I'm not normally an angry guy. In fact, I'd say that unless I'm put under some sort of direct and unreasonable pressure, I'm a really calm and kind person. Today, however, E-Long has me seething mad.

I want to go to Changchun to visit a friend April 3-5, so I went onto e-long and booked a ticket. The last stage asks whether you want to pick it up or have it delivered; I chose delivery because of the fact that I live and work in Yizhuang, quite far from everything, so I'd rather not battle traffic to go in and pick it up myself. Now, because it's late in the afternoon on Monday, it's already too late for them deliver it to me, so I have to choose a time for tomorrow. Seeing as how I work until 4:55pm, I decide to say 7:30, thinking that it would give me plenty of time to go to the bank, get the money, have dinner, and return home.

Tuesday, 2:25pm. I receive a phone call from someone claiming to be at my apartment with a plane ticket, and where the hell am I? He's been trying to call me for the last 30 minutes. Well, I explain, I've been in class, teaching, doing my job. In a nutshell, the delivery man wants me to come and get the ticket, which is impossible because I have class all afternoon. Then he wants to drive to the school to give it to me, which is also impossible since I don't have the money with me. So he hangs up. Soon a lovely person from e-long calls me, informing me that because I can't pay for the ticket now, they'll have to cancel the booking, which means that the price may change when I get the ticket tomorrow.

So. You arrive 5 and a half HOURS early, and now I might have to pay extra?! I don't f@cking think so. 1 hour early? No problem. 2 hours early? Unacceptable, but still doable. That's still within reason. But why bother offering a time option on a delivery service when you think that you can just show up whenever you damn well please?

That was my response to her. Why am I being punished for YOUR mistake? I told her in no uncertain terms that if that price goes up, I'm not buying the ticket, and I'm never dealing with e-long ever again. She called back again later, trying to explain to me again, and I told her the same thing. If this price goes up, you will lose a customer. Forever. c-trip offers the same service, so I'll go to them.

At no time did she even try to suggest any other option that would keep a client (and I've been a client for over 4 years) happy. Why cancel the booking? Why not just admit that you made a mistake, send the guy back out again tomorrow with the same ticket for the same price?

So, tomorrow is also a busy day for me, and I've given them a 2 hour window: from 4:10 to 6:10 pm. She even asks me: "If you are unavailable, is there some friend that can help you to get the ticket?" My response was "Why should I inconvenience colleagues just because you can't operate within a two hour time frame?" I really feel like it's not unreasonable to expect them to be able to hit a mark within a 2 hour span.

If they make the delivery happen, and the price doesn't increase, then I will consider not abandoning them. However, I have to say the fact that they didn't seem to care about losing a customer who has been using their services steadily for over 4 years disturbs me. I might switch even if they do make it happen tomorrow.