It’s travel day! I’m going to Moscow in just a few hours. Before I takeoff, I am trying to book my flight from Cyprus to Amman. I searched it on ITA Matrix and found it for $130. Then I went to Aegean to book and of course the price has gone up to $200 per person. United requires 25k which is ridiculous and BA requires 4500 Avios + $100 so that’s not worth it.
I don’t have the time to look up all the Star Alliance Partners so I’m asking anyone if they have any tips. Otherwise I’ll just pay and be angry, a TPOL normal state of mind.
Aegean Air Bait & Switch: Any Recs?
The Tri Rail: The Best Deal in Miami/Fort Lauderdale
Hello maties, anyone cleverly fly JetBlue from Colombia and are looking for an affordable way to get from FLL to MIA? While Uber is preferable to taxis, trains are the best for comfort and cost. The Tri-Rail leaves FLL and after only six stops and $3.75 later you are at MIA airport. If you take it north you can even get to West Palm Beach airport. Most people don’t associate south Florida with mass transit but the Tri-Rail is a comfortable, affordable option worth trying.
Amex Centurion MIA in Cachet
The Amex Centurion MIA Lounge Review is part of the Quest Around The Globe Trip Report which covers the following places:
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Grand Cayman
- Cartagena, Colombia
- Medellin, Colombia
- Miami, Florida
- Houston, Texas
- Moscow, Russia
- St. Petersburg, Russia
- Ayia Napa, Cyprus
- Amman, Jordan
- Abu Dhabi, UAE
- New York, New York
Is it me or are the Amex Centurion Lounges losing its spunk? Maybe it’s because I spent all day the Vegas one eating chicken or perhaps it’s because I’m back in the MIA lounge having been here a week before and they are serving kitchie craft food instead of standard breakfast. Overall, I will say that this is the most cramped, least impressive lounge which is why I opted to sleep in the under construction AA lounge. With nothing too impressive to say and with my eyes barely able to say open, I’ve decided to substitute pictures for words.
<==Back to Amex Centurion LAS – Onto AA Admirals Club MIA==>
Admirals Club MIA: Under Construction
The Amex Centurion MIA Lounge Review is part of the Quest Around The Globe Trip Report which covers the following places:
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Grand Cayman
- Cartagena, Colombia
- Medellin, Colombia
- Miami, Florida
- Houston, Texas
- Moscow, Russia
- St. Petersburg, Russia
- Ayia Napa, Cyprus
- Amman, Jordan
- Abu Dhabi, UAE
- New York, New York
There’s no rest for the bloggers. This is especially true if you’re touring the Admirals Clubs at MIA airport. With nowhere to sleep at the Amex Centurion, I went from one Admirals Club to the next in search of a good spot to rest. Both were under construction. One didn’t even have restrooms available. Since my gate is at D39 and since this one has a shower, I decided to camp out here until my flight. The lounge has that Air China Beijing feel in that it forms a loop above the terminal. It has plenty of places to sit but only one place marginally suitable to sleep. The bar is standard and the breakfast is the typical assortment of bagels and cereal that nobody touches. I’m curious as to what this lounge will look like post renovation. Today, it’s just another place to lay my head and wait.
There’s Such A Thing as Too Much Aguardiente
Welcome back from Colombia. Medellin and Cartagena were great but this will not be a happy tale of pina coladas and chicas bonitas. This is a sobering tale of what can happen when you drink too much Aguardiente and find that your phone and dignity have gone missing. Thankfully the fine folks at SPG pieced Humpty Dumpty back together again so all is well.
A friend of mine who accompanies me on many of my trips has a strange habit of getting destroyed the day of arrival. Out of excitement, he can’t handle that he’s overseas for weeks of what will be a great time. The second day he is more tempered. And by the third he barely drinks. The problem is the first day which is a true roll of the dice. Will we be happy and sing songs of good times or will one of us go missing and barely be upright for breakfast?
The same was true for Medellin. The city has a Scottsdale meets LKF feel where everyone is in a festive mood and the universal word is shot! The Spanish response should be no mas but unfortunately for me it was una mas.
Hydrated, I am happy to be at the Centurion Lounge in MIA, perusing the bar for its collection of libations.
Next stop Russia!
Leave Your Lover Behind? What If She’s Bad at Recon
I just got approved for the Citi AAdvantage Gold and Citi Exec. Even with my Chase Sapphire Reserve rejection, my UR balance is strong enough to weather the storm and avoid riding peasant class.
