My journey home has been extended by 24 hours. As I sit here in the airport Radisson after a full night's sleep, I find it hard to get too agitated about the whole thing. Traveling is tiring, doubly so since I've been getting over a cold, so the break isn't entirely bad.
It started when I landed at LAX. I flew Continental from Houston (from Kansas City, from Charlotte). When I landed in the terminal, I tried to find my flight to Seoul on the screen. No luck. Though my boarding pass said Continental—no gate assigned—the screens had only Continental flights, and none to Seoul. I wandered around for a bit and tried to find someone who could help me, with no luck. All of the counters with people behind them had long lines of boarding passengers. I searched the signs and tried to find a more general area, or directions to another terminal, with no luck. There are a couple of areas ironically marked “information,” with no people, no maps, no general “departures” screens, and only a few paltry markers that say things like “restaurants” and “restrooms.” I finally made it to the United area, where I found what I assumed was my flight on the screen. It had a different number, but the same departure time. As it turns out, the Continental flight became a United flight that was actually operated by Asiana. Under gate, it said “TBID.” TBD? I thought maybe it didn't have a gate. I searched around the boards for some kind of key that would decipher the letters—no luck. I wandered around the United area for awhile. I tried to find a map of the airport—no luck. There was a map of the terminal that said that United and Continental flights left from there, so I figured I could hang around the terminal. I sat down for a minute, then headed for the international part of the United terminal. I searched the gates for awhile. I tried to find an agent to help me—no luck. Finally, I found a person behind a counter who wasn't boarding passengers. I asked, “what's TBID?” She told me that it was the Tom Bradley International Terminal. She told me to follow the signs that said “ground transportation”--who would have guessed?--and catch bus A to the terminal. I was rushing at this point, and I followed a sign to a dead end. I got on the elevator, since the lady told me to go to the ground level, and pushed 1. The elevator wouldn't go. After some frantic mashing, I pushed 2 and ended up on the right floor. I rushed out the door and searched for the A bus. I found it, travelled to the International Terminal. My flight left while I was waiting in the security line.
I went to the Asiana counter pretty visibly upset, and told the lady I had missed my flight. There was another lady at the counter who had been on my connector and missed the same flight. Thanks, LAX. The Asiana lady asked me why I had missed my flight, and I told her I couldn't figure out where to go. She told me that this was my fault, and to come back at 7:40 (it was a little after 1) and get on standby for the next one. Then, just to kick me a little, she said that I would owe whatever the price difference was. I asked if I could find another flight through Continental, since that's who I booked the flight through. She told me to come back at 7:40, then left.
After a few false starts, I found my way to the Continental counter. A nice gentleman there put me on the same flight the following day, and even got me back on a flight to Daegu. This was not without some toiling, and I was very grateful to him. There was no discussion of fault and no extra charge. As it turns out, the nighttime Asiana flight that I was supposed to go on standby for was overbooked. I could have waited around the airport for 8 or 9 hours, only to get the same result. I found a Traveler's Aid desk in the arrivals area, where a very kind lady found me a room at the Radisson. I am showing a bit, so people tend to be nice to me. The Asiana dragon lady's coldness stood out against the kindness of everyone else I dealt with, especially since I went to the Asiana counter after having run around the airport with bags.
So I'm not share who gets the lions share of my wrath: LAX or Asiana. It's a toss up. Los Angeles, congratulations on having the least traveler friendly airport in the world. I'll try not to be here again. Asiana, well, I wrote a complaint. You need to give your people customer service training.
(where I got this: http://www.zazzle.co.nz/i+hate+lax+cards)
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