Lost Luggage

Having the airline lose one's luggage is always inconvenient, and usually dealing with it is a hassle. The worst experience I've had was when LOT not only charged me an overweight baggage charge when none should have applied (blackmail, really; I mean, what are you going to do, leave your bags behind in a foreign country?), but then they failed to load my bags onto the airplane. I spent five days in Mallorca wearing resale shop reject clothing, and then had to make a special trip into Palma to reclaim my bags before I flew home the next day.

It's always a bit disconcerting to be the last one standing at the carousel, hoping that your bags will still somehow miraculously appear. When the carousel stops, reality sets in. The bags are not there.


You don't know where they are. Did they get left behind? Did they get misdirected? Did someone claim yours as theirs accidentally? (This actually happened to me once. I figured it out when a bag identical to mine remained on the carousel, unclaimed, while mine failed to appear. I tried to explain this to the lost luggage clerks, who were not interested. Luckily, there was a phone number on the luggage tags, and I called and found my bag.) Were they off somewhere in luggage limbo, never to be seen again?


Qantas, after several calls, told me my bags had been located and would be delivered tonight. There was a problem, though - one of the bags had been "seriously damaged." Visions of the American Tourister apes flashed through my mind, and of ripped and shredded luggage. Both of my suitcases were Hartman, supposedly sturdy, and with good guarantees, but still.......what about the contents? About half of the contents were gifts for friends.


I was asleep (jet lagged) by the time the bags came. The next morning I examined them. The larger bag, with gifts, seemed completely intact. The smaller one, with my clothes and toiletries, was ensconced in a large plastic bag, with lots of loose stuff. It was all a bit messy and greasy inside. I was afraid to open the bag.

I did, and found inside lots of loose toiletries and toiletries cases, as well as my bag, intact but with a popped zipper (I had overstuffed it). Oddly, none of the loose toiletries were mine; it seemed as though someone had swept up all the loose stuff from the carousel and put it in with my bag. And nothing was actually missing from my bag; the clothing straps had kept everything in place.

So I unpacked, put my things away, and sorted the gifts. As for the extras - there was no ID on anything, it was all used and dirty, and we decided just to throw it all out.