V-Flyer

hi all,
i'm putting this in the General Discussion area, as it's not really a trip report.
after a harried exit from my flat at Church & Dolores, i finally made it to SFO. check-in was a breeze, and my agent let me get away with a bit (alot) of extra weight in my carry-on. [y]
i thanked her profusely, of course...i would have been in a very difficult spot otherwise. you see, i do not check in bags. never. i've become pretty proficient at packing two weeks worth of clothes into not much space, just so i can walk straight through baggage claim without stopping, but a little help from friendly agents along the way helps a lot.

anyway...

needless to say, once i walked out of the elevator and saw the clubhouse entrance, a feeling of great calm and serenity came over me. ah, the clubhouse. tiny you may be, but i wouldn't trade you for the world. hey, Heathrow CH is lovely (!) but i can still go outside to smoke from here without having to deal with security. [:I]

and speaking of smoking, that's what i'm about to go do, however i just MUST pass this on for GJ (grinningjackanapes): they remember you here! well, i should hope so, but they're suitably embarrassed. My man J, who's taking care of me in my red egg, and i were talking about Mustang Sally (who we're flying today!), and of course the conversation turned to "how do you know so much about Virgin's planes?" i swear, the look of horror when i mentioned i'm a v-flyer was, in a word, priceless.

and here, for your viewing pleasure, is a shot of ms V-ROC herself, coming in towards her gate.
cheers all!
VS020 (Claire)

Ah, SFO. The International Terminal there is just a generally agreeable place - except for immigration when several flights arrive at once.

So, I've played it relatively incognito with the (contractor) SFO clubhouse staff previously. I don't think they suspect I'm among the ranks of "Mannion's Army"... question is, next time I'm there, in September, I wonder if I should let on?

Hope the flight is good, and one thing I noticed from the pic you posted is that the old Terminal 1 domestic "rotunda" that US Airways used to use (pre-America West merger) has finally been completely demolished and the site levelled. It's taken them a fair while to get to that state.

I think this means they can add another two gates on the International terminal.

Mike

hi mike,
well, it certainly does cause a stir when the words "v-flyer" are uttered, so may as well give it a shot and see what magic happens. having said that, i want to say that i'm not throwing the sacred words around and then acting like a complete jerk; wouldn't want to sully any reputations [8D]... well, ok, except for getting silly-excited and telling all who would listen (including the amused CH staff) that we're flying V-ROC today, and yes that's her over there, and no her suites aren't any more comfortable it's just Ms. Sally! [:p]

and here's another tip (from my main man J): to smoke, go down the escalators on the right after you exit the CH elevators, and go down the ramp to outside...a lot less wind and people. sundays are good because the construction has the day off.

cheers mike!
Claire VS020