MANfest!!!! [Archive] - Taking Flight - Fear of Flying Support

AZO-FA

10-17-2006, 07:05 PM

Well, I can't make plans because of my job. But this sounds delightful. I have never been to Europe and would love to go...and I can fly there for free. It will just depend on my work schedule. I have zero seniority since I am new and since I am also just about the youngest person working for the airline.

kari

10-18-2006, 10:58 AM

Azo, if you don't turn up, I want a note from your mam explaining your absence :lol:

Agne, I want you to bring one of those policemen with you, the kind with the ridiculous uniform who stand on the street winking at you as you walk past (yes, interestingly enough, the police are the worst culprits! ... either that or they all have nervous tics). I was told off by a policeman in Rome. Hadn't been there a couple of hours but he told me off. For leaning on a railing. Sort of thing if you did it here nobody would even notice you were doing it, much less be bothered by it.

Agne

11-29-2006, 07:28 PM

Last weekend of April sounds good! I have no objections! :)

Lynda

11-29-2006, 08:03 PM

No objections.

Jeff California

11-29-2006, 10:56 PM

I will show up if someone picks me up, gives me a bed to sleep in, and fills the refrigerator full of beer.

EyesSkyward

11-29-2006, 11:19 PM

Heck, I'll pay for my own beer, my own bed, and my own ride from the airport if someone flies me over there. :tongue:

Oh, and you'd have to change the name. It wouldn't do to tell people that I'm flying out of the country to attend a "MANFest". How about calling it 'ChestFest? :D

- Jeff

annie7680

11-29-2006, 11:19 PM

Aww...Those flight fest sound like a lot fun that I wish I could go. But I'm poor :( I am going to try and make the one in Chicago though. :)

EyesSkyward

11-30-2006, 10:52 PM

You must all come over, then you'd all get to stand around saying "oooh wow, look how quaint!" and I could kick your shins :lol:

You'd have to promise to pepper your speech with things like "tally ho", "jolly good", and "right then, off you go".

:D

- Jeff

Passenger Mark

11-30-2006, 11:29 PM

You'd have to promise to pepper your speech with things like "tally ho", "jolly good", and "right then, off you go".

:D

- Jeff

You know... As many times as I have been to England... I don't think I have heard anyone say any of that. I take that back... I have heard "Right then".

They do say "mate" allot... like we say "buddy", or "man". You ask for directions, and then say "Thanks mate" stuff like that. That is also a term for your buds. Like if you are going to watch a game with your mates.

And when you tell them to have a good day, or good week, etc... they respond with "and you"!

I think the way they phrase things is cool!

You really don't get the real England (I think) in London. London seems to be like any big city... it was ok, but I liked getting out in the country. And I liked Manchester. It is a large city also... but not like London.

I loved Southern England... Cornwall. Spent a week there last time.

Hmmmm guess I am thinking about my trip in April... Speaking of, the last weekend is fine!

Lynda

12-01-2006, 01:18 PM

Whoops! I am always saying right then off you go!

I used to say it daily to the children when they were off to school!.

Never said Tally Ho!

noflyingfan

12-04-2006, 07:01 PM

The last weekend in April, huh?

I wonder if Matt would agree to a honeymoon in Manchester....

noflyingfan

12-05-2006, 03:18 PM

You could do a lot worse than a honeymoon in Manchester, Erika ....

Come to England come to England come to England!!!!

Only if I can sing that song from "Hair."

Manchester England, England
Across the Atlantic sea
And I'm a genius genius
I believe in God
And I believe that God believes in Claude
That's me.

Rebecca

12-05-2006, 04:11 PM

Whoops! I am always saying right then off you go!

I used to say it daily to the children when they were off to school!.

Never said Tally Ho!Did you ever say "Right then, you lot, off you go?"

I love "you lot." And all those other Bristishisms!:)

:( I just realized you might have ... Americanisms .... I hope that if you do, they are as charming as Britishisms, but I fear not.

