The “Amazing Race” season premiere may have just aired, but we have us our own little “Amazing Race.”
Let’s step back for a second. I’m taking two mileage runs/mini-vacations to Spain this month with a friend from Oklahoma (yes, that fact is thrown in there so he gets some sympathy right off the bat) who’s also an Executive Platinum member with American. You’d think that would translate to an experienced traveler, right?
So two weeks ago we’re enroute to Spain, flying from Miami to New York to Barcelona. We board Miami to New York and are enjoying our pre-departure beverages when my friend remembers he left his coat (containing his passport) in the Admirals Club. To make matters worse, the Admirals Club he left it at was the one furthest from our gate. With 20 minutes till scheduled departure time (theoretically 10 minutes till the door closes) he darts off the plane. Hmm, looks like I might be going to Spain alone.
Sure enough he shows up literally a minute before scheduled departure with his coat and passport in hand.
Let’s completely forget the fact that he left his laptop bag (containing his passport) behind on two occasions in the three days we were in Barcelona, once at Starbucks and once at a restaurant. You’d think he would have learned his lesson.
Last night he flew from Tulsa to Tampa so that we could start our trip this morning.
I made it to the airport about 15 minutes before him and headed straight for security and got some work done in the US Airways Club. As soon as I sat down I got a text from him saying he was just checking in and would be through security in a few minutes.
Fast forward an hour or so. I was focusing on my work so it hadn’t occurred to me that he still didn’t make it. I headed down to the gate figuring he had already boarded, though he hadn’t. He texts me and says he’ll be aboard in a minute.
Sure enough he’s one of the last people to board, and the first thing he says is “I left my passport at home.” You’ve gotta be $*&%$@ me!
Yes, he left his passport at home in Tulsa and didn’t realize it till he pulled out his travel wallet this morning at check-in, only to find it missing.
But he doesn’t give up that easily, so he booked a ticket for one of his roommates to Dallas to deliver his passport. Unfortunately it’s all bad news from there. The ticket was $600 (that’s over a dollar per mile), we only have a 40 minute connection in Dallas, and his friend was 20 minutes from the airport 30 minutes before departure without a boarding pass in hand last he spoke to him.
So yeah, this should get interesting…
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