With the EU’s decision to allow cellphones in-flight most business travelers are caught between two sentiments, the ability to be productive, and the luxury of tranquility and quiet (assuming there are no crying babies sitting next to you, or sports team is onboard). Studies (http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=993187) have shown that one-sided conversations irritate people to a breaking point when a two sided conversation at the same volume would be ignored. Lufthansa for example has already said that it would not allow cell phones (choosing to restart their in-flight high speed internet initiative), while Ryan Air has declared a fleet wide deployment. Since the airplanes would have the telecom infrastructure on board – miro cellular tower connected to a satellite – they would be able to receive roaming charges for calls made (probably split with the operator). There was a decade (the 90s) in which in-flight phones were provided by many airlines, but due to the high call rates nobody used them. From personal experience (novelty factor use) I must say the voice quality was delightful. The EU commission has promised price direction and regulation in this regard.
I have always wondered why passengers could not use private satellite phones, especially since prices have crashed, and now that mobile phones are allowed, will the satellite phone come back in fashion? The earlier issue with mobile phones was them going on overdrive trying to connect to ground stations – which onboard stations and sat phones would avoid. Regardless of the technology, it is clear new rules of etiquette will have to be fashioned for the use. Airlines should consider having “business hours” during long-haul flight where the use of phones would be appropriate, and not interfere in the “normal” flight hours, which people would use for sleeping, resting or watching movies. On short haul flights however, the experience would probably be open and a bit traumatic sounding more like a busy bus or train. That said, normally there are only a few people who use their cellphones on buses and trains, and I am sure many would enjoy the excuse of being out of touch. Another solution could be different sections; “phone and non-phone” akin to smoking preference, or special, “phone areas.” The rollout is probably going to take at least a year or two, perhaps more if there are enough protests. Good luck to us all – one way or the other.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Phones in the Sky!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Cleansing my sins - the old fashioned way
In the Hindu system of things, there is only one way to cleanse your sins - jump into the Ganges river. For deep cleansing you need to jump into the river at a particular point. It was high time that I tried it out, just in case. My journey started from Delhi by car and with a brief stop at new factory construction site, I reached Haridwar by late evening and settled into an old school government guest house that reminded me of both the British and the License Raj. The morning was filled with a prayer ceremony which lasted a couple of hours - most of which the priest had to reexplain to me due to my lack of knowledge of pure sankrit.
Pictured here is the Harki Pardi (incorrect spelling probably) which is the best place for deep sin cleansing.
I must admit the dip into the fast running water was unbelievably refreshing. There was something about that place....something terribly wonderful and enlightening. I managed to get fifteen minutes of meditation while sitting in a shallow part of the river, and dunked myself in a number of times. Once finished I decided to head back to Delhi by airplane.
It took us a while to find the airport, though everyone knew where it was, no one really knew where it was. We found ourselves accidentally entering restricted areas and being scolded and sent back by armed guards until we finally found the entrance. There we discovered that the airport was still under construction, and that I was going to be on the second flight ever to leave there. The terminal is delightful small and well done, though with none of the security systems working they checked the all the bags by hand. Perfume bottles, soft drinks and mineral water were as usual banned from cabin baggage - but everyone agreed my two bottles of holy Ganges water deserved to fly with me in the cabin.
The runway is big for the size of the airport, and surrounded by extremely pretty hills and mountains. The security forces denied my pleas for a picnic while we all waited for the aircraft to land. Upon landing it was sent to the "proper" loading area. Insistent on being a professional airport they decided we needed a bus. After trying to find one for sometime they finally came up with this:
They ignored our pleas to let us walk - they were after all a professional airport, :). After much laughter and a ten second journey we finally arrived at the aircraft:
The ride to Delhi was extremely turbulent, but remarkably fast. The next time I need to cleanse some sins, I would definitely be flying in, hopefully by then the airport would have been built.
Hamburg Airport - Balcony
The first class and Senator Lounge at the Hamburg airport has an amazing balcony that leads out onto the edge of the terminal building just above the airplanes. You can view the entire airport from there while sipping your favorite beverage and enjoying the buffet. (In my case bitter-lemon and a concoction of yogurt and dried fruit).
Crazy trip around Switzerland: From one side to the other and back!
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Crazy trip around Switzerland.
Time Start: 8 AM
Time End: 11 PM
St. Gallen -> Rorschach -> Berne -> Geneva -> Lausanne -> Interlaken -> Grindelwald -> Lucerne -> St. Gallen
Stopping to snack, lake watch and hang around. An impossibly long trip conducted in what was perhaps the worst car designed for it: The ultra small baby Nissan Note which at most times felt as if it was either going to be blown away by the wind or disintegrate spontaneously. My fellow terrified passengers spent a good three hours on the phone trying to see if Sixth could provide us with a 1 series BMW at the worst case (they couldn't at that time).
The highlight of the trip was reaching Grindelwald, where much fondue was enjoyed, and clothes were purchased (cold -- very cold).
Pictures:
(Going up the mountain)
(Grindelwald)