It has been an unusually challenging travel season this summer, with canceled flights, delayed departures, long lines and a further reduction in the size and number of pretzels in the complimentary package handed out by flight attendants. My snack package contained only two pretzels. (Upon reflection I may have mistaken my pretzel package for my complimentary earbuds package, which would explain why they tasted so stringy).
And while I am not generally a big fan of the travel industry, I do believe in giving credit where credit is due.
Last week I traveled to and from Scotland and my travel arrangements could not have gone smoother. I departed SeaTac on Labor Day Weekend, which was the single-heaviest travel day of the year there. With that in mind, I got to the airport well ahead of time. I was flying to Glasgow, Scotland, on Icelandair with a short layover in Reykjavik.
It took me a while to find the Icelandair counter, partly because the main lobby of SeaTac was packed shoulder to shoulder with fellow travelers, and partly because the Icelandair kiosk is on the opposite side of the main terminal as almost every other airline. A sign pointed out that the kiosk wouldn’t open until three hours prior to our departure.
Having a few minutes to spare, I wandered down to the baggage area to grab a latte at Starbucks only to find 25 like-minded travelers patiently standing in line. With no other pressing business, I waited, watching a harried Starbucks crew of three trying to manage the long line. It turns out that two baristas had called in sick that day (perhaps thinking it was No-Labor Day weekend), so the manager was doing the best she could. I complimented her on her hustle and grace under pressure and left a slightly larger tip than usual.
I returned to the Icelandair kiosk and got my boarding pass and checked my baggage and gathered myself to wait through the very lengthy TSA security screening queue. While the line was long, there were tons of TSA staff working to keep it moving, and I got through the line and onto the train to the S Gates in record speed. Having more time to kill, I stopped at a restaurant to commence my pre-flight hydration regime. All of the seats at the bar were full, but the waitperson kindly escorted me to a small table usually reserved for people eating actual meals.
Right on schedule, my flight to Iceland boarded and right on time it landed. I had an hour or so to fill in the Reykjavik airport, so I sampled a local beer and watched a table of some dozen unusually handsome and fit Icelandic men laughing, joking and drinking local beers. Of course, I couldn’t understand a word they were saying, but based on their appearance and body language, they seemed either to be on their way to Hollywood to film a commercial for men’s hair products or else going on some kind of a small-game hunt. I expected at any moment for them to put their arms around each other and break into a sea shanty. Hell, a little more hydration, and I might have joined them.
My flight to Glasgow left and landed exactly on time. I was spending a night at a hotel in Glasgow, and my reservation was on file, the room was immaculate and the front desk clerk couldn’t have been more helpful despite the language barrier.
My trip to Scotland was a smashing success, but like all good things, it had to come to an end. I was flying home on Aer Lingus. We had a three-hour drive from where we were staying to the airport, and it flew by. It won’t surprise you to learn that checking in at the Aer Lingus counter was smooth, quick and efficient. And I got upgraded to a window seat. Even better, the seat next to me was unoccupied.
My return flight stopped in Dublin, where I was able to bring my hydration regime to an end. My flight to Seattle left on time, was entirely turbulence-free and arrived in Seattle a couple of minutes ahead of schedule. As a bonus, my luggage arrived moments after I got to the baggage claim and before I knew it, we were home. If anyone at Icelandair is reading this, let me know what I owe you for the earbuds I ate.
Tom Tyner of Bainbridge Island writes a weekly humor column for this newspaper.
