There are a couple of things about staying in a hotel that annoy me and both are about the guests, the inconsiderate ones. The first are the noisy ones who completely forget others are also staying in the same hotel. The second those with behavioural issues, mostly bad manners at breakfast. Of the two I detest the most the latter.

A person’s character can be determined in a few ways, how they speak, how they dress, how they act, whom they associate with, etc., but also how they behave in front of food and how they eat. In hotels you’ll see this especially at breakfast the first meal of the day when people are not fully awake; like zombies acting from their subconscious. You can pick up their habits and probably their personality if you study them long enough.

There are plenty of bad habits around food. What I cannot stand the most is when someone coughs or sneezes and doesn’t cover their mouth. Got to be the worst. After the COVID experience you would have thought people would cover up. I guess everyone has seen how to do this by putting nose and mouth inside the elbow. This frees up the hands so they don’t get sprayed on. Granted if you are holding something, a cup, a plate with food it’s going to be very hard not to tip something over. Luckily most of the time it is the other arm that is used for covering nose and mouth.

I’m not saying that these people that do this are ill, but if someone is they should stay in their room and ask for room service. If they are truly ill perhaps they should not have travelled. A decision that should have been made back home.

Other bad habits you might see at breakfast are: hogging food, using the wrong utensil to pick up food, mixing and contaminating foods, reaching over food (perhaps even touching food with a sleeve or the body), eating and talking over food, dressing inappropriately or coming from the pool or shower with wet hair, and lastly loud behaviour and being inconsiderate of others.

I’ve written about this before in an article about hotel etiquette. How to behave at breakfast is part of this.

I see it this way. Breakfast affects everyone not just a few—it’s not just a bit of noise in one corridor—it’s food we all consume. Same as the use of the pool, the water or the gym’s equipment. There are some written and unwritten rules that all should abide by. Be considerate and think about others not just yourself. Should always be in peoples’ minds first and foremost. Am I too critical?

Many Economy Class passengers don’t realise they are doing annoying, disgusting and disrespectful things. Here are some beauties I just observed from my little corner of Economy Class on a couple of long-haul flights (out of six I did over a three week period).

Just after meal time

When the person in front of you reclines their seat before you have finished your meal. That’s happened to me and I made sure the person in front of me understood this. I tapped him on the shoulder and repeated several times not to assume the person behind has finished their meal. Just because you are not eating, it doesn’t mean everyone else has also done so. The right thing to do is to look around or ask then recline.

Walking the aisle

The bad habit of grabbing the top of the headrest while walking down the aisle doesn’t seem to go away. People do this to keep balanced; especially older people. I can’t blame them. Many don’t realise that there is a cup holder not far below, just below where the hand grabs the top corner of the headrest. Besides putting pressure on the headrest and perhaps waking up someone (or disturbing them in some other way), there’s always the chance something drops in your drink (or food). The person sitting ahead of you may have scratched their head or left hair at the top of the seat. These can fall down at any time. Who knows what small particles end up in your drink or food?

Grabbing the top of the seat while walking down the aisle is not going to stop overnight so the simplest solution would be to drink (and eat) up quickly. There’s no other choice.

Another habit that seems ever present is walking around in your socks (and visiting the lavatory) then plonking them onto the bulkhead where hands end up for balance. And of course…

Where feet don’t belong

Saw a woman right in front of me tie up her shoe while resting it on a cushion on the seat. The person who was sitting there had gone to the lavatory. The woman had no regard for this person’s cushion and what she may have left on it. We don’t know if she had been to the lavatory herself with those shoes. The same woman went further! She accessed the overhead bin by climbing onto the seat instead of using the built-in step! If she couldn’t reach she should have asked the FAs who do this all the time.

The perennial cough

Coughing without covering the mouth is one of the most common habits on a plane. Hard to stop coughing when the air conditioning doesn’t suit everyone. I’ve been fine with it 90 percent of the time but in these last few flights I was badly affected by it. If you already have a condition it won’t make it any better. I covered my mouth and nose as much as possible and never coughed towards anyone. It was very hard to control. No real solution here so the best we can do is cover up and pray the air con filters do their job (as they say they do).

When to access overhead bins

A woman went to access the overhead bin one row ahead of where she was sitting while two people in the aisle seats were still eating. She did this also at the same time the FAs had their cart in the aisle and were about to start clearing trays. They had to stop because of her. I looked at the FAs and they gave me that helpless and forlorn look. She then bent over with her arse in the air centimetres from my face with her elbow also about to hit my head! Talk about disrespect towards others!

