shave ice & gelato

Departed Honolulu- Thursday evening, June 7th
Arrived Milan - Saturday morning, June 9th
The good:
Another wonderful check in experience at the Honolulu Airport. No line for the agriculture inspection. A long line for Northwest, BUT no line for Continental!! Because I already printed out my boarding pass, all I had to do was check my bag. There was an open kiosk available when I arrived. I quickly checked my bag (32 pounds) and went to the screening area. The aloha spirit is alive and well at the Honolulu Airport! The line was not very line and so I was not very concerned about the wait. But, a very kind man suggested that anyone leaving from gate 27 go to the next screening area because there was a shorter line there. He was correct. It took a total of 5 minutes to breeze through. This was the first time I flew since the new liquid rules. The person in front of me was a flight attendant and so I just followed her. It was sort of like an assembly line. Off go the shoes, everything goes in little bins, and one by one, we walk through the metal detector. The baggage screeners were very cheerful as I passed through.

After gathering all my belongings, I tried to figure out where my gate was located. My glasses were in a bag and so I tried to squint to read the signs. I saw a couple of ladies sitting on carts and went to ask one where gate 27 was. She said to hop in and she would give me a ride! WOW, that was probably the highlight of my flight. And it gets even better. Along the way, I asked her where I could buy some water. She said that the stores by my gate were already closed but she would pull over to one of the stores along the way and wait for me while I purchased my water. We picked up an older man along the way and quickly arrived at my gate. Simply amazing!

My flight took off on time and was as pleasant as a flight could be in coach. I ate some dried cherries (a tip I read that helps with jet lag) and slept much of the flight.

Sunday, June 10th
Sunday morning was pretty peaceful in Venice. The skies were blue, the sun was out, and the temperature was perfect. Not too hot, but also not too chilly. It was amazing to stand in such an empty Piazza San Marco. There could not have been more than 30 or 40 people in the entire square. Even the pigeons had not arrived. I guess they wait for the vendors with the pigeon food to arrive.

I had a nice chat with the man standing by the Basilica door about how empty it was. I asked him if it was because it was Sunday. He said that every morning at 7 am most of Venice is still asleep. Although this will not convert me to be a morning person, I was glad to be there in the wee hours of the morning to enjoy the piazza without the crowds. After taking a few pictures, I walked down as far as the Arsenale area and then took the vaporetto back to Ca' Doro, stopped for my first italian coffee (heavenly) and then headed back to my apartment.

I was pretty wiped out and took a long nap. I woke up feeling the beginning of a cold coming on. I thought I escaped that nasty bug that many of the teachers at my school caught the last month of work. I took my cold snap, wellness capsules, and drank some airborne. Unfortunately none of that helped.

Happy 4th of July! I arrived home safely last night. Now to unpack and work on my photos. Hopefully I can get a few ready to post soon. First I need to organize them. Half are burned on CDs and half are still on the memory cards and I am running out of space on my computer.

Monday, July 2nd
My departure from Rome:

Monday morning, I finished packing, making sure my liquids were all in their proper locations. A driver came to pick me up and about 40 minutes later I was at the airport. The Fiumicino (Rome) airport is a little more confusing than the Malpensa (Milan) airport. It is not as well marked with signs. I saw a long line and headed that way to see if that was where I needed to be. It was indeed the first step in order to check in - the first passport check line.

I have flown out of Milan the past few years and so I was used to finding my airline first, standing in that passport check line, and then checking in my bag & getting my boarding pass. Here in Rome, if you are flying one of about 10 airlines, you stand in one long line, which covers all the listed airlines to have your passport checked. It seemed pretty trivial to me as in Milan, at least they check to see if your name is on a specific list (some sort of watch list?), but in Rome there is a woman who looks quickly at your passport and then lets you through. You then have to show your passport again about 3 or 4 more times so I don’t really see the point to this initial line.

Something on the lighter side - If you are in need of a good laugh, check out this hilarious video. BGE from Slow Travel posted this (with Kim's help). You may have already seen this, but if not, enjoy!

(warning, turn your volume down a little, this video plays awfully loud)

The luggage problem video got me to thinking about some of my own luggage experiences.

My worst experience was the summer I flew home from Rome and never saw one of my suitcases again. Although it was the smaller of my two bags with mostly dirty clothes inside, it did contain a few of my favorite travel clothing items that I have still not been able to replace to this day. I was an Elite member on Continental that year and so the customer service help to be reimbursed was a pain but not torture.

The one other time I stood at the baggage carousel watching all the bags spin around until the last one came out with my bag still missing was a few summers ago when departing from Venice. My bag was eventually found two weeks later and delivered to my door. A frustrating experience with a happy ending.

This past summer, my wheelie bag came off the carousel with a big dent in the handle. This prevented me from raising the handle more than a couple of inches. Not a fun way to attempt to pull your bag through the streets of Venice. Continental of course was proud to show me their sign that said that they are not responsible for baggage damage. They even gave me a little slip of paper with the same wording highlighted in pink in case I needed a reminder. It cost me about $50.00 in shipping to have Eagle Creek repair it for free.

My most memorable experience however was the time I waited for my luggage to come out after flying from Catania to Rome. I have had to wait quite a while for my luggage to come out many times, but this experience was one I will never forget.

After landing in Rome, I walked with my fellow passengers to the baggage area. When we arrived, five bags were going round and round the carousel. We all stood around and watched the five bags as well as the one other bag that was stuck, but not really holding up any of the other bags.

