlier the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor and the United States found itself officially at war with Germany and Japan. An airline industry...
Baggage Delays, Freeway Gridlock, and Torrential Rain: Welcome Home
Maybe I just need to learn not to sweat the little things I have no control over, but I was mere minutes from turning around the car, driving back to LAX, and catching the late Lufthansa flight back to...
The Downside to Flying Standby as a Non-Rev
I had a nice quiet weekend in Frankfurt: plenty of sleep, leisurely meals, and even some time for free reading. But it was not the weekend I wanted–Moldova and the breakaway region of Transnistria were calling and I was...
An Amazing Day in Petra, Jordan
After a fascinating weekend in Erbil, Iraq and Riga, Latvia last weekend, I did not think this weekend could top it–but so far it has, by leaps and bounds. I am in Jordan for the weekend with a colleague...
Return to London
Hello from London. My parents have finally flown across the Pond for a visit and my brother is still in town, so we decided to meet up in London this weekend. This is my second trip to London this...
Weekend in Hamburg
One of the great things about living in Frankfurt is the ability to easily journey to another city or country by air, rail, or car. I have taken full advantage of that this year and my travels have taken...
Ten Years Later: Critically Examining 9/11
I tell you, freedom and human rights in America are doomed. The U.S. government will lead the American people in — and the West in general — into an unbearable hell and a choking life. -Osama Bin Laden, December...
My Travel Season Draws to a Close
After traveling almost non-stop (at least one trip per week) since February, it is going to be a bit strange not to leave Germany for the next six weeks. The last few months have been amazing in terms of...
Don’t Blame Delta for Saudi Foreign Policy
The Rabbi Jason Miller is not happy with Delta Air Lines. In a poorly-written article published in the Huffington Post, Miller bemoans that Saudi Arabian Airlines will soon be a member of the SkyTeam Alliance, the airline group that...
Why Soldiers Should Not Board First on United Airlines
It is Memorial Day today in the United States, a day in which America honors those soldiers who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the defense of their country. What started out as Decoration Day in 1865, when freed...
On the Matter of Flight Attendant Professionalism
I utilize public transportation to get to and from work at Frankfurt International Airport and run into a LOT of uniformed airline personnel, particularly from Lufthansa and United. United has a crew base in Frankfurt and therefore has a lot...
The Time to Visit Japan is Now
I had a wonderful, albeit brief, stay in Japan and feel the obligation to provide the following observation: Above all else, my trip to Japan demonstrated that the media shamelessly blows stories out of proportion. Remember all the talk about...