Ms TPOL on the other hand is hated by Citi and Chase alike. She also refuses to call recon and when she does so, she doesn’t follow TPOL’s script for a perfect recon call. Now her points balances are running on fumes and our 2017 plans are looking a little dicey. If I took this conundrum to King Solomon, I believe I would prevail. Her best argument (though she would never ask it of me) would be to split the baby i.e., we both ride in coach. My argument would be that I love points so much that I would rather redeem for a first class ticket than see them put to poor use. Unlike the biblical story, I would be the one who gets to keep the points.
As a points professional, I have lent her points of my own so that she could experience the joys of the fake good life. I use the word lent because I keep a running tab of her indebtedness to me. She’s always been able to make good on repaying me by getting approved for cards (lest I bust her kneecaps). At the same time, it’s always been a joke (that only I find funny) that I’m actually expecting repayment.
In all seriousness, during the good days with MS and endless churning, I never cared about running out of points so I gave freely. Now, the walls are closing in on all of us and I’m getting nervous about keeping up this points facade.
What would you do? Share the points and go back to the back of the plane? Use low-cost carriers and your reserve of JetBlue & SWA to go to decent destinations while you wait for the economy to soften and the banks to overturn their silly rules? Show tough love like Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and send her pics while sipping on champagne, in first?
Citi AAdvantage Gold Approved!
Okay, so it’s not the Chase Sapphire Reserve, yaddah yaddah yaddah. But I am sharing the news of my Gold approval for two reasons: 1)It marks the beginning of the end of the good days with Citi. I just got approved for the Citi Exec for 60k miles and the top off from this card will give me another 25k miles. With the SPG transfer bonus offer where I received 30k for transferring 20k, I am back in business with AA (at least for one more flight). Now I can’t apply for another Citi AA card or Hilton card for 2 years because of their new policy. 2) I didn’t even call recon. I’m in Colombia right now and couldn’t be bothered to deal with it. This is the first time for a Citi app that I’ve controlled my impulse and let it go.
Did you get any last second cards from Citi? Are you also on vacation not calling recon?
What’s the Point of Your Travels
I’m off to Colombia for a few days because JetBlue had a Labor Day sale. The outbound flight was 2000 points which is why I couldn’t pass up a trip to Cartagena. I try to go to new countries to increase my country count (I think it has topped 80 ‘countries’) but I actually prefer going back to the same places so I don’t have to run around doing tourist activities the whole time. At the Michigan alumni bar in Miami, I told an alum my itinerary which, for now, is as follows:
- Montana
- Las Vegas
- Grand Cayman
- Miami
- Cartagena
- Medellin
- Houston
- Moscow
- St. Petersburg
- Cypress
- Amman
- Abu Dhabi
- NYC
Zika in Miami: My Mom Says Be Careful
En route to Miami, I received a text from my mother telling me that the first Zika mosquito has been found there. She then told me to be careful. I couldn’t help but laugh at that advice. Maybe Zika could become a serious problem but I’m not sure what I can do to protect myself. Perhaps I should purchase extra strong Deet.
When I went to Thailand for the first time my doctor prescribed anti Malaria medication. Malaria is no joke but I risked it because I couldn’t be bothered to take the pills. At least these pills were not the ones that produce hallucinations.
From hurricane warnings to terrorist threats to killer bees, it’s a wonder that anyone would dare leave the basement. For me, the opposite is true. I’ve been desensitized to the headlines that I go where I please, regardless of pesky mosquitos. 
On Holiday? Don’t Check the Weather
Greetings from the Caymans. I woke up a bit tardy today and it’s because I violated my own rule and checked the weather yesterday. Nothing is worse than arriving at a tropical paradise to encounter clouds, wind, and rain. The pictures come out terrible and the value of the trip takes a major hit. The wrong thing to do in reaction to a stormy day is to check the weather. Not once has the next day been sun with a 100% chance of tranquility. Instead, it usually shows scattered showers and partly cloudy. The rest of the day is spent checking the report again and telling yourself that the hint of a sun in the party cloudy graphic means mostly sunny.
This happened to me when I arrived in Bora Bora. It was rainy and the forecast said no sun until the day I left. Of course it did. This negative report has something to do with my negative experience at the hotel.
Yesterday, I made the same mistake and today I could not find the motivation to get out of the comfortable Marriott bed. I kept imagining the dark beach and tidal waves hitting the pool, so much so that I thought I was awake.
Of course when I finally woke up, I saw nothing but blue skies and clear water.(after I left the courtyard view room) Pina colada in hand and smuggled bottle of rum, I am now doing my best to catch up on my sun.
And now this picture of sun and fun:
