Ciao!

The trip is over. I am so sorry to see it end but also happy to be home amidst familiar surroundings. There is so much to tell so I will break my posts down into segments to avoid putting anyone to sleep. This way I can also relive the experience day by day all over again!
Day 1...May 17th: I was some kind of excited, let me tell you! Just as I had taken a picture of Meredith on her way to her airport, I had Brendan take one of me before he brought me to the bus station. I had decided it would be easiest for me to catch the bus to Logan Airport rather than than make him drive four hours (two down and two back).



Brendan waited with me at the bus station, loaded my bags and we said goodbye. I know the time I'm away is hard on him so I tried not to sound TOO jubilant about the trip. He won't fly and doesn't enjoy travelling as I do but he understands why I was excited. The bus trip was uneventful and brought me right to the Swissair terminal. I checked in, went through the security process without a hitch and settled in to wait at the gate, grabbing a quick bite to eat beforehand since I had gotten there three hours before my flight.

I had scored a window seat which has its pluses and minuses. It means I get to watch the flight unfold but it also means that I cannot get up and move around without disturbing the guy on the aisle. He was a young man, very dark and handsome but also very quiet and obviously nervous about the flight. I usually have no trouble talking to anyone... Meredith claims I can carry on a conversation with store mannequins... but he obviously wasn't in a chatty mood. The flight was long, seven hours to Zurich and I think he spoke twice. We were served dinner shortly after takeoff. It was a decent pasta dish with a salad, roll and dessert, and then it was time to try to get some sleep to prepare us for arriving in Zurich at 8:30AM (which was 2AM in Maine). Unfortunately, my silent friend fidgeted all night, keeping me awake. He twisted and turned in his seat, tried reading the flight magazine, shut his light off and on at least six times, tried watching the small tv screen on the back of the seat in front of him, decided to play the games on same tv and just generally made the question of my sleeping a moot point. In addition, the woman in front of me had at least three small bottles of wine (drinks are free on Swissair) and then proceeded to get airsick all over her clothes. Not pleasant. And not something to sleep through. Otherwise the flight was fine. A couple of hours into the flight, my window seat really paid off. The sunrise was gorgeous.







Now it is time to let the pictures tell the rest of the story of the flight:















We weren't alone up there. So many planes over Europe!













The SwissAir Logo is
so reassuring.
It feels as if
they could handle
any emergency by
just whipping out a
giant first aid kit.



















Descending through the clouds






At the Zurich airport, waiting to change planes. I had to go through security again and the Swiss were so much more thorough. One casualty: a tube of SPF 15 sunscreen (Brand new and never opened) that exceeded the allowable size for carry on. The security agent confiscated it and very unceremoniously dropped it in a large trash can. I cringed as I watch $11 disappear into the trash. I should have remembered to put it in my checked luggage. Ouch! Forty minutes later we were back in the air and headed for Milan.



















First view of the Alps






















Such gorgeous scenery... and so much snow in mid-may!











Once we got over the Alps it was just minutes before we landed in Milan. It was 10:30 AM there but my body was telling me it was 4:30AM. I got through Customs, picked up my checked bags and got on the train to take me into Milan to meet Meredith. I spotted her on the platform and gave her a bone-crushing hug. I had planned to take a picture of her as I first saw her but, in my excitement, forgot all about that. It was SO good to see her.

Next post: Milano with Meredith. (Once my jet lag abates a little!)