Leaving for Italy

Here I am, about to embark on another crazy journey. I caught the 3:30 train in New Haven to take to Grand Central, then took the subway into Queens to get the AirTrain to the airport. The whole process was pretty smooth, I knew exactly what I was doing and where I was going. It was a bit of a pain lugging my suitcase on a crowded train though. The AirTrain was awesome – it’s very clean and modern-looking, and takes you above the freeways to all the terminals. It took about an hour to get from GC to JFK, and I arrived to check in at 6:30.

I realized on the train that I’d forgotten to submit my code files for my final psych project- oops! So I had Jamie email them to me, and when I land in Milan I’ll have to forward them to my professor. Good thing I remembered now!

Ok, I really want to try to be less summary-dependent in this journal and more random/listy.

I just bought a smoothie – I think I’m addicted! Still hungry, but they’re serving dinner on the flight. Melvin swears by British Airways, so I trust it’ll be a good experience.

So anyway… I’m bored at the airport, so I might as well do a sort of pre-trip statement. My flight is due to leave at 8:30, it’s 8:06 now and the gate screen says it’s a 9:10 departure so I may have more time than anticipated. Great.

 
Alright, I’ve gotta be honest – I’m feeling really anxious about this trip. I keep alternating between being super excited and super nervous. I’m very apprehensive about being alone for 5 weeks. I’m nervous about speaking Italian. I wonder if I’ll hear much English at all. I’m concerned about my luggage – about lugging around a 17.6 lb suitcase on/off trains and buses, and about having things stolen from me. I don’t have the comfort of a tour guide or travel companions and I feel uneasy about it. This is very much out of my comfort zone. I’m not going to feel comfortable at all.

But that’s part of the allure here. I’ve spent months dreaming about and planning this trip. I feel almost like I’ve already lived through it – that’s how much reading and research I’ve done. I’ve watched just about every show featuring Italy on the Travel Channel since returning from Australia. I’ve scoured the SlowTrav forum and checked countless train schedules, even browsed some Italy image galleries. I feel like I have an overdeveloped, perhaps idealized vision of Italy in my mind and very soon it’s going to be verified and/or altered.

But life is about experiences – I can read about, talk about, and watch anything Italy-related, but nothing will be as satisfying as actually living it. This is why I know that embarking on this trip will be so rewarding, as daunting as it may seem now.

 
So let’s see, what else…

I think I am most excited to see Rome, and Venice again. I have a feeling that I’m not going to want to leave Rome. I’m really REALLY excited about the food, especially the gelato. I’m kind of psyched to have a cappuccino and pastry every morning. And by ‘kind of’, I mean ‘extremely’.

I’m curious to see how thrown-off my schedule gets during this trip.

I’m not sure about Florence – I feel like it’s very overrated and far too touristy and artsy for my liking. I’m not into museums so much and I really don’t feel like waiting hours in line just to get into them. But yet everyone raves about this city, so hopefully they can prove me wrong.

I’m also really excited to do the farmstay in Abruzzo NP – it’ll be a nice change of pace. They teach you how to cook an Italian dinner too, so that should be fun. I’m eager to hike in the Alps too – it’s just all the train/bus connections required to get there that has me bogged down.

I’m pretty confident about my itinerary though. I could have started in the north and worked my way south to cut down travel time, but certain things had to be done at certain times, and my flight options were restricted by price. I feel like this is the best way to tackle Italy. I prebooked mostly everything to reduce stress and hassle, though it definitely reduces flexibility.

There are so many places I still want to see in Italy but couldn’t fit in. I would much rather do less and experience more than try to see a little of everything. You really can’t get a good taste of a city in a day or two, which is why I’ve got 4-5 days planned each for Venice, Florence, and Rome. I originally was eager to see Tuscany, but somehow it didn’t make its way into my itinerary. I think you really need to rent a car and stay at agriturismos there, so someday I’ll do that. I’d also really love to do Cinque Terre, but opted for Amalfi instead since they’re similar. Same thing with the Dolomites – this time I’m doing the Alps and Mt. Blanc.

And of course, Sicily and Sardinia sound amazing, and definitely merit more than 2 weeks each. So basically, I will be back someday.

 
It’s 9pm now and we’ve finally boarded. As long as I can make my connection in London, I’m ok. I’ve got a window seat near the back, score! Alright, here’s to an epic journey – next update from Europe!