giovedì, luglio 27, 2006
Always Late In Take-off, Always Late In Arrival
A story on how a nice weekend by the beach can become a nightmare thanks to Alitalia.
I planned last weekend long ago. I wanted to fly to Naples, to go to a small town called Ascea, some 100km south of Naples, in south Italy, where my grand mother lives.
Problem is, I didn't take into account one big random factor: Alitalia.
The plan was to fly from Paris to Rome and then from Rome to Naples on Friday, and then viceversa on Sunday.
My first flight was scheduled for Friday at 18:40 from Paris main airport: Charles De Gaulle. So at around 16:30 I took a taxi from the office to reach the airport. I was at the airport around 17:15, I checked-in and I went to the gate, to find out it was incredibly hot (who is the genius who designed the all-glasses ceiling of the airport? It acts exactly like a green-house.). At about 18:00 they started to load the flight. Only problem is that it was the previous flight, which was about one hour late. My flight, scheduled to take off at 18:40, started to load people only around 19:30.
All the people that had connecting flights from Rome were of course worried that they might loose their flights, and Alitalia personnel in Paris kept telling us that MAYBE the connecting flights would have been waiting for us.
Later, on the plane, we got insurance from the flying attendants that our connecting flights received a telex and that they would have waited for us in Rome. So just after landing I started running from terminal B to terminal A in Rome, and I can tell you it's a long run.
Once we reached the gate for Naples, the finger (the corridor that connects the airport and the airplane) was still attached, but the door had already been closed and the man near the entrance refused to open the door because he didn't have the authority to do so. By the time his boss came, the finger was disconnected. We started to argue, and once we asked how it was possible that in the first flight they told us that the second flight would have been waiting for us but that didn't happen, the incredible reply from her has been: "In a case like this, in the first flight they always tell that the second flight would wait for passenger. They do so to keep you quiet, to avoid arguing". I was stunned.
Of course, as you can imagine, this Alitalia officer said nobody could have been blamed for this (actually our idea was not blame but crucifixion) and our only option was to stay in Rome for the night (in a hotel paid by Alitalia) and then fly the next day to Naples. We (I was with an other guy who lost the plane) asked if Alitalia would have instead paid for a car to let us drive to Naples. The officer called her superior, and we didn't get approval, so no car paid from Alitalia. We were really pissed off already, and we decided to try to rent a car and split the costs.
We asked all car rental agencies in Rome airport but there were no cars available without previous booking. We were lost. I felt so frustrated. I was next to a car rental desk and I heard the employee talking to a customer, explain him where to live the keys once arrived in Naples. WHOA! That guy was renting a car to go to Naples airport. What a coincidence! I asked him if he could have given us a lift, and he kindly accepted it.
So I found a way to reach Naples more or less one hour later than the flight (the two cities are quite near)! Great! I still had one problem to solve, which was my own rented car. I booked a car from Naples to drive to my grandmother's house, but the office closed at 11.30 in Naples, while now I was supposed to reach Naples one hour later! I called the office in Naples and a very kind girl told me that if I would promise to show up, she would have waited for me. I couldn't believe my ears. She was very kind!
So all set, I found myself on a car with two strangers driving from Rome to Naples. The two men actually were really nice, and we had a pleasant conversation. Once I arrived in Naples I collected my car and I went to my uncle's place to sleep there and drive to my grandmother's place the next day.
And here is a beatiful picture from Ascea:
Do you think this is over? Wrong. It just started.
