Not a cloud in the sky! What a great feeling to be in warm, summery weather again in the beginning of October! I hope I get more of these flights in the middle of winter...CHEERS!
-Lisa :-)
10.09.2008
San Antonio forecast this week: 89 & Sunny :-)
What a perfect way to spend a lazy Tuesday afternoon... laying by the hotel pool in San Antonio, TX! I had no idea I'd love the 'lone star' state so much...
Not a cloud in the sky! What a great feeling to be in warm, summery weather again in the beginning of October! I hope I get more of these flights in the middle of winter...
CHEERS!
-Lisa :-)
Not a cloud in the sky! What a great feeling to be in warm, summery weather again in the beginning of October! I hope I get more of these flights in the middle of winter...CHEERS!
-Lisa :-)
6 Day San Antonio, TX DEPORTEE trip!
Hi guys!
I feel like it has been forever since I've updated Five Cabin Checks. I apologize... I noticed my page views have gone WAYY down this past week! Ha! But when I was home for 5 days, I had NO INTERNET connection whatsoever at my apartment, and I also didn't have that much 'travel-related news' to report since I was HOME for the first time in 18 days... but I VERY MUCH SO enjoyed my time in Rockford, saw my family, hung out with Philippe, ate at Beef-a-Roo :-), and most importantly caught up on some sleep!
Before I knew it though, I was called for another 6 day trip... and here I am, sitting in my hotel room in San Antonio, TX after a LONG last couple days of flying U.S. Marshall flights taking deportees back to their countries (or, 'illegal aliens', as I like to say, because it is a funnier term! Ha! ALIENS!).
I left Rockford on Monday morning at 10am and was commercialed in on an American Airlines flight down to San Antonio, TX. I met up with my fellow flight attendant buddy and trip partner, Nick Brady, at the Holiday Inn and we took the bus into Chicago together- so fun. We grabbed a quick (yet expensive! $15!) lunch at O'Hare and boarded the plane for Dallas around 12:45pm. We landed about 2 hours later, then had a quick layover and went onto San Antonio. The minute we got off the plane, the 89 degree warm Texas air welcomed us and it felt SO nice! I LOVE San Antonio! The hotel shuttle was waiting for us and took us to the 'La Quinta Inn & Suites' near the airport- nothing like the Corinthia in Budapest, but still nothing to complain about. :-)
We met up with some other crew members in the lobby that were going out to dinner later so we checked into our rooms, changed, and went out for a fabulous chinese meal at P.F. Changs that was SOOO rewarding after a long day of traveling! Of course at the end of a Chinese dinner, it's tradition to hand out fortune cookies... and guess what mine said? (AFTER I told the ridiculous story about the one I got during flight attendant training that said, "You are a traveler at heart, there will be many journeys"... I cracked open my new one)... And it said, "It is sometimes better to travel hopefully than to arrive."
SERIOUSLY??? Is this not the job meant for me or WHAT!???
Going out to a quick burger dinner with my crew at the Texas chain 'Whataburger'... and will be back tonight to upload pics from the last couple days of my trip! It's been a great one so far and I can't wait to share! Five Cabin Checks is BACK!!!!!!
CHEERS!
-Lisa :-)
I feel like it has been forever since I've updated Five Cabin Checks. I apologize... I noticed my page views have gone WAYY down this past week! Ha! But when I was home for 5 days, I had NO INTERNET connection whatsoever at my apartment, and I also didn't have that much 'travel-related news' to report since I was HOME for the first time in 18 days... but I VERY MUCH SO enjoyed my time in Rockford, saw my family, hung out with Philippe, ate at Beef-a-Roo :-), and most importantly caught up on some sleep!
Before I knew it though, I was called for another 6 day trip... and here I am, sitting in my hotel room in San Antonio, TX after a LONG last couple days of flying U.S. Marshall flights taking deportees back to their countries (or, 'illegal aliens', as I like to say, because it is a funnier term! Ha! ALIENS!).
