Next Thursday I am leaving on a two-week tour through Europe. My traveling companion? My dad! We plan to visit Hungary, Poland (where my grandparents grew up), Austria, Switzerland and Germany for Oktoberfest. Nothing like drinking a few beers with your dad in Germany!

I am really looking forward to the quality time with my dad. I have been very fortunate to have a close relationship with him, and this trip is something we have always wanted to do. I can’t believe the time is already here! Planning, etc. for the trip feels like just yesterday, and I can’t believe that a week from today we will be in Budapest!

Over the course of two weeks, we will be roadtripping. Landing in Budapest on September 12 via Malev Hungarian Airlines, we will spend a day there, then fly to Berlin on the 13th. After 2 days in Berlin, we are picking up a rental car and heading to Warsaw. From Warsaw to Krakow, where we will reconnect with my dad’s aunt who lives just outside the city. While in Poland, we will also visit Czestochowa and Auschwitz. Then it is off to Austria with stops in Vienna and Salzburg. Back to Germany, this time to Munich, for Oktoberfest (I hope I can keep up!). There will, of course, be stops all along the way as driving will afford us the luxury to control our own timetable. After Munich, it is a quick trip to Zurich and then back to Berlin for the return journey home. Whew, I’m getting excited, but a little tired, just thinking about it!

As a teenager, my dad and his brothers spent a few months touring Europe with his mother, and he has always wanted to take me around to the places he saw. I spent 3 months studying in London, and when I mistakenly booked a trip to Edinburgh for a month after all my friends, it was my dad to the rescue again, flying out to join me. That was a much shorter trip, but we had an awesome time, so I am definitely looking forward to this trip! At the end of my studies, my mom, dad and grandmother joined me for trips around England and Italy. After traveling solo or with strangers (who become friends over the course of the trip) so much recently, it will be great to have a trusted traveling companion. Look out for lots of stories and reviews in upcoming blogs and GT issues.

-Kimberly Krol, circulation and PR executive

Inspired by Alex’s blog on Tuesday, I was hoping to get your thoughts on a situation I encountered quite a few times recently, one caused by airport delays.

When I was on my back-to-back trips to Los Angeles and the British Virgin Islands, I flew in and out of Philadelphia International Airport eight different times in like nine days. Four of the flights were on Delta in first class and four of them were on American Airlines in economy. I think all 8 flights were delayed in some way, either boarding or waiting on the runway. I do not think the following situations are unique to these airlines in any way, and they are more general practices that I began to question.

When boarding was late, I noticed announcements being made that they were going to be eliminating certain services, mostly for first-class passengers, in order to board quickly and take off as close to our scheduled time as possible. They were not going to do the welcome beverage service for first-class passengers or other welcome perks that first-class passengers are technically paying for in the price of their ticket. And I am not complaining because I was in first class; to be honest, I don’t remember which carrier this was on, which leg of the trip it was or where I was sitting (it all kind of blended together!). It just seems to me that by delaying boarding and take off, you have inconvenienced passengers. I completely agree that this is out of the airline’s control, but beverage service is within the airline’s control. Eliminating services, in my mind, would only serve to inconvenience and anger the passenger even more, right? And, let’s face it, those tickets aren’t cheap! There must be a way to incorporate the service and still board the plane in a timely manner.

On another one of those flights, the airline wanted to reduce weight and was having problems with the water system, so they eliminated all hot water, including coffee and tea, and the water couldn’t be used in the bathrooms. This was an early-morning flight. Understandable that they were experiencing problems, but that is a bit disappointing to learn when you are already loaded and on the runway. Plus, can’t bottled water be boiled for coffee and tea? Or supplied in the bathrooms so passengers can wash their hands? With so many changes occurring in the airline industry and so many more charges being incurred by passengers, sometimes you wonder why the airlines don’t go the extra mile to accommodate passengers when things go wrong. I understand they are hurting, but making passengers happy when problems occur will build loyalty and keep people flying certain airlines when times are tough.

And, on a completely unrelated note, celebrities have now apparently jumped on the oil bandwagon. This week, Diddy, formerly Puff Daddy, P. Diddy and Sean Combs, music mogul, fashion designer, etc., complained to oil companies that prices were too high and were forcing him to fly commercially rather than on his private jet. I am sure everyone reading this blog feels very bad for him. I bet when Diddy is on board, the carriers don’t eliminate his beverage service or hot water!

