Page 73 – The Points Of Life

Visa Blunder Part 1: Signing My Release to Be Detained

thepointsoflife

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September 24, 2021

Signing My Release to Be Detained is part of the Tahiti Triumph Trip Report. It covers the following cities:

See the Picture Preview here and see how this $60,000 trip cost $1999 here. Be sure to check out TPOL’s Map, the best feature of the blog.

TPOL has done some stupid shit in his travel life. That’s why I keep a page of Travel Lessons for you to learn from, have a laugh at my expense, and for me to never forget. For example, while trying to catch a flight from Oslo, Norway to JFK when I was in Iceland may have been the dumbest thing I’ve done (see Flying Icelandair by Mistake), my visa blunder in China was by far the most stressful. It all started at the Narita airport in Tokyo. I went to the ticket counter in a good mood after my sake ramen experience (see ANA Lounge Tokyo: Noodle & Sake Bar). There I was told that I could not go to China because I did not have a visa. Arrogant, I explained to the agent, someone who handles these issues daily, the 144-hour visa transit rule (see China 144-hour Visa-Free Transit: It Worked the 1st Time).

The Rule: China has a 144-hour visa transit rule that lets visitors enter major cities without a visa. The catch is that the visitor has to be coming from X country and leaving to Y, and the visitor has to stay in the city of entry.

My Situation: I was flying from New Zealand to Shanghai but with a connection in Japan. I was going home from Shanghai with a connection in Japan. In my legal estimation, this satisfied the rule because I wasn’t actually entering Japan.

The Release: The agent said I would have to sign a release before boarding the plane stating that I would not hold the airline accountable should I have issues in China. Macho me signed away and shook my head in disbelief at the ignorance of the agent. To think, I would’ve missed my flight and missed my birthday celebration over this.

Doubts? Having gone through this before (see China’s 72-hour Visa-Free Transit Rule: Flyer Beware), I was pretty sure that I was right. Everything was going to be fine. Or was it?

Continue reading: Visa Blunder Part 2.

a group of people sitting at a desk — The oblivious idiot.

ANA Lounge Tokyo: Noodle & Sake Bar

thepointsoflife

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September 24, 2021

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ANA Lounge Review Tokyo is part of the Tahiti Triumph Trip Report. It covers the following cities:

See the Picture Preview here and see how this $60,000 trip cost $1999 here. Be sure to check out TPOL’s Map, the best feature of the blog.

I looked for calm and quiet when I arrived at the ANA Lounge in Tokyo. Then I had an encounter with this annoying person (see An American Douche in Tokyo Lounge). Sensing my annoyance, the gods mercifully offered me countless varieties of sake, a robust selection of ramen, Japanese whisky, a beautiful shower, and the world’s greatest toilet. Little did I know that after this stop, my peace would be no more.

a man standing in front of a machine — Greatest beer dispenser

a man standing next to a model airplane — An oblivious fool.

Air New Zealand AKL-NRT: Modeling in Business Class

thepointsoflife

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September 23, 2021

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Air New Zealand Auckland Tokyo is part of the Tahiti Triumph Trip Report. It covers the following cities:

See the Picture Preview here and see how this $60,000 trip cost $1999 here. Be sure to check out TPOL’s Map, the best feature of the blog.

I’ve said it before, Air New Zealand does not receive enough love. I’ve flown it plenty of times and have found the service to be great, the food to be good, and the seat to be comfortable.

This time I flew it from Auckland to Tokyo to model Air New Zealand’s famous socks.

Obligatory Photos of Seats

Since I’ve reviewed this flight before (see Air New Zealand PVG-AKL: The Black Mamba), I’m going to spare myself the trouble of going into great detail about the seats. Some blogs may repeat the same thing over and over, but the I’m here to tell a story, not to give an inch-by-inch recap of every aspect of the plane.

people in an airplane with people in the back — It is crowded in the business class.

Champagne

Another blog obligation is a photo of the champagne.

Breakfast

Most of my long-haul flights are in the evening. Having breakfast first on this morning flight was a change from that.

a glass with a green liquid in it — Smoothie

Dinner

On the flight to Auckland, I had a burger. This time I had a little bit of everything.

Snacks

What’s a business class flight without cheese and finger food?

