Catherine’s Blog

Below are the complaint letters to South African Airways with being bumped off the flight to Heathrow to Cape Town.

To whom it may concern,

Last night (26 Feb) I was bumped off the Cape Town to Heathrow flight SA 0220, the flight was booked under the name Ms Catherine Currie.  I arrived within the prescribed time and was told with another four passengers there was not enough room on the flight.
This led to over an hour of standing in front of the ticket counter, most of the time not knowing what was going on.  When I was first arrived I was left standing waiting for a desk whilst staff wandered around.  Once I was informed of the situation, the amount of information given was very poor.  The Customer Service representative, Jonathon, who appeared to be in charge of the situation disappeared for long periods without informing any passengers what was going on. There was a point that our passports were requested and they seemed to be waved around and carried back and forth a lot!  I was not impressed with this.  I found the standing for an hour very tiring and at one point had to leave the passenger area to ask my relatives who had come with me to get some water for me.  I was dressed in slightly heavier clothing, in preparation of arriving in winter in London.
It appeared that SAA were not the only airlines affected by this situation; Virgin and BA were also over booked.  This would be in relation to the British Spring break.  The overbooking issue happened at Heathrow when I flew out.  This situation was foreseen and still there were passengers left in the lurch.  I know that more passengers would have been offered money earlier to step off the flight but as we were bumped we were not offered any compensation for the large inconvenience this has caused.
Accommodation as well as meals were arranged for the other passengers, I opted out of the accommodation as I was staying with relatives, I have asked for a transfer from the place I am staying to the airport today.  This is because I have already handed in my hire car.  This will cause problems today as I have no transport but a relative has offered to drive me today. I also had to inform my husband of the situation in London, an international cell phone to cell phone call, twice.  As well as informing my parents in Australia of the situation, a cell to landline, international call.
My other issue is I am meant to be in Wales tonight (27 Feb) as I have a hotel booked there.  This is a non-refundable room costing £35, I have added the booking details below.  I am now going to have to come off the Cape Town flight, be picked up and driving immediately to Wales, 4 to 5 hours to attend my best friend’s wedding.  I am sure you can imagine this is not the ideal circumstance.  My husband will have to bring extra clothing as I only have summer weight clothing with me and we will be transporting two weeks of unsuitable summer clothing.
When I called customer service this morning I was informed there was no way my phone call could not be linked to this email, and I would have relate the situation in electronic form again.  This seems to be a very backward way of providing a service.
This inability to provide a flight that I booked months ago for not a small amount of money appears to be crazy situation and if, as I was told on the phone, this is a situation that happens a lot why did it take so long to sort out what was happening?  I would assume there is a protocol to follow but it appeared it was very much so a case of a lot of people standing around not knowing what was happening and that was the staff!  In the end I did not have printed confirmation of my flight, the other passengers did, but that was because they were transferring at Heathrow.  My transport voucher is with a
driver of an unknown transport company.  I thankfully have the customer service reps number, encase the transport does not turn up.
This situation has caused me and my husband stress and will be leaving me out of pocket with accommodation in the UK, phone calls and meals.  It is clear that full compensation is required for these expenses occurred solely due to a situation that the airline has facilitated.
Considering the appalling level of service I have received and my husband received when his luggage was not transferred at Joburg to the London flight and then delivered to wrong address, we will be rethinking booking with SAA again.
And this is a trip we do regularly.

Regards,

Catherine Currie-Steele

In regards to my email sent 27.2.2009 and the complaint form filled on date on flight SA 0220 on the 28.2.2009,