-Kimberly Krol, circulation and PR executive

If you read Fran’s blog yesterday, you could gather my trips to world headquarters (WHQ) over the past years have never been dull. It’s always great to hang out with the team. I’m just glad that Courtney, on her new adventures to TRE, does not have to encounter the “Candyman”! During the strategy portion of this past trip to WHQ, Fran and I planned a last-minute business trip to South Florida to visit some clients Monday. I planned to arrive Sunday evening to get a fresh start for Monday, but my trip was not so smooth.

I was on a 7:20 pm Delta flight out of JFK. I think the Delta terminal at JFK almost makes LAX look good! Regardless, the flight was delayed, so we did not board until 9:30. I believe the initial delay was weather, but once on board, we pulled back from the gate and waited for another 2 hours until we took off. This delay was due purely to congestion on the tarmac as JFK is, I believe, the busiest hub to Europe in the evening. I watched all the international aircraft take off - Lufthansa, Virgin, AerLingus, Eurofly, etc. - normally an enjoyable experience for me, but not so knowing I wouldn’t be landing in Miami until 1:30 am.

Anyway, as much as the delay was frustrating, what I found disappointing was the talk I heard from other passengers. I overheard the group in front of me, after the pilot announced another delay due to all the congestion at the airport, announce that this was another reason why they wouldn’t fly Delta again. Delta apologized profusely and the crew was accommodating and provided a comfortable flight once airborne. I just feel it is very unfortunate when the airlines, in enough trouble already, get an even worse rep for problems out of their control. I’m sure the solution is much more complicated than I want to even imagine, but next time you’re on board and the flight is delayed, remember the pilot probably wants to get where you’re going even more than you do! Delta did a good job at handling a difficult situation and, bottom line, I made it to Miami safe and sound and in time for business!

-Alexandra Young, vice president and associate publisher

After returning from an exciting first experience at NBTA in LA, I was eager to see the Emirates A380 make its first successful landing from Dubai to JFK. It was a part of history seeing this jumbo jet, filled with 489 passengers, land safely on US soil.

From the Emirates First Class lounge at JFK, press, VIP guests and Emirates supporters enjoyed champagne and appetizers as we waited patiently for the A380 to appear out of the sky. At that moment, the dramatic music was cued and we all glued our faces to the window. With a wing span of 261 feet, the A380 resembled a friendly dinosaur. As it taxied its way to the gate, one of the pilots slid open his window and, like a teeny worm sticking out of an apple, stuck his head out and gave a thumbs up to the wide-eyed crowd of workers below.

As it takes a full 2 hours to clean the jet after the passengers exit, a press conference took place before we were able to tour the upper deck of the A380, which is solely for business- and first-class passengers. While the president of Emirates, Tim Clark, answered many questions about the plane, the pilot who made the historical flight stole the show; many of the questions were directed towards him as attendees wanted to know what it was like to actually fly the thing.

After the press conference, we viewed the 76 business seats, 14 first-class seats, lounges, showers and the bar on the upper deck. The technology and showers were most impressive, and the first-class suites, to me, resembled what I would imagine to be the ultimate luxury vanity table, complete with a 180-degree lie-flat bed. Everything needed and wanted for comfort is an arm’s length away in the suites. Business class is huge with 76 seats, but also is impressive and intimate with mood lighting.

-Courtney Centeno, account executive

The more I spend time on the West Coast, the more I understand why my West Coast friends put labels on us from the East - there are definite differences. However, what I’m talking about this time is not personality differences, but physical coastal differences!

At the NBTA conference in LA last week, I experienced my second earthquake and I will admit - I was scared! It registered as a 5.4 and was followed by over 50 aftershocks. At the time of the earthquake I was with fellow GTers Kim Krol and Courtney Centeno at the OpenSkies press conference on the third floor of the convention center. Managing Director of OpenSkies, Dale Moss, was announcing their new route to Amsterdam as it felt like someone began to kick my chair. This feeling quickly led to the whole building shaking from side to side. I thought the roof was coming in.

I would say half the room was filled with New Yorkers who looked at each other like deer in headlights! Finally, someone shouted to get under a doorway and the rumbling finally subsided. The experience was a great icebreaker for networking conversations at the trade show, but when I talked to friends who are from California, I found it did not faze them one bit. Everyone attending the conference from NY was certainly more shaken up from the quake. One West Coast person even remarked, “Come on, an earthquake in LA is like rain in Seattle!” To that, I made a retort about hurricanes and I saw the fear in their eyes! I guess, like everything else, it comes down to what you’re used to. And as for which coast is better, I believe the best way to say it is that neither is better, or worse, just different (but you won’t find me living in LA)!

-Alex Young, vice president and associate publisher