My Atmosphere

From the Great Court, a right (as you enter) leads to the Museum’s most popular wing. Star of the Egyptian sculpture is the Rosetta Stone, whose trilingual inscriptions (in Greek, Heterotic, and Hieroglyphic) made the deciphering of ancient Egyptian possible. (Room 4.) Just as imposing are the monumental friezes and reliefs of the Assyrian, Hittite, and other ancient Near-Eastern civilizations. (Rooms 6-10, ground floor. The southern end of room 4 leads into room 6.) Most famous of the massive array of Greek sculpture on show are the Elgin Marbles, carved under the direction of classical Athens’ greatest sculptor, Phidias. (Room 18.) Equally impressive (and far less crowded) are the almost perfectly preserved Bassae Friezes, in, displaying scenes from the battle between Perseus and the Amazons. (Room 16, upstairs from 17.) Other Hellenic highlights include bits and bobs from two of the seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus and the Mausoleum of Halikarnassos. (Rooms 21-22.) Upstairs, the Portland Vase presides over Roman ceramics and housewares. When discovered in 1582 the base had already been broken and replaced. In 1845, it was shattered by a drunken museum-goer; when it was put back together, 37 small chips were left over. Since then, the vase has been beautifully reconstructed twice, with more left-over chips being reincorporated each time—don’t touch! (Room 70.)

Through Oct. 31 members of airline programs partnered with Hertz can earn double miles on qualifying rentals. Participating airlines are: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Hawaiian Airlines, Midwest Express Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Southwest Airlines, TWA, United Airlines and US Airways. A flight is required to earn miles with all airlines except American, Delta and Northwest. Frequent flyers should mention code 1188888 at the time of reservation. Hertz is also offering bonus participants a free one-year membership in its Club Gold loyalty program. We understand that the bait of frequent flyer miles is a common courtesy for many marketers, but complimentary membership in Club Gold is an attempt to lock in loyalty and compete with counter offers from Hertz rivals, such as Dollar Rent a Car. Those partaking of this bonus should also watch out for the frequent-flyer tax Hertz and other car rental companies pass on to their customers. Miles that are taxed may not be for everyone.

What is it that I’ve got against airlines? Let’s start at the beginning ? airfares. Generally, we expect that two different people will pay about the same price for identical services. So why is it that on an airplane you’re unlikely to find two people who paid the same price for their seats? Buying an airline ticket is like playing the stock market ? if you wait another day will the price go up or down? Airlines should offer simple, flat rates for their tickets, so you can plan ahead without committing to buying a ticket six months before you leave.

Second, the check-in farce. While it’s understandable that everyone should arrive a reasonable time before take off (it always takes at least 30 minutes for everyone to get on the plane), turn-up-and-go shuttle services show that airlines don’t need people to check in early. And if you can fly from New York to L.A. with a one-hour check-in, there’s absolutely no reason why you should need to turn up two hours in advance for an international flight — unless it’s to persuade you to spend more time in the Duty Free shop.

When you book a long haul Australian domestic flight, (using 30,000 points) you can travel a lot further without using any more points provided the trip does not include a stopover or transit at the city of origin. “Let’s say I want to fly MEL-PER-MEL in January, and MEL-CAIRNS-MEL in November. Here’s how it’s done. If, instead of booking MEL-PER, PER-MEL, SYD-CAIRNS, CAIRNS-SYD (which is not possible), there seems to be nothing to stop you booking: SYD-PER (January), PER-MEL (January), MEL-CAIRNS (November) – direct flight (not via Sydney) CAIRNS-SYD (November) – direct flight (not via Sydney). This leaves you to pay for a MEL-SYD Return flight, with the outgoing leg in in January, and the return in November.

Buy duty free in the country of departure, if possible, not in the country of arrival, otherwise you’ll be at the back of the immigration queue.