The Modeling

And now for the main event. TPOL in Air New Zealand socks. Contact my agent for collaboration opportunities.

Overall

Designer chic aboard Air New Zealand.

That Was Fast: 80k MR’s Posted

thepointsoflife

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September 22, 2021

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From insomnia (see Oops!… I Did It Again: Min Spending Hell) to hitting the min in one transaction (see 1 Transaction =120,000 Membership Rewards Points Earned), I satisfied min spend on my Amex Business Gold and received the points in record time. I also transferred 36k Avios to take advantage of the 1.25 transfer bonus and because I may need a flight back home from Europe (see Booked! One Way to Madrid…No Return in Sight). The 40k bonus spend on that card for digital ads covers that transfer. Maybe it’s time to apply for this card again and again and again as I keep receiving offers for it.

1 Transaction =120,000 Membership Rewards Points Earned

thepointsoflife

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September 17, 2021

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Tossing and turning all night from minimum spends is no way to live (see Oops!… I Did It Again: Min Spending Hell). Having spent nothing on Amex Busines Gold (see Amex ’90k’ Business Gold Offer: Resolved, Sort Of) and with the October 11th deadline quickly approaching, I decided to take care of this card with one transaction. I prepaid Google Ads, $10,000 for my Bachuwa Law account. This checks off all boxes. 1. I hit the minimum spend, giving me the 80k welcome bonus. 2. I trigger the 4X category, giving me 40k points. #3. I can spread the word to help consumers fight more credit card companies (see Amex Shutdown? Remedy & Going Forward, Chase Mandatory Arbitration: Stop Complaining, Start Fighting).

34k to go!

Oops!… I Did It Again: Min Spending Hell

thepointsoflife

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September 16, 2021

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Apologies for the OMAAT headline (see Blog Roast OMAAT: Starting Posts with Ouch, Wow, Uh Oh, Wild, Major, Whoa). Britney may soon be free, but I’m still in minimum spending prison, something I wrote about in 2015 (see Insomnia from Minimum Spends). Inundated with offers, I recklessly applied and was approved for too many cards. To make matters worse, Ms. TPOL was also approved for the same cards.

Now I face the daunting task of reaching the mins over the next two months. Here’s the mess I am in:

The Amex Business Gold is the most pressing. I didn’t spend anything on it when I first received it because I was waiting for them to apply the right welcome offer (see Amex ’90k’ Business Gold Offer: Resolved, Sort Of). Given the laundry list of disclosures against MS, I won’t be doing that either (see I’m Done with Manufactured Spending, also written in 2015). Let’s see how I will get this done without going broke.

ATM Issues Abroad

thepointsoflife

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September 15, 2021

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Although I managed to escape the Medellin airport using Uber (see Uber Is Illegal in Medellin Airport, Unless Your Brother Is Picking You Up), I still needed cash. I went to the ATM and it did not work. I went to another and had the same problem. Hoping to avoid roaming charges, I called Chase’s toll-free number and since I was in Colombia, it obviously did not work. I called the international number, was put on hold, and the roaming charges piled up. Then I heard, “Welcome to Chase. Our office is closed.” Luckily, I received a notification on my phone asking if I had attempted to withdraw money. I said yes and was able to proceed. Otherwise, I would be out of luck.

TPOL’s TIP: Get your Schwab together! (see Charles Schwab Debit Card: Use As Instructed)

Postscript: I was charged 2 withdrawals even though the first did not go through. Now to see how Chase handles that.

a group of small statues on a bench — No ATM card is the Death Whistle in Medellin

Uber Is Illegal in Colombian Airports, Unless Your Brother Is Picking You Up

thepointsoflife

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September 14, 2021

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Uber Is Illegal in Colombian Airports is part of the Punxsutawney TPOL Trip Report, where TPOL leaves the basement. It’s finally happening despite inconsistent policies, interruptions, and human stupidity as explained in these posts:

Like it used to be in Puerto Rico, Uber is illegal at Medellin airport. I learned this upon arriving and waiting downstairs for a driver to come, who never came. Just as I was Googling, ‘Uber pickup Medellin airport,’ my driver called and I was able to ascertain from my Spanish abilities that Uber picks up at the departures. I took the escalator up and there he was, my estranged brother.

Riding in the front, I wonder if I would have dealt with the undercover hassle had I had my Schwab card (see TPOL Forgets How to Travel) and the ability to take a taxi.