At one point, a woman pushed the red button. I assume she pushed it because she thought that none of the other bags would come out if the one bag was stuck. The carousel came to a stop. That was NOT a good idea. Everyone around her started speaking to her loudly and rapidly in Italian, with hands flying everywhere. Although I could not understand exactly what was being said, it was pretty obvious that this woman should not have pushed that red button.

After a few minutes of the lively red button discussion, someone found a guy to start the carousel again. We then proceeded to wait, and wait, and wait. After about 20 minutes, six or seven more bags came out and then nothing. Two or three people were lucky enough to find their bags and leave. This meant that at least we were at the correct carousel. The rest of us sat around and watched the same three bags go round and round, again, and again, and again.

People were starting to become upset. A man must have sensed the frustration level. He came over and told us that it would only be about five more minutes. Five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen minutes and still no bags!

By this time, a few people were so fed up, they just left. The faces on the rest of the people were priceless. What expressions. If only I was brave enough to take my camera out and capture some of the expressions, but I knew quite well the mood everyone was in and did not dare.

About this time, a new group of people came off their flight. They waited with us for just a few minutes and then bags began to come out that little hole onto the carousel. All the people from my flight sat. No one moved, as we all knew deep down, those bags would not be our bags. The people from Palermo went over to the carousel. They picked up their bags and left. And then the same three bags continued to around, and around, and around. Mama mia! You should have seen the expressions!

FINALLY, 56 minutes after we landed, our bags came out…on a different carousel.

As I mentioned earlier, my main obsession this year so far has been luggage. I have always tried to pack light but have never succeeded. It sure would make my life a little easier if I could get a little better at packing lighter this year.

First a little history, which may be long and boring...

During my past couple of trips, I have taken my Expandable 24" Eagle Creek wheeled bag as my check in bag.

Info on this bag: 8 pounds, 16 X 24 X 9 in, 3500 cu inches, 3800 cu inches when expanded.

The good thing about this bag is that it can hold a lot of stuff. It can get heavy though when fully packed, but I have never gone over the 50 lb. airline limit. The bad thing about this bag is that it is a taller bag and can be thick if expanded, which makes it difficult to sometimes fit on the overhead train racks or between the seats on the Eurostar trains. I usually cannot lift it that high and worry about taking it down on my own (not wanting it to go flying and injuring another passenger). I don't always have offers to help me lift it and at times I have sat with it squished in front of me during the train ride. This bag also can be a challenge when having to carry it up and down the train underpass stairs.

For my main carry on bag, I have taken my Eagle Creek Subcontinental Journey backpack.

Info on this bag: 3 pounds, 14 X 22 X 9 in, 2400 cu inches.

I ordered the Eagle Creek Tarmac 20 in the palm green color this evening from Zappos. Zappos always sucks me in because if I don't like it, I can return it and it is free shipping both ways. You can't beat that. I also have 365 days to return it, not that I want the box to be sitting in my house for 365 days, but I won't be rushed to return it before my trip in case I change my mind and decide on a different bag or find a better sale. Zappos also had a pretty good price (cheaper than most other sites and the cheapest when you factor in the free shipping).

My deciding factors were:

1. The detachable piggyback clip which I guess would be what I would use to hook the bag to my other wheeled bag. I have had this clip on other bags and never knew what it was for. I have always used it to attach my fleece jacket or my pillow (I never travel anywhere without my pillow).

There seems to be some sort of disagreement in regards to if the Hovercraft 20 bag has this piggyback clip. I read this comment on ebags regarding the Hovercraft 20:
The bag did not come with the water bottle holder or add-a-bag clip that Eagle Creek advertises. We talked to both Eagle Creek and Ebags about this. Eagle Creek was not responsive. Ebags corrected their description based on reality not Eagle Creek advertising.

2. The cool little built in shoe box and stash cache which I only discovered today when clicking on one of the links on the Eagle Creek site for this bag. I am a sucker for gadgets and little hiding spaces. It could save me from taking a couple of little bags to put stuff in. I'm not sure if I would waste all that space with shoes though since I can cram them in along the sides but I'm sure I could find lots of other stuff to put in the shoe space.

Although the Hovercraft 20 is still on my mind as another possibility (as you can probably tell, I don't make decisions easily), I think I will wait though until my Tarmac 20 arrives. If I fall in love with the Tarmac 20, then why hassle with ordering and then returning another bag. Ebags seems to also have free shipping to Hawaii and a 60 day return policy. If I decide I still want to check out the Hovercraft and time it just right, I could order the Hovercraft closer to my trip departure date and have both bags to try out when I start packing. I could then make my final decision with time left to return the bag I don't choose when I return from my trip.

Thanks for the comments and suggestions. Because I am at times very disorganized, I think just writing it all out and organizing my choices helped me visually see the pros/cons. It is good to hear from other solo travelers on how you handle traveling with luggage. It can never be as bad as my first trip to Italy. Boy did I pack badly on that trip. I learn a little more each time I go and I am looking forward to this year's experience. Especially not having to lug as much on my back and shoulders.

(scroll down and read my previous post first to understand this post)

I ordered the wrong bag!!! While checking to see if all of my links on my previous post worked, I realized that the bag I ordered had a slightly different name. Eagle Creek ES Tarmac 20 instead of Eagle Creek Tarmac 20. I then looked at the photo on Zappos and the photo on Eagle Creek and noticed that the bags were different!! How did I ever miss that one? I ordered the older version of the same model bag. That is probably why it was cheaper. The new bag has two pockets in the front and the older version has only one pocket and a strap across the front.

