Blog: California here I come

By CNN's Richard Quest

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(CNN) -- Posted: October 23, 2006

It's the weekend, but that hasn't put a stop to my travels. Saturday night and I am en route from Atlanta where I have been filming, to Los Angeles.

But first let me tell you about something that happened on my flight from Singapore to New York (alright, Newark, NJ, but you know what I mean).

A fellow passenger brought to my attention that the guy in the last row, at the back of the plane, was watching DVDs that, frankly, were not suitable for family viewing.

Well, I had to investigate myself. And sure enough movies of a blue nature were being watched in that row which he had to himself it must be said. Not that you could see that clearly, since the DVD player was turned away.

So, you had to shimmy round the side of the plane, crane your neck and then twist a bit to get a good look.

Which reminded me of the joke about the old woman who calls the police because the neighbours across the street are "up to it" and she can see all from her bathroom! "Madam," says the policeman looking out of the window, "I can't see anything." "Of course you can't" she retorts, "You have to stand on the toilet and lean outside to get a proper view!"

So -- what would you do if the passenger in the front row to you was watching blue movies? Assuming there are no children nearby would you ask them to stop?

A quick update on matters arisen so far. Last week I wondered how long it would take for SQ to credit my miles my UA account.

Well, Singapore have done the business: less than a week after the flights and both journeys are sparkling on my Mileage Plus account. At a time when so many alliances members are slow to credit flights, this is impressive.

On this point, I have been warned by several airlines that their partners are getting sticky in agreeing to credit missing mileage unless all the paperwork is correct and proper.

It has never been more important to keep your boarding pass and an e-ticket receipt in case the miles don't show up in a timely fashion.

One other thing -- In my past two blogs I have referred to Connexion by Boeing, the in-flight internet service.

This is being discontinued at the end of the year, despite the fact 17 or so airlines have bought it. According to Boeing not enough of us are using it to make it commercially viable.

Unfortunately Boeing never made it very easy to use it -- lots of application forms, logging in, passwords, etc. I felt I was applying for a mortgage rather than trying to use a wi-fi system.

But that shouldn't detract from the fact Connexion is a very good idea. On that 16-hour flight it was lovely to have the option to check e-mails, instant message or simply surf sites -- no, not those sites!

At the moment Connexion has been made free until the final switch off in December (that is unless someone else comes along and buys the thing -- negotiations are believed to be taking place).

So if you are flying on a plane that has the gadgetry to connect -- try it before it's gone! Now -- I am going to Los Angeles for a bit more filming.

This time it is for Quest for Art. You can see the results of this next weekend in the show -- and for Business Traveller: Connection Around the World, which can be seen next month! (Sorry, forgive the plug).

My Delta 737 from Atlanta is packed. Even though the flight is 4 hours 35 minutes all we have been given is a miserable cheese and cracker snack with a biscuit; refreshment more worthy of a shuttle flight from London to Belfast than a transcon flight in the US.

Have we sunk so low these days in US travel that major carriers can't even offer a meal on longish haul domestic flights? Or even something to buy? Shame on you Delta!

quest@cnn.com

Great reports. Love them. Always look forward to next installment. Think you should do one on the extraordinary development in Dubai. I see all those expensive tall towers and wonder where the people are that will occupy them. Those new Palm Islands, another example of making something from nothing.
Ted Wilson, Shenzen, China (Oct.23)

It was fun to read your blog on CNN , and more importantly you finally got Sleepy enrolled on the FF program. Keep the good work and don't stop entertaining us.
Robin, New Dehli (Oct. 23)

I chuckled aloud about your question of per diems... I was quite excited when I noticed that you were going to be flying through Singapore (as are my partner and I) but, alas, our dates do not connect. We don't transit Singapore until the 25th (and then only for about 75 minutes between flights) and then on the way back, we're in Singapore for a few hours (on Nov 7/8). Perhaps we'll run into you in a lounge somewhere soon.
Charles, Shanghai, China (Oct.23)

I thought I would still take a moment to say that I love your quirkiness. I am currently traveling around the world for a year or so and am so excited for those rare moments that I am able to watch you on your show. Keep up the good work as I know there are many other fans out there.
Jen Nathan, (Oct. 22)

I am a Tanzanian and I live in Dar-es-Salaam, I do appreciate your CNN program Business Traveller.
George Karumuna, Tanzania (Oct. 19)

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