Another man was looking for a bag that had his child’s toiletries. He was seated in the forward middle three allocated for parents with kids. He couldn’t remember where he had put the bag so looked at eight overhead bins, four on each side from the front. He did go through some a second time. The issue here is you should have all your bags over your head in the overhead locker belonging to your seat numbers or have them stowed under the seat. Not sure if they boarded early as they should with little ones. That’s the whole point so they can organise themselves.

Also if people continue to carry too much stuff, like more than one carry-on bag (whether a backpack, roller case, overnight bag) into the cabin in total disregard of other passengers it is going to exasperate matters. A complaint that’s been around a while and not going to change soon unless airlines go hard.

But wait there is more…

Sleeping using the tray table as a head support. Awkward as it sounds but a few people do this and are oblivious the person sitting in front wants to recline. Legs stretched into aisles with the included blanket. A tripping hazard when lights are out. Large (overweight) bodies, their arms and legs spilling over into neighbouring seats. When in contact they transfer their body heat into you! These are all typical of Economy Class. No wonder many call it cattle class.

Finally…Conduct!

Honestly I think airlines should have a code of conduct spelt out to passengers after boarding. Just like the safety video. Too many of these bad habits are going on. Economy Class travel is becoming even more gross than we know it is. Sad.

Do airports really send people into a rage or is it just an unlucky coincidence anger happens there?

Causes

Getting frustrated at airports is understandable. I think we all have at some stage. There are a lot of things happening. The slow check-in process, the long lines, the scanning, probing, identity checks, being monitored, etc. They all take time. One needs to be constantly alert and aware of what’s going on, and be on your feet for a while. This can weigh on a person’s mind and can get tiring. I think many of us agree on these points. We would rather this whole operation be more streamlined if it were possible. The less time standing, waiting and snaking around queues the better.

Then there’s other people’s annoying or bad habits that don’t make things any better. The lack of courtesy, respect and understanding from fellow travellers. These you have very little control over. You don’t know other people. Some are not used to all of this and will plainly just lose it. This is when it becomes rage. Not just verbal but physical abuse.

Alcohol and drugs too can cause temper issues. One should never be inebriated or on any narcotic if they know it will affect their perceptions. The last thing we want is anything that alters people’s minds in a bad way. So the best advice is to lay off these until you get to destination. Drinking alcohol on a plane, doing it moderately and how to behave is for an other article and rage happens there too at a seemingly increasing rate.

There are also many underlining factors that could get people to the point of losing their composure. A stressful life that may include work worries, family issues, etc., insomnia or just a bad sleep the night before. Then compound that with running late, traffic frustrations (road rage) slow-moving lines at check-in, passport control and other people’s habits all add to people losing control.

Mental Health

We are not all the same so mental health issues should never be discounted. Anxiety, depression and other disorders could play a part in some people’s reactions. I also think people who have these issues would be on medication and would be less of a problem than someone who has a short temper from being frustrated or annoyed. So I don’t think there would be many irresponsible people in this group unless someone didn’t take their medication. If they’ve forgotten, then who knows what could happen. Hopefully they’ll have their medications with them and seek help if required.

Solution

I think many of us agree that an orderly and speedy process would alleviate some frustrations. It goes without saying that travellers need to approach air travel, and in particular transitting through airports, with a relaxed attitude. Making sure to give yourself more time. Always bear in mind and be prepared for things to go wrong. If you require assistance ask for it. Do not take it out on others. If there is bad behaviour or a security risk report it. Better to have a third party cool things down than get involved in arguments and getting hot under the collar.

Please don’t take out your rage on the airport staff. They are people too. So be courteous and understanding. If you think the situation isn’t being handled properly ask to see someone in a higher position, a manager, etc. There is a solution to all problems.

The amount of time one needs to wait until boarding, to sit in their seat and get all this process out of their heads can be a weight. It is important not to be affected by this and take it with you aboard. Plane rage can be even worse being confined in an enclosed cabin. So let’s keep it on the ground and sorted out quickly and peacefully.

Anger Management

This is a subject I won’t get into but there are solutions. If you do have a problem controlling your anger it is best to seek professional help. Here are two links…

healthdirect is an Australian government-funded service, that provides quality, approved free health information and advice.

Australian Psychological Society has resources for various conditions including anger and a directory of psychologists if required.

Note: I wrote this without taking into consideration COVID-19 and the extra steps before and while at the aiport. All I can say is, it will surely add more frustration. I already did a quick mention in the Changi Airport article where I commented on a video released by Changi Airport. In that video it showed one person, but in reality when there will be others, tens or hundreds of people the situation becomes more complicated.

Since writing this last piece in the Note, things are slowly getting back to some normality in airports and on planes. Many mandates and restrictions are being dropped.