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THE LANGUAGE OF TRAVEL
by Stefka Gerova
Have you ever been frustrated or confused when traveling in the United States? Too many
unfamiliar things all at the same time? Come along on a short trip with us in order to
learn how to have fun with all the U.S. traveling confusion!
Once upon a time I decided to travel to the other end of the United States of America, all the way
from Los Angeles to New York City. My biggest dilemma, therefore, was whether to do a
cross-country
journey and thus see more, or to simply take the red-eye flight and be there
overnight. Hitch-hiking
came to my mind, too, but only as too dangerous (and also illegal) of an option. The more I thought,
the more convinced I became that hitting the road is the wrong option unless
I had ten extra days to
spend traveling in each direction. On the other hand, I would still have this horrendous
jet lag
from moving to a different time zone so fast.
So I finally decided to take a flight - nothing special like a jumbo jet
- from LAX to JFK
International. The check-in area was all packed and
boarding on most planes was heavily delayed. At
this point I only wished I could go to a V.I.P. lounge or have at least enough
frequent-flier miles
to upgrade my ticket to business class. Alas, no upgrades
or yacht-cruises for me! My carry-on could
hardly fit into the small overhead compartment, and I had to get up from my aisle seat a million times
to let the fellow next to me get out. To make matters worse, I didn't have a non-stop
flight
and therefore had to change planes in St. Louis, the hub of TWA which I was
flying with. With so many
people on board, the flight attendants were preoccupied
and couldn't tell me which gate to go to next.
And to make matters even more confusing, there were so many terminals at the
airport, that I almost
missed my connecting flight! What a night, what a flight! Perhaps I'll hit the
road the next time,
after all.
cross-country journey - a trip across the whole U.S., from coast to coast, usually done by car so that
more places can be visited
red-eye flight - a flight that leaves late at night and arrives at the destination site early the
next morning so that you sleep through it; yet, because of the inability to sleep one gets red eyes in
the morning
Hitch-hiking - the illegal activity of attempting to stop moving vehicles and trying to get a ride
with them; also an extremely dangerous undertaking these days
hitting the road - a slang expression for starting a road trip; getting moving
jet lag - a time during which your biological clock says it's morning and people around you claim
it's midnight or evening
time zone - a longitudinal stripe of the globe with the same astronomical time
jumbo jet - a big, double-decked airplane, typically used for trans-atlantic flights
LAX - the international abbreviation of the Los Angeles Airport, the busiest airport on the West
Coast; should be avoided at all times if possible due to the heavy air-traffic
JFK International - the John F. Kennedy International airport in New York City, the biggest airport
on the East Coast; should also be avoided at all times unless one wants to go crazy
check-in area - a place almost immediately at the airport entrance where tickets and identification
are checked and luggage is taken to the luggage compartment
boarding - the process of getting onto a plane; it's still not clear why it is not called planing
V.I.P. lounge - a lounge for "Very Important Passengers," that is, diplomats, businessmen and others
of the sort who have the money to pay ridiculous premiums for the privileges of having a quiet place for
fifteen minutes
frequent-flier miles - bonuses offered by airline companies in order to induce more flying; these
miles can then be used towards an airplane ticket purchase or a ticket upgrade
upgrade - use frequent-flier miles in order to have a more spacious and comfortable seat; although
it makes more sense to call it "upclass" since you travel with a different class
business class - the better option of traveling, if affordable, due to the more space and better
service provided; it is the highest possible class within the U.S. and only surpassed by first class
on international flights; typically students are known to fly with economy class
yacht-cruises - an expensive and slow way to see parts of the world: traveling by means of a yacht;
typically used as leisure and not as means of transportation
carry-on - a piece of luggage, sometimes two, that is allowed to accompany you on board; the rest
of your luggage goes to the cargo compartment that passengers don't even see
aisle seat - a seat right next to the passageways on a plane, as opposed to a window seat - be
prepared to get up and sit down a lot if you like aisle seats!
non-stop flight - a flight that reaches its destination without having to land and take off again,
or do that a few times
hub - the official headquarters and depot of an airline company
on board - inside the plane
flight attendants - formerly known better as stewards and stewardesses, but still the people who
help us have a pleasant flight and bring us food and drinks; their job is to attend to our wishes
gate - an opening at an airport that leads you directly to the airplane
terminals - a major portion of an airport, typically situated in a different direction from the
rest of the terminals, and leading to the airport gates and airplane runways
connecting flight - a flight that brings you from a (middle) point of your journey to the end
destination, implies a previous flight
Stefka Gerova
is a Pomona College student from
Bulgaria, majoring in International Relations. (She
spends most of her spare time at International Place
of the Claremont Colleges and enjoys escaping in the
mountains whenever possible.) She is currently on a
semester abroad program in Berlin, Germany.
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