Things I Ponder While Traveling (or Shit I Think of While I'm Stewing Over Someone's Screwup)

Some thoughts on traveling from a mostly well-traveled girl...
~I've always had this glamorous picture in my mind about what I thought traveling for work looked like and what it meant... but the reality of it ain't so pretty. Sure it's fun for the first few or even dozen trips, but after that, it gets old very quickly. If you have the chance to do it, go for it and gain the experience, but be forewarned, it can be extremely exhausting.

~Overbooking - what's the point? I've heard of flights being overbooked but never a hotel. I understand that there will always be those last minute cancellations, but what the hell is someone to do when they're away from home and the reservation they made holds no merit? There damn well better be a back up plan. ~Cab/shuttle/bus drivers should NOT discuss politics with their passengers without prompting from their passenger(s) first. There's more than likely multiple issues we'll disagree on and I don't want to discuss them with a) someone I don't know and b) someone driving the car I'm in for fear things will get heated and I may end up dead as the result of a horrific accident because the driver went all ballistic about whether or not they should build a mosque at the site of the WTC. Ugh!

~There seems to be an inverse correlation between the appearance of a hotel's lobby and its rooms. Nice lobby=shitty rooms and vice versa... but maybe that's just my perception.

~There's always a surprise waiting for you on the other side of the hotel room door. It could range from a) very disappointing to b)what you were expecting to c) phenomenal... but you'll never know until you slide your key into the reader and turn that handle. Consequently, you can get a pretty good read of what your room is going to look like depending on the appearance of the door. Ugly/old door? Good bet your room will look like that as well. (Funny note: That's the room number I was assigned in the first hotel yesterday.)

~If a hotel is going to test its fire alarms, don't you think it's best to conduct those tests during the middle of the day when the hotel is least populated with guests? Why not do it when most people are off the property for the day? 5:30 PM is NOT one of those good times.

~Restaurants and room service in hotels are highly underrated... you tend to forget how nice those amenities are when you're used to staying somewhere without them.

~Why does a hotel allow me to check-in online the day prior to my reservation and then tell me there are no rooms available when I arrive?

~Is it just me, or do planes and elevators seem like time/space continuums? You get in, the doors close, and then either seconds or hours later, you've been transported to another place (and essentially you're transported to another time when you change time zones... but hopefully not in an elevator)!

~What's up with hotels with "smoking" rooms? What about the clean air act? Why is ANYONE allowed to smoke indoors anymore? More importantly, why are cab drivers allowed to smoke in their cabs? I can assure you, you'll have far fewer customers overall, and virtually no repeat customers if they have to shower after leaving your vehicle.

And that brings this bitch session to a close. What are things you don't understand about the travel industry? Anything like what I've described or other horrors I've yet to face?