Nearly home

Currently in the air between the gold coast and melbourne feeling sleepy. Overnight flights are fantastic when you can SLEEP. They're not quite as good when you doze for about two hours.

Checking in for the second flight I was nicely told I couldn't have violin as hand luggage and that it wouldn't fit in the overhead lockers.

Um, you're telling me this now, for the first time, on my fourth flight (yes, with the same airline) in eleven days. Now, I understand that the case does not comply with company policy, but exceptions for a valuable and fragile instrument have never been a problem before. It ALWAYS fits in the overheads. And if anything was said about weight issues I was quite happy to get on the scales and wager fifty bucks violin + my body = less than average passenger naked and hand-luggageless.

The funny part was that after I explained for the third time that I would not and could not check my violin, I was told it would be taken from me at the boarding gate and put on a later flight to melbourne.

As hand luggage?
No, checked.
Hm. I don't think you heard me. I can't check this.
His parting shot: I'm just preparing you so you won't be upset when they take it off you at the boarding gate, because I'm going to call them now and warn them it doesn't comply with j*%star policy.

Mine: well, I'm not returning to Melbourne without it, and now that you've made the policy so clear I'll certainly never fly crapstar again, so good luck with that. (nb I didn't actually say crapstar as that would be antagonistic.)

Of course, after waiting two anxious hours to board my flight, sweet nothing was said by any of the boarding staff or flight crew. I guess the call guy no.1 made turned into "So, this crazy girl..." and they decided it wasn't worth the hassle. It's kind of a shame, I was looking forward to behaving like a non-compliant two-year-old!

...and touchdown at Melbourne! I'm very lucky this is a little plane, so everyone else can stampede past, I can chill.

Hooray for my sweet husband picking me up and returning to the land of plentiful fruit and vegetables :) as a nation we may be lacking in manners, but we have peaches that don't require a second mortgage.