Screaming children+Aircraft= Hell

What about these screaming, wailing children on aircraft?

Clearly it isn’t fair when I am on a long flight, like this Sunday from Lima. Peru to L.A. , and we were completely exhausted and desperately needed sleep, but were not allowed to because of a extraordinarily spoiled child that screamed and screamed at the top of her petulant lungs for hours. This was not a sick child, this child had developed through many hours of practice, the ability to scream relentlessly. I pointed this child out to my wife before we were even on the plane. It was obvious the child was going to be a huge problem and the three women enablers who wouldn’t just leave the child alone were just multipliers.

Hey I paid good money for that seat and I shouldn’t have to put up with idiocy like that on a plane ride, at a nice restaurant or a movie theater.

Today I see an article titled “Kids on a plane! 5 fixes for unruly passengers” (Christopher Elliot). However I don’t see any of the ideas presented as really feasible or effective. Can something be done? You bet! http://edition.cnn.com/2009/TRAVEL/06/29/kids.on.planes/index.html
First of all it is not a people with kids or no kids thing. Many people take the time and trouble to raise their children properly. Virtually never is the real problem the infant child, it is usually a two to four year old with an attitude and a parent that clearly isn’t running the show. Just because people have children doesn’t mean they sympathize with non-involved parents. Conversely, there are people with no children that have the patience of Job.

Some ideas to address this runaway issue:
1) Passengers should have an outlet to complain to the flight attendant and document the time and concern. If enough people complain on a flight and the airline was on the hook to compensate in some way then things will improve naturally.
2) There should be a type of in-flight warning and then a fine or penalty that the flight attendant can levy. The flight attendant could say to the mother/guardian “I have eight complaints about the obnoxious noise coming from your seat you have to get your child under control or I will ticket you”.
3) If the parent was looking at a financial penalty at least they would realize how their behavior was affecting others. If they didn’t pay the fine they would be banned from that particular airline.
4) There should be a hand out card to help people understand the rules and concerns and give some ideas for parents traveling. Some people clearly live this way and put up with complete chaos all the time at home, they might actually think this behavior is normal for Christ’s sake.

If you say it is impossible it is not. Remember when people smoked on planes? Things can be changed if we work toward a solution and start speaking up for our traveling rights.

The Eight Hour Tour Bus (Sacred Valley)

I am sitting here with a persistent headache which I am not sure is from the altitude on the second day in Cuzco and environs, or the savage beating the tour bus driver gave us today. I was sure we were bouncing literally three feet in the air on certain speed bumps (sadly the seat belt stretched only 2.5), then I saw the identical small Mercedes tour bus in front of us, and watched with amazement, as sure enough hitting a bump the people seated in the back seat were lurched into a Disneyland crescendo of confusion and pain. Damn!

We hit about eight spots for thirty dollars US each. It was the standard deal where the tour guide takes you to where he can make a buck or three from his friend’s kickbacks. We were introduced to some people and suffered two pitches on the bus itself. Itinerary: Pisac market and ruins, Chinchero, Ollyantaytambo and a few smaller places, wide spots in the road. We had the “deluxe” lunch which was a buffet (buffet and deluxe should not be in the same sentence), and then they charged us extra for sparkling water, six sols each.

The Pisac ruins were quite interesting and we went through an Inca tunnel carved out of solid rock. The views and the degree they took the whole terrace farming amazed me. Places that would be considered completely useless anywhere else were terraced. I also really liked Chinchero.

The problem is I saw many, many spots on the road I would have liked to stop but we couldn’t because we were on a tour. That hurt. For some unknown reason the small deviant Quechua children seemed to find a crack in our steely resolve and we purchased a number of items, far more than I had planned on buying most definitely.

Cuzco~First Impressions

It seems that Peru, and especially Cuzco, is both very touristy and yet very genuine at the same time. We have been in Cuzco less than 24 hours and I just got up from a nap. I did take the Diamox medicine for altitude adjustment and of course I can’t really tell if it is working or not because I don’t know how I would be without it. I do know walking back up the hill from the main town square, the Plaza de Armas, I was suddenly caught off guard and out of breath. It was like it snuck up on me through a day of color and excitement and said “Ha now I have you”!

Coming in to land I wondered about the plane maneuvering through the mountains and dropping down to quickly stop. It was pretty fancy I have to say and we made some sharp turns and then landed hot—meaning very fast, I was wondering if those thrust reversers were going to be enough. Stepping off the plane at 6am or so it was brisk and refreshing but I didn’t really notice myself breathing hard. The hotel had arranged to pick us up. Driving to the hotel Lisa remarked it looked like we were “driving through a war zone”, packs of dogs roaming the streets, rubble everywhere in piles and things looking sad and depressed.

After checking in, and having a couple of cups of coca tea, we decided to walk down to the square and on the way ran into a wonderful city market which apparently is only run one day a week. I am really glad we caught it because it was the genuine thing with many older, stooped back Indian people in their traditional dress carrying and selling a variety of un-processed food stuffs. There were virtually no touristas in here and it was not for our entertainment. We could have spent much more time in here but we continued on to a large bizarre parade winding through the streets.
We didn’t get hit too much with all the vendors selling carved gourds, postcards, paintings, shoe shines, and jewelry till we hit the main square. Once they are on you it is hard to get rid of them. Also a main Item to work is for a couple girls, or women in traditional dress carrying baby lambs or goats, to say you can take their picture or have a picture with them, for a price.

We stopped at a restaurant with a balcony overlooking the square, The Andean Grill, to get a bite to eat and the waiter was very nice. I ordered possibly the worst pizza in my life, yes I know I should have my ass kicked for ordering pizza in Cuzco, it just sounded good. I bravely struggled through for a bit and then offered what was left to an old Indian man who I believe was related to the waiter and was just hanging out, he was grateful for it, good!

We did at that point go up behind the church and find the “12 angled stone”. There was a dude there expecting to be paid a small sum for telling me exactly where to stand for the perfect picture, all in good fun. We walked back and got momentarily disoriented, this was where we were both suddenly out of breath as well. We now are tucked snuggly in our room and getting ready for tomorrow’s adventure.