Now, maybe I’m being a bit of a control freak, although I don’t consider my self to be one, or maybe it’s just me being a little overly fussy, but when travelling, be it business or pleasure, I do like to know the details.
Little details like which airline I’m on, the route the flight takes, the flight times and of course at the end of it all, where it is I’m actually staying.

Friday sees me off on my travels again with business taking me on a pre-Christmas jaunt to Oman, cutting it a little too close for comfort to get back home again in time for the holidays, but that’s the nature of business I guess. When the customer calls…

Way down in the small print of the contract it stipulates the customer is picking up the tab for the flights and the accommodation.

Just a tiny clause. Just a few words. But a clause that makes me twitch. [twitch]
This is where I started to get a little nervous. [twitch]
Dates started to get moved around. Shipping was being delayed. Contract details where argued over. Finance departments got involved. Manufacturing got delayed. Ordered parts suddenly had long lead times. All of which puts pressure on the final training dates. My part. [twitch]
This is the part of the deal that tends to get pushed around without actually asking the engineer whether or not it is convenient with him to shift the dates around. [twitch]
With ten days to go until the pencilled in departure date, no flights had been booked. No hotel. No transfers. Nothing. [twitch-twitch]

FINALLY, a week to go, the customer offers up some times for flights, with it being the run-up to Christmas, spaces are limited, some flights are full, and filling up fast, all making the returning leg home a little troublesome.

"Could I possibly delay my return flight?" Came the request. [twitch]

NO !!!!!

Originally a direct flight, now a three flight marathon each way. [twitch-twitch]

But the hotel looks nice….