I used to think sitting on the airplane for hours on end was the worst..... till today.

I spent a week adjusting to the EST time zone.

now that I'm back in CO (MST) I'll still on the EST schedule.. up at 4am, and now I can't even watch the news (I'm pooped!).

I damn well better sleep in tomorrow!

That never bothered me much when I was on the road.

Being part of the herd, being funneled and shuttled from one place to another, from the airport to rental car or shuttle then to hotel and then back again with all the similarly costumed and glassy-eyed business drones got to me.

I remember once waking up in a hotel and having absolutely no idea where I was or why I was there.  I nearly went into a full-blown panic attack.

There was another occurrence where I was in a shopping mall next to the hotel and I stopped dead in my tracks.  I couldn't remember what city I was in.  Took me almost a minute to sit down and figure it out.

Disassociation like that finally killed whatever "fun" there is in traveling for business for me.

try india, 12 hour time diff.

or EMEAA,  7-10 hour diff.


EST to PST or MST is NOTHING

Business travel blows.  I did it for 18 months and was on the road EVERY week, very early Monday morning until very late Thurs night.  I just loved those 8 hour commutes and wasting time in airports to no end.  The constant over bookings, delayed flights, long lines, fast food, sleepless nights, weight gain, lack of exercise, etc.....

The ONLY good thing about it was the per-diem being high enough that I had enough excess money to visit the strip clubs once a week while on the road.

I would NEVER go back to that type of lifestyle.    

for me it was crappy motels cause my boss was paying for them

The worst part is all those hot businessWOMEN hitting on you in hotel bars .

Worst part is all of the "recreational" travelers who don't know WTF is going on and screw the whole system up.

Shoes off, laptop out of the bag, metal objects separate, no liquids, NOW PICK YOUR SHIT UP AND MOVE!  Then you deal with a similar process boarding and exiting the plane.

Quoted: Worst part is all of the "recreational" travelers who don't know WTF is going on and screw the whole system up. Shoes off, laptop out of the bag, metal objects separate, no liquids, NOW PICK YOUR SHIT UP AND MOVE!  Then you deal with a similar process boarding and exiting the plane.

Wurd.

I commuted to Dallas TX before the 9-11-01 WTC/Pentagon Attack and it unpleasant back then, I haven't travel extensive since.  I bet it is a real bitch today post 9-11.

well, here it is...3AM and I'm wide awake

I agree that the TSA has fucked everything up.

Quoted: Worst part is all of the "recreational" travelers who don't know WTF is going on and screw the whole system up. Shoes off, laptop out of the bag, metal objects separate, no liquids, NOW PICK YOUR SHIT UP AND MOVE!  Then you deal with a similar process boarding and exiting the plane.

I think I'll have to agree with this one. It drives me crazy when some people are just so totally unaware of "The Process".

It ain't even that complicated.

I'd flown into town and remembered that I forgot to pack something so I stopped in the local mall to do some quick shopping and when I walked back into the parking lot...

I could not remember what kind of car I was looking for I wondered around the lot for a while until I figured it out... Dumb ass

My sleep pattern is shot to hell anyway.

I liked traveling and working, good money, now places, new food and new places to get pissed off at.

Quoted: Quoted: Worst part is all of the "recreational" travelers who don't know WTF is going on and screw the whole system up. Shoes off, laptop out of the bag, metal objects separate, no liquids, NOW PICK YOUR SHIT UP AND MOVE!  Then you deal with a similar process boarding and exiting the plane. I think I'll have to agree with this one. It drives me crazy when some people are just so totally unaware of "The Process". It ain't even that complicated.

I could not agree more. There ought to be two lines through TSA Inspection. One for those "in the know" and one for clueless fucking idiots who act like security inspection is a giant surprise.

I did hate wanting some food from a chain place that is nowhere close.

Thinking I want Chicfila or Zaxbys, then going online, looking for it and finding the closest one it sever states away

Quoted: Worst part is all of the "recreational" travelers who don't know WTF is going on and screw the whole system up. Shoes off, laptop out of the bag, metal objects separate, no liquids, NOW PICK YOUR SHIT UP AND MOVE!  Then you deal with a similar process boarding and exiting the plane.

Definite +1, I love the reactions from recreational travelers whenever the TSA tells them to do something in the 3rd person (instead of saying "you need to take your shoes off before you can come through", they'll say "everyone is strongly recommended to remove their shoes before entering the metal detector"), they dont know wtf is going on.

Plus, Southwest is the cattle car of the skies, most people on there deserve to be on a Greyhound, not an airplane.

Kharn

Quoted: try india, 12 hour time diff. or EMEAA,  7-10 hour diff. EST to PST or MST is NOTHING

+1  

I have worken up in hotels and not remembered where I was, scarry.  

The airlines are not fun.  

Try flying to Singapore for two days of meetings.  I have been to Singapore about a dozen times and never for more than 4 days.  Usually I spend more time in the air than I do in the office.  Leave Chicago on Sunday at 10am arrive in Singapore at 11pm Monday, got to the office Tuesday and Wednesday, Depart Singapore at 6am Thursday, and finally arrive in Chicago Thursday afternoon.  It's a relly good way to screw up your system.  Best plan is not to go to sleep as soon as you land at your destination, and don't fall to the temptation of sleeping for 12 hours when you get home.

The waiting in airports and hotel pillows.

Constant traveller since Fall 2000, home most weekends but usually late Friday and back out on Monday.  As a "manager", now it's only most weeks instead of all weeks  Not one of the pampered travellers here either, steel toed boots have come off at security since the beginning.

Actually being in the air is great, gives me time to read for pleasure.   Cabela's gift cards that come from Holiday Inn "points" program are good towards firearms purchases.  There are a few other bright spots.

Pretty much ready to be done with it, complaint list is long and probably not unique.

BTW - the titanium belt buckle from The Wilderness goes through the magnetometer and surprises the TSA each time.

Dealing with visas and immigration officials. I'm in Bogota right now and had a real bitch of a time on the way here coming from Ecuador (Ecuadorian gov is really  messed up).

I did it for 8 years and it just plain blows.

Now, next time you settle down in your hotel bed imagine the guests from last night.

Yes, there were 2 300 pound homos, one with the pillows under his fat pimply ass so his friend could get better access.

The only thing separating their ass juice from your face is a thin pillowcase.  

Unless the maid didn't change them.

Airports.

I am sitting in SFO as I type this.

I have often woke up and not only didn't know where I was, but which side to get out of bed. I have rolled out of bed only to smash my face into the wall and slide down between the wall and bed. Once I was wedged in so hard that I almost couldn't get out1!!!!!!!!!!!!

What pissed me of is stupid old people who carry on a bag that is way too big and they can't even pick the damn thing up. Then, when everyone is trying to deplane, they jump up really quick and then stand in the aisle fighting to get this monster bag out of the over head while several people have to help them rip it out of there. Then they can't even walk to get out.

If you can't walk, then sit your dumb ass down and wait until everyone is out and get them to bring a wheelchair.

I use a decent sized hard side case with enough extra room to carry a pillow of my own. You will soon find out while traveling on a weekly basis like I do that it is very important for getting good sleep. That gay analogy will haunt me if I forget it!!!

Finding the rig locations with directions that seem to written out by a 2 year old. Also driving in winter conditions in the mountains can be a pain if the other drivers dont know what they are doing.  Other then that the locations are in some very pretty country and I can taraget practice just about everywhere I go.

I don't have to travel but my wife does. I just get to enjoy the Marriott & Hilton reward points that always cover a hotel for vacation a week or two every summer.

Quoted: Quoted: try india, 12 hour time diff. or EMEAA,  7-10 hour diff. EST to PST or MST is NOTHING +1   I have worken up in hotels and not remembered where I was, scarry.   The airlines are not fun.

The most commonly asked questions of concierges is "What city are we in?", I've noticed a lot of Hamptons now include a "Welcome to _______" sign behind the front desk so you dont feel like a de de de.

Kharn

I've been very fortunate in my lifetime to travel, and see and good portion of the world, with most of the traveling being pre 9/11/2001.  Even in those days I dreaded the time spent in airports, and aircraft.

Pre 9/11 it was bad enough to spend 8-16 hours airtime on international flights in an uncomfortable aircraft.  And since I was always paying my own way (no expense account, etc.) I had no choice but to fly coach.  But back then on most international flights, the food was tolerable, and the flight attendants pleasant, and tried to be accomodating for the most part.  Checking in at the gate, and customs were pretty easy then too.

Post 9/11 I find air travel to be so obtrusive, that if I can't get there by automobile, or train, then I just don't go.  Just the incredible amount of BS required before you ever get on the aircraft is untolerable!  The airlines are partly to blame as far as international flights are concerned.  They should take a few seats out of the coach section, and give the passengers a decent amount of legroom, and comfort on the long flights.  For me, this would offset some of the BS new hassle before you ever board the aircraft.  After all, the travelling portion of the trip begins, and ends at the airport, it's not just the airtime portion.  And the flight attendants seem to have an ever increasing bad attitude towards the passengers.  The food seems to be on an ever increasing downward spiral too.

I've got a free trip to Europe that I'll probably never use.  All things considered, it's just not worth it to me.