6 June 2005 :: Rome to Home

What a morning. In my wine-addled stupor the night before, it seems I asked the front desk for a wakeup call at 7am. Only one problem with this - breakfast was at 7am, and the airport shuttle was leaving at 7:30am. I meant 6am. Despite my sleep mask blocking out all light, I sat bolt-upright in bed at 6:40am, blurted a few expletives and took my second-fastest shower of this tour. I managed to stagger downstairs, packed and clean, at 7:10am - just enough time to down some yogurt and a banana.

After a quick breakfast, some of our tourmates nearly assaulted Bianca as they thought Joey had left back for London without arranging their pre-paid shuttle. So, they ordered new shuttles. Just then, the pre-paid shuttles arrived. Since they had so much room, nearly everyone except the three of us leaving back to Texas got on.

The two newly arranged shuttles then arrived, ostensibly to take eight people to the airport, but now there were only three - me, and Eric & Lauren from Fort Worth. The comedy of this was, these were normal-sized sedans with normal-sized trunks, and there was no way in hell eight people and all their luggage would ever have fit. This left the three of us confirming a price with one driver as the other driver ranted into a cell phone about not having a fare. Whatever - we were off to Fiumicino Airport. Our driver had only a scant respect for lanes, changed lanes to the left when his right blinker was on and came within a paint coat's thickness of sideswiping another Mercedes, but hey, he drove fast. Thumbs up.

I parted company with Lauren and Eric as they headed for the Continental Airlines line while I headed toward the American Airlines line. After a wave to the girls from Arizona (in the United Airlines line), I was up to the counter. As much as I enjoyed my trip, it was nice to get that exit stamp on my passport and head off to the terminal. I enjoyed one final meal in Italy - an Orangina, a salmon-and-cream cheese sandwich, and a strawberry tarte. Yum.

Twelve hours later, after convincing one businessman from Ohio to take my window seat ("I apologize in advance - I pee every two hours.") I arrived at Chicago O'Hare. We spotted the Sears Tower out the window. As much as I enjoyed traveling and will miss Europe and my tourmates, I'm sure I was beaming when the immigration officer stamped my passport and (in that very American of accents - Chicagoan) said, "Welcome back, Miss Evans." Not long after I transferred my bags through Customs my globe-trotting friend Rebecca called, and we both agreed this is one phrase that is music to the ears.

A few hours later, the amber and white lights of Houston appeared in the airplane window - the boring master-planned communities, the stadiums only as ancient as the 1960's, the fast food joints, strip malls and convenience stores - beautiful. I was home.

What I Learned Today:
1. Order your wakeup call before you get drunk.
2. It's a great feeling to turn your cell on after days out of the country and have voice mails from friends.
2b. It's an even better feeling to have none from coworkers.
3. We Americans love taking up room - whether it's our cars, our homes or our bodies, everything is bigger and more spread out in America. Must be that pioneer spirit (or all that fast food).
4. Don't ever use Ampco Parking. Ever. Your trip from the airport terminal to your car will seem longer than your plane ride over the Atlantic.
5. There's no place like home. :)

Congrats! You finally made it to the end of my travel blog! Either you're (a) a true dedicated friend or (b) you got lost and clicked on this page first. Anyhoo, if you would like copies of any of these pics, you may order them from Kodakgallery.com (you may need to turn off your pop-up blocker):

• England


• France


• Italy


• Artsy architectural shots

May your journeys be fulfilling, your friendships strong, and your luggage never lost. Happy trails!

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