i was denied an outbound flight from the US to Costa Rica on my 1st attempt. i didn't have a round-trip ticket, so the airline personnel said "no way, jose," in her own way, gave me the number to priceline.com, and i was off - not to spend 13 hrs of traveling mostly asleep, which i'd prepared for by sleeping for 1 hour, but to spend a very wakeful day dealing with many aspects of world travel and it's fine print rules and regulations.
as it turns out, i did not need a round trip flight; i needed an outward ticket - documentation that only vaguely proves i wasn't planning to stay past my touristy welcome in CR. Does everybody get the black and white, "you can't go there" treatment that i did? probably not. there are many factors - which airline, which ticket processor, whether you knew this beforehand and made preparations, and so on, not to mention the obvious - most people probably fly, especially to foreign countries, with either a round-trip or a multi-destination ticket, not a one-way ticket, like i did. i wanted to walk voluntarily into the unknown, and this was the cheapest way for me to achieve it.
it could have been much more expensive. as i waited on a pay phone with priceline.com and watched the minutes getting closer and closer to my original CR flight departing, i knew i could end up eating a lot of money. i mentioned this to a priceline operator and then spent maybe another 20-30 minutes on hold. they were unwilling to budge on reimbursement, let alone ownership that their company, because they know of the one-way travel rule, is thereby obligated to inform their customers of said rule. they were firm on a $150 change of flight fee that US Airways would definitely charge. i heard the supervisor state this numerous times. after over an hour on hold, we were disconnected. i went back to the US Airways desk and immediately, without asking why i'd missed my flight, a ticket agent put me on the next flight, which was for the following morning; obviously they were aching for my itinerary change dollars.
the airlines, despite having a business plan that necessitates having their heads up their asses, were a joy to deal with. thelonius (theo), the airline supervisor, spent more time working out a plan for me to exit the US and enter costa rica than he may have spent with any single person previously. the experience clarified some travel rules for he and his company, and it allowed us to get to know and appreciate each other - he now wants a signed copy of my book. priceline will probably never get my business again.
-http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=1908131
--scroll down to "notsean" and his description of the hippie n gypsy rule - pretty funny, though not necessarily true just because he wrote it.
i returned the next day early, prepared to do what was necessary, and still w/out an exit document from cr - the busses do not sell online, merely in person, though they do advertise online and provide a phone number. i walked right up to the ticket agent that denied me travel the day prior, handed her my passport, and let her know that i wanted to buy a ticket from cr to the US. she wavered initially, "what's different between today and yesterday?" "yesterday i did not know about the onward ticket rule." she knew that i had learned the flying rules the day prior with her boss and found me a ticket for november that would put me under my 90 day restriction (w/out a tourist or work visa). i then threw her the curveball - i bought the same ticket she found for 2.5 times more, but it is fully refundable. she has to know i had and have no intention to use it except to return it, but if that's the way for me to legally leave the US and not be required to return, then that's game i'll play, for now, until perhaps we as a people create a more user friendly game.
instead of passing through phoenix airport and potentially meeting an az friend whom a former university flame wanted/wants me to meet and maybe marry like i would have on my first flight, where there was 13 hrs of travel time and a 3 hr layover, i flew via NC, had a 1 hour layover, and 8 hrs of total travel time. by early afternoon, i was in cr, greeted at the duty free shop with a lady feeding me rum for free - the sales pitch worked and i am now sitting on 1500 liters or so of quality and cheap 7 yr old costa rican rum.
moments later i went through customs. they questioned me also, even brought in a person that spoke better english to try and gauge how much money i had, considering my outbound ticket stated november 13th and i look like i look. plus, i did myself the favor of renewing my passport when i looked like this:
as it turns out, i did not need a round trip flight; i needed an outward ticket - documentation that only vaguely proves i wasn't planning to stay past my touristy welcome in CR. Does everybody get the black and white, "you can't go there" treatment that i did? probably not. there are many factors - which airline, which ticket processor, whether you knew this beforehand and made preparations, and so on, not to mention the obvious - most people probably fly, especially to foreign countries, with either a round-trip or a multi-destination ticket, not a one-way ticket, like i did. i wanted to walk voluntarily into the unknown, and this was the cheapest way for me to achieve it.
