Travel Day
16/02/12 05:37
Our travels went well on our recent trip. Despite snowy weather in Denver on our way to Washington, all of our flights were on schedule and we had no problems with connections. Over the years, we have experienced enough delays, missed flights and other problems that we know that travel can turn into a problem. When we focus on the problems we forget how often things go well. All of our flights were full or nearly so. Our flights between Rapid City and Denver were on Embraer 145 commuter jets, with a seating capacity of 50 passengers. We flew from Denver to Seattle on an Airbus a319, which seats 140 and from Seattle to Denver on a Boeing 757, with a capacity of 289 people. All of those people were loaded onto the airplanes and traveled their flights without delay. It is pretty impressive how many people travel and how well they are accommodated.
We saw plenty of signs that the airline industry is growing. Chief among those signs is the renovation and expansion of the terminal building here in Rapid City. While there is some disruption due to the construction, enough has been accomplished for us to see that there are significant improvements. There is more room for passenger screening, making it possible to check passengers at a faster pace. The gift shop and a café are now located beyond the security check point for travelers who are waiting for their flights.
As a result of shopping for discounted tickets, we did spend over 3 hours in the Denver Airport between our flights yesterday. There isn’t too much that one can do in such a place. We ate a meal, about halfway between our usual lunch and dinnertime, we looked in the shops, but didn’t have anything we wanted or needed to buy. The prices in such shops are enough to deter us from much purchasing. We walked around the B concourse, which is long enough to get some exercise. It is just under a half mile from end to end. If you don’t use the moving walkways you can get in nearly a mile by starting at any point in the concourse and walking to one end of the building, then to the opposite end and returning to the starting point.
And we sat and looked at the people. There are a lot of different styles and approaches to travel. We saw a young man in shorts, a t-shirt and flip-flops. We hope his ticket was taking him to a warmer location. There were business people dressed for meetings, vacationers whose attire said something about their destinations. You can tell the people returning from ski vacations from those who are on their way home from Hawaii. Some people look very tired and are showing the effects of travel stress. Others are relaxed and unperturbed at the things that are bothering some of their fellow travelers. We witnessed some amazing feats of organization and attentiveness from parents traveling with small children and some creative solutions to shortages of plug-ins to charge mobile devices. It seems as if the majority of travelers are carrying computers, cell phones, electronic readers and other devices that require electricity to operate. Many of them had located outlets to charge the batteries as they waited for their flights.
There are a lot of differences in how much people are carrying. We traveled relatively light compared to other travelers, with one shared suitcase and a backpack for each. We checked the suitcase. I don’t like having to pay the extra fee, but the convenience of not having to put anything in the overhead bins is nice and we didn’t have to bother with luggage during our transfers. We saw plenty of people who had everything they needed for their trip in hand. Wheeled luggage is the norm and there is plenty of competition for space in the overhead bins on the longer flights. In the smaller aircraft, people have trouble understanding that they can’t take everything into the cabin with them and crew members have to patiently explain how some bags need to be checked at the door of the aircraft and travel in the luggage compartment.
There is plenty to watch as one travels. It offers a view at a wide cross-section of humanity. There are differences in cultures, varieties of dress, variations of emotional states and plenty more. What one doesn’t see when traveling by air is a wide cross section of economic means. While there are some people who obviously have more money to spend than others and there is a modest distinction between first class and cabin passengers, the extremes of the economic spectrum are not on display. Everyone beyond the security checkpoints has had enough money to purchase a ticket. Those who are very rich are traveling on private or charter aircraft. Those who are impoverished don’t have the money to travel on airplanes. We are pretty much all in the same class as we travel together.
The airlines try to make a bit of distinction, allowing those who have purchased first class tickets, frequent flyers, and those who have accumulated a lot of miles on prior trips to board the airplane first, but it is a convenience of little worth. Those who board first have to get up and accommodate those who board after them. We all have to get our carry on luggage stowed, and settle into the seats. There is a tiny variation in the width of the seats in First Class and a bit of extra legroom there and in business class. We always fly in the least expensive seats where the short legs with which I was born and somewhat average body widths are an advantage.
So we are home and our travels are, for a while behind us. Today will be full and busy and by the time we get to the end of the day we will have no trouble sleeping. I travel more than many people, but not enough for the wonder of travel to pass me by. I am still amazed that we can be with our grandson in Washington one day, sleep in our own bed that night and be back in the office on time the next day. We have a luxury of travel unknown by previous generations.
And today, though my distances will be shorter, I will need to move more quickly. I have less time for watching others and sitting in the same place. There is a story in the fact that I speed up the pace and cover less distance, but that story will have to wait for another day. There is work to be done.
Onward!
We saw plenty of signs that the airline industry is growing. Chief among those signs is the renovation and expansion of the terminal building here in Rapid City. While there is some disruption due to the construction, enough has been accomplished for us to see that there are significant improvements. There is more room for passenger screening, making it possible to check passengers at a faster pace. The gift shop and a café are now located beyond the security check point for travelers who are waiting for their flights.
As a result of shopping for discounted tickets, we did spend over 3 hours in the Denver Airport between our flights yesterday. There isn’t too much that one can do in such a place. We ate a meal, about halfway between our usual lunch and dinnertime, we looked in the shops, but didn’t have anything we wanted or needed to buy. The prices in such shops are enough to deter us from much purchasing. We walked around the B concourse, which is long enough to get some exercise. It is just under a half mile from end to end. If you don’t use the moving walkways you can get in nearly a mile by starting at any point in the concourse and walking to one end of the building, then to the opposite end and returning to the starting point.
There are a lot of differences in how much people are carrying. We traveled relatively light compared to other travelers, with one shared suitcase and a backpack for each. We checked the suitcase. I don’t like having to pay the extra fee, but the convenience of not having to put anything in the overhead bins is nice and we didn’t have to bother with luggage during our transfers. We saw plenty of people who had everything they needed for their trip in hand. Wheeled luggage is the norm and there is plenty of competition for space in the overhead bins on the longer flights. In the smaller aircraft, people have trouble understanding that they can’t take everything into the cabin with them and crew members have to patiently explain how some bags need to be checked at the door of the aircraft and travel in the luggage compartment.
The airlines try to make a bit of distinction, allowing those who have purchased first class tickets, frequent flyers, and those who have accumulated a lot of miles on prior trips to board the airplane first, but it is a convenience of little worth. Those who board first have to get up and accommodate those who board after them. We all have to get our carry on luggage stowed, and settle into the seats. There is a tiny variation in the width of the seats in First Class and a bit of extra legroom there and in business class. We always fly in the least expensive seats where the short legs with which I was born and somewhat average body widths are an advantage.
And today, though my distances will be shorter, I will need to move more quickly. I have less time for watching others and sitting in the same place. There is a story in the fact that I speed up the pace and cover less distance, but that story will have to wait for another day. There is work to be done.
Onward!