Mom’s Winter Trip
2018 – 2019
Rome to London
Viking Sky with Elva Smith and Carol Hesser
Buenos Aires round trip to Antarctica
Enrichment Journey / celebrity Eclipse with Anna Filardi
December 28 – February 4
Hello and thank you for joining me on my accidentally complicated Winter Trip. Yes I said accidental! The Viking Ocean Sky two week trip from Rome to London was on the books when I got a message from my friend Linda that they were booked on the Enrichment Journeys trip to Antarctica. I had recommended it and they followed through. BUT I had no one interested in going with me so had put that thought aside. When I mentioned it to Anna at CEPAC one afternoon that we happened to work together, she was very interested. During the second act of the show, we stepped out to the lobby, she called and we were hooked! When I talked to the agent the next day to confirm a booking all was well. I had a week home between trips. Doable! The next day I called back. The ‘Enrichment’ part of the Journey added a week in front of the cruise. Yes I am in the States less than 24 hours! Definitely a First World Problem! But I will troop through and be fine in the end and have a great story to tell … and a lesson learned: Don’t be overly enthusiastic until you think it through!
And so here is my tale to tell – so far.
Because of the timing of the two trip changeover and the fact that the second one starts from Miami, I decided to book all the international flights through that airport. No sense risking a January Atlanta Ice Storm Shutdown when I would be flying in on Sunday and out again on Monday mid-month. I booked the first of my 8 flights on Southwest so I could check a bag for free since two suitcases were going to be a necessity. One with furry boots, long underwear, and heavy sweaters. One with styles I thought perfect for the Mediterranean and sunny Italy! Turns out that I think I could have managed with one since the weather in Italy was cold and rainy and I heard from some Australians last night that they are having an unusually warm season even for their summertime! So I suspect the same for me!
My flight to Ft. Lauderdale on December 28th went smoothly once Wonton Noodle and Karen and I made our way through about a 45 minute traffic delay on the way to Hartsfield. Karen did great on the back roads of College Park and found the terminal which looked very busy but TSA Pre-Chek got me to the gate with time to spare. In Florida I made my way to the Tri-rail which connects the busy East Coast cities and was collected in West Palm Beach by my niece, Amanda, after only about an hour. She and her husband Ryan waited dinner until I arrived and we had a nice visit. Charlotte and even young Tommy seemed to remember me and we had a fun evening. I helped Amanda learn to thread her Christmas Gift sewing machine and she cut my hair. It turned into a long evening and soon I was asleep on the couch and morning had dawned.
We had almond coffee cake and tea and set out for the Farmer’s Market. I am glad we had time to do it since when I had visited before it was cold and rainy. But after a quick walk through it was time for Ryan to take me back to the train for the two hour smooth train ride to Miami Airport. Going to West Palm was a good thing. I had the chance to visit the family and did not have to worry about a late or cancelled flight causing me to miss my international connection to Madrid.
It was a quick and easy time in Miami and I must say that the new terminal was very nice. Plenty of food options and plenty of seats. The flight was delayed after we boarded due to weather and the pilot request for a rerouting. Watched five good movies including The Wife and one about how guide dogs for the blind are chosen and trained. I think it was called A Dog’s Life.
Dinner was quite good as international airline food is generally a little better than domestically. The breakfasts are not ever anything to write home about so I won’t!
Landing in Madrid with about 2 hours between flights was indeed an issue when the first trip arrived one hour and fifteen minutes late. The Madrid-Barajas Adolfo Suárez airport is very big. A long triple ramp to exit the plane, then several moving sidewalks before getting to where you can take an elevator to get a train to the terminals. Every minute counted so I rushed off the train for another long walk/run only to find another security line. Took off my shoes because even though they were not high they were boots! Then my bag set off the machine because my laptop was in it. Took about ten minutes all together to get through security. Strangely enough no one seemed to speak English and my gate was not on the posted lists. After getting through the subway style gates by scanning the hastily retrieved boarding pass I was even more confused.
In one direction were posted gates up to but not including K68. In the other were gates staring at K75. I held up some flight attendants to ask about the gate. One said it is on the sign and pointed over her head to it. She then looked up, said ‘Oh! It isn’t! But either way all the K gates are that way!’ I raced through the Duty Free and began jogging from moving sidewalk to moving sidewalk. I was very glad I had checked my bags all the way to Rome or I would not have made it with my roll-aboard! I passed the unmarked gate one time and circled back, reaching it just as the doors closed! Phew! Too bad Iberia Air doesn’t serve even water on short (2hour, 20minute) flights. I was so thirsty. Glad I had gum!
In Rome the trip took a hard turn towards the delightful. My Viking Representative spotted me coming through the doorway, no passport control because of flying EU to EU. She guided me to the bathroom after introducing herself and waited for my bags while I used the ladies room. I came out feeling slightly refreshed and Rhonda had my luggage and led me to Stefano. He was my private driver! An unexpected bonus after the harried time in Madrid. My flight was the only one arriving about that time so I was thrilled not to wait for a bus group to show up.
In my luxurious Mercedes town car I passed through the winter farm country to Civitavecchia, the Port of Rome. My water bottle was fresh and cool, Stefano politely answered my few questions and soft music played. I arrived at the ship side in good time and Judy, Shore Excursions, whisked away my bags. No lines inside so in minutes I was aboard the ‘beautiful Viking Sky’ sipping champagne! My suitcases were taken directly to my cabin and it was wonderful. I quickly unpacked and went to have pizza and wine on the aft deck in the bright sun.
On my way to find a good book to read while sailing I came across Carol who is traveling with us. We met her on the Amazon trip and she jumped at the chance to join us on this one. We ate at the Pool Deck Grill and didn’t make dinner plans because Elva’s flight didn’t get in until after five. Lots of catching up and laughter and the afternoon was soon gone. At 7:00 Carol and I were in the elevator lobby figuring out what to do next when Elva arrived. She was starving and so dropped her carry on in the room and off we went to the World Café for dinner. This is always a good choice because the variety is wide and the food is fresh and hot.
We skipped the opening night entertainment of an Opera Quartet from Rome. There wasn’t really time for it without rushing dinner. Back in our separate cabins I cannot vouch for what Carol was up to but I couldn’t wait to take a shower and get to be. Elva unpacked and we were both lights out by 11!
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