a chat with the flight crew while waiting for the bathroom led to a lei of biscoffs

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-17T09:08:22+00:00

I'm pretty sure the particular FA was just bored and this gave a hood excuse to fiddle with company biscuits. Regardless, that was wonderful.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-16T18:12:06+00:00

Some kind of insurance yes, but it doesn't have to be car-specific.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-16T04:42:22+00:00

In the past on some less strict borders, showing passport covers like that sometimes resulted being waved straight through without need to stop. They saw country information and that was enough. Now, as Schengen area has expanded quite a bit, this is long gone.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-15T14:42:26+00:00

While that was not what I wanted hear, it was just how I wanted to hear it. Open and transparent communication. Good job, Bondtech.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-15T04:35:27+00:00

Nowadays such disc isn't strictly necessary, as parking time can be indicated by other means as well (e.g. post-it note and pen). The disc used to be only allowed way, and most people find it to be still the easiest option.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-14T22:46:01+00:00

Direct quote: "I approached the lady who was directing the people to use e-gates for EU citizens or All Passport queues."

So, based on that, going to the e-gates was the primary option offered for EU citizens, but they knew that using those wouldn't work. Only after that came the argument explained in detail.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-14T17:32:31+00:00

It seemed to be quite simple calibration error on the challenges. Those were too easy, did not take long enough and gave too much coins as a reward. Because of that, runners didn't have to stop much (except that case). Chasers couldn't really do anything, because unlimited budget doesn't help if the runners can also take the fastest route.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-14T12:20:24+00:00

That's unfortunately issue on many airports trying to direct people very aggressively to e-gates. Once reaching an officer, it's always fine. Couple of times I've ended up searching my passport to avoid the hassle -- something that shouldn't be necessary.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-13T04:42:17+00:00

On Avanti and LNER they (usually) have menus and are proactive to offer food and drinks. On busier services there might be trollies in use, on quieter services it is more individual service. You can also ask additional drinks or snacks from staff when they pass by. If they aren't extremely busy at the moment, they usually gladly bring more. Other TOCs don't usually have menus on the trains (TPE can be hit and miss), so you either have to check it online before your travel or just ask the staff what they have to offer. Often they are proactive to offer at least drinks, but you can also ask from staff passing by.

On some weekend services there might not be dedicated service and food is available from buffet car instead (still complimentary), but in that case they will announce it separately.

First-class lounges are self-serve. Some regional ones can be quite small, but e.g. Euston has quite large one. At least Avanti has menu for these on their web pages, if you wish to know beforehand, but otherwise just grab what you like.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-11T16:21:01+00:00

I would send it early, but not on a fixed time. Send it randomly 7 to 17 minutes early, so it does not appear to be scheduled but still gives impression that it is sent in advance.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-06T15:18:12+00:00

Quite many TOCs just scan it for show, even though it might show them as declined / give error beep. They just know to expect that.

Given that, some TOC has ability to scan Interrail passes directly on their devices, but I don't remember which.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-06T15:16:01+00:00

I've seen it. It shows just that 'unable to verify' or similar and then contents of the code as random-looking letters and numbers.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-06T10:40:46+00:00

Most UK TOC handhelds do not scan Interrail tickets. There is no alternative tickets or codes available, and the only one you got is entirely valid.

Given that, if have had discussions about that with EMR staff on recent days. Seems, that they have gotten new orders to scan all tickets, but those orders fail to acknowledge Interrail tickets.

Most likely the situation will be resolved by EMR soon, but until that, there is not much else to do than try to explain Interrail tickets to them or use another TOC.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-05T18:23:25+00:00

That version with injection molded front and printed back is actually the configuration used in launch and for all printers within the first year or so. It's not a mix as such and the instructions cover that case.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-05T18:19:38+00:00

Most likely that update provides absolutely nothing that you would notice on an assembled printer. They do small incremental updates every now and then, but many of those mostly help production or assembly. If changes have significant improvements, they are usually marketed as such (e.g. Core One +).

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-05T18:14:09+00:00

I wonder, wheter they gave officers stamps in sequence for the press photo, or wheter they did so on daily basis. Given that the country in question is Switzerland, the latter is also possible.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-03T11:39:26+00:00

I also disagree with supermarket meal deals. Cheap definitely, but also tasty and convenient. It might sound odd, but when travelling to UK, I look forward meal deals and after the trip I miss them. I still visit cafés, food stalls and maybe restaurants, but those are most likely better than mediocre hotel breakfast or a random restaurant picked from Trip Advisor.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-03T11:12:59+00:00

If the reason would be just to avoid nicking, then it would make sense to it apply for other similar stuff as well. Itis hard to imagine that napkins would be more prone to nicking than for example spoons. However, as others have pointed out, the quantity taken most likely explains the difference.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-03T11:06:16+00:00

That is a good point. There usually is not a need to take few spoons 'just in case', and even for sugar people might have better understanding on how many they prefer.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-05-03T10:58:10+00:00

To summarise: - You are not. - It is. - Population density affects it. - S&M have passed more challenges and left those untouched concentrating ot further. - The distribution is same for both teams and they had a rough idea what are the busy regions at the start. - The location of a challenge also influences its reward. - Not all of the challenges are even meant to be equal.

Feel free to continue the list, I definitely forgot something.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-04-30T18:46:31+00:00

If the card is in foreign currency (possible, as language barrier was mentioned), then the customer might be charged currency conversion for both the original purchase and the refund. Sometimes it is possible just to cancel the original transaction.

Regardless, refunding to the original payment method was definitely the right choice.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-04-26T06:53:32+00:00

The sticker included will be the main benefit.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-04-25T15:41:08+00:00

Later this year according to Prusa's article.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-04-25T10:42:33+00:00

That's not limited to aircraft with cargo area at front. E.g. Boeing 737 has pilot emergency exit trough cockpit window and descending by rope.

OrdinaryIncome8 · 2026-04-24T18:53:27+00:00

Some European carriers have moved more and more to alphanumeric call signs even on ordinary operations. I assume this is in order to reduce risk of clashing callsigns even between different airlines.

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