A multi-pronged Aug-Sep 2018 trip to Boston to visit Allie, then to Lisbon via Dublin to spend time in Portugal with Laurie, culminating in a return to Boston to meet Barb for a long weekend.
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Wednesday, September 5: Lisbon – Dublin – Boston
My actual flight from Lisbon to Dublin is ok, departing on time and arriving at 1am. I slept some on the plane and now faced another 10 hours to wait for my flight to Boston. You can’t stay overnight in the departures/duty free area so I head out to the airport lobby and find a seat at the all-night food court. There were about 50 other stragglers in area, some stretched out and snoozing in booths, but most like me sitting awake in chairs at tables. There were a smattering of snacks, coffee, soft drinks and beer available for purchase and one lonely attendant. I bought a bottle of water and sat for 3 hours, finished reading Vacationland.
The airside of the terminal opened at 4am for the sake of early outbound flights. I went in and did some duty free shopping (Dior for Allie, whiskey for me, Maltesers for Barb…not exactly an even deal for Barb) and got a full Irish breakfast at the Slaney, which pretty much lived up to its reputation as one of the worst restaurants in Dublin. The Dublin airport offers pre-clearance for US immigration in a special area, but it didn’t open until 7am. So I waited a couple more long hours in the duty free area, groggy but afraid to go to sleep. I tried the pre-clearance area again at 6:45am and found a long line that was not moving. Once they opened at 7, the line moved pretty quickly but I got selected for extra screening. Why? Who knows? They say it’s random but it seems to be happening often to me. This time it’s a pretty thorough search and pat down, but I have nowhere else to be in a hurry.
It’s 7:30 by the time I got through. My flight was scheduled at 11:20 but the signs said boarding would begin at 9:55 which seemed too early. Anyway, for my own curiosity, well being, and somewhat at Barb’s urging, I decided to pay Eu39 to get in the 51st & Green lounge, even for just 2-3 hours. The lounge was decently nice, with some high-back swivel seats good for snoozing and some privacy and a complimentary breakfast buffet of sorts. I mostly do cheese, bread and crackers. The bar wasn’t open so I had some apple juice to begin. I tried the bar again after a little while and found I could request wine. So I did. For sleep inducement purposes, only.
I stayed in the lounge for about 3 hours, snoozing a little, reading a little, until about an hour before the flight and then headed to the gate. I was pleased that I only had to await a little while before boarding started. Once on the plane I was seated next to a man who is even larger than me. He’s a pleasant enough Irish gentleman going to the states to visit his son and take a road trip to Las Vegas, but we are both squirming to fit in the tiny seats. Very fortunately, the pair of window/aisle seats next to me stayed unoccupied so I hopped over to them and made myself (and the other guy) much happier for the 6-½ hour flight.
Once I was on the plane and could spread out, I wasn’t actually sleepy, so I watched “Red Sparrow” with Jennifer Lawrence as a Russian spy. It was emphatically not a good movie. Some have attributed its box office failure as a middle America reaction against J-Law’s anti-Trump positions. But no, it’s just not a very good movie. The plotting is obvious, the acting is wooden, and most Russian bad guys all look alike.
You have to pay for alcohol on Aer Lingus, and they make a point of not offering any during the meal service which I don’t understand. I asked for a ginger ale and that started a 10-minute search of the plane before they find one. All in all, Aer Lingus is not a very good airline, though it did perform the primary tasks of leaving on time and getting me to my destinations intact.
After the movie and meal, we’re still more than 3 hours from Boston. I return to my most reliable friend on long flights: the downloaded music on my phone. At this point I had a little more than 200 songs, but it’s hours of listening to old friends and memories. I’m still fascinated how songs trigger certain memories and random synapse connections. Though I was tired, I still didn’t sleep much.
The arrival at Boston was uneventful, even a little anticlimactic to come off an international flight and just be dumped into the regular airport terminal as if I’ve just taken a puddle jumper from Albany. I found my luggage and called the shuttle for my Hampton Inn Logan Airport hotel. It was a regular Hampton Inn, but about 3 miles out toward Revere in a largely unappealing industrial area, and I was paying nearly $300/night for it. I decided it was fine for me for two nights, but I ended up making a new reservation at the Harborside Inn near Faneuil Hall for closer to $200/night for when Barb comes. I got in touch with Allie and Barb to say I’m alive and confirm plans for the next few days. Allie is busy with various unanticipated things including her goodbye party from Staples so I wouldn’t see her that night or the next.
There was a little restaurant and bar in the hotel that was actually reviewed relatively well. People have low expectations. I had a nondescript tuna melt and a beer, redeemed slightly by friendly service from a staff that was actually working hard. The bar was full of older white folks loudly planning their vacations. My people. I hate them.
I adjourned back to my room, found the US Open tennis, made my own quiet plans for the coming days and finally fell asleep before the 11pm news.
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