In Transition

This marks our first trip to Italy in almost ten years. We are in the Amsterdam airport, on a Tuesday morning, waiting for our final flight to Florence. It has been about 5 years since we last traveled to Europe, and this is the first time we have had a 3-stop trip. Travel is becoming a little tougher as we move further into this decade!

The entire ordeal of security and "pre-boarding" has tamped down much of the anticipation of transcontinental travel. Stripping out of shoes, belts and jewelry and standing, legs spread apart and hands locked overhead for the full-body scan strips away any semblance of dignity.

We are traveling almost exclusively with carry-ons -- one checked bag is full of gifts for our hosts. As I was reminded at least 17 times by my husband, I probably didn't need to take all the stuff I was taking, especially the travel guides. (Rick Steve's books on Venice and Rome seem indispensable, but I at least saved some weight by putting his big Italy 2012 on my Kindle.) So yes, I have my Kindle and my iPad, my dslr as well as a point-and shoot camera.
As we prepared to board our first flight out of LAX, we were warned that the flight was full and overhead bin space would be limited. I felt like a small-time smuggler, hoisting my 20+pound "small personal item" onto my shoulder as I pushed my carry-on bag down the crowded aisle.

Another indignity: somehow, we were among the last allowed to board. Airline travel still practices the caste system with those who have more travel miles or who have anted-up for the pricier seats get their own boarding lane. There is no need to mingle with us economy fliers. "Zone 3" sounded as if we would be located somewhere in the belly of the plane, the aero-version of steerage. In all fairness, in spite of my complaints, we had professional and friendly service throughout and easy-going passengers for the most part.

Our first seatmate was a first-year med student who spent most of the flight studying for a test on DNA. (I overheard her say all she had to do was "pass." Hope she is never my surgeon!) The second leg of our trip, Detroit to Amsterdam, found us seated next to two young people, both of whom had traveled widely already. The young man was off to Prague before returning to Amsterdam; the other, a college junior spending her year abroad in Florence, having already studied a year in Chile.

As we wait, impatiently, for our now-late departure, I can reflect on our other trips to Italy: the first for our honeymoon; the second in celebration of Henry's parents' 40th anniversary; the third trip for our 30th anniversary. And now this trip: just for fun!