it could have been much more expensive. as i waited on a pay phone with priceline.com and watched the minutes getting closer and closer to my original CR flight departing, i knew i could end up eating a lot of money. i mentioned this to a priceline operator and then spent maybe another 20-30 minutes on hold. they were unwilling to budge on reimbursement, let alone ownership that their company, because they know of the one-way travel rule, is thereby obligated to inform their customers of said rule. they were firm on a $150 change of flight fee that US Airways would definitely charge. i heard the supervisor state this numerous times. after over an hour on hold, we were disconnected. i went back to the US Airways desk and immediately, without asking why i'd missed my flight, a ticket agent put me on the next flight, which was for the following morning; obviously they were aching for my itinerary change dollars.
the airlines, despite having a business plan that necessitates having their heads up their asses, were a joy to deal with. thelonius (theo), the airline supervisor, spent more time working out a plan for me to exit the US and enter costa rica than he may have spent with any single person previously. the experience clarified some travel rules for he and his company, and it allowed us to get to know and appreciate each other - he now wants a signed copy of my book. priceline will probably never get my business again.
-http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=1908131
--scroll down to "notsean" and his description of the hippie n gypsy rule - pretty funny, though not necessarily true just because he wrote it.
i returned the next day early, prepared to do what was necessary, and still w/out an exit document from cr - the busses do not sell online, merely in person, though they do advertise online and provide a phone number. i walked right up to the ticket agent that denied me travel the day prior, handed her my passport, and let her know that i wanted to buy a ticket from cr to the US. she wavered initially, "what's different between today and yesterday?" "yesterday i did not know about the onward ticket rule." she knew that i had learned the flying rules the day prior with her boss and found me a ticket for november that would put me under my 90 day restriction (w/out a tourist or work visa). i then threw her the curveball - i bought the same ticket she found for 2.5 times more, but it is fully refundable. she has to know i had and have no intention to use it except to return it, but if that's the way for me to legally leave the US and not be required to return, then that's game i'll play, for now, until perhaps we as a people create a more user friendly game.
instead of passing through phoenix airport and potentially meeting an az friend whom a former university flame wanted/wants me to meet and maybe marry like i would have on my first flight, where there was 13 hrs of travel time and a 3 hr layover, i flew via NC, had a 1 hour layover, and 8 hrs of total travel time. by early afternoon, i was in cr, greeted at the duty free shop with a lady feeding me rum for free - the sales pitch worked and i am now sitting on 1500 liters or so of quality and cheap 7 yr old costa rican rum.
moments later i went through customs. they questioned me also, even brought in a person that spoke better english to try and gauge how much money i had, considering my outbound ticket stated november 13th and i look like i look. plus, i did myself the favor of renewing my passport when i looked like this:
so clearly i look like the respectable businessman type that could withstand months of holiday. ha! they were satisfied with what i presented - gypsy in fake successful businessman clothing punctuated by a nice mid-summer beard strikes again! i was through. legally into the cr, and only lost a little time, which was fine, since i got to unpack 18 pounds of stuff from my checked bag and disperse it elsewhere. plus i got to see fam and a bff for a bit longer and have more hugs - who knows when the next time i receive a hug will be...
the only items i surmise that were confiscated were a couple bic lighters. matches made it through, so did a zippo that i nearly gave to a friend or two before departing, but which i was urged from inside to hold onto (it has come in use already with my new aussie mates, but that full story is not for this story).
i am in central america. lovely, small town, john mellancampy pink houses central america. and it's home, because it's where i am. more stories from home shall follow.
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