Sunday I was supposed to go back using the same route. So I drove back to Naples airport, I gave back the car and then I checked in. All was fine, except the flight was announced to be 20 minutes delayed. So I decided to use this time to go to the Alitalia ticket counter and ask for the refund of the Rome - Naples part of the ticket that I didn't use. They were supposed to pay me in cash the same amount of money of a train ticket from Rome to Naples in first class. I reached the ticket counter and I saw an other man before me waiting to talk with the lady, but the lady was busy at the phone. Without hanging up the phone, she asked him what he needed and then she went back to her phone call. Since the first man already left, I was closer to the ticket counter and I could hear her. I realize I was waiting because she was kindly talking with her son or daughter ("be good, do your homework" was the last thing she said before hanging up). You can imagine I didn't take this as a good start. I tried to explain to her my case and before I was able to finish she was already certain she couldn't help me. Then she said something she shouldn't have said. When I asked if she could maybe call Rome to ask for instructions, she said that was only an internal phone, so was not allowed to call outside.
WHAT THE FUCK!?!?
She was speaking with her son minutes earlier and now the phone became only internal? I decided I could not talk with her anymore, and I wanted to talk with her superior. I went to his office and I explained him the situation. He came with me to the ticket counter desk and started to look into the problem, looking at the computer and trying to phone around. While he was doing this, the same lady that talked to me earlier kept herself busy trying to convince him that there was nothing to be done. She was arguing that since I didn't receive any written paper from Rome, I was not entitled to my reimbursement. I hated her. She didn't to anything to help me, but even worse, she tried to convince the (probably) only working Alitalia employee on the whole airport to stop helping me. In the meanwhile there were other people in need of help, and again she said she couldn't help them.
The guy even tried to go to his superior and ask if he could help me, but 20 minutes later he came back to me saying nothing could be done.
Hei, are you worried about my flight from Naples to Rome? Don't worry! In the meanwhile the take off was delayed from 20 minutes to 1 hour. Of course, not all in one step. First 20 minutes, then 35, then 50 and then 60. You see, if you would know the flight was delayed one hour maybe you could have decided to have a walk or something. This way is so much more fun!
So the guy couldn't help me, but before I went to the gate areas, I asked this man to stand with me near the ticket counter and near the lady that talked to me earlier. When both were listening to me I told him that first she was talking to her son and then she told me the phone was only intended for internal calls. I think she really deserved it. Incredibly the man was not shocked, but at least she became all red and started shouting. I think it's just fair that for a little while she had the same feeling she distributes to all her customers. ;-)
So 1 hour and some minutes later than the scheduled departure, the flight took off. This time I was not afraid to loose my connecting flight since there was two hours connection in Rome. But, you guessed it, once I landed in Rome I realized there was no hurry. The connecting flight to Paris was already delayed by more than one hour. So I had a lot of time at hand, and I decided to use it to have some other good times with the Alitalia employees. I went to the ticket counter and I told my story once again. The automatic, built-in answer from the girl was that it was not possible to give me any money, but I was lucky as there was some kind of boss next to her who asked what was my question. The boss commented: "of course you can refund him if you can check on the computer that he missed the flight because the first flight landed too late". 10 minutes later I walked away with my money.
I guess what I really learned from this experience is to try to avoid Alitalia as much as possible in the future.
By the way, if you didn't notice, try to read the first letter or each word of the title... ;-)
Ciao,
alfonso
I planned last weekend long ago. I wanted to fly to Naples, to go to a small town called Ascea, some 100km south of Naples, in south Italy, where my grand mother lives.Problem is, I didn't take into account one big random factor: Alitalia.
The plan was to fly from Paris to Rome and then from Rome to Naples on Friday, and then viceversa on Sunday.
My first flight was scheduled for Friday at 18:40 from Paris main airport: Charles De Gaulle. So at around 16:30 I took a taxi from the office to reach the airport. I was at the airport around 17:15, I checked-in and I went to the gate, to find out it was incredibly hot (who is the genius who designed the all-glasses ceiling of the airport? It acts exactly like a green-house.). At about 18:00 they started to load the flight. Only problem is that it was the previous flight, which was about one hour late. My flight, scheduled to take off at 18:40, started to load people only around 19:30.
All the people that had connecting flights from Rome were of course worried that they might loose their flights, and Alitalia personnel in Paris kept telling us that MAYBE the connecting flights would have been waiting for us.
