Jun
5
Japan Trip-Monday June 4, 2012-End
I started the morning at 7 am with breakfast at the hotel with the Hyperflite Japan staff. Today, they were going to drive back to Tokyo, a 7-8 hour drive.
After breakfast Hiromi, Hiro, and I walked to the shopping district which wasn’t yet open and then on to a temple. The entrance wound from the shopping district, under the train station, and part-way up the mountain. Once at the temple, we washed our hands, donated some coins, and rang the bell to get the “gods” attention so that our wish would come true.
Then, back to the hotel and finally to the train station where we bid Hiromi a safe trip home. Hiro and I then proceeded to Kansai Airport by train, bus, boat, and bus. Hiro headed back to Tokyo while I was off to Seattle.
I exchanged all my Yen for Dollars and then I realized that I had five hours before my flight and it was lunchtime. I found a Chinese restaurant at the airport that accepted American Express, so it worked out, but couldn’t buy any drinks or snacks before boarding my flight home.
What a pleasure to find free wireless internet at the Kansai Airport.
While waiting for my flight in the gate area, a woman approached me with an iPad, said she was from the Japanese Tourist Office, and asked if she could ask me some questions. I said sure, so she went through her iPad with various travel questions: Where I stayed, How I got around, What I spent, etc. At the end of the questionnaire, she presented me with a business card with their new logo and a lapel pin.
My flight to Seattle, while bumpy at times, was uneventful with many open seats around me. Not surprisingly, Seattle had some rain.
We had a special flight attendant in the Comfort Economy section named Yvenette. She always had a smile on her face, went out of her way on several occasions (for example, bringing English newspapers to me), was very polite, and referred to me by name. At the end of the flight, she personally thanked me and presented me with a handwritten thank you.
“Mr. Bloeme:
I hope you had an enjoyable and comfortable flight. Thank you for your loyalty to Delta. I look forward to serving you again soon!”
Wow!!!
Seattle’s immigration, and re-check in was a bit confusing, and wasn’t any easier with the jet-lag I was feeling, but I managed to locate the Atlanta gate. Once again, I was pleased with the free internet at the airport.
In Seattle, the gate agent made an announcement that the flight was overbooked and asked for volunteers to take a later flight and I jumped at the chance. At the last minute, I was given my boarding pass back and was the last to board the plane. So, no $300 travel voucher for me.
The flight back to Atlanta was uneventful and, after a great trip to Japan, I’m back home safe and sound.
