Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Getting There And Being There...

To say I'm anxious to get my trip started would be an understatement.

And, without question, I'm far more interested in being there than I am in getting there. Let's face it, traveling ain't what it used to be.

The first time I ever stepped foot on a plane my Mom, brother Greg and my Grandmother were flying from LaGuardia in New York to Orlando, Florida. Flying was different then. Back then, we dressed properly when we traveled. We wore button down shirts and shoes as opposed to t-shirts and sneakers. Flying was an occasion, and we treated it like one.

Nowadays, though, things are much different. It's commonplace now to see people traveling in sweats, yoga pants (sometimes a fine idea, other times not so much); Hell, I've even seen people traveling in pajamas. Where we once used to dress up, now it's become the norm to dress down.

How we travel has certainly changed. Websites like Travelocity, Expedia, and a host of others allow us to be our own travel agent. For Italy, I booked my flight, hotel and rental car all at the same time. If I were traveling 40 years ago, that would've taken three different phone calls, and all of them would've been made by a travel agent.

Navigating through airports can be a bit of a hassle, as well. I'm going to be flying from Jacksonville to Charlotte, where I'll spend about three hours waiting on my flight to Rome. And, undoubtedly, when it comes time to board it'll be like a cattle drive. It's one of those undeniable realities about flying in the 21st century. I've discovered a way to mitigate the angst, though. These days, military personnel are usually invited to board early. Well, after 20 years of active duty, I have my retired ID card. I flash that and they let me board early. Yes, I'm well aware that this is something usually reserved for active duty personnel, but I'll often give it a shot. The worst that'll happen is they tell me I can't board early but, in reality, they never check the ID and I've never been denied early boarding.

My flight leaves Charlotte at around 6:20pm, and it's about a 9-1/2 hour flight. As I did for the trip to Ireland last year, I booked aisle seats for all my flights. I can stretch out a bit more than I can at the window, and I hate bothering people if I have to get up to use the restroom. Also, one of the nice thing about these overseas flights is that on board meals, while perhaps not considered "fine dining", are served gratis.

I should be landing in Rome, hopefully fed and rested, around 9:45am local time.

And then the fun begins...







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