Later, on the plane, we got insurance from the flying attendants that our connecting flights received a telex and that they would have waited for us in Rome. So just after landing I started running from terminal B to terminal A in Rome, and I can tell you it's a long run.
Once we reached the gate for Naples, the finger (the corridor that connects the airport and the airplane) was still attached, but the door had already been closed and the man near the entrance refused to open the door because he didn't have the authority to do so. By the time his boss came, the finger was disconnected. We started to argue, and once we asked how it was possible that in the first flight they told us that the second flight would have been waiting for us but that didn't happen, the incredible reply from her has been: "In a case like this, in the first flight they always tell that the second flight would wait for passenger. They do so to keep you quiet, to avoid arguing". I was stunned.
Of course, as you can imagine, this Alitalia officer said nobody could have been blamed for this (actually our idea was not blame but crucifixion) and our only option was to stay in Rome for the night (in a hotel paid by Alitalia) and then fly the next day to Naples. We (I was with an other guy who lost the plane) asked if Alitalia would have instead paid for a car to let us drive to Naples. The officer called her superior, and we didn't get approval, so no car paid from Alitalia. We were really pissed off already, and we decided to try to rent a car and split the costs.
We asked all car rental agencies in Rome airport but there were no cars available without previous booking. We were lost. I felt so frustrated. I was next to a car rental desk and I heard the employee talking to a customer, explain him where to live the keys once arrived in Naples. WHOA! That guy was renting a car to go to Naples airport. What a coincidence! I asked him if he could have given us a lift, and he kindly accepted it.
So I found a way to reach Naples more or less one hour later than the flight (the two cities are quite near)! Great! I still had one problem to solve, which was my own rented car. I booked a car from Naples to drive to my grandmother's house, but the office closed at 11.30 in Naples, while now I was supposed to reach Naples one hour later! I called the office in Naples and a very kind girl told me that if I would promise to show up, she would have waited for me. I couldn't believe my ears. She was very kind!
So all set, I found myself on a car with two strangers driving from Rome to Naples. The two men actually were really nice, and we had a pleasant conversation. Once I arrived in Naples I collected my car and I went to my uncle's place to sleep there and drive to my grandmother's place the next day.
And here is a beatiful picture from Ascea:
Do you think this is over? Wrong. It just started.
Sunday I was supposed to go back using the same route. So I drove back to Naples airport, I gave back the car and then I checked in. All was fine, except the flight was announced to be 20 minutes delayed. So I decided to use this time to go to the Alitalia ticket counter and ask for the refund of the Rome - Naples part of the ticket that I didn't use. They were supposed to pay me in cash the same amount of money of a train ticket from Rome to Naples in first class. I reached the ticket counter and I saw an other man before me waiting to talk with the lady, but the lady was busy at the phone. Without hanging up the phone, she asked him what he needed and then she went back to her phone call. Since the first man already left, I was closer to the ticket counter and I could hear her. I realize I was waiting because she was kindly talking with her son or daughter ("be good, do your homework" was the last thing she said before hanging up). You can imagine I didn't take this as a good start. I tried to explain to her my case and before I was able to finish she was already certain she couldn't help me. Then she said something she shouldn't have said. When I asked if she could maybe call Rome to ask for instructions, she said that was only an internal phone, so was not allowed to call outside.
WHAT THE FUCK!?!?
She was speaking with her son minutes earlier and now the phone became only internal? I decided I could not talk with her anymore, and I wanted to talk with her superior. I went to his office and I explained him the situation. He came with me to the ticket counter desk and started to look into the problem, looking at the computer and trying to phone around. While he was doing this, the same lady that talked to me earlier kept herself busy trying to convince him that there was nothing to be done. She was arguing that since I didn't receive any written paper from Rome, I was not entitled to my reimbursement. I hated her. She didn't to anything to help me, but even worse, she tried to convince the (probably) only working Alitalia employee on the whole airport to stop helping me. In the meanwhile there were other people in need of help, and again she said she couldn't help them.