Is it possible to make the dining options in Manchester even remotely appealing? Links, please. And I don't mean bangers. :lol:

EyesSkyward

12-05-2006, 05:12 PM

Only if I can sing that song from "Hair."

Okay... I was about to post that very same song, since it always gets stuck in my head whenever I read this thread. But I didn't think anyone else would get the reference. I've underestimated the savviness of this audience. :tongue:

- Jeff

Lynda

12-05-2006, 05:21 PM

Passenger Mark

12-05-2006, 05:30 PM

There are some great places to eat in Manchester ! It all depends where we hold the MANfest. The last one was at the airport, We ate at the Lancaster overlooking the runway.

Some of the flightfesters later did a tour of Concorde.

http://http://www.takingflight.us/gallery/displayimage.php?album=search&cat=0&pos=6

That was a great place Lynda... But you know the town better than anyone... so wherever you think. Or multiple places, lunch at one, dinner at another.

Passenger Mark

12-05-2006, 05:33 PM

Ughhh... I knew something like this was going to happen!

Sorry folks, but you are going to have to change the name of the fest.

I received a complaint from the ACLU (here in the US we are super politically correct).

Anyways... seems the name "MAN"fest is deemed discriminatory, and thus they have asked us to change the name to "PERSON"fest.

I tried to explain that it had nothing to do with gender, but was named after the city it would be held in.

What are you going to do????

noflyingfan

12-05-2006, 05:58 PM

Okay... I was about to post that very same song, since it always gets stuck in my head whenever I read this thread. But I didn't think anyone else would get the reference. I've underestimated the savviness of this audience. :tongue:

- Jeff

I wasn't really sure if anyone would get it, but I figured if anyone did, they deserved to have that song stuck in their head like I did.

noflyingfan

12-05-2006, 05:59 PM

Rebecca

12-05-2006, 06:17 PM

I received a complaint from the ACLU (here in the US we are super politically correct).

Anyways... seems the name "MAN"fest is deemed discriminatory, and thus they have asked us to change the name to "PERSON"fest.The ACLU monitors Taking Flight??? :lol: :lol: :lol: Hi, guys! Er ... people! :wave: :lol:

But the perfect out is that the ACLU can't possibly have jurisdiction in Britain!!!! :D Since that's where the Fest is, they should just bug off!!!

Or Mark could send them a skunk ... yeah!!!!!!!!!!:happyguy:

Lynda

12-05-2006, 06:59 PM

Line Dancing on Concorde!! Well that will be a first for Concorde I am sure.

noflyingfan

12-05-2006, 07:10 PM

Now, when you say "line dancing on the Concorde," do you mean in the aisles, or climb on top of the thing and line dance up there, like the girls the bar at Coyote Ugly?

Passenger Mark

12-05-2006, 07:14 PM

Settle down there Kari... It was a joke! :D

Depends what we're doing though - are we being cultured or common? The Yang Sing seems to be incredibly popular but I don't really like Chinese! :lol:

I say that we do something typically British! You know the old saying... When in Rome...

Lynda

12-05-2006, 07:21 PM

ummmmm Battered Fish and Chips at Harry Ramsden's for lunch!!!!!!!followed by dinner at the Lancaster . Then maybe Mark can teach us to Line dance!

noflyingfan

12-05-2006, 07:37 PM

And Penguins?

I love Penguins.

Passenger Mark

12-05-2006, 07:51 PM

ummmmm Battered Fish and Chips at Harry Ramsden's for lunch!!!!!!!followed by dinner at the Lancaster[quote]

Mmmmm... That sounds good! I found this about Harry Ramsden's:

[quote]One of Manchester's famous fish and chips diners. You cannot leave England without having a traditional fish and chips dinner with cod, haddock, or plaice. Harry Ramsden's also serves up sides of mushy peas and scraps, which make for the perfect fish and chips dinner.
Is there a website for The Lancaster?

Then maybe Mark can teach us to Line dance!

Hmmm... I am going to have to watch these posts close!