I noticed that the dimensions were different (22 inches vs 20 inches) when first looking at this bag on the Zappos site over the weekend. That puzzled me, but since the cubic inches were the same, I figured it was a just a mistake. After realizing that I ordered the wrong bag, I started looking closely at both of the descriptions and noticed that the weight was a little different (older version is 3 ounces lighter). And sadly, I am pretty doubtful that the cool little built in shoe box and stash cache will be included in the older version that I just ordered. I am guessing the shoe box and stash cache is what makes the newer bag slightly heavier in weight.

I called Zappos to see if they knew anything more about the exact dimensions of this older version bag. When I gave the woman on the phone my shipping address to pull up my order, she told me that she was from Pearl City (the town next door to my work address where I have my orders shipped). SMALL SMALL WORLD!!! I found out that her mom was the secretary at the school I used to work at a few years after I moved to Hawaii. I haven't seen her mom in ages. Her mom was so nice. After leaving that school, I always had fond memories of her kindness towards me and her friendly smile. The woman on the phone also attended the school when I worked there. I was a speech therapist at the time. I vaguely remember her when she was a child. SMALL SMALL WORLD!!!

Back to my bag - she gave me some options and in the end I decided not cancel the order since I can always easily return it. Zappos is a very easy company to deal with when returning things. If I keep the bag, the only thing I will miss is the cool little built in shoe box and stash cache. If I am lucky, the older version may be just what I am looking for.

After I hung up, I did another search on Eagle Creek ES Tarmac 20. I found out that the bag I ordered is the 2007 version and the length is indeed 20 inches and not 22 inches as stated on Zappos.

I can’t believe I ordered the wrong bag!!

Five more sleeps and I am off!! It just doesn't seem real. I don't know why, but I am in this state of combined anxiety and paralysis. Although I am dreaming of espresso and gelato, I can't focus for more than five minutes on what needs to be done. It just doesn't seem real that I AM actually returning to Italy. Thank goodness I have lists from past years to look at just in case I never get my act together to make my new lists for this year. This is my first year that I have time to leisurely pack and get ready for my trip and what am I doing? Procrastinating!!! I guess I was not meant to be an early bird...for packing either. I shall go and stare at last year's packing list again. Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there.

After six hours of packing and organizing, I now have my ziploc quart bag ready to go (you know the one that has the "safe" liquids in it).

I also have organized and packed most of my vitamins and medicines and made a list of a few of things I need to pick up at the drugstore (including things that have expired). Perhaps that is why the Benedryl never worked for my itchy itchy rash.

Slow but steady wins the race...

Two more sleeps!! Packing is at a standstill. I did however buy a new yummy jacket yesterday after 8 hours of shopping looking for a top. I never found the top I wanted but could not resist the jacket after trying it on. It is super comfortable and will be perfect on the plane. I bought it at lululemon athletica.

I have been trying to decide "yay" or "nay" on the midweight long underwear bottoms. I always take my lightweight. Below 60 degrees is winter weather to me. Hopefully if the weather forecasts are correct, I won't be needing my new jacket very often and will be fine if the long underwear stay home.

After over a month of rain and cold weather, this is the predicted weather forecast for the day I will arrive in Santa Margherita Ligure. It looks like it will be a perfect day.

And for all you metric fans out there...

As for that top, I guess I will just have to do a little shopping while in Italy (and ignore the euro/dollar exachange rate).

Last year, I read about how eating tart cherries might help ease jet lag. I packed my cherries, ate them on the plane, but was too jet lagged to remember to eat them the next few nights, which meant that my experiment failed and I never found out if cherries helped jet lag.

According to Russel J. Reiter, PhD, a nutrition researcher at the University of Texas Health and Science Center and one of the world’s leading authorities on melatonin:

When flying, eat some cherries (handful) 30 minutes to an hour before sleeping on the plane. After arrival, eat some cherries one hour before sleeping for at least three more consecutive nights.

I found a few articles suggesting eating cherries for the number of nights per time zones you pass through. That would mean that I would have to eat cherries for 12 nights. The longest I have dealt with jet lag is probably 3 days so I am not sure about the 12 night cherry thing. I am guessing Russel J. Reiter might not have considered time changes such as from Hawaii to Italy when coming up with his formula. Of course you also have to weigh in that this study of cherries easing jet lag comes from a cherry website.

Regardless, I am going to "give it a go" and try the cherry experiment once again this year (can't hurt and even if it doesn't work, cherries are a tasty, healthy snack).

Saturday June 21 - Monday June 23

I checked in for my flight at home (with only one quick moment of panic after realizing that I initially typed in the wrong passport number). The only line I encountered at the airport was the agriculture screening (where I had to wait for 4 other people to put their check in bags through first). No line at the kiosk where I checked in my bag and amazingly no line at the screening area. In fact, I was the only one there. At first I thought must have been at the wrong place because on one else was there. And, I guess because I was the only one there and they had nothing better to do, I was the lucky recipient of a full pat down in the special pat down area. After collecting my bags, putting my shoes back on, and heading towards my gate, I realized that I forgot my pillow in one of the gray tubs at the screening area. I raced back, retrieved my pillow and then headed back to the gate.

My flight from Honolulu to Newark had to be one of the best flights I have taken in a long time (except of course the few times I flew first class). I sat next to a nice couple from Germany. We chatted a little until the food arrived. I decided on Kosher meals for this trip after having one of the best Kosher airline meals on my last trip from Newark to Honolulu. I always order special meals, since they usually seem to be a little fresher and I get my meal first. On my last trip, they messed up on my order, which is how I got the Kosher meal. Well, on this flight, they messed up royally once again. I was given some sort of sandwich with frozen mystery meat inside. I could have sworn it was ham, which puzzled me since I am pretty sure ham is not Kosher. I ate the bread and left the frozen mystery meat on the plate. My meal also came with a chocolate whipped dessert that looked wonderful, but I could not eat (chocolate = migraines for me).

