"Have you thought about calling your travel blog 'Ben Lee and the Jets?'" - James M.

So I have a flying problem...I mean passion. I did 100+ flights annually for the last few years. However and in no small part due to a courageous young woman named Greta I’ve decided to re-evaluate my ways. In 2019 I’ve cut my flights by 40%. That’s still a lot, but I figured it is a good start.

Here some photos and random thoughts, mostly for myself. You can see my flight history here.

Mistake fare: Around the world in 132 hours

November 6, 2014

8 flights
7 countries
6 days

Alitalia had a one way ticket from Los Angeles to Tokyo for $360. Guess what? It routes through Europe via Paris, Rome, Budapest, Amsterdam before finally arriving in Tokyo. A $60 ticket from San Jose to Los Angeles plus another 20,000 miles + $45 for a one way ticket from Tokyo to San Jose via Honololu. Total cost: $465 + 20k AA miles.

Bonus: I was able to convince Cherie to come along too.