I am not even sure what line-dancing is. Yes I was raised in Tennessee, and live here now... but unfortunately... or fortunately (depending on how you look at it) I am not into the typical country stuff. You know what??? I have never been to the Grand Ole Opry! Not anything bad with it, just not my style.

I guess I can get some self-teach CDs and do my best on the Concorde!

Barb-SAN

12-06-2006, 12:43 AM

I am not even sure what line-dancing is.
I guess I can get some self-teach CDs and do my best on the Concorde!

Anyone just get an idea of what Mark would LOVE for Christmas??;)

LeslieDEN

12-11-2006, 03:34 AM

I think I will come to this. I just spent a couple of hours reading flyertalk.com, imagining ways I might make the ever-elusive 1K status (well, or at least Premier Executive) in 2007 via mileage runs, and then pondered a quick trip to London and back, and then thought, gee, dummy, they're having MANfest, you should go to that! Many miles plus you would get to meet that nice Kari.

Is the April 28 date solid? I'm just about ready to book.

LeslieDEN

12-24-2006, 01:20 AM

I'm laughing out loud!!!! Manchester REALLY needs a new PR firm ...

On the "Destinations" page of the BMI website, here's how the description of Manchester begins:"Manchester is looking up. Gone are the ****ensian days of grinding poverty. Gone too the gloom'n'doom of the 1980s indie punk scene and its Joy Division pessimism: over the last 15 years the city has developed a champagne-for-breakfast insouciance and an almost giddy attitude toward fun.
"The town that started the industrial revolution is stepping out of the steam-and-sweat age and into a swanky, partying juvenilia. But 'Madchester' is more than just froth-at-the-mouth football and high-class party jinks - there's also museums, fine dining and excellent shopping."
That's supposed to entice people to visit? Wull, anyway, I'm glad Manchester is finally stepping out of the steam-and-sweat age and into the age of giddy juvenilia. :lol:

I'll do ORD-MAN on BMI (formerly British Midland) because that's the only United Airlines partner that goes to Manchester. Are they good? I see that they have an all-A330 fleet, which is exciting. I've never been on an A330.

Oh, and if you're still not convinced you want to go to Manchester, here's how the endorsement ends: "Bouncing back from the 1996 bombing that destroyed its inner heart, the city seized the opportunity to revamp the town centre with new public spaces and some imaginative modern architecture that actually works."
Architecture that actually works. I'm sold! :)

_____
Editing to add: Oh, good lord, stupid bad-word deleter.

Lynda

12-24-2006, 07:08 AM

BMI are perhaps my favourite airline Leslie. We paid an upgrade fee at the desk from economy to New Economy I think it was called. The fee was about 150 dollars and worth every penny on a long journey.

We flew a few years back when my fear of turbulence was at it's worst. The cabin crew were really great with me as it was a very turbulent flight. Pilot came and explained turbulence and the clouds outside that caused the problem.

I would not eat anything and once again the cabin crew were great.. They have an on board chef in First Class, they brought him down to me and offered me anything he could make from home made soup to a first class full meal.

Leslie I am sure you will like them.

Now Manchester, I have lived here most of my life and was born here, I would not have recognised that description. The city center is quite lively and I suppose it has changed a lot at night with it's very upmarket bars and clubs. Like most places we have our good parts and we also have places that you would not want to walk through.
I am sure you will have a good time.:)

LeslieDEN

12-26-2006, 01:49 AM

Thanks, Lynda! That sounds wonderful. I remember your telling us about that flight and the terrific crew, but I didn't remember that it was BMI. Sounds fantastic! I hope I get an opportunity to move up to New Economy. I didn't even get a seat assignment when I made the reservation, and when I tried to select seats, it said that option wasn't available, so I don't know where I'm sitting.

I was mistaken about BMI having an all-A330 fleet. Seatguru.com showed only the A330 for BMI, but the BMI website shows lots more. Anyway, I'm flying on an A330, and that's what counts. :)

I'm sure Manchester isn't like that awful description! It makes me wonder what that copywriter would do to my beloved Denver ... "Denver is looking up. Gone is the recession of the 1990s where thousands lost their jobs and homes. Gone is the ineffectual baggage system for which the airport is still famous. Blizzards that paralyze the city for days happen only once every three or four years ..."