Continental always gives out free headphones for the flights from Newark to Rome or Milan and back. I have a big collection of them at home. I realized once on the plane that I packed the my regular over the ear headphones which look similar to the airline headphones instead of one of my pairs of airline headphones. Fortunately, I brought a coupon with me for another free pair. After my meal, I watched about 5 minutes of some movie and then fell asleep. I slept for 6 straight hours!

After arriving in Newark, I spent about 5 hours wandering the airport. I love my new rolling bag. It made such a big difference walking around the airport not having to lug a bag on my back. I had a wonderful raspberry and cheese filled pastry at Au Bon Pain and a pretty good espresso at Jakes and later a slice of pizza which was just ok. Once at my gate, I checked in showing my passport to get a special mark on my ticket saying documents were shown and a little security sticker on my passport. I surveyed the area and saw babies and little children! Now I love babies and little children most of the time, just not on planes.

As the boarding process began, I went over to the boarding area to wait since my row was going to be called next. As those in the very back of the plane started to board, it started to hail. Boarding stopped and those on the plane were asked to get off the plane. This was not a good sign. I spoke to this guy sitting nearby and he said that the storm, which caused many flights to be canceled was heading our way. The hail was loud and lasted about 20 minutes. We could see the hail bouncing off of the windows on the ceiling. For some reason, hail is always associated with Italy for me. The only other encounters of hail I have had besides hiking in Colorado many many years ago have been when I have been in Italy. Fortunately the hail at the airport stopped and we were once again allowed to board the plane. As my row was called, a group of Italians started pushing their way through the line. I am always amazed at how waiting orderly in line is something that Italians seem to have missed in school.

On this flight, I sat next to a very nice older Italian man. It looked like it was going to be another peaceful flight...until the two rows of families with their babies sat down. The crying began even before we took off. It continued throughout the flight. The babies took turns so that there would not be more than 15 minutes of silence throughout the flight. I was not able to sleep longer than an hour on this flight. I even tried blasting my iPod to drown out the crying. And to add to the crying, a grown man who sat behind me kicked my seat off and on throughout the flight. The feature movie starring Kate Hudson and Mathew McConaughey was not working. The other choices were pretty bad. I ended up watching a movie called Penelope twice, first in English and then again in Italian. It was a LONG flight.

Although we were delayed for 90 minutes because of the hailstorm we onlyarrived 30 minutes late. We arrived at 8:30, I retrieved my bag by 9:20 and was on a bus heading to Milan at 9:30. We arrived at the train station at 10:30. There was construction blocking the main train station entrance, which meant I had to walk around the building to a entrance on the other side. Again, I was thankful for my new rolling bag. After waiting in line to purchase my ticket (the automatic ticket machines were either blocked off due to the construction or were in a location that was a mystery to me), I headed up to wait for my 12:10 train. I bought a bland eggplant and cheese sandwich and had my first espresso machiato.

My train was one of the newer IC plus trains with comfortable first class seats and plenty of room for luggage. I sat across from a very chatty Italian woman. On any other occasion, I would have been thrilled to practice my Italian, but because of my lack of sleep and it being 12:30 - 2:30 in the morning Hawaii time, I could barely keep my eyes open. Trying to understand Italian requires my full attention, which was quite a challenge and this woman continued to talk to me until she finally departed in Genova. Because my eyelids were heavy and I was nodding off, I got up and stood for the rest of the trip. I chatted with a very kind older Italian couple while waiting at the door for my stop. The man helped me with my second bag as I departed the train.

My hotel was a short walk from the train station, mostly downhill. It was easy to find. When I made my reservation, all of the single rooms were booked for my first night in Santa Margherita Ligure. Because I was going to move into a single room the following day, I only unpacked a few things. The double room was clean and quite large, with a nice bathroom and comfortable bed.

After a wonderful shower, I headed out to explore Santa Margherita Ligure. It was a beautiful day and still quite warm. I walked from one end to the other end of town by the ocean, taking photos along the way. By this time, I was fading fast. I found a bar that served pasta and asked if it was possible to order some dinner early. It was 6:30 and the earliest most restaurants serve dinner is 7:30. The man in the bar told me that the cook would be arriving in 5 minutes if I could wait. I ordered a pesto dish with trofie pasta (a typical Ligurian pasta) which was wonderful! After dinner, I headed back to my hotel and was asleep by 7:30. I did remember to eat some cherries before falling asleep. I woke up at 3:30 in the morning and was finally able to go back to sleep about 4:30 or so and slept until 8am.

I am so happy to be back in Italy once again!!!

Sadly, my trip is ending. I am heading to the train station in a little while. Right now I am at Katia's workplace using the internet. I wrote the last four posts about the rest of my time in Bologna on Katia's computer yesterday evening and just posted them on my blog.

When I return home, I will post about my wonderful weekend in Coccaglio and then begin to post some of my photos. I hope everyone is well.

a presto...

Edited to add: I am now at the airport hotel (First Hotel) with 30 minutes of free internet time. Just checking in. I leave in the morning and then spend another night at an airport hotel before arriving home Tuesday evening Hawaii time. Thanks for all of your comments. I am glad to hear that my blogging has been interesting and entertaining. I am never sure just what will be interesting or boring. My trip has been wonderful. There is a big storm outside right now with thunder and lightening which is freaking me out a little bit. Hopefully the weather is wrong and it will not be thundering in the morning when my plane takes off. Ciao!!!