I left Rockford on Monday morning at 10am and was commercialed in on an American Airlines flight down to San Antonio, TX. I met up with my fellow flight attendant buddy and trip partner, Nick Brady, at the Holiday Inn and we took the bus into Chicago together- so fun. We grabbed a quick (yet expensive! $15!) lunch at O'Hare and boarded the plane for Dallas around 12:45pm. We landed about 2 hours later, then had a quick layover and went onto San Antonio. The minute we got off the plane, the 89 degree warm Texas air welcomed us and it felt SO nice! I LOVE San Antonio! The hotel shuttle was waiting for us and took us to the 'La Quinta Inn & Suites' near the airport- nothing like the Corinthia in Budapest, but still nothing to complain about. :-)
We met up with some other crew members in the lobby that were going out to dinner later so we checked into our rooms, changed, and went out for a fabulous chinese meal at P.F. Changs that was SOOO rewarding after a long day of traveling! Of course at the end of a Chinese dinner, it's tradition to hand out fortune cookies... and guess what mine said? (AFTER I told the ridiculous story about the one I got during flight attendant training that said, "You are a traveler at heart, there will be many journeys"... I cracked open my new one)... And it said, "It is sometimes better to travel hopefully than to arrive."
SERIOUSLY??? Is this not the job meant for me or WHAT!???
Going out to a quick burger dinner with my crew at the Texas chain 'Whataburger'... and will be back tonight to upload pics from the last couple days of my trip! It's been a great one so far and I can't wait to share! Five Cabin Checks is BACK!!!!!!
CHEERS!
-Lisa :-)
9.27.2008
Hungarian Wedding Crashers and Happy Hour in Budapest
Out for a stroll on a Saturday afternoon... and we came across this gorgeous wedding taking place at St. John's Basilica. Had we not been in scrubs and hooded sweatshirts... we would have attended the ceremonies no doubt! But Philippe was just wanting to know... Where was the reception? Hahahaha... :-)
That's a BIG family if you ask me...
The St. John's Basilica square... gorgeous!
The size of this church is unbelievable...
And I thought 'Holy Family' was big..." Ha!
Time for a cocktail... it's Saturday at Happy Hour, why not? We headed back to the main square and sat at the 'Cocktail Bar' in the heart of it all. We LOVE to people-watch.
BRR! It got cold. Thank goodness for the blankets and heaters that all restaurants provide for guests at night... we could have stayed there forever!
That's a BIG family if you ask me...
The St. John's Basilica square... gorgeous!
The size of this church is unbelievable...
And I thought 'Holy Family' was big..." Ha!
Time for a cocktail... it's Saturday at Happy Hour, why not? We headed back to the main square and sat at the 'Cocktail Bar' in the heart of it all. We LOVE to people-watch.
BRR! It got cold. Thank goodness for the blankets and heaters that all restaurants provide for guests at night... we could have stayed there forever!
Mmmm... big glasses of wine, street traffic, hilarious company, and warm fleece blankets... what else could a girl ask for?? (Another glass of wine, please, probably! :-)
"Let's take a pic of us with the lights: It's like we're in Vegas!" Hahahaha... he seemed to think that was REALLY funny...?
I didn't think I'd ever get to say this, but the time to go home is coming up so fast! Budapest is fantastic- On our way to Germany tomorrow and Philippe is my lead... Can't wait to see more! (And be home eventually on Tuesday... )
Cheers!
Lisa :-)
My 'Le Ballon Blanc'
LE BALLON BLANC!!! This is the funniest story ever... Philippe found this random white balloon in his deluxe room and he didn't want it, so I decided to take it home with me for the night. Le ballon blanc ended up following me around everywhere! I woke up with it the next day by my side above my head, and after that I took it with me the everywhere I went for the rest of the day as a joke!
We thought it'd be funny to watch the real version of "Le ballon rouge" on YouTube to remember the famous french tale of the little boy that has the red balloon follow him everywhere, no matter where he goes... and since Philippe grew up in France and still speaks french fluently, he translated the entire 30 minute movie to me... "Go, balloon, go away!" Ha!
The boy originally finds the balloon stuck on a pole, gets it down, and carries it around with him, but then he gets in trouble at school for having it and he tries to get rid of it.
