Round The World and other travels
A frequent flyer's collection of trip diaries
This is: USA Road Trip 2011
First class indulgence
I got up around 8am. The room was still a little warmer than I would ideally have liked, but it was bearable. I had breakfast in the downstairs restaurant and decided to stick to the continental option, in order to save myself for the delights of my First Class flight to Denver. I relaxed in my room for a while and checked out around 1030. It was a crowded shuttle bus back to the terminal; listening to various snippets of conversation, I realised that a considerable number of flights must have been cancelled the previous day.
At the First Class check-in desk, the agent gave me the choice of using either the free-standing First Class Terminal (FCT), a short walk away, or the First Class Lounge (FCL) next to the B gates. I had used both before, but it had been some time since I was last in the FCT. With the added prospect of quieter surroundings at the FCT and a guaranteed limousine transfer to the aircraft, it felt like a bit of a no-brainer. I set off on the short but uninviting walk through a yard for waiting taxis and quickly found my objective, already convinced that it had been a good decision.
| The initial formalities were quickly completed and I was soon able to relax in these most civilised surroundings. I drank some champagne and had a prawn, grapefruit and coriander cocktail, and later nibbled on some nuts. At the appointed time, I was driven to my 747-400 in a black Mercedes. My fellow-passenger in the limo told me that she had been going to Denver via Chicago the previous day, but that the aircraft had suffered windscreen damage over the Netherlands and had to return to Frankfurt! |
BELOW: Lufthansa's excellent First Class Terminal at
Frankfurt Airport   |
(Link to flight log in side panel)
| BELOW LEFT: United Red Carpet Club at Denver | I had a very friendly passage through US Immigration at Denver, due to the agent's Scottish ancestry and particular family connections with the city I call home - what a small world it is! The process for reclaiming bags, walking through US Customs and re-checking them for connecting flights was also straightforward and I was soon through Security and making the train transfer to the B gates. I found a nice private solo seat by the windows in United's Red Carpet Club and spent my time there watching the comings and goings on the apron below, which included the departure of my Lufthansa 747-400 on its return leg to Frankfurt. When the time came, I made the short walk to the gate area below to catch my connection to Salt Lake City. | |
 |
 ABOVE: My LH 747 on its way back to Frankfurt |
|
(Link to flight log in side panel)
| I took an instant liking to
SLC airport on arrival: it seemed relatively small, nicely
laid out and fairly quiet at that time of the evening. I
collected my case, quickly found the Avis office and was
offered a remarkably cheap upgrade to a Ford Escape, thanks
to multiple cancellations as a result of Hurricane Irene's
blitz on the east coast. I soon found my allocated vehicle,
which was white and California-registered. True to the
agent's description, it did indeed appear to be a 'small
SUV'. I took a few minutes to get used to the location of
the various controls and switches before setting off. I followed the eight-mile route from memory and found it very easy at first, but things became just a little more complicated when I missed a crucial turn after leaving the freeway, which necessitated a bit of messing around in order to get back on track. |
View Larger Map |
Eventually I pulled up at the front door of the Hilton, checked in and put my bags in my room - an absolutely superb junior suite - before returning to park the car in the underground car park, where it was likely to remain until Monday. Not surprisingly, I felt extremely tired when I got back to my room, so I wasted little time in going to bed. Unfortunately, I woke up after just four hours of solid sleep and simply dozed for the remainder of the night.
Saturday 27 Aug
Miles driven: 10
Trip to date: 10