This is exciting. Again, thanks, Lynda. I'm looking forward to experiencing BMI and Manchester!

Passenger Mark

01-18-2007, 04:08 PM

Yep! Look at this photo... Everyone fell out! :D

http://www.ukrides.info/col/blackpool/bigoneno.JPG

I CAN'T WAIT!!!! :wired:
</IMG></IMG></IMG>

Rebecca

01-18-2007, 08:26 PM

Mark is going to make me go on it, apparently.Who is this "Mark" you are referring to? Not OUR Mark, certainly? That kindly man with all the compassion and empathy in the world, who wouldn't dream of encouraging anybody to ... oh, wait. Yeah, he WOULD!

I've never met Mark, but I have this scene in my head where he's looking at me, eyes boring into my brain, while I waffle at some boarding gate. Like, "More than a year on TF and you haven't gotten it, yet?" :rolleyes:

Anyway, yeah, you can't meet the pilot, but you can talk to the sweaty, tattooed guy running the dicey diesel generator thingie. I'm sure he'll set your fears to rest.:)

Passenger Mark

01-30-2007, 03:05 PM

So the date is set... how about the location? Or did I miss it somewhere?

Before anyone decides to be a smartypants... I KNOW Manchester... but what's the scoop?

Passenger Mark

02-01-2007, 01:47 AM

http://www.manfest.co.uk/

I agree. The name has to be changed.

:lol: Didn't I tell ya!

StPeteMark

02-01-2007, 09:52 AM

Just call it for what it is, ****Fest, oops, I mean Manchester Fest, or UK-Fest. You have to give it dignity for new members who don't know yet how nutz we are! :loco: :D
.

Rosie Earl

02-07-2007, 09:50 PM

Hi Everyone! I've been lurking around this Board for quite a while now but haven't had much time to post lately due to various boring reasons. However, my hubbie John and I did meet Mark and Lynda at the previous UK-fest and would love to join you for the next one! I live in Sheffield in the UK - Kari, if you need any help with organising anything, please let me know. I can't say that I've ever done the xxxx-up in a brewery but am willing to try anything once!

Look forward to meeting everybody (or as they say in Yorkshire: "ey up loves, I'll see thee soon").
:wave:

Rosie

TattooedJared

03-15-2007, 06:30 PM

Argh! I will just miss it. I arrive in Manchester on May 12th. Just my luck :(

kari

03-15-2007, 06:34 PM

Argh! I will just miss it. I arrive in Manchester on May 12th. Just my luck :(

Book an earlier flight :D

*cough* we seriously need to plan this fest, as people are dropping out on a daily basis :lol:

*taps pen*

TattooedJared

03-15-2007, 06:57 PM

Book an earlier flight :D

*cough* we seriously need to plan this fest, as people are dropping out on a daily basis :lol:

*taps pen*

I almost lost my job over the 2 weeks i got off for my trip. LOL. I wish I could book an earlier flight, but its not an option....as much as I would like it to be. :(

kari

04-03-2007, 03:27 PM

noflyingfan

04-03-2007, 03:31 PM

Can we have a roll call?

I have a confession to make - I might not be able to attend the whole thing myself (lots going on at the end of the month I hope), but will definitely be there for the most part.

Yeah, Kari's coming to my wedding to nab herself an American Italian to see if those are better than the regular Italians.

kari

04-03-2007, 04:23 PM

Yeah, Kari's coming to my wedding to nab herself an American Italian to see if those are better than the regular Italians.

I'm guessing they're not.

gordies

04-11-2007, 08:20 AM

yes, count me in for the ***Fest in Manchester.

I am looking for accommodation for the friday and saturday nights if anyone has any ideas or wants to go 50/50 on a twin room.

