LAX-LAS-IAD - The 12 Hour Journey Home

I headed out from the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza at 5:00 PM on Wednesday, October 25, 2006 for LAX, and then IAD via Las Vegas. I knew it would take me awhile to get home. But I didn't think it would take 12 hours door-to-door. Here's the recap:

October 25, 2006, 7:30 PM
Tonight’s itinerary is LAX-LAS-IAD. I’m at LAX, waiting to board the flight to Las Vegas. The last time I was here, I was in the midst of a Mileage Run, sitting in the same exact terminal. Dinner tonight was at Wolfgang Puck’s – a warm foccia chicken sandwich and a small side Caesar Salad. Quite tasty, but overpriced.

I enjoyed Los Angeles. The weather was warm and sunny, the conference was fun and I got to meet a lot of interesting people. The last few days have been fun. But I’m exhausted. Primarily because of the time change. My body is still on East Coast time. And I automatically wake up at 7 AM East Coast time, regardless of where I am in the world. That meant waking up at 4 AM for the first two nights in Los Angeles. I actually slept until 5 AM this morning.

The lack of sleep, coupled with the excitement of the conference and all the travel have tuckered me out. I’m sure I’ll be sleeping for most of the flight back to IAD.

The plane to Las Vegas has arrived. Time to go enjoy the Group 1 Boarding I received for being a Premier member!

October 26, 2006, 8:30 AM
The flight from LAX-LAS got off to a slow start. First, the pilot was delayed, flying another plane into LAX before switching planes and flying back out. Second, a "check engine" light appeared on the dashboard. Mechanics spent time trying to figure out what the problem was. They finally rebooted the system and the warning light went away. Someone quipped, "the warning software must have been written by Microsoft!"

The flight to Las Vegas was short. Less than an hour. It's always fun to fly into Las Vegas at night. You get to see the entire city all ablaze in light and color. Unfortunately, I was only on the ground for a plane change. I didn't get to venture out into the city night.

My flight was supposed to take off at 10:50, but got pushed back to 11:20. I'm not sure what the delay was. But it gave me an opportunity to grab a Starbucks Green Tea Frappicino and try my hand at the slots. Let's just say the frappicino was more rewarding than the slot machines were.

The flight to IAD was smooth. The biggest surprise was the flight was completely full. I'm not sure why so many people were interested in taking the red eye to Washington, DC on a Wednesday night. I really expected to see the flight half empty.

But I had my Economy Plus seat with the extra leg room, and enjoyed that space the whole way. I spent most of the time sleeping. But it's always hard to get a good night's rest in an airplane.

We landed at Dulles at 6:30 AM. I retrieved my bag at 7:00 AM, and took a shuttle back home that got me to Bethesda at 8:00 AM. 12 hours, door-to-door travel time.

I head out to Los Angeles frequently. I don't recall it taking that long to get there or back. Normally, it's 30 minutes to IAD, an hour waiting for the plane, 5 hours of flying time, and then another 30 minutes to get to my sister's house in LA - about 7 hours. The 12 hour commutes really drag on. Obviously, the key is flying non-stop. But I'm trying to earn enough Equivalent Qualifying Miles to hit Premier Executive before the end of the year. I should be pretty close.