The Traveling Widower

Tag: travel-tips

  • Has Anyone Created A Transporter Yet?

    A man materializing in a futuristic transporter beam surrounded by swirling light and particles, set in a sci-fi environment with control panels in the background.

    20th June, 2026

    This trip has probably been the most organized I’ve been so far – I had everything ready to go a few days ago, including a check-list to go through before I walked out the door. Yeah, I’m pretty anal of late about travel preparation. I’ve been working on stress reduction since my tachycardia event in Baja, and up until now it has been working well. 

    And then yesterday, I tried checking in to my flights, which turned into a great test of controlling stress. For some obscure reason, Alaska Airlines would not let me check-in at all. I wound up on the phone with them for the better part of an hour, and had to talk with Iceland Air as well. Turns out the travel agent that National Geographic uses, booked everything through Iceland Air, including the Alaska Air flights, so I had records with both airlines. They did get everything worked out, and all I needed to do in the morning was check-in with Alaska, and show my passport. Relax.

    I headed off to the airport early today, just in case – and unfortunately for me  it was a case. As the agent behind the counter was checking me in, she suddenly did a “Oh no!”. Not what you want to hear. I guess the ticket record was still a bit confusing since there were booking codes for two different airlines, and she somehow managed to delete my flight to Portland. It took two agents about 45 minutes to straighten the mess out. The agent at one point had a phone held to each ear, one to her airline, the other to Iceland Air. I should have taken a photo, but I doubt if she would have appreciated having that posted on my blog. But, she worked it out, and called me back later to confirm that the flight back home was OK. Good to know. I’ll still check when I get to Reykjavik tomorrow.

    Hopefully, that will be the last bit of excitement on the way there. I did not stress out too much at the airport. But I’ll leave this post open until I get on the next plane to Iceland. Once again, just in case.

    Peace

    View of an airport runway featuring various aircraft, including a Delta Airlines and Icelandair plane, with a clear blue sky and scattered clouds.

    Looking good so far…made it to Portland, and the plane is at the gate. Woo hoo! I checked with the agent at the gate, and I’m checked in, with a valid boarding pass. As long as I don’t have a repeat of my Panama security problems (please let me in!!), I should be photographing whales and puffins tomorrow.

    And I just don’t understand who selects the art to display at airports.

    A colorful, artistic bear sculpture displayed in a glass enclosure on a wooden base, with a patterned carpet visible in the foreground.

  • Yet Another Shutdown #@!!%!

    A long line of travelers waiting in an airport terminal near a security checkpoint. This was the start of the line in terminal E at the Houston airport (IAH)

    March 19th, 2026

    I seem to be jinxed on air and auto travel. This is the third time now that I’ve had one of my travel adventures during some kind of government shutdown. The last time, was Antarctica, and there was a good chance that my flights could have been cancelled due to the TSA shutdown. I lucked out on that one, after stressing out looking for alternatives to getting to LA for the international flight. Then there was another shutdown, where all the rest stops on the main highways were shuttered. That was difficult for anyone with bladder issues. And here we are again…..another TSA shutdown, and chaos at the major hubs. The one thing I REALLY DO NOT NEED on this trip is stress. Right.

    It takes two flights to get to Panama City from Sacramento – I opted to stay overnight in Houston, so flew in yesterday. That was an easy flight, until I tried checking in for the flight from IAH to Panama City. For some obscure reason, United would not let me check-in – apparently, I needed some document to prove that I was going to leave Panama, since I was flying back from Costa Rica. United had my reservations, but knew nothing about the National Geographic cruise. My first reason to stress-out on the trip. I called United, and they said I just needed to check-in the next day and everything would be fine. Sure. Do I look like someone that believes that foreign countries are paying the tariffs? The National Geographic travel agent was pretty sure that’s all I needed to do as well. That did not help either – I’m a glass half empty kind of guy. So I worried during the entire flight from SMF to Houston. And then I had to walk about a mile to get to the United check-in lobby, to try and get things worked out. This is a huge airport. Fortunately, I found a helpful agent who magically got me checked-in. Stress relieved. Another long walk and short train ride and I made it to the Marriott for the night. I really could have used a martini. I had gelato instead. Almost as good. 

    My flight for Panama City was scheduled for 9:30 the next morning, so I figured I’d start heading over to the international terminal (hey, I was traveling to another country….seemed like the right place to go). I checked the TSA site, which had a 15 minute wait to get through security, so I figured maybe leave around 6:45 to get to the terminal.  I woke up early for a change (sarcasm…I always get up too early), and headed down to the train station, to get to Terminal E. Baggage check-in was a snap, then I turned around to head to security. Yikes!! The line was endless. But wait….it got worse.

    Busy airport terminal with a long check-in line, displaying multiple screens and travelers waiting.

    As I moved along this first line, the entire mass of humanity waiting to get through security came into view. There were separate TSA Pre and Clear lines, merged together for some reason, but the all the lines seemed to be crawling along at the same speed. But at least they were moving. After a while, someone from Clear separated their customers from the TSA Pre line, so that moved us ahead a bit. Still a long line. What a mess. Not a problem for me since I had a lot of time before my flight, but I wound up letting some young woman cut in front, who only had a few minutes to catch her plane. I told her to look for kind people who would let her cut further ahead, but she was too shy. I would have done that. 

    A large crowd of travelers waiting in line at an airport terminal, with various individuals carrying luggage and wearing different types of clothing.
    A crowded airport terminal with a long line of travelers waiting in line, colorful decorations hanging above them.

    Eventually, I made it through after about 30 minutes or so. The main problem was at the TSA end – there were only two luggage scan stations out of about 15 that were staffed. Quite the bottleneck. A big thank you to the US Congress. The only good news is that everyone seemed to be taking this mess in stride (a slight pun, not intended) – most everyone quietly suffered. And nobody blamed the TSA workers, just our ineffective government.

    After all that, I looked down at my boarding pass and realized I was in the wrong terminal. My flight left from Terminal C, not E. So, I opted for the long walk rather than taking the train. I needed to stretch my legs. And like most airports, there was lots of cool and strange artwork along the endless corridors.

    An airport hallway with travelers walking, one with a luggage cart. The area features bright lighting, polished floors, and large windows providing natural light.
    A circular window featuring vibrant artwork of marine life, including fish and underwater plants, framed by intricate designs and patterns.
    Sculpture titled 'Lost in Thought' by Clara Hoag, featuring a head made of glazed and fired clay, adorned with colorful painted brick-like structures, displayed in an airport setting.

    I ended my airport excursion  at the United Red Carpet Club – international first class does have some useful privileges. On to Panama! It’s got to get less stressful once I get there.