Comments on: The trouble with long distance air travel. Paris to Sydney. 2009 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/ A cautionary tale in development Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:27:30 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: razzbuffnik http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6762 razzbuffnik Sun, 21 Feb 2010 21:36:32 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6762 Joost And that's why we like trains! Joost

And that’s why we like trains!

]]> By: Joost http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6760 Joost Sun, 21 Feb 2010 16:26:19 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6760 Hi Razz, After some experience with short flights from the Netherlands to Spain and the UK, I'm not a great fan of flying. Flying in small jets such as Boeing 737 of Airbus A320 are travelling in air coaches with very small leg room. Acceptible for small people and for less than two hours, but not for Europe - Oz flights. They have not yet hard plastic seats, similar to the old wooden third class seats, but they are not so far from in the cattle-class. The worst is the requested two or three hours waiting for check-in and security, at malls with runstrips aka airports, and it is worsened with NorthWest Flight 253 Amsterdam-Detroit on Christmas Day, today security checks at airports are the same with former Eastern European controls such as Marienborn or Berlin Friedrichstrasse before the fall of the Wall. Flying sucks Yours, Joost Hi Razz,

After some experience with short flights from the Netherlands to Spain and the UK, I’m not a great fan of flying. Flying in small jets such as Boeing 737 of Airbus A320 are travelling in air coaches with very small leg room. Acceptible for small people and for less than two hours, but not for Europe – Oz flights. They have not yet hard plastic seats, similar to the old wooden third class seats, but they are not so far from in the cattle-class. The worst is the requested two or three hours waiting for check-in and security, at malls with runstrips aka airports, and it is worsened with NorthWest Flight 253 Amsterdam-Detroit on Christmas Day, today security checks at airports are the same with former Eastern European controls such as Marienborn or Berlin Friedrichstrasse before the fall of the Wall. Flying sucks

Yours, Joost

]]> By: razzbuffnik http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6164 razzbuffnik Fri, 27 Nov 2009 05:59:27 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6164 Grasswire Point taken. English soccer fans in Portugal are the low point on my benchmark so far. Grasswire

Point taken. English soccer fans in Portugal are the low point on my benchmark so far.

]]> By: grasswire http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6162 grasswire Thu, 26 Nov 2009 21:26:27 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6162 Robert is right - stay clear of Slovenes in groups too :) Seriously, we always "duck and cover". Apart from group dynamics, I think it has a lot to do with assumed superiority regarding destination of traveling - Slovenes would never trash a place in Germany but beware of them in Czeech republic where they could almost match the Brits in Estonia or Ireland. My experience with French is similar - the ones I got to know were all really great. But traveling around Bordeaux was hell - extremely rude, snobbish people, endless waiting, being sent in wrong directions, dirty, littered streets, trains... Our fondest memory of France is still crossing the border to Spain, which felt like returning to Paradise. Robert is right – stay clear of Slovenes in groups too :)
Seriously, we always “duck and cover”.

Apart from group dynamics, I think it has a lot to do with assumed superiority regarding destination of traveling – Slovenes would never trash a place in Germany but beware of them in Czeech republic where they could almost match the Brits in Estonia or Ireland.

My experience with French is similar – the ones I got to know were all really great. But traveling around Bordeaux was hell – extremely rude, snobbish people, endless waiting, being sent in wrong directions, dirty, littered streets, trains… Our fondest memory of France is still crossing the border to Spain, which felt like returning to Paradise.

]]> By: razzbuffnik http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6145 razzbuffnik Tue, 24 Nov 2009 01:07:23 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6145 Ross Luckily I didn't have to wrestle them whilst falling into an abyss. Ross

Luckily I didn’t have to wrestle them whilst falling into an abyss.

]]> By: planetross http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6143 planetross Mon, 23 Nov 2009 23:58:46 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6143 I'm glad you stood your ground and did the Gandalf "You shall not pass" maneuver: Gandalf should have said "Fuck you" in the movie. hee hee! I’m glad you stood your ground and did the Gandalf “You shall not pass” maneuver: Gandalf should have said “Fuck you” in the movie. hee hee!

]]> By: razzbuffnik http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6140 razzbuffnik Mon, 23 Nov 2009 20:16:41 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6140 Robert I know what you mean about groups but like I said before, I hold the French to higher standards than most other people because of the general high regard I have for them based on past experiences. I was so disappointed. Robert

I know what you mean about groups but like I said before, I hold the French to higher standards than most other people because of the general high regard I have for them based on past experiences. I was so disappointed.