Sunday-Tuesday, July 13th-15th

I sat in the first class train car on the regional train to Milan after sadly waving goodbye to Katia, . The air conditioning did not seem to be working, but the wind provided some relief. First class tickets on regional trains are usually only 3 or 4 euros more and usually worth it as the cars are usually less full which is good when traveling with luggage.

The train guy came through the car checking tickets soon after the train departed from Rovato. When he saw that I had a first class ticket, he told me that I should move to the first class car. I was puzzled by his remark as I thought I was already sitting in a first class car. There was a number 1 on the outside of the train car when I boarded the train. He said that the AC was working in the next car and told me that he would help me move my bags. I was happy where I was, but went along with his suggestion as I was surprised by his offer to help move my bags.

After getting settled into the next car, I saw a white sign saying first class (can't remember the exact Italian wording) on the window of the door that separates the train cars. My guess was because the AC was not working in the other first class car, it was treated as a second class car on this trip.

When arriving in Milan, I knew the drill after being there already a couple of times this trip. As I approached the big stairway (my last set of stairs with luggage on this trip) a shady looking man offered to help me with my bags. I declined and headed down the stairs. At the bottom, I saw two places selling tickets for the airport bus. I went to the newsstand where the line was short. The airport bus costs 7 euros (although there seem to be some buses charging 7.50).

I bought my ticket, headed to the bus, showed my ticket, gave my luggage to the bus guy and watched as he put the luggage in the compartment under the bus, and then boarded the bus. I HATE bus rides, especially when they are packed and there are no seats up at the front. I feel so claustrophobic on a bus. I found a seat midway back and took out my sukoku puzzle. I was feeling a little queasy on the ride and realized once again that my ginger was in my suitcase instead of in my carry on. I tried to ignore the feeling in my stomach. When we arrived at the Malpensa airport, the bus first dropped off those going to Terminal 2. Fortunately when I boarded the bus, the bus driver asked where I was going and told me I needed Terminal 1 for the First Hotel.

When we arrived at Terminal 1, I grabbed my luggage and got out my phone. The hotel told me that the shuttle would be there in 15 or 20 minutes and to go and wait at the number six doorway in the arrival area. The hotel was only 5 minutes away. I wasn't sure why it was going to take 15-20 minutes but went to the number six area and waited. After a few minutes, I noticed two woman waiting on the island in the middle. I walked out there and asked if they were waiting for a hotel shuttle. One of the women told me that they were waiting for the First Hotel shuttle and had been waiting quite a while. They were not too happy to hear that I was told that it would arrive in 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile the skies were turning pitch black and a few minutes later huge raindrops started falling from the sky. I called the hotel again and told the woman that we were moving under the doorway since it was now raining with huge raindrops. She told us to move to area doorway number seven. We walked down to the next area and saw that the island in the middle was covered by a metal type covering. Great! The thunder and lightening was starting and I was now standing under a metal covering. I let out a few tiny screams with each sound of thunder. The shuttle arrived 25 minutes after my initial call. The two women waited one hour for the shuttle. Needless to say, they were pretty upset. I was just thankful that I no longer had to stand outside in a thunder and lightening storm.

I found an interesting article while checking out the CNN website this weekend written by Elizabeth Cohen, CNN Medical Correspondent on five ways to avoid germs while traveling. The tips come from Dr. Mark Gendreau, a senior staff physician at the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, Massachusetts, who has been studying germiness while traveling.

1. Sit toward the front of the airplane

According to Dr. Gendreau, there is better airflow from the ventilation system in the front of the aircraft. Of course first class is the best place to sit since there is less of the squish factor and more room there.

Although I no longer have elite status on Continental, which makes sitting closer to the front of the plane difficult at times, I have tried to sit closer to the front whenever possible. I will probably try a little harder in the future. I would LOVE to always fly first class, wouldn’t we all. I am still waiting on the big lottery win for that to come true.

2. Don't drink coffee or tea on an airplane

The EPA advises anyone with a suppressed immune system or anyone who's "concerned" about bacteria to refrain from drinking coffee or tea on an airplane.

My guess is that most people would be at least somewhat concerned about bacteria. I was aware about not drinking tap water, and even take bottled water in to the bathroom with me when I brush my teeth, but I was unaware that the boiled water for coffee and tea was not safe.

According to this article and the EPA’s Web site: "While boiling water for one minute will remove pathogens from drinking water, the water used to prepare coffee and tea aboard a plane is not generally brought to a sufficiently high temperature to guarantee that pathogens are killed,"

Even more scary, “According to the EPA, out of 7,812 water samples taken from 2,316 aircraft, 2.8 percent were positive for coliform bacteria.”

3. Sanitize your hands after leaving an airplane bathroom
Charles Gerba, an environmental microbiologist at the University of Arizona who's also known as "Dr. Germ” says a toilet on an airplane "is among the germiest that you will encounter almost anywhere."

One point for me! I have been well aware that airplane toilets are full of germs. Not only do I wash my hands, but I use my little bottle of hand sanitizer to sanitize my hands as double protection after returning to my seat.

Dr. Germ goes on to say, "You have 50 people per toilet, unless you are flying a discount airline; then it is 75. We always find E. coli on surfaces in airplane restrooms."

4. Wash or sanitize your hands after getting off an escalator

I never thought about the escalator as a germ breeding area before. Although this article is specifically about traveling, sanitizing your hands after touching all escalator handrails would be a good idea as a way of avoiding germs.

5. Wash or sanitize your hands after using an ATM

I sort of knew this one but have not been good about the hand sanitizer also in this situation. I also recently saw a news clip saying that germs can stay on money for up to 17 days! That sure makes avoiding germs more difficult.

