Well the day started out swimmingly enough. Got to the airport early enough to find the Starbucks and enjoyed the free albeit slow wi-fi connection at the Terminal 3 departure lounge waiting for the flight to Chicago. A random glance at the departuires board alerted Misterpiggy that his American Airlines flight 4364 was an hour delayed. Oh no! American Airlines staff advised that there was a maintenance issue with the plane but reassured him that his connection was ok so he felt a bit better but he knew his time to catch the connecting flight to Tokyo was going to be really tight.
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| delayed flight |
Upon his arrival at Chicago O'Hare airport, Misterpiggy was just about ready to high tail it out of the arrival gate and show everybody that pigs could indeed fly. Then, suddenly a small elderly Japanese lady from JAL (Japan Airlines) appeared and advised Misterpiggy in broken english, that the 11:25 am flight to Tokyo via code share flight JAL 0009 had departed without him not ten minutes before he arrived at Chicago. But she was prepared, she was. There in her tiny outstretched hand was a brand new boarding pass for an American Airlines flight 153 leaving two hours later at 1:45 pm.
He took it gladly but was still concerned about his connecting flight from Tokyo to Osaka because he knew there was no way he would be able to catch his Tue 4:55 pm departure flight to Osaka, since the Tokyo arrival time was 5 pm. She told him not to worry and that he would be taken care of in Narita. Misterpiggy was still feeling butterflies in his stomach even though he knew he hadn't eaten any.
After a 13 hour flight aboard AA153 , 3 seats (yes!), 3 movies and 3 meals (2 hot ones and a cold one) in his belly, Misterpiggy started to feel a bit better. It seemed even the flight attendants were extra nice to him, as they tried to ply him with all sorts of little bottles of free alcohol (pics later!). But here he was coming to Tokyo with no idea if he was going to get a new flight to Osaka that same evening, having missed his Osaka connection by over an hour.
As Misterpiggy alighted at Narita airport on time at 5 pm, Airline staff advised that he would have to go thru immigration and then re-claim his bags. He was really worried now as he made his way with the throngs of visitors to Immigration. And then he saw that a JAL person had a sign with his name on it. And she had new boarding passes for another flight for him! They rebooked him for a flight leaving for Osaka Itami at 6:30 pm but told him he must hurry. Imagine his dismay as he approached Immigration and the sign said there was a 60 minute wait from where he lined up, and he still hadn't yet claimed his luggage.
The lines were not moving and it looked like yet another setback. As he waited sullenly, he distinctly heard someone calling out repeatedly ..."Itami....Osaka....Chicago". A young airport rep announced she was looking for passengers who just came from Chicago and were headed to Osaka Itami. Misterpiggy realized that hey, he fit the bill and left his place in line to see her. She grabbed him by his ear and whispered "Come with me"! And before he knew it, Misterpiggy was in the Priority line, having bypassed hundreds in the queue. Within 5 minutes he had passed through Immigration and made his way to Narita's baggage area, where his bags were already waiting for him.
Here is Misterpiggy happily waiting in the JAL departure lounge for his flight to Osaka with oodles of time to spare. He finally landed at Osaka Itami airport around 8:20 pm, got his bags in a jiffy and went outside to look around. It had been raining in Tokyo and it was the same here in Osaka.
The airport limo bus ticket station was immediately to the right of the Arrival doors outside and from his previous experiences using the ticket dispensing machines he quickly bought his bus ticket for Namba from the vending machine (620 yen), scooted to Namba platform 2 and the bus came about 5 minutes later at 8:40 pm.
There were about twenty other passengers headed to Osaka Namba with Misterpiggy. It was only a ten minute drive from Osaka Itami airport to Namba along the rain soaked highway.
The bus stop was right where the maps showed it to be and when Misterpiggy got off the bus he found the Swissotel Nankai hotel in no time. Misterpiggy had emailed the hotel a few days earlier to ask for directions and also for a nice room with a view, and the hotel complied. The hotel has 36 floors with the top 3 being reserved and Misterpiggy ended up on the 31st floor. His room was very nice and he will have pics and reviews of it soon.
Misterpiggy wishes to thank all the nice folks at American Airlines and Japan Airlines and staff at Toronto Pearson, Chicago O'Hare, Tokyo Narita and Osaka Itami airports for making sure that he got to Osaka despite the initial flight delay. Plus one for the AA flight attendant for giving Misterpiggy one of everything of the little bottles of alcohol!