]]> By: Robert http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6138 Robert Mon, 23 Nov 2009 20:03:17 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6138 Well, I can imagine how immensely annoying this trip flight was and this sort of behaviour pisses me off too. However, I amnot sure whether it is French or Americans or whatever... I believe it is the large party-group dynamics. You know, "there is a lot of us and we are going to have a party, this is why we are here after all, ho ho ho, ha ha ha..." Two days ago I was sitting with my wife in a cosy little café in Belgrade, many small parties of locals (Serbs) around, twos, threes..., everything was nice, quiet, romantic, until a large group of Slovenians came and started to behave like animals, they just had to laugh and scream like monkeys all the time, it seemed such a fun thing to do (and such a stupid thing to do, observing from the outside...). So I was embarrassed too, being a Slovene. And yet Slovenes are known as shy, quiet and boring, and Serbs are considered as loud and aggressive. Not always so, indeed. So, in short, perhaps the large group dynamics plays its part here. Well, I can imagine how immensely annoying this trip flight was and this sort of behaviour pisses me off too. However, I amnot sure whether it is French or Americans or whatever… I believe it is the large party-group dynamics. You know, “there is a lot of us and we are going to have a party, this is why we are here after all, ho ho ho, ha ha ha…” Two days ago I was sitting with my wife in a cosy little café in Belgrade, many small parties of locals (Serbs) around, twos, threes…, everything was nice, quiet, romantic, until a large group of Slovenians came and started to behave like animals, they just had to laugh and scream like monkeys all the time, it seemed such a fun thing to do (and such a stupid thing to do, observing from the outside…). So I was embarrassed too, being a Slovene. And yet Slovenes are known as shy, quiet and boring, and Serbs are considered as loud and aggressive. Not always so, indeed.
So, in short, perhaps the large group dynamics plays its part here.

]]> By: razzbuffnik http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6125 razzbuffnik Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:24:35 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6125 Pat Don't worry about your fellow Americans, they tend to be well behaved. It's drunken English soccer fans that are the worst and then there's always Australians. I've seen a few Aussies that have made me feel so embarrassed by their behaviour. It's not a pretty sight to see a plane load of drunken Aussies get off the plane in Bali. Cafe Selavy Some people are proof that indeed, shepards have at some time, interfered with sheep. Donald It seems so contradictory that the French can be so nice and friendly and yet sometimes so thoughtless and ignorant. Then again, I guess that can be said for just about any group, but I suppose I was so disappointed because my experiences with the French in the past had been so positive. Pat

Don’t worry about your fellow Americans, they tend to be well behaved. It’s drunken English soccer fans that are the worst and then there’s always Australians.

I’ve seen a few Aussies that have made me feel so embarrassed by their behaviour. It’s not a pretty sight to see a plane load of drunken Aussies get off the plane in Bali.

Cafe Selavy

Some people are proof that indeed, shepards have at some time, interfered with sheep.

Donald

It seems so contradictory that the French can be so nice and friendly and yet sometimes so thoughtless and ignorant. Then again, I guess that can be said for just about any group, but I suppose I was so disappointed because my experiences with the French in the past had been so positive.

]]> By: Donald Diddams http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/2009/11/19/the-trouble-with-long-distance-air-travel-paris-to-sydney-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-6122 Donald Diddams Sat, 21 Nov 2009 11:03:26 +0000 http://blog.allthedumbthings.com/?p=1158#comment-6122 "a modern French midden" -- says it all! Sorry you had such an irritating flight, but at least you arrived. When we were sailing the Caribbean on our sailboat, it was well known among the english-speaking yachties that the French had the most atrocious anchoring manners. Always too close and sloppy. Often dangerous, should the wind switch in the night. The French were the only boats we ever had to yell at to get them to move, and they would respond with a friendly but frenchified "no problem", and go back to their meal. Many of us concluded that it really wasn't any meanness, but rather a national lack of any sense of personal space. Seems like your experience would bear that out. “a modern French midden” — says it all! Sorry you had such an irritating flight, but at least you arrived.

When we were sailing the Caribbean on our sailboat, it was well known among the english-speaking yachties that the French had the most atrocious anchoring manners. Always too close and sloppy. Often dangerous, should the wind switch in the night. The French were the only boats we ever had to yell at to get them to move, and they would respond with a friendly but frenchified “no problem”, and go back to their meal.

Many of us concluded that it really wasn’t any meanness, but rather a national lack of any sense of personal space. Seems like your experience would bear that out.

]]>