Well, it's been fifteen months of grounded bliss, here on Terra Firma. And so, it's time to brave the big silver bird again. This time, it's a trip to Chicago.
And, for the first time in my life, I had to book the flight all by myself. I have flown all over the western United States and into Canada, too. Been to Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Dallas and, most recently, to Boston, fifteen months ago.
All those trips were planned by someone else. Either my employer, sending me to seminars and conferences, or friends, booking our trip through a relative who is a travel agent. All I had to do was hold my ticket, make my way through security, and board the plane.
One thing I learned, the hard way, was that, if someone else books your seat, you are not going to get to sit by the window. Flying to Boston, I spent six hours sitting in the middle of three seats, with my elbows buried in my sides.....trying to see out the window.
I'm leaving in less than three weeks, so it's time to buy my ticket....
So, I talked to friends. Expedia. They all use Expedia. Not a problem. I go to the Expedia website. I type in “Chicago”, and up come a million flights. Plus, I have to connect to a larger hub, since Podunk International Airport doesn't have but about two flights......a week.
Now, another great hint that a friend gave me: after you look at flights, on a site like Expedia, or Travelocity, or Orbitz, pick the one you want and go to the airlines website and you may be able to get a better deal. I did and I was able to book both flights I need at one time, and for a cheaper rate, too.
Finally, I have pen in hand, flight numbers scratched on a pad of paper, American Express card in my hot little hand. I'm going in.....
I choose my flight. I choose my seat. I type in my credit card number. My name. My address. My phone number. My email address for the confirmation. Ticket Insurance? Sure, why not?
I push the button. Oops! Red flag! The security number is not correct for my American Express card. Yes it is, but no, they won't take it. Okay, no problem, I'll use my other credit card. Oh wait! It expires this month. Don't I have a new one? Yes, here it is. Have to call and get it activated!
Okay, did that. Now, type in the credit card numbers. Okay.......that's everything. Hmmmm....isn't it? I push “confirm”.........and get a nice little conversation window: “We're sorry, your session has timed out....”
Now what do I do? Did it go through? Did I buy a ticket? It's non-refundable, you know, so if I did buy a ticket, and I don't know it, and I buy another one, I will have one more ticket than I need.
What to do?
And so, I called Customer Service and spoke to Marcie: she checked and no, the transaction did not go through. I have not bought a plane ticket. She assures me that I will not be charged for two tickets, after checking under the flight number, my name, and my credit card number.
Phew!
She also offered to book my flight for me, but told me that she would have to charge me $25 to do it, and “you already know how...” she said. And she was right. I do know how.
And so, I typed in all that stuff again, without all the interruptions, and now I have a confirmation number and a ticket, and the seats I chose, too.
Window seats, of course!
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