Worst place you've overnighted?
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Worst place you've overnighted?
Hey. Just a light thread topic that popped into my mind-what's the WORST place you've had a layover...and why?
For me it was in a damp,humid,insect infested,crumbling building from the 1930s in Zululand, as a charter pilot! Awful! Colleagues of mine have also slept in a shipping container in Mozambique.
What's your story
For me it was in a damp,humid,insect infested,crumbling building from the 1930s in Zululand, as a charter pilot! Awful! Colleagues of mine have also slept in a shipping container in Mozambique.
What's your story
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Tehran!
Nothing to do really, and hard for the female crew to go out, and even us guys didn`t feel entirely at home!
No mobile service, no internet and half an English channel, as it was the Russian tv channel, so every other hour was English.
Nothing to do really, and hard for the female crew to go out, and even us guys didn`t feel entirely at home!
No mobile service, no internet and half an English channel, as it was the Russian tv channel, so every other hour was English.
Back in the 1970's with BOAC I stayed in a hotel in Sharjah called the Sheeba.
I cannot begin to tell you how bad is was|
No air-con, A rickety single bed with torn sheets, a wardrobe that resembled a large tea chest with one wire hangar. The bathroom (no bath) had a toilet seat and a shower head above it with a mirror on the wall so the famous three S's was possible. No TV or radio. No Phone.
The only food was a spit roast chicken in the back yard with cold chips and houmous.
Of course, unlike Dubai, Sharjah was and is DRY so no beer.
The only saving grace on this 2 day slip was that the local mercenaries employed to protect the ruler, The Trucial Oman Scouts, exchanged a night in their mess, drinks included, for a chat with our Hosties!!!!
Beat that!
I cannot begin to tell you how bad is was|
No air-con, A rickety single bed with torn sheets, a wardrobe that resembled a large tea chest with one wire hangar. The bathroom (no bath) had a toilet seat and a shower head above it with a mirror on the wall so the famous three S's was possible. No TV or radio. No Phone.
The only food was a spit roast chicken in the back yard with cold chips and houmous.
Of course, unlike Dubai, Sharjah was and is DRY so no beer.
The only saving grace on this 2 day slip was that the local mercenaries employed to protect the ruler, The Trucial Oman Scouts, exchanged a night in their mess, drinks included, for a chat with our Hosties!!!!
Beat that!
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Kano, Nigeria on an unscheduled night stop from Lagos to LGW. Had to flush the toilet with a bucket of water! Met a giant lizard in the shower! Got eaten alive by mozzies. Never want to go there again.
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The Rus hotel, somewhere off the MKAD near Moscow (aircraft MX issue, and all hotels full).
Door to room didn't close properly.
Pubic hair on the soap in the bathroom.
Three inch gap from the 'bath' and the wall.
Thread-bare towels and sheets.
Lucky it was a 2am arrival and 6am check-out to beat the traffic back to SVO.
Door to room didn't close properly.
Pubic hair on the soap in the bathroom.
Three inch gap from the 'bath' and the wall.
Thread-bare towels and sheets.
Lucky it was a 2am arrival and 6am check-out to beat the traffic back to SVO.
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Yeah Lagos for me too. Dangerous to go out. Power on and off. Water smells and too dam hot. Guess who went for a night stop and got stuck there for a week during the ash cloud shut down.
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Couple years ago, a volcanic eruption grounded everything that was flying in Alaska that day.
We end up overnighting at the only "hotel" available in Nome, Alaska...
The unfamous Polaris Hotel.
It was bad, VERY bad !
In my room, the door had a 3 inch gap and only one shower available for everybody and the worst ? The other crew knocked my door to let me know that his bedsheet was covered with sh...t !!!!
Happyness is V1 at Nome !!!!
We end up overnighting at the only "hotel" available in Nome, Alaska...
The unfamous Polaris Hotel.
It was bad, VERY bad !
In my room, the door had a 3 inch gap and only one shower available for everybody and the worst ? The other crew knocked my door to let me know that his bedsheet was covered with sh...t !!!!
Happyness is V1 at Nome !!!!
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Togo West Africa
Positioned out to bring a flight back (subcharter for another airline) and stayed just 1 night. The crew who brought the aircraft out to us had to stay on and deadhead back as "it was not safe to stay there"!!!!!!!
Can't remember the hotel but had all mod cons including the prostitutes who were stationed on each floor!
Positioned out to bring a flight back (subcharter for another airline) and stayed just 1 night. The crew who brought the aircraft out to us had to stay on and deadhead back as "it was not safe to stay there"!!!!!!!
Can't remember the hotel but had all mod cons including the prostitutes who were stationed on each floor!
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Moscow.
Aircraft went tech and we ended up having to stay. "The" airport hotel was our home for the night. Police at the end of the corridor and we were not allowed to leave that corridor of the hotel apart from to go to the restaurant for dinner. It was just like being in some sort of cold war movie. Some meat and boiled vegetables followed by some sort of out of date tasking ice-cream stuff.
As we do not usually overnight in Moscow, non of us had any other clothed with us, so we were all sat at this table in a sort of mash up of our uniforms and looked like a complete load of odd balls...
Eventually positioned home the next afternoon.
One of the oddest days of my life.