A car did not turn up at 4.30pm, at 4.45pm I used the contact number Jonathon had given me to discover it was his home number. Once I explained that the car had not turned up and he said that he was not on duty and gave me another number to call.  I called this number and when I explained the situation and man I spoke to said he would sort something out and would call back. It appeared there was no record of me needing a car even though we had organised it with Jonathon and Angelo the night before and my sister in law confirmed it in Afrikaans. During the following exchange of phone calls I asked if I could just catch a taxi of my own to the airport and be reimbursed for the journey. I was told this was not possible and car would be dispatched from the airport. To begin with I was told this would take an hour, I felt this was unacceptable and asked to speak to a manager. I was called back by Stevie who assured me the hour was a round trip from airport to airport and I would not miss the flight. It was 5pm by the time this was sorted.
At 5.45 the car had not turned up and I called the number I had been given earlier. There was no reply and I was getting desperate. I then rang the international number, listed on the SAA website, this too rang out. I then rang the Cape Town airport and was given two numbers. The first was customer service which was closed. The second was for Domestic flights and the woman transferred the call but again it rang out. At this stage it was six o’clock and I was very concerned I was going to miss my flight. I called a taxi cab and then the driver called saying he was lost. My sister in law gave him directions and again, we waited. I waited 5 minutes as the driver was not far away. It appeared that he had not followed the directions and had gone in the wrong direction. I finally caught a taxi of my own.
Someone called after I had left in the taxi and said that the driver had been looking for the house for 45 minutes. We found this quite strange as the house is not difficult to find and I was waiting outside for some time. My sister in law informed the person I would no longer need the car as I was on my way in the taxi.
I arrived at the airport and checked in my bag at about 7pm. I then gave my receipt for the taxi (R200) to Stevie and there was quite a lot of discussion about this. I am unable to tell you what the discussion was about as it was conducted in Afrikaans even after I asked for the staff to speak in English. I was given R200 I then rushed to go through security.
This whole situation was extremely stressful and unnecessarily so. It would have been easier to catch a taxi when the car did not turn up at 4.30pm
Once I was settled in my seat I was approached by a stewardess and asked if I was Ms Perry. I informed her I was Ms Currie and a passenger behind her said “Yes, that is the name”. The passenger was one half a couple that had been split with the seating. The Stewardess asked me if I would move. I did but I was very annoyed that someone in the airport had breached my privacy by giving another passenger my name.
At the end of the flight Declan asked how my flight was; besides the armrest console failing the flight was okay but the stress before the flight had really upset my day.
The complete disorganisation of the situation and the situation being unnecessarily stressful to myself needs to be addressed by SAA. It has been more than a week since my first email to customer service and I have received no response from SAA. I expect a response within a week to this email otherwise I shall be forced to seek legal advice in reclaiming costs incurred to myself due to being bumped off the flight and staying an extra day in Cape Town, as well as compensation for the stress suffered.

Regards,
Catherine Currie-Steele

I have had a hugely busy weekend, I feel like I have been run over by a truck.
So Wednesday was packing to go to Cape Town.

