Vacation Season Begins... Spring 2025!
After spending the night at the Atlantis for an EARLY wake up, it was go time! We awoke at 3:45am to take the 4:30 shuttle to the airport… brutal but necessary start to our journey! Checking the flight board, there was no other place we wanted to go but LAX! (Sometimes I dream of what other place I could be visiting but not this time!
Without a glitch, Roxanne and I boarded the first leg of our flight to LAX. Our upgraded seats allowed us more legroom. As an “employee”, I was able to check both of our bags (full of cruise clothes) and Roxanne was able to bring a “carry on” bag along with our personal items. It’s such a crazy game getting all of our things on at no extra charge!
With HOURS before our next flight, Roxanne decided a luggage cart might be our best bet. We have had a bit of a challenge in the luggage department… buying bags only to have the frames crack, wheels break off, etc. I went out (with a valid suggestion from Jeremy) and bought a Costco set of luggage. So far… VERY good! Easy to spot, wheels seem solid (big deal while traveling). This might be the luggage I’ve been searching for!
Super tired… this walkway seemed daunting…but we had to charge forward. Thinking we were departing from the International terminal, we walked from United, only to discover we actually check in at terminal two and take a bus to the gates.
For a split second, I thought we were passing the scene of the OJ crime… too soon? I thought it was funny…
With many hours until our connecting flight, we looked for the most convenient “outside security” eatery. Wolfgang Pucks was the answer! We ordered a cocktail because our bartender assured us it was “five o’clock somewhere’… Mostly pizza, the restaurant offered a really great salad t suit my dumb dietary restrictions! We let him know we would be hanging out for quite a while because our flight was not until 4:30. Nosing around the google doc itinerary I had created… it seemed the flight actually departed at 14:30! Good thing I noticed!!! We would have missed the flight by two hours!!!
This trip has been a logistical challenge… it’s a mix of land exploration and a 10-day cruise. We have had to lug around our cruise clothes along with our regular land-based items. Only the start will be a challenge as I have arranged for storage lockers at (or near) every train station!
Gate found… despite the changes from check in time and the bus ride. Little glitches don’t bother us. We had plenty of time (which is why I took the early flight. Roxanne just follows along dutifully (haha).
Pretty funny… Roxanne got me these socks to wear. “If you can read this, bring me wine”. Putting my feet up, our flight attendant got the hint and brought me a glass of wine! He got a kick out of these!
We are on our way! Rome… here we come! It was a bit of a shock to see that after being in the air for forever… (actually only 1 hour), we still had over 10 hours to go! Fortunately, we chose the “Premium Class” on Norse Atlantic for the extra legroom, baggage and food… it’s nice to have a little real estate on a long flight! If you haven’t considered Norse… they fly 777 Dreamliners that are configured like a business class. LAX to Rome, Paris, London Gatwick and Oslo cost anywhere from $199 (if you book early) for coach… and can be as reasonable as $500ish for Premium, one way. It’s worth the extra money to have a comfortable seat for a long non-stop flight! (www.flynorse.com)
Upon landing, the first thing we saw was “The Pope”! Of course, with his passing only a day ago, the area was in a frenzy. It wasn’t a sad feeling… more of an excitement in the air. We saw many in Catholic robes and collars. Servers told us that church leaders, as well as political dignitaries were arriving, so the entire Vatican area was shut down and secured!
We had a great taxi driver take us to our hotel… but the details have to wait until tomorrow. Jetlag is kicking in hard! Good night for now… (PS I woke up to look at what I posted… yikes! it made no sense! Definitely experiencing exhaustion. The next update will be in a few hours when I get better wifi)