TS
Aircraft went tech and we ended up having to stay. "The" airport hotel was our home for the night. Police at the end of the corridor and we were not allowed to leave that corridor of the hotel apart from to go to the restaurant for dinner. It was just like being in some sort of cold war movie. Some meat and boiled vegetables followed by some sort of out of date tasking ice-cream stuff.
As we do not usually overnight in Moscow, non of us had any other clothed with us, so we were all sat at this table in a sort of mash up of our uniforms and looked like a complete load of odd balls...
Eventually positioned home the next afternoon.
One of the oddest days of my life.
TS
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DonŽt mind the crew hotel in Lagos, and the prossies in Togo never insist unless encouraged. Moscow hotels can be a tad grim, as can USA city ones.
We used to spend much time at the Midway House in Karachi.
Per 10 rooms there was a bearer responsible for cleaning the rooms, serving a cup of tea at calling time, doing your laundry and anything else one might require. (like loose women and local hallucinogenics)
Their idea of cleanliness markedly differed from ours. But they did like clean teeth. Leaving your toothbrush & toothpaste on the wash basin was taken by the bearer as a sign that he was free to use it.
Leaving a bottle of booze out meant that the bearer could take a hefty sip while waving a dirty rag about the room; heŽd re-fill with tap water.
The menu was varied, but once youŽd seen the butcher and his wooden wheelbarrow, with the meat covered by a bloody burlap sack and his wee son riding on top, the only thing youŽd eat was toasted cheese sandwiches. (and even they often gave you the trots)
Cockroaches, fleas and bedbugs were rife, despite frequent use of the Flitgun.
At the pool there was a small wizened chap who specialised in the removal of corns from flight attendants' feet. He had a little toolkit wrapped in a greyish piece of cloth which he would ceremoniously unwrap next to the sun lounger. It contained a knife and a plastic straw. The knife to make an incision around the corn, and the plastic straw to suck it out.
I much enjoyed the Midway House.
We used to spend much time at the Midway House in Karachi.
Per 10 rooms there was a bearer responsible for cleaning the rooms, serving a cup of tea at calling time, doing your laundry and anything else one might require. (like loose women and local hallucinogenics)
Their idea of cleanliness markedly differed from ours. But they did like clean teeth. Leaving your toothbrush & toothpaste on the wash basin was taken by the bearer as a sign that he was free to use it.
Leaving a bottle of booze out meant that the bearer could take a hefty sip while waving a dirty rag about the room; heŽd re-fill with tap water.
The menu was varied, but once youŽd seen the butcher and his wooden wheelbarrow, with the meat covered by a bloody burlap sack and his wee son riding on top, the only thing youŽd eat was toasted cheese sandwiches. (and even they often gave you the trots)
Cockroaches, fleas and bedbugs were rife, despite frequent use of the Flitgun.
At the pool there was a small wizened chap who specialised in the removal of corns from flight attendants' feet. He had a little toolkit wrapped in a greyish piece of cloth which he would ceremoniously unwrap next to the sun lounger. It contained a knife and a plastic straw. The knife to make an incision around the corn, and the plastic straw to suck it out.
I much enjoyed the Midway House.
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Recently a friend of mine was describing her experience in Port of Spain. standing on the room balcony to hear the sound of gunfire fairly close to the hotel, which was supposed to be in the better part of town.
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The 'Sheraton' Djbouti.
Laundry was a word that had been forgotten in the mists of time, or at least for a few weeks. Running water was what you got from the local food and air conditioning was something you stole from the engine of a broken down car and installed if you could figure out the rubber bands.
We were only allowed to stay on the second floor as apparently the rats hadn't learnt how to climb the stairs. The hotel was above the most exclusive (only) night club in town filled with more night fighters than the English Channel during the blitz.
The only security provided was to ensure that the said night fighters didn't enter the hotel (unless the pimp had given permission or they were exiting with 'extras/luggage'). The cockroaches would take you for a city tour on their backs for $5 and the mosquitos were so large they were the only ones who got any form of air traffic in the country.
Aside from that it was a right larf!
Laundry was a word that had been forgotten in the mists of time, or at least for a few weeks. Running water was what you got from the local food and air conditioning was something you stole from the engine of a broken down car and installed if you could figure out the rubber bands.
We were only allowed to stay on the second floor as apparently the rats hadn't learnt how to climb the stairs. The hotel was above the most exclusive (only) night club in town filled with more night fighters than the English Channel during the blitz.
The only security provided was to ensure that the said night fighters didn't enter the hotel (unless the pimp had given permission or they were exiting with 'extras/luggage'). The cockroaches would take you for a city tour on their backs for $5 and the mosquitos were so large they were the only ones who got any form of air traffic in the country.
Aside from that it was a right larf!
Judd - had some great times at The Midway house in the early 70's with Lloyd International and Donaldsons. Nice pool and the KLM bar. The bearers were great. They even changed your money at a VERY advantagious rate. I do remember eating in the restaurant and watching the rats walking along the rafters.
It contained a knife and a plastic straw. The knife to make an incision around the corn, and the plastic straw to suck it out.
Mind you, talking of straws. Went to Vietnam in the mid 90's and stopped off at one of the many local bars. We asked for beers and this toothless creature came from out back with a tube (like you'd use to syphon off petrol, not that I've ever done that!) and proceded to suck the beer from a huge barrel and pour dierctly into your glass. Not pleasant.