Thursday was getting through work and then onto the tube journey from hell, followed by a quick check in but the security check from hell!  Man, the shoe taking off is very frustrating, combine that with the huge walk to the lounge, I am getting to the point of asking for a wheel chair!  I was exhausted by the time I got on the plane.  The plane was very empty once the seatbelt signs went off I moved, there was a row of four seats and I figured if someone else sat at the other end I would still have two seats to curl up on.  No one came so I laid out on all four seats and pretty much slept about six hours, fab!  The staff where pleasant and food good, good start for my first Virgin Atlantic experience.
The result was a perky Catherine and not too much grumbling about the huge line at Cape Town airport for the non-South African passport holders.  We arrived an hour early so I had to lurk around waiting for my hubby to turn up.
Then Anthony and I headed to Laurence’s house were Mandelwa was cleaning up the huge amounts of dust from the renovations!  Laurence had the carpet in the house pulled up and very nice tiles laid on the floor of the lounge and new carpet everywhere else.  The house looks great.  It is good to see him looking after it.
Then we had a meeting and then it was off to our regular pilgrimage to the tourist tat central of Greenmarket square!  We bought stuff and I took photos.
Then around to Linda’s parents house to help with the setting up of the house for the wedding reception.  There were strings of beads and crystals hanging for all limbs and candles every where!  It was very full on!  We helped a bit and then it was off to Carlo and Karen’s, to pick up speakers but this is where things went a little wrong cause Carlo started making cocktails and it went down hill from there.  Opps.
Saturday, I was a little dehydrated but that was all and I was on time to help Linda’s mum with preparations.  It was all hands on deck and poor Anthony was lucky to get away to go keep Laurence calm.  I filled paper bags with sand and put candles in them and dotted them around the garden.  Then was whisked away by the ever on time Anthony.
Back at the house we pottered around and then got ready for the photographer to come and take photos.  I wore my 1950’s style dress and pearls along with my ruby heels.  Anthony looked very handsome in a waistcoat and plain white shirt.  Laurence had a lovely hand made waistcoat in the same fabric as Linda’s dress and had his hair straightened for the day.  He also displayed some nerves.
I headed to the church early to carry out my duties of teenager wrangling.  The church was just divine, a cute little stone church with a warm feel to it.  The flowers were stunning and the pew posies just set off the place.  There were enough guests to nicely fill the joint and Laurence and his two groom’s men met people as they came in the door.
Linda looked stunning in her dress, a green satin with a purple sheer sequined overlay.  Her curls were managed into a delightful tumble and she looked very happy.
The service was… lovely but quite religious.  I spend so little time in churches at services now days I always feel like a faintly like an intruder and uncomfortable.
We milled around for photos and then headed off to the reception at Linda’s parents place.  It was a grand night, there were lots of people to talk to, the food was awesome, the venue magical, speeches inspiring (Anthony was very impressive as best man) and the wine flowed like water.  I started the night chatting to guests and the end sitting on the back step chatting to the staff and helpers and being taught snippets of Xhosa which I have forgotten.
The next morning I helped Mandelwa make the bathroom shine like a new pin.  The look on her face when I told her we did not have a maid in London and I did the cleaning was just priceless.  anthony and I then headed off wine tasting and goat watching.  Then we joined the happy couple of lunch and they expressed how pleased the wedding went with only minor mishaps on the way.
Then we visited Aunt B in the evening to chat and catch up before heading back to Laurence’s to pack.
Monday morning was last minute bits and pieces, including the self portrait, before heading to drop off the loan car we had be gratefully loaned by Judy.  We finished our business there and then it was off to the airport.
Unfortunately there was a huge line in the terminal but we were there in plenty of time and flew off to Jo’burg to catch our international flight.  This was the disappointing section, we got to the lounge and after waiting for the boarding call were informed the flight was delayed.  It ended up being about two hours later, this is fairly uncommon but annoying none the less.
We sat in the back of the plane and waited quite a while to be feed, I would have thought that given the late nature of the flight it would have been best to serve food before drinks but no.  Anthony’s veggie meal was very poor, cheese and macaroni, not inspiring.  Mine was fine.  It took forever for the lights to be turned off and when it was there was a lot of noise from the crew.  I know were at the back of the plane near them and there was continually loud chatting form one member of staff.  We asked if they could be quite and they were.  I sleep through a lot of things, and have been on long haul flights before but this noise was out of the ordinary.  It did quieten down for a bit and then the noise rose to gossiping levels.   Anthony informed them at this point that we were trying to sleep, where upon the offending talker came out to say he was trying to work.  Apparently working is talking about the people on maternity cover loudly.  Not impressed.
This combined with the turbulence made for a very uncomfortable night and not much sleep, the lights went on very early and the smell of the breakfast made me feel ill.
We finally got home feeling like we had been dragged through the wringer and after unpacking, fell into bed and then I went to work and Anthony off to a meeting.
Last night was lounging on the couch to assist my swollen ankles to go down.
Tonight, washing and general house work, oh and writing to Virgin Atlantic.

My husband’s job is something I generally try not to talk about besides the travel and stuff. He enjoys the work the work and on the most part is happy with it. This consulting gig certainly extends his talents and challenges him professionally.
We knew when he agreed to the Aberdeen contract it would be hard but ultimately worth it. The dispatch person had either said or heavily hinted strongly it would be good for his career within the company. So with some reservations we took the plunge with the assurance that after six months there would be some feedback of some point and ability to come back.
So off he went. Leaving at 5am Monday morning, flying home from Aberdeen to arrive on the London doorstep at 8pm or 11pm depending on if he had caught the ‘early’ or ‘late’ flight. He is expected to work from home the next day regardless of the time he gets home and the long week-end out of every two weeks never happened.
This routine not only screws with Anthony’s body clock, it destroys my sleep patterns as well. As for going out for a meal or socialise on a Sunday, forget it, you have to be in bed early.

Still, the extra money is good and when they set him up in a flat instead of a hotel that only had one vegetarian option on the menu he was much happier. Going up there to help him set up the flat was fun for me as well.
It has been hard from a personal point. It has put a strain on the relationship, it is quite hard to sort thing issues out when one half is not at home half the time and tired and grumpy when he is at home. I have found it harder as time goes on. We are increasingly wrapped up in separate lives and this causes strain because one does not know what the other is doing and there is jealousy with being not being able to attend social gatherings when the other can.

I found it especially hard coming back from the holiday in Australia and South Africa to find myself rattling around the flat alone in the dark of England’s winter. That combined with homesickness made me not want him to extend the contract. I really miss him, the support we give each other is important and the distance and a screwed routine are difficult to manage. I found after a couple of weeks with a number of falls on my behalf made it that little harder as well. All I wanted was a cuddle when battered and bruised and feeling stupid and he was in Scotland!

