We leave a wake-up call for about 7:15 as we have a 7:45 breakfast delivery scheduled and a 8:45 car pick-up scheduled for our 12:10 flight. Of course it doesn’t matter, we’re both awake at 6:30 with nervous anticipation.
In January, when we stayed at the Teatro Pace, we enjoyed breakfast around the corner each morning in the bar, simply telling them our hotel and room number to pay for our breakfast. This morning we opted for room delivery by signing up at the reception desk yesterday afternoon. I find eating our cornetto, and drinking our cappuccino rather clumsy and prefer visiting the bar as there’s really no place other than the bed to sit.
At 8:30 we head downstairs, check out and pile our bags outside to wait Sandro. He calls about 8:40 that he went to the wrong hotel, but now has the correct location and should be by shortly. He pulls up about 8:55 and once we get a man blocking the road with his car to move it, we’re on our way without a hitch.
At the airport, we again get to use Delta’s first class check-in which reduces the time we wait on line, head through security relatively pain free and are in the first class lounge by 10:00. There we enjoy one last espresso but that’s about it. They put out some nondescript food, which people ignore.
About 11:00, we head over to the boarding area, board the plane again without issue and enjoy all the food first class has to offer (including ice cream sundaes all the way home).
At JFK, we wait about thirty minutes to get through Customs; why can’t people understand you must fill out the forms before you get to the Customs Agent? But that’s nothing compared to the hour we wait for Yousef, who is late picking us up, leaving me fuming.
We pull up to our house, with some string beans in front, bouncing up and down. They resemble Becky and Sammi and by 6:30 pm, we’re sitting in a local Italian restaurant, with my parents and our daughters, catching up; our trip already feels like a dream.