Gendreau sums up how to keep healthy in six words: "hand hygiene, hand hygiene, hand hygiene."

Check out the full article, Five ways to avoid germs while traveling, for more information on the wonderful world of germs.

I saw this YouTube video on the blog Ciao Amalfi! yesterday. It reminded me of Chiocciola's recent Packing: Can I do the tiny suitcase? blog post. I am in awe of anyone who can pack light. I would say I am more of a *medium* packer. I doubt I will ever pack as lightly as Mr. Bean illustrates below. How about you?

I had a fun day on Friday taking Kim and Chris (her husband) on a tour of part of the North Shore. We had lunch at Kua Aina burgers and then hit a few of the beaches. The highlight was our stop at Laniakea Beach ("turtle beach"). We saw a few turtles swimming in the water. As we walked down the beach, we saw two more turtles hanging out on land. While we were there, On our way back to town, we stopped for some shave ice at Aoki's Shave Ice.

As far as packing is going, I am moving as slow as a turtle although I am finally making a good dent in my list. Packing and flying are the two things I hate about traveling. I don't know why packing is so difficult. It really should be an easy task. I have my list. I take similar things every year. Instead it is usual at least a 3-day event. I equate packing to a turtle moving on land. He moves a bit, rests, moves a bit more, and then rests some more. I get my suitcases out, sit and stare at them, grab my list, sit and stare at my stuff, pack a bit, sit and stare (and get distracted), and then pack a bit more.

Below are a few more photos of the turtles we saw hanging out on the beach:

First turtle we saw...

Second turtle...

Third turtle (the one that came out of the water while we were there and moved slowly up onto the beach, same turtle from the video above)...

Friday was a nice distraction from my list and from the tragic, heartbreaking, and inspirational stories and scenes from Iran. For a chronological order of events (from June 13-20), check out this link. Video 9: Wounded Girl Dying is the video of Neda. Her name means call, calling, or voice. She was watching the protests with her father when she was shot in the heart by the Basiji. She was not even participating in the protests. A blog, Neda's Voice, has been created in her memory.

I have changed my sunflower to green in solidarity with Iran. If you are on Twitter, change your profile location to Tehran and change your time zone to GMT+3:30. This will help confuse the Iranian government from finding, attacking, and arresting those sending information out of Iran so the world can witness to what is happening there.

Thanks for all of your recent comments. I will try to reply to some of them before I leave. Heading over to my dad's in a bit and then back to packing...

Sending a special Happy Father's Day wish to my dad and to my brother as well as to all the other fathers out there :)

Monday, June 22nd/Day of departure:
What a crazy Monday. I had an early morning doctor's appointment in town first thing in the morning to follow up on my shoulder/arm, which is still bothering me. My doctor thinks I might have a small rotator cuff tear and ordered an MRI (which will obviously take place when I return from Italy).

I asked him what he thought my best packing option would be.  He said to go with the 2 little roll-ons and to ask for help.  He wrote me a prescription for Ibuprophin 800 to be taken 3 times a day. He also offered to write me a prescription for some pain pills. I told him that I had plenty left from last November.  I packed a few of them just in case but am hoping I won't need to take them so that I won't be walking around in a zombie state from them while in italy.

It's a good thing I mentioned to the nurse that my medical insurance is changing as of July 1st when she was setting up my MRI.  Otherwise I would have either shown up without realizing that I needed to get preauthorization and would have had to cancel it or even worse yet, had the MRI, which would have cost me thousands of dollars out of pocket if no one said anything. In order for the nurse to send in the preauthorization, she needed my medical insurance number, something I had not yet received.

Last week when I talked to the insurance company, they had no idea when they would be mailing out the cards.  They still did not have numbers for any of the 13,000 public school teachers who are all being switched into this program.  My plan was to call them one more time and if they still did not have my new medical insurance number, I was hoping that they would agree to email me the number. I would then email the number to a friend who would then call the nurse with the number.  This was not what I needed to deal with on th day I was leaving for Italy!

After picking up my prescription at the pharmacy downstairs, I went home and made another call to see if they had assigned me a number.  After being put on hold for a few minutes, I was given my number!!  Yay!! That was one worry I would not have to deal with while in Italy.

I was pretty much done with packing and only had a few minor things left to organize. I went down the list of meds on my packing list and realized that my inhaler was missing. I spent the next hour and a half searching everywhere for my inhaler. I even went through my trash! Finally when I gave up looking (which is generally when I find missing things), there it was sitting on top of my check-in bag inside of one of my little ditty bags.

Time flew by as I frantically went over my packing list one more time. I ended up not having enough time to print out all my train schedules.  I also encountered some last minute iPod Touch problems due to loading the new OS3 system that just came out. Friday night, I realized that I lost all of my songs and videos. That took a big chunk of my time trying to redo all the playlists I made. YouTube also wasn't working. I figured that one out after about an hour of research. During my flights, I have found more glitches. These I will just have to live with until I return home.

About an hour before I needed to leave for the airport, I realized that I was not able to connect to air sharing to transfer all of my documents. This freaked me out since I was depending on transferring a bunch of stuff onto my iPod Touch for my trip. I eventually resolved the issue but could not tell you how I did it now.  

The one thing I did not have time to do was to print out all of the train schedules. I feel much more secure having all my train schedules in my hand when taking the train. Even though most of the train schedules are on my iPod, my trip will be interesting without having printed out schedules with all of the various options. I don't think I mentioned that there is a scheduled strike on the day I will be traveling from Bologna to Stresa. I have not figured out what I am going to do if the strike does take place.

The other thing I forgot to do was to grab an English/Italian dictionary.  I hope my Italian will carry me on this trip, especially if I end up at the train window without a printed out schedule to purchase a ticket.  I will soon find out.