Not even mention it effects my work as well. I have turned down working some nights because it would be unfair for me to be at work a night he was in London.

We agreed it was not the best situation and being located back in London would be for the best.

In the end he had to contact the despatch person to enquire about getting moved closer to home. This was okay, and a date was agreed upon and finally a light came on in the tunnel. This was going to help with the planning of a number of things; waiting for these decisions really stuff up planning for trips etc and now we could organise a little further in the future.

So, on Wednesday the person managing the project Anthony was on wanted to know if he would get divorced if he stayed until June. When Anthony said he would have to talk with me, the fellow suggested texting me!!! This was done at dinner after work, after they had started drinking! How highly unprofessional is that?  Talk about pressure, it seems a little harsh to pick that time and place to discuss something that important and frankly when the term ‘strain on marriage’ is used how many people suggest to text the wife? I was surprised this man is married with offspring but he lives near by so I am not sure if has had to travel during his marriage.
This new situation made me so upset on Saturday night when he talked to me about it I am very pleased he did not text me.

Okay extending the leaving date by 2 months may not sound too bad. It does mean he will be there for nine months and the lease is up on the flat so he could be living back in the hotel which is not pleasant in the least. You tend to get sick of living out of a suitcase pretty quickly. I maybe okay if he had been based in London before he went to Scotland but he was in Hindhead. That was a terrible train commute for a long time and then we bought the car. He still was not home until 7 most nights and he was limited in the amount of socialising he could during the week and if he went to gym at night he would not be home before nine. This created complaining form him about the lack of being able to do anything. This was when we were in Wimbledon and frankly it made living in a place that made us unhappy even worse.

For all of our marriage Anthony has been commuting in a way that has impacted on our personal and social lives. As Dan calls it, ‘the life balance’ is not there. I want a husband who is there to help with the housework and has time to spend with me instead of thinking of all the things he could or should be doing.

Thank goodness we don’t have children, I would have emailed the in charge fellow and dispatch person myself and got them to explain to our children who their Daddy was.

I suppose this would not make me so angry if Anthony had not said he has to negotiate the situation. I think the pressure they are putting on him and in turn me is highly unethical and frankly surprising for a company that appears to be supportive of their employees. I wonder if they would pay for the divorce lawyers?

It has drizzled for past two days, making washing washing even less enjoyable.

I am bored at the moment, my own company is sending me around the bend.  I want to chew my own leg of to add to the excitement.   I am having a cabin fever attack.

It is getting dark early and I really need a job.

I really don’t know where to start the description of today.

I am full of Pizza and decadent dessert which has helped a bit.

Work has been quite slow since moving the Research centre across to the new site, due to not unpacking because of the bad placement of the shelving and trying to get it changed.   frustrating but not surprising.  we were hoping for the outcome today and when S the Librarian went off with O the VP we thought that was happening.
But O the VP cam back and told us that the whole Library was being moved, not the shelves but the whole room was now going to be used as a 6th form area.  You could could have knocked me over with a feather.  They are moving it into a totally inappropriate area.  It is just mind blowing.
S the librarian did not appear and we were told to wait, she appeared briefly to collect her bag and although understandably upset did not speak to us, her staff, and left the site.  We did not know that at the time and were told by O the VP later.  So much for sitting and waiting for her.
The space is small and open to all, it is currently a large indoor balcony.
So S the rocking assistant had her last day ruined and there are many upset people at the school.
I am not looking forward to next week, O the VP is going to let me know if I should come in next week considering the ‘new’ Research Centre has to be built and the mood the Librarian will be in.  I don’t need that stress.
I am going to miss S the rocking assistant, and we have to wait while we are dicked around by the Senior Leadership Team and the fact the 6th form bring in the money and have to be pandered to.
I am so angry and upset, I know I am going but that does mean I don’t feel devastated about this turn of events.
I don’t think I have had such a bad day at work since being told my contract had not hope of being renewed and crashing my car.

Oh, to top things off?  I got a rejection letter from the Royal Opera House.

Yesterday was more than slightly annoying. I was quite ill and did not get very much today as I had a dodgy tummy that cause a wealth of comfortablenesses. This curtailed the huge list of stuff I had to do. Grrrrr.

