Saturday, May 16, 2009

Greetings From LAX

Yes hello from the airport that DWELL magazine calls the worst in the United States.
"It is best described as a collection of drab terminals 
connected by a traffic jam, which starts 
out on I-405 and coagulates on a circular drive that loops around the Landmark Theme Building," the magazine says, adding that the Theme Building, "looking like something a 1950s sci-fi set designer dreamed up, is LAX’s only architectural positive.
I'm no more surprised than LAX officials by this ranking. For years whenever I have arrived at any other airport I've ever been to, my first thought was, "wow, this terminal is cool!" It's only now that I realize that they're cool by comparison. I always check out Burbank airport first when making travel plans; and I'm always disappointed to learn that apparently there are no direct flights between Burbank and anywhere. Las Vegas, for example has two connecting flights and costs $350 from Burbank. From LAX it's 40 minutes and costs $100. Clearly some kind of anti competitive strategy is at work in this town.

Oh yeah. Flying to London for the week, thanks for asking. I got high school friends who have emigrated, specifically my drama teacher Justine and Smartest Guy In Class Phil, who was Ambassador to Tunisia and is now employed in Great Britain at our state department. If you get all your news from Fox you'll be surprised to learn that our president's trip to England last month went quite smoothly. I am looking forward to embassy food.

Hopefully I'll be too busy to blog, but compulsive graphomaniac that I am I wouldn't count on it.

By the way one thing I will say about LAX -- this is the first time I've ever been able to scar up free wireless access. It's probably just this terminal, but I/m grateful nonetheless. I'd have had to upload from the hotel otherwise!

6 comments:

  1. Wow. Going to England, the most dangerous country in the European theater!

    Good luck with that.

    If you convert to Islam you'll fit right in. Otherwise, you'll be a stranger in a strange land just like the former owners of Britain.

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  2. ...Oh, and have a good time. (meant to say that) Enjoy the stay. Have some fish and chips. Don't get knifed.

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  3. Did you have to buy that Rosetta Stone "learn a foreign language" CD?

    Seriously, have a great trip.

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  4. yeah LAX is pretty drab. not as bad as JFK though, yuck! you've been to England before so this time will be better, yes? oh and grats on the finding internet, i browsed the whole terminal to only find T-Mobile hot spots!

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  5. Yes, as you predicted, the city is wracked with IEDs. Every half hour I have to pick the broken glass out of my hair and try to enjoy myself. What a fool I was to think that some Muslims AREN'T terrorists! I have learned my lesson, Publius, that's for sure.

    And thanks WAMK.

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  6. LOL

    ... and no one has a full set of teeth, right?

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