The guy even tried to go to his superior and ask if he could help me, but 20 minutes later he came back to me saying nothing could be done.
Hei, are you worried about my flight from Naples to Rome? Don't worry! In the meanwhile the take off was delayed from 20 minutes to 1 hour. Of course, not all in one step. First 20 minutes, then 35, then 50 and then 60. You see, if you would know the flight was delayed one hour maybe you could have decided to have a walk or something. This way is so much more fun!
So the guy couldn't help me, but before I went to the gate areas, I asked this man to stand with me near the ticket counter and near the lady that talked to me earlier. When both were listening to me I told him that first she was talking to her son and then she told me the phone was only intended for internal calls. I think she really deserved it. Incredibly the man was not shocked, but at least she became all red and started shouting. I think it's just fair that for a little while she had the same feeling she distributes to all her customers. ;-)
So 1 hour and some minutes later than the scheduled departure, the flight took off. This time I was not afraid to loose my connecting flight since there was two hours connection in Rome. But, you guessed it, once I landed in Rome I realized there was no hurry. The connecting flight to Paris was already delayed by more than one hour. So I had a lot of time at hand, and I decided to use it to have some other good times with the Alitalia employees. I went to the ticket counter and I told my story once again. The automatic, built-in answer from the girl was that it was not possible to give me any money, but I was lucky as there was some kind of boss next to her who asked what was my question. The boss commented: "of course you can refund him if you can check on the computer that he missed the flight because the first flight landed too late". 10 minutes later I walked away with my money.I guess what I really learned from this experience is to try to avoid Alitalia as much as possible in the future.
By the way, if you didn't notice, try to read the first letter or each word of the title... ;-)
Ciao,
alfonso
mercoledì, luglio 19, 2006
Visited country
I found this website on Mac's blog ( http://re-immigration.blogspot.com/ ).
Mac is an other Italian-turned-Finnish. We met in Finland in 2001.
I was just looking for something like this. I'll try to keep it up to date.
The website where you can create your own map is here.
Sadly, I've visited only 23 countries, only 10% of the total.
I promise I'll try to improve! I still miss HUGE AREAS! Africa, Asia, Australia/Pacific... and probably the Middle East, even if this website puts Turkey there.
By the way: I also added this calendar to the left. Eventually, if I wuold keep it updated, it should help you know which city in the world I'm in. I just found out that one friend of mine was in Istanbul last year at the same time like me. One of the reason I have this blog is exactly to keep in touch with my friends... So hopefully now it will be a little less likely that this will happen again!
alfonso
Mac is an other Italian-turned-Finnish. We met in Finland in 2001.
I was just looking for something like this. I'll try to keep it up to date.
The website where you can create your own map is here.
Sadly, I've visited only 23 countries, only 10% of the total.
I promise I'll try to improve! I still miss HUGE AREAS! Africa, Asia, Australia/Pacific... and probably the Middle East, even if this website puts Turkey there.
By the way: I also added this calendar to the left. Eventually, if I wuold keep it updated, it should help you know which city in the world I'm in. I just found out that one friend of mine was in Istanbul last year at the same time like me. One of the reason I have this blog is exactly to keep in touch with my friends... So hopefully now it will be a little less likely that this will happen again!
alfonso
martedì, luglio 18, 2006
Life in Paris
Ciao!
Here I am, in Paris. I'm staying in this (quite ugly) hotel in Montparnasse. Is quite centrally located, and of course is deadly far from the office (in Saint-Ouen, just outside Paris). It takes about 45 mins by metro and unfortunately the incredibly good looking building receptionist already declined my offer for dinner.
Something funny just happened.
After work I went to Saint Germain Des Pre for a drink and I decided to check for an hotel in that area. I was guessing the hotel rate I'm paying is a discounted Nokia rate, but when I was asked more than double in Saint Germain for a similar hotel I was quite speachless... Needless to say, I guess I'll stay in Montparnasse. ;-)
alfonso
mercoledì, luglio 12, 2006
Plan changed
Arrivederci Milano, bonjour Paris!