Last night we went out to dinner at an Italian restaurant just up the road from us. I was not feeling the best but went off with Mitchell, his girlfriend and Anthony, to try this restaurant out. The long and the short of it is that I will not be going back there again. The food was nothing we could not have cooked at home. It was the most singly disappointing meal we have had for a long time. The fact we had to wait for ever made it worse!

So this morning I woke with a better feeling belly but a sore throat and cough and sniffle. Can we say not impressed? I have got some things done and quite excited about one thing that will be happening soon!

Work and frustration levels are rising, my legs are sore and I have been using the sticks at work. I could go on but I have things to think about because I am not happy there.

In other good news, Monday night I headed over and we finally got the car. We know own a 2006 Corsa made by Vauxhall which is Holden here .

Last night I got a lot of sewing done, I am into the shirt and have discovered I still struggle to sew a straight line but can put a yoke together astounds me.

Today the students were back and it seemed everyone had forgotten their passwords. I contacted books all day. Andy my corset woman here dropped over my black dragon corset ready for Whitby. It looks good, will have tried it on later. Tonight I was going to tackle the sleeves but things conspired against me and I am kicking myself for not bringing tailor’s paper with me. But I did adjust my favourite velvet gowns and they look very cool and not sack like at all.

Tomorrow is an Explosions in the Sky gig and Friday I am going to see the IT crowd filmed with Ellie.

The weekend is more sewing.

We all know that I love Australia and want to settle there when we get the family urge.  But this makes me thinks again.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200704/s1896267.htm

I can sort of understand the reasoning and I think we don’t allow TB suffers into the country but that is because we don’t have the freaking disease.  We have HIV, it is simple, stopping immigrants coming in with it is not going to eradicate the disease.  Considering the rampant nature of the disease maybe he would be better to chat with South African Health Minster about the spread of it in the population there.  Humph, if I was in Africa and any of my family were infected then I would be taking them home where the care is great.  It appears to be a rather thoughtless remark from our supreme leader, John Howard but the fact he seems to have his head up his arse is very annoying.  I only ever hear stuff about Australian politics when the Prime Minster makes statements like this one.

I won’t even think of typing what I think about his newest thoughts on Global Warming.  Bloody Hell!

He certainly does not have my vote this year and for the first time I am publicly saying it in an open forum.  Grrrrr.

In other news, I at work and listening to Triple J streamed over the internet, worth coming into work for.  Although the broad Aussie accents are doing my head in.  I am listening to Super request.  Australia, request something for me!

So, who is going to B-Movie tonight?

I get tired of being the ‘wait for me kitten’.

I seem to find myself trailing behind people, a lot. I get really tired and angry about this. I am very aware I am quite slow at times, the sticks are helping with this but I am still slow. I really don’t think it takes much for people to keep pace with me. It means you can chat to me and take time to see what is going on around you.

Having to watch some one’s back and wait hopefully that they will slow down is just depressing. Striding off then standing waiting for me is even worse, especially if it is done multiple times.

I find the fact I am slow hard enough to bear without others making me feel as if I am more inadequate.

So if you ever walk with me, try to keep pace with the cripple, admire the scenery and take time to smell the roses. Have a little thought for the person beside you who is doing her level best to keep a normal persons stride whilst sometimes in pain and exhausted because the last thing she wants is to slow you down. Don’t make her plead for you to slow down.

This applies to many people besides me. Think about it normal people.

It is 10am and I have just arisen. I am feeling very relaxed and ready to take on world… well my list of things to do. I have taken a day of leave because I can and really needed some time off. So today will consist of washing, collection some shoe repairs, putting in film to be processed and reading the calorie counting book I have bought recently. Yes, I am now getting serious about shedding this weight. Anything under 60kg would be in my normal weight range and considering I am about 68kg that makes me quite overweight. I won’t tell you how overweight I was when I arrived in England but it was not pretty. So, I have been vaguely watching the calories I eat but the 2000 a day that is quoted for females is not really good if you are short. So, I am going to be very boring this year and trying to turn my eating habits around. There are a number of reasons for this goal of reaching a healthy weight by the end the year, but none of them I will talk about here. But any support and advice would be great. I am starting my storage hunt today as well. I am thinking of heading to Ikea on my own, the thought of going there tomorrow with all the nesting women with their bumps is not on my high priority list. They are open fairly late so I may just be able to convince Anthony to join me after his gym trip. All in all I am quite motivated and that is a change.

Edit: Just called the Home Office and it seems they are sending out my residence card today! Thank goodness for that.