The balloon won't go away, and he keeps following him through the streets of Paris, until other kids get ahold of it and eventually deflate him. Then the boy gets sad, but immediately, other balloons from other kids all over Paris get yanked out of their hands and they all band together to form a hot air balloon (of sorts) to carry the boy away into the air high above the clouds! So unrealistic, but so cute, and so laugh-able when you find random white balloons in hotel rooms in Budapest...
Me, Philippe, and my beloved le ballon blanc...
Philippe & I went out for a walk down the street and I took Le Ballon blanc with me... Philippe and I just laughed as people came up to me and said, "You found a very nice balloon." THANK you! But he found ME... :-)
We thought it'd be funny to watch the real version of "Le ballon rouge" on YouTube to remember the famous french tale of the little boy that has the red balloon follow him everywhere, no matter where he goes... and since Philippe grew up in France and still speaks french fluently, he translated the entire 30 minute movie to me... "Go, balloon, go away!" Ha!
The boy originally finds the balloon stuck on a pole, gets it down, and carries it around with him, but then he gets in trouble at school for having it and he tries to get rid of it.
The balloon won't go away, and he keeps following him through the streets of Paris, until other kids get ahold of it and eventually deflate him. Then the boy gets sad, but immediately, other balloons from other kids all over Paris get yanked out of their hands and they all band together to form a hot air balloon (of sorts) to carry the boy away into the air high above the clouds! So unrealistic, but so cute, and so laugh-able when you find random white balloons in hotel rooms in Budapest...
Me, Philippe, and my beloved le ballon blanc...
Philippe & I went out for a walk down the street and I took Le Ballon blanc with me... Philippe and I just laughed as people came up to me and said, "You found a very nice balloon." THANK you! But he found ME... :-)Cheers!
-Lisa :-)
How can I convince you to work for us??
Ohhhh boy. Just when I thought this 'job' couldn't get ANY better... it does. Philippe, my new favorite lead flight attendant, 'accidentally' got put up in an A-MAZING 2 bedroom suite at the Corinthia Grand Royal when he got back from a quick Keflavik turn, for 3 nights. My crew and I were all out to lunch on Thursday at Iguana when we got the call, "GUYS, you've gotta see this. Take the walk- you won't be disappointed." It kinda looked like it was going to rain and, the group didn't feel like making the 15 minute walk from the InterContinental to the Corinthia to hang out... but for some reason, I felt the need to go check out what he was raving about. So I did. UNBELIEVABLE.
He had the rooms 1204 AND 1205. He said, "Knock at either door, I'll answer." 1204 was the bedroom side of it and 1205 was the hallway leading into the 'living room area' with the extra TV and the extra HUGE window overlooking the streets of Budapest. (Notice the clear string/fishing wire hanging in the left corner. That was a random white balloon that was left in the deluxe room for NO reason that seemed to follow me around wherever I went... )
When he checked in late to the hotel the night before after a long flight, he sat down in his suite and got comfy on the couch, and looked over and noticed this massage chair. He told me he dropped everything he was doing and 'tested it out' for about an hour... haha!
He even had access to a private balcony overlooking the front of the hotel... that we just had to pull up a chair and sneak out onto when the other guests weren't looking. (Hahaha--- Did he REALLY have access, or did we just make that up?) Either way- it was fun! And a gorgeous view!
Look at this bedroom- huge bed and a balcony- can't get any better! 
He had the rooms 1204 AND 1205. He said, "Knock at either door, I'll answer." 1204 was the bedroom side of it and 1205 was the hallway leading into the 'living room area' with the extra TV and the extra HUGE window overlooking the streets of Budapest. (Notice the clear string/fishing wire hanging in the left corner. That was a random white balloon that was left in the deluxe room for NO reason that seemed to follow me around wherever I went... )
When he checked in late to the hotel the night before after a long flight, he sat down in his suite and got comfy on the couch, and looked over and noticed this massage chair. He told me he dropped everything he was doing and 'tested it out' for about an hour... haha!
