Italy – The Start – Vella Marie

My sister and her family are living in Italy for 3 years. They moved there in June of last year and I knew right away we’d be going. I could not buy tickets fast enough. I wasn’t sure when we’d be able to go but a bunch of stuff aligned and I booked our tickets back in September. She had called me and said her mother in-law got tickets super cheap and we should check them out. I did right away and found they were cheap. My sister and I found a time that would work for both our schedules and I booked the flights. We paid $450 per ticket. It was such a good deal I talked my brothers into going and my brother’s girlfriend. It was just something I didn’t think should be passed up.

When I got the tickets it seemed so far away but before we knew it the time was here. We had to be to the airport at 5 am to leave so we were up at about 4 am on Saturday. Darin was kind enough to pick us up that early and drop us off. Everything went pretty smooth at the airport. We had to fly to Denver and switch planes and then fly to Newark NJ where we would switch planes again and then finally to Milan where my sister is.

There was a downside to getting tickets so cheap. We did not get to pick our seats and they were only assigned 24 hours before so you guessed it we were all scattered and mostly in middle seats. I would do it all over again to get to go to Italy.

A bonus was that when we flew into Newark we saw the New York City skyline and the Statue of Liberty. Jaelee was by a window so she got a few pictures. We didn’t have too much time but we had some to go find something to eat. We found a little food court near our gate in Newark and got some food. We all chose a phily cheesesteak cuz we were in New York – I gotta say it wasn’t great but we were in the airport and it filled my tummy so that’s all I really need.

Overall it wasn’t too bad. Somehow on the longest leg of the flight – from Newark to Milan 8 1/2 hours we all had pretty good seats. The plane wasn’t full so we were able to move around. Greg and I ended up getting the seats in the first row so we had lots of leg room and were pretty comfy. We got a warm meal about an hour into the flight. And then it was quiet and just watching movies for most of the flight. About an hour before we arrived they gave us another small meal – breakfast as it was early in the morning in Milan.

Arriving in Milan going through customs was so easy. It was easier than in Mexico. We made it threw customs got our luggage and my sister had a car waiting for us to take us to her apartment. He had my name on a sign and was very friendly. We all got into the van with a ton of excitement and still not believing we were actually there.

It was interesting seeing the city while in the van, it didn’t look as old and had way more open space than I was expecting. Driving was a bit crazy – it seemed there were no rules, no speed limit, no lanes that you had to stay in. You could pass whenever. It made for a fun ride.

When we got to my sisters she was waiting for us outside her apartments gates. I was so excited to see her! From the time we left our house to the time we arrived at hers we had been traveling for 21 hours. None of us really slept much on the plane. It was midnight our time but 8 am her time.

We went up to her apartment and took a tour around really quick. We settled in on her couch to talk and take it all in. I was so full of adrenaline I wasn’t tired. Until about 11, I was starting to crash. I decided to go take a nap and soon after Jaelee followed and came and napped with me. Greg woke me up after about 4 hours. He didn’t want me to sleep too long and not be able to go to sleep later. It was hard to get up but I did.

Brandi & Ryan had gone grocery shopping and got a bunch of meats and cheeses for us to try so they made some really nice charcuterie boards. Greg was in meat heaven! There was some really delicious cheeses and meats. We ate a ton! I gotta say these rolls my sister had were some of the best I’ve ever had. I could of eaten the whole bag. Jaelee loved them too.

That night was the Superbowl and we wanted to watch it but it would be on at midnight Italy time. We stayed up hanging out and talking and watching TV. We made it to the start of the Superbowl and I made it to the first quarter but then I needed sleep. I went to bed and the guys stayed up to watch it. Most of them went to sleep after the half time performance but Greg in his drunk brain got it stuck that he was going to watch or listen to the whole thing. Even though everyone else went to bed and it was after 2 in the morning. He called his friend in the US and was blasting the game threw his phone. I admit I was a bit annoyed I’d barely had any sleep in a few days. I knew we had a lot of ahead of us the next day and I just wanted him and I to get some sleep. We got in a bit of a fight over it and in the end I just went to sleep and he stayed up. As long as he could get up and do all we needed to the next day – let him stay up.

Still can’t believe we were in Italy! Can’t wait to share it all.

The pic Jaelee got of the NY skyline.