TPOL’s TIP: Per my friend from Medellin, take the white taxi from the airport. It should not cost more than 60k pesos ($16) to the city center. This information is helpful to avoid what I hate most about travel, taxi scammers (“Taxi my friend?” The Worst Places to Hail a Cab).

TPOL’s TIP: Uber must have been legal at one point, given that the app lets a rider designate at which exit door he is located.

a group of cars parked in a parking lot — Cross the street right away to avoid the scammers waiting right outside the arrival terminal.

TPOL Forgets How to Travel

thepointsoflife

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September 13, 2021

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TPOL Forgets How to Travel is part of the Punxsutawney TPOL Trip Report, where TPOL leaves the basement. It’s finally happening despite inconsistent policies, interruptions, and human stupidity as explained in these posts:

My trip to Colombia was my first in almost two years. And it showed. While I knew where my passport was after ‘misplacing it’ earlier in the year (see Misplacing My Passport Without Traveling), everything else was disorganized.

First, I could not find my Schwab card, despite turning the house upside down. I sadly will encounter ATM fees as a result (see Charles Schwab Debit Card: Use As Instructed). Second, I did not have my Priority Pass configured because I had cancelled all premium cards and had just received my Amex Platinum Business Card (see Approved! Amex Business Platinum). Unlike Schwab, I had wisely contacted Amex ahead of my trip to enroll in Priority Pass. Even with the number in hand, I did not have the enrollment pin and could not activate my membership prior to taking off. Luckily, I won’t need access to a lounge on my outbound flight.

TPOL’s TIP: it takes 3-5 business days for Amex to generate a Priority Pass number. Contact them via chat to set it up.

The disorganization continued when I realized that I did not have Uber installed on my new phone (see Samsung Z Flip Was a Flop). I downloaded that and added my new credit card.

The easy part was supposed to be packing as my standard checklist (see What to Pack: “Take 1/2 the Clothes, Twice the Money”) was saved on Evernote. Of course, my new phone doesn’t have Evernote, so I had to download that and change access to the new phone.

TPOL’s TIP: Use OneNote. Evernote’s basic service is only for 2 devices. OneNote is unlimited.

The convenient part, per the airline, was using the VeriFLY app. That was terrible (see VeriFLY: What’s My Favorite Word? “Stupid!”).

And finally, to add further insult, I did not check the routing to Medellin. It turns out, AA flies a 787 with lie-flat seats from Miami. That’s only 22k on Avios. Here I was thinking I got a good deal flying coach for $50 using my AA voucher (see AA Refund!…7-20 Business Days).

Overall

I had this much trouble before even getting to the airport. What will happen next?

a man standing in front of a check in counter — Here we go.

VeriFLY: What’s My Favorite Word? “Stupid!”

thepointsoflife

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September 10, 2021

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VeriFLY is part of the Punxsutawney TPOL Trip Report, where TPOL leaves the basement. It’s finally happening despite inconsistent policies, interruptions, and human stupidity as explained in these posts:

TPOL’s TIP: While Colombia does not require proof of vaccine or a negative COVID test, it does require that a health questionnaire be completed at least one hour before departure. If you’re searching for the United States as your country of origin, you won’t find it. It’s under ‘Estados Unidos’.

The challenging, stressful part for my first international trip was attempting to check-in via the AA app. To do so, I had to download the VeriFLY app, a stupid app with a stupid name. And that’s putting it nicely.

First, there are no directions on AA for using the app. I logged in and had no idea what to do after the initial setup. I Google VeriFLY and learned that I needed to create a new pass. I attempted to do so by clicking on ‘visit to Colombia’. Why the list starts with ‘visit to’ and is not just an alphabetical list of all countries, I do not know.

After I selected Colombia and put in my flight information, I was instructed to forward a health declaration form to colombia@everifly.com. This reminded me of the ancient days when I would have to manually forward booking emails to the TripIt. I received a reply saying that my information did not match up. I tried it again and it worked the second time. For some reason, the app still didn’t show that I had met all the requirements. One hour later, I gave up. The next day I went to the airport and I still could not check-in online. Old school again, I had to go to the ticket counter and show the health declaration form.

The app is supposed to save time and make travel less stressful. It did not.