I did take a picture of my updated 3-3-1 bag (especially for Chiocciola), but I didn't have time to post it before heading to the airport.

Heading to the airport/departing Honolulu:
I ate my dinner on the way to the airport while my dad drove.  Eating in advance turned out to be a good thing because that meant I didn't have to stay awake to wait for my dinner (or should I say snack) on the plane).

I did the pre-check in online but was not allowed to print my tickets because they had to do a passport check at the airport.  No line at the kiosk.  I breezed right through.  My check in bag weighed 24.5 pounds an my carry on weighed 23.5 pounds.

The line at security was very short.  New rule - shoes no longer go in the bin. One of the TSA guys was barking at everyone like an army sargeant.  Power really goes to some poeple,s heads.  I felt sorry for this older couple who were so confused.

The flight attendant helped me lift my bag up into the overhead bin, but not too enthusiastically.  A cute young guy sat next to me (talking to his fiance on the phone).  Cute guy turned into rude guy.  He ignored the announcement to turn off cell phones and continued talking for another 10 minutes loudly for everyone to hear.

A young woman from japan (who was wearing a Yankees shirt) wagged her finger AT ME about him talking on the phone as if I could do anything. She then got out of her chair, marched down the aisle, and found the flight attendant to tell him to turn the phone off.

After he finally turned the phone off, very rude guy turned to the young girl sitting on his right amd introduced himself to her. He talked nonstop and flirted with her and did not even acknowledge that I existed. I had no desire to join in on the converstation, but a hello or even goodbye when we arrived in Newark the following morning would have been polite.  The flight was pretty quiet (except for the guy gabbing away). I slept most of the flight for the first time in a long time.

Tuesday, June 23rd/Hanging out in Newark:
I spent the first few hours of my six hour layover walking around, checkinhg out some of the stores, and enjoying my favorite raspberry and cream cheese croissont at Au Bon Pain. Because I was dozing off while eating my croissont, I walked around some more and then headed to the gate once it was finally announced.

The flight boarded on time. I was able to find a guy sitting near me to lift my bag up into the overhead compartment. A very polite young guy who said hello and introduced himself right away sat next to me on my second flight.  We chatted briefly.  I waited for dinner, which was suprisingly very good ( chicken & rice & veggies), and then went to sleep. I slept again for most of the flight.

Wednesday, June 24th/Arrival in Roma:
We arrived in Roma on time.  The line was very reasonable at the passport control.  I was worried that I would have a problem with my new passport because I signed it with my middle initial instead of my full middle name.  No problems so far.  I was thrilled to get my first passport stamp.  My bag arrived shortly after I got to the baggage claim area. I was a little confused about the location of the train station since there were signs with train pictures pointing in two different directions.  I stopped and asked someone who worked at the airport. I am getting much better at understanding directions. I understood just what he said and found the train station quite easily. After buying my train tickets to Roma Termini & Firenze, I stopped in a bar and had my first caffé macchiato and crema brioche. Soooooo good!!!

There was a big crowd waiting for the train.  I headed down toward the other end and easily found a seat.  A nice man helped me carry one of my bags on board.  When we arrived in Roma, another nice man again helped me with one of my bags. It took me a few minutes, but I was able to figured out a way to get to the main area of the Termini train station without having to take any stairs.

My 10:30 AV Eurostar train was on time.  These trains are so easy to board now because there are signs pointing to each carrozza or train car location along the way. When getting on the train, a nice woman helped me with one of my bags. I really am amazed with all of the help I have been offered so far.  

I am finishing up this post on my iPod Touch. I have been writing a little bit every now and then using my yahoo account email. Even though I cannot connect to the internet, I can save this as a draft.

I have a nice seat in first class (a little more money but not as crowded and plenty of room for luggage witout having to lift anything overhead). We are traveling through the beautiful Tuscan countryside as I 'peck'. Once I have wireless access, I am able to cut and paste my draft email entry right into a new entry page on my blog right from my iPod Touch.

**I am now in Florence at my wonderful B&B spell checking and editing my post. I am thrilled to be here but also crashing from the jetlag. I quit spell checking about half way down. I apologize for any glaring errors. I have not decided yet if it is easier to write the entry using my iPod Touch or if it is easier to type the entry using the Italian keyboard. I know it will all come back to my eventually, but right now it is pretty much a tie. I will need computer access though and not just wireless using my iPod Touch to write any entry that is longer than a few sentences because I can't seem to scroll up or down in the little box where I paste my entry in the blog template.

**Highlights from Florence so far: My first gelato at GROM and men in tights.

More soon...
Ciao!!!

I thought I would start with the end of my trip since I have not written up much of this part of my trip yet and it will probably be the first part to disappear from my memory. Warning... this is long!

I took the 16:37 train to Milano Centrale (train station). I would have taken the 15:37 train but somehow thought it left at 15:47 (mixed it up with the Verona train time from the day before). We arrived at the station at 15:36 just as the 15:37 train was about to arrive and for once the train was on time. Not enough time to go down and then up the stairs to get to binario 2. I learned my lesson once already regarding running for a train this summer.

Katia and I hung out at the train station for the next hour waiting for my train to arrive. It was nice having an hour of quiet time chatting before I left. I always hate saying goodbye when I finally get on that train after spending time with Katia and Guido (more on my time in Coccaglio later).

I find that for most trains, first class always pays off. The car was pretty empty. Lots of room for my bags. Peaceful ride. A very nice man offered to help me with my bags when getting off the train. Two more creepy guys attempting the "can I help you with your bags" scam approached me once I was off the train. Although it can be a little tricky maneuvering around with 2 roller bags hooked to each other in Milan due to the crowds and congestion, I was thankful there were no more stairs.