He even had access to a private balcony overlooking the front of the hotel... that we just had to pull up a chair and sneak out onto when the other guests weren't looking. (Hahaha--- Did he REALLY have access, or did we just make that up?) Either way- it was fun! And a gorgeous view!
Look at this bedroom- huge bed and a balcony- can't get any better! 
"OK- We want you to be a flight attendant for Ryan. Here's what we can offer-it's not much, but just hear us out. We'll give you 10 days off a MONTH. (Most 9-5 jobs give you 10 days off a year?) On top of that, we'll send you to places that you will NEVER get to see on your own dime, and we'll also put you up in surprisingly nice luxury hotels from time to time just to show you how much we care. In return, we'll only make you work about 3 or 4 flights a week, basically only about 4 hours each. STILL not convinced??? We'll give you $75 a day to be working for us. WILL YOU WORK for Ryan??" Hahahaha... sadly, this is the honest truth... And we love it...
Overlooking busy Budapest from the balcony in the afternoon... so nice!
Just living the dream... I love that he's been a flight attendant for Ryan for almost 10 years and he STILL thinks of every layover as a vacation! "I'm just gonna do it until it's not fun anymore..." It's obviously still fun! :-) How can it not be??
We had this balcony all to ourselves that afternoon... and we loved every minute of it! Kept looking at people on the train looking at us with wine in our hands and laughing our heads off in public... Should we be 'working' right now??
CHEERS to Budapest! I love you so...
Glad you got lucky with this suite, Philippe!
Hanging out in Budapest on a Thursday afternoon- just a normal day, right?? :-) Another glass of wine, perhaps?
Happy Hour at the Marriott in Budapest... venturing out for a little bit with the rest of our crew. Buy one get one free... and free appetizers! I love my 'vacations' for work...
Cheers!
-Lisa :-)
9.24.2008
The 'Chain Bridge' on a sunny September afternoon
Ahhh... a 4-day layover in Budapest. What on earth can I do with my time? It's a sunny Wednesday afternoon... why not go out and take a walk outside my hotel and take some pics of the scenery?
The 'Chain Bridge' that is literally... 2 steps away from our hotel. So beautiful!
How much would you love to be on that boat now?? Sightseeing down the Danube. Gorgeous!
On the way to PEST...
I love this chain bridge... And I see it every morning when I wake up!
The LION with the Parliament in the background. The lions are on both sides... guarding the bridge, perhaps? They're doing a good job.
The Parliament... famous in Budapest. Costs a fortune to tour... free to look at. :-)
Another boat tour I would love to be on.
Me & the Parliament in the background.
Trying to take one with the Parliament in the background... doesnt work with no display on the digital camera(I broke it somewhere along this trip...). Cute Budapest-ish outfit regardless! New pashmina= gray!
Beautiful September day in Budapest... Enjoying every relaxing second of my walk.
Almost across the bridge...
The InterContinental spoils its guests with flowers... and fantastic rooms I could never afford on my own dollar.
Shopping in the square.
The couple that wouldn't stop hugging. Kinda cute, isnt it!? :-)
Cheers!
Lisa :-)
The 'Chain Bridge' that is literally... 2 steps away from our hotel. So beautiful!
How much would you love to be on that boat now?? Sightseeing down the Danube. Gorgeous!
On the way to PEST...
I love this chain bridge... And I see it every morning when I wake up!
The LION with the Parliament in the background. The lions are on both sides... guarding the bridge, perhaps? They're doing a good job.
The Parliament... famous in Budapest. Costs a fortune to tour... free to look at. :-)
Another boat tour I would love to be on.
Me & the Parliament in the background.
Trying to take one with the Parliament in the background... doesnt work with no display on the digital camera(I broke it somewhere along this trip...). Cute Budapest-ish outfit regardless! New pashmina= gray!
Beautiful September day in Budapest... Enjoying every relaxing second of my walk.
Almost across the bridge...
The InterContinental spoils its guests with flowers... and fantastic rooms I could never afford on my own dollar.
Shopping in the square. 
The couple that wouldn't stop hugging. Kinda cute, isnt it!? :-)Cheers!
Lisa :-)
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