Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Dante has NOTHING on call centers!!!

It was a bitter 2C morning at Malpensa…
The flight was supposed to leave at 10:40…am…
All your intrepid hero wanted to do, was get a page over the intercom…
Italy and the Mediterranean mindset had other ideas…

From the call center at the Malpensa airport…
To an English interpreter…
To an Italian Operator…
To an Alitalia Group desk…
To an Alitalia main number…
To a flight status the ring went…

*****
“Hello Can you try that in English?”
*****
“Yes here is the flight number and yes it’s Alitalia”
*****
“Yes, I know it will leave shortly”
*****
“Are you telling me there are no page telephones?”
*****
“I’d just like to talk to her”
*****
“Lemme get a pencil”
*****
Clicking on phone keypad
*****
(THINKING DAMN LOST IT)
*****
“Ok one more time”
*****
“Do I call this number to get to a page telephone?”
*****
(These idiots invented European silk, the renaissance, Ferraris, and didn’t get around to the idea of a page telephone!?!?!?)
*****
“Ok so is there any way to reach this passenger?”
*****
“Hello Can you try that in English?”
*****
“Hi I just spoke with them they told me to call you”
*****
“Yes I was just on the phone with you”
*****
“No I don’t want the passenger list that is Illegal”
*****
“I’d just like to talk to them”
*****
“Thank you for being of absolutely NO HELP WHATSOEVER, you have a great day”
*****

After several phone cards international calls and attempts the flight had left…
The message went undelivered…
So much for the power of a determined young man…

That.... the message....to that passenger... Will be in their email when they arrive... With the record of when that file was created.

Yes I miss them already...