Gordon

LeslieDEN

04-12-2007, 04:55 AM

I am looking for accommodation for the friday and saturday nights if anyone has any ideas or wants to go 50/50 on a twin room. I had planned to attend but now circumstances prevent me, and I'm leaving a nonrefundable hotel room behind. If there's any way I can give it to you, I'll be glad to. I tried to cancel it, but the reservation agent told me I can't, so there's an empty, already-paid-for room sitting there for those two nights. I'm already losing the money anyway, so a TFer might as well take advantage of it.

I'm unfamiliar with the rules of nonrefundable hotel bookings (I don't think we have them in the U.S.), but PM me, OK? I'd be glad to turn the room over to you if it's allowable under the rules. I'd much rather know a TFer is staying there than think it's going empty.

It's the Hilton Manchester Deansgate so it should be nice.

Lynda

04-12-2007, 06:22 AM

Kari,

How many comfirmations have you got??? What plans have you made?

If you are going to book Concorde visits for Saturday you will need to do it now as they soon get booked up.:)

kari

04-13-2007, 08:41 PM

Hi,

Sorry I've been quiet all week, been in Paris (been to France now, no need to go back). Once I know how many people are confirmed it'll be easier organise what we are doing. At the very least the Flightfest dinner will be on, I think anything else will depend on numbers. It's a bit hard at the moment for me to be definite about how much I'll be able to attend myself (something going on at work which is scheduled to come to a head at exactly that time) but the dinner is definitely on.

Passenger Mark

04-19-2007, 10:57 PM

Hello Folks!

I have been conferring with Lynda and Kari, and we would like to postpone the Manchester Flight Fest until late August.

We are looking at August 24, 25, 26 2007.

(If that is OK with everyone... if not... I don't know what to say! :D)

kari

04-20-2007, 08:42 AM

We are looking at August 24, 25, 26 2007.

That's a bank holiday.

http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m155/karianne_02/traffic.jpg

Week before?

Passenger Mark

04-20-2007, 04:44 PM

That's a bank holiday.

http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m155/karianne_02/traffic.jpg

Week before?

Is that what everyone does there on a bank holiday? :lol:

Week before (August 17,18,19) is on the table... OK with me.

kari

04-20-2007, 06:08 PM

Is that what everyone does there on a bank holiday? :lol:

Yes :) Well, I don't but everyone else does.

StPeteMark

04-20-2007, 11:31 PM

I've been following this thread and hoping this change isn't going to cost you guys a lot of money in cancellation fees and/or in increased fares/rates for flying and hotel reservations. Good luck for the new dates!
.

Lynda

04-21-2007, 06:45 AM

Mark,

The reason for the change of dates was really a lack of interest this time.
Mark was unable to attend, Leslie had to cancel and I don't think Kari had any confirmations other than Gordon and Rosie.

I am willing to organise this one again if I can get people to confirm attendance by the end of May. If we do not get much interest by then we will have to re think this idea.

The last one we did hold in Manchester was really good and it was great to meet other people in the UK, they in turn was delighted to meet our US friend Mark.

If we could get Agnes over here and perhaps a few of you from the US we could then call this one International Flight Fest Manchester!

kari

04-21-2007, 04:35 PM

Indeed. It turned into something like this:

:deadhorse

so we decided best to move it. It's better work out this time because I'm not organising a third time :lol:

StPeteMark

04-21-2007, 05:18 PM

I wish we could go, but we're tied states-side with our current jobs and obligations for the next year or two.

Don't let numbers discourage you, if that's a consideration, for the New York City FFest, there were just Kelley, Marco, BF/spouse, and us. We had a great time at dinner in Manhattan and West Point the next day (which Marco couldn't make).

We recently had a mini-FF with Lynda and Patrick at Disney World here in Florida. A wonderful day of lunch and shopping at Downtown Disney. In December, we met up with Kelley and Brett for Build-a-Bear and dinner.

It's great meeting up with TF members no matter how few or many.

Make the opportunity and enjoy the momment! :cheers:

SPMark :)
.