Anyway I rock on up to the ticketing desk where a single Aer Lingus rep is dealing with a queue of 6 people.
I wait. And wait. And ponder how much I hate traveling by plane and when did that all come about. Years ago there was a glamour about flying, a certain frisson attached to becoming, albeit momentarily, a member of the jet set, though strictly only an economy class member (except for those all too rare times when I got upgraded to business class, the dream like memory of same still brings Proustian tears to my eyes).
Anyway, finally get to the counter. The phone rings. Aer Lingus rep gives me the universal palm of the hand halt sign indicating that no matter who is calling and what they want, this telephone call is more important than the person standing in front of them.
Conversation goes something like this.
"Hallo...Frank! How' s the man?...Fine, fine...No, your grand, only got one person waiting, fire away...Yeah, yeah, great game, cracking goal too...Well, I don't know, they'd want to win a couple more before you'd say they've a chance of winning the league...yeah, yeah...the roster, on the 12th...Jaysus, yeah, yeah, no problem. When do you want to change...to the Tuesday, fine, fine...from 12.00pm, yeah, fine...will you fill in the roster then...yeah, yeah...nah, didn't go anywhere for Christmas, weather was shite like. Yourself?..."
And this went on for a good ten minutes.
Aer Lingus rep finally hangs up. I approach counter.
"Sorry, it's me lunch break, my replacement will be here shortly and she'll help you".
His replacement is outside the ticketing desk and can't get in because her swipe card won't work. Aer Lingus rep goes out to help her. Much hilarity ensues. Brings her into the ticketing desk and spends the next 5 minutes explaining to her what she has to do.
Me, I'm still waiting.
Tells her all the printers don't work, the fax isn't connected and the 'system' keeps crashing. But other than that everything is fine. Also tells her that Frank rang, the roster has changed and that he'll be working Tuesday instead. She's not entirely happy with this development and goes into the room behind the ticketing desk to check something.
Me, I'm still waiting.
More banter and muffled hilarity ensues. Come back to the ticketing desk where the first Aer Lingus rep continues with her on the job training.
Me, I'm still waiting.
Finally, it takes a phone call from the Aer Lingus rep we originally went to at the check-in counter to see what the delay is, before I finally get my tickets reissued, a process which takes all of three minutes after I have been waiting for over thirty minutes.
At Tokyo airport we had the same double booking problem at check in (you can't hide from the 'system') but there the JAL rep immediately took us to one side, apologized for the inconvenience, sat down at a computer terminal and sorted out our reservations whilst all the time repeatedly apologizing to us.
Me, I'm not flying Aer Lingus again.
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