My plans changed. I was supposed to be in Milan three weeks, but now it seems I'll be in Paris for the next three weeks.
Let me know if you are around Paris, we might as well meet at the Champs-Elysées...
:-)
alfonso
My plans changed. I was supposed to be in Milan three weeks, but now it seems I'll be in Paris for the next three weeks.
Let me know if you are around Paris, we might as well meet at the Champs-Elysées...
:-)
alfonso
lunedì, luglio 10, 2006
Campioni del mondo
Ok... ok...
This is not a big peice of news, but I'm happy because I saw the match in Rome, with few friends so I got the chance to party all around the city. At the end of the match we want on the street and we walked all the way from Piramide to Piazza Venezia.
Quite a walk... But let's start from the beginning.
I flow to Italy last Friday and I went at my parents' place. I hade a ride with my bike (at least something good it's coming out from the fact that I didn't manage to sell it) on Saturday and on Sunday morning I woke up 7am to drive to Malpensa airport. I bought a flight from Linate to Roma and from Roma to Malpensa. This way it was much cheaper. So I drove to Malpensa to leave my car there and then took a bus to Linate.
The reason I'm telling this, is that on the way from my parents' place to Malpensa, something happened:
My parents' place and the airport are about 65km apart. Most of this road is hurban road, so speed limit is from 50km/h to 90km/h. The last 10 mins are on highway, where the speed limit is 130km/h.
As soon as I hit the highway, and the speed rose from 90km/h to 130km/h the hood took off.
While I was driving, the hood opened up and it smashed on my front window. Not a funny experience I might say. Luckily given the hour (very early) no car was around so I managed simply to drive the car on the emergency lane and get out from the car to see how could I fix the damage. The car looked like an open tunafish can.
I simply tried to reclose the can, and I drove to the airport.
I think the people who designed the lock mechanism should go to jail. I cleraly heard a loud sound when I close the hood the day before, so how the hell could I have guessed that it didn't close properly?
Back to Rome and the world cup match: around 3am I went back to my friend's apartment, collapsed on a couch and one hour later I was on the road again to drive (my rented car) to the airport and catch the 6.40am flight to Malpensa. It was way too funny to drive 2 and a half hours from the airport to Nokia's office, especially if you think it's only 70km mostly of highway and it should take approximately 1 hour. I love traffic in Milan! ;-)
alfonso
mercoledì, luglio 05, 2006
Back in Italy!
Ciao!
Today I just found out that I might get back to Italy for three weeks, working in Milan. I'm very glad that I'll be back and that I have the chance to see all my friends, so reserve some of your precious time for me in the following weeks!
Alfonso
sabato, luglio 01, 2006
Editorial choice
Ciao!
I took a couple of decisions today:
- I decided to switch my blog to English. I have quite many English speaking friends, and I'd like them to have the chance to read this blog if they want to. All my Italian friends read and speak English fluently, so why not?
- I decided to fill the gap on July, when I actually never posted any entry, with a couple of entries with a faked date. You see, the reason why I didn't blog is because I'm fucking lazy. I never downloaded pictures from my camera, so I didn't blog because I didn't have my pictures. But I'll post taking pictures from the net. I might put my own pictures at some point.
alfonso
I took a couple of decisions today:
- I decided to switch my blog to English. I have quite many English speaking friends, and I'd like them to have the chance to read this blog if they want to. All my Italian friends read and speak English fluently, so why not?
- I decided to fill the gap on July, when I actually never posted any entry, with a couple of entries with a faked date. You see, the reason why I didn't blog is because I'm fucking lazy. I never downloaded pictures from my camera, so I didn't blog because I didn't have my pictures. But I'll post taking pictures from the net. I might put my own pictures at some point.
alfonso