I love the new improvements at the Milano Centrale train station. There are moving walkways that angle downward to go down to the lower levels so you no longer need to go carry bags down the stairs to reach the street level. Because everything is new (or at least new to me since last summer), I was not sure at first where to go. I found a sign at one level for the airport shuttle but not at the next. I can't remember if you have to go down twice or three times but just head towards the metro sign until you are on the ground level and then you will see the airport signs again.

I bought ticket at the tabaccheria shop on the ground floor where there was a big sign saying Malpensa Express €7. There still is a little work going on at this train station so my directions might change, but at least for now, you head on out the door by the tabaccheria shop, walk straight ahead until you reach a main street, and then turn left or just follow everyone with luggage and you will find the Malpensa Express buses.

Warning - in my experience, the bus drivers are not always so friendly at the train station. As I approached the first bus, the bus driver in a grouchy voice told me to go to the next bus. At the next bus, the guy standing in front of the door at the bus took my ticket and stamped it. While he was stamping it, I was unable to avoid inhaling a bit of his stinky lit cigarette. He seemed oblivious as I noticed uncomfortable reactions from other bus riders as they either had their tickets stamped or bought tickets from this guy. He also said just one word - "La", which meant there, referring to the fact that you had to go around to the other side to store your bags in the storage compartment under the bus. The guy by the baggage storage area, who turned out to be our bus driver, was friendlier. He will ask you if you are going to Terminal 1 or 2. Terminal 2 is first. Terminal 1 is the terminal where most people depart.

The bus was pretty full. I was fortunate to find a seat not too far from the front of the bus. I was even more fortunate to be one of the few who ended up with an empty seat next to me for the ride. I took the following photo of three girls trying to figure out directions on a big map while two guys look on in Milan at a red light.

Because I stayed at the same airport hotel last summer, I knew just where to go once we arrived at Terminal 1. I called the hotel as instructed when I arrived and was told that the shuttle would arrive in 15-20 minutes. I was not very happy to hear this since last year I waited 25 minutes and two other women who were already waiting when I arrived waited one hour for the shuttle to arrive. The hotel is only a 5 minutes drive to the airport.

My flight to Newark arrived on time. I called Kim to let her know that I arrived and to arrange a meeting place. As I made my way down to the international arrival area, I noticed huge signs informing everyone that no cell phones and photos were allowed.

I found it strange that the US citizens' lines at the passport control were on the left when in the past they were always on the right. The wait was minimal. Next stop, the dreaded luggage carousel. As always, it seemed to take forever for the luggage to start coming. While we waited the little beagle dog made the rounds a few times sniffing for food items such that need to be declared. Once the luggage carousel started moving, my bag showed up pretty quickly. I always do that little happy dance in my head when I see my bag after having a bag lost or more accurately stolen after departing Rome one year.

I brought back some canned tuna and anchovies for my dad thinking that would not send me through the agriculture line. Wrong. Just it was my turn to explain my food items marked on my blue slip everyone filled out, my phone rang. I knew it was Kim but could not answer it. It just kept ringing and ringing as I tried to explain to the guy that all of my food items were either candy or canned tuna and anchovies. He told me that I had to go through the agriculture line anyways. I really hate going through this line after watching the guy put my bag through the x-ray machine one time and then letting it drop 3 feet onto the ground while I was not allowed near my bag. That year I brought back sundried tomatoes. This year, they were so busy tearing through two other passengers' bags that they just sent my bags through the x-ray machines. I was able to grab them just as they reached the end. Just as I went to grab my bags, my phone started ringing again. I didn’t dare answer it since I was not officially out of the area yet. I felt bad wondering if Kim was right outside wondering where I was.

After gathering up all of my stuff and hooking it back together, I left the international arrival area and gave Kim a call. I told her where I was and headed outside. Kim called again a few minutes later asking exactly where I was saying that she must have just missed me and would do another loop around. I told her I would wave my arms and jump up and down for her so she could find me. I forgot to ask what color her car was so I stood out in the street waving my arms and jumping up and down as each car approached.

A few minutes later, Kim called again talking about landmarks I was not seeing. I kept telling her that I was by a certain door and she kept talking about signs I was not seeing anywhere. Meanwhile a guy nearby must have overheard me and told me to tell her that I was at Terminal B. Terminal B? All this time Kim thought I was at Terminal C. No wonder why she could not find me. Once this was cleared up, Kim arrived a few minutes later. We laughed about the mix up, but I still felt badly that she wasted all her time driving around. I guess usually Continental planes usually always land at Terminal C and I had no idea that there were even different terminals. That would explain why the US citizens' lines at the passport control were on the left this time.

I was treated like a queen at Kim's house. I took a shower and unpacked just a few things as I settled into my huge bedroom with a very comfortable bed and private bathroom when we arrived. Kim and I went to a little store that sold fresh fruits and vegetables and then later to a big grocery store nearby. I am always amazed when wandering through a grocery store on the mainland. Not only are the prices much lower than they are in Hawaii, but there is so much more of a variety of food to choose from. So many things that I wish were sold here in Hawaii. Kim promised me a lobster dinner a couple of years ago. The guy fishing out the lobsters did a great job finding four superb lobsters for us.

After reading so much about Becky and Sammi, it was wonderful to finally meet both of them for the first time. We hung outside and munched on some appetizers. Chris joined us when he got home from work. Dinner later that evening was fabulous. I would say that it was probably one of the best meals of my trip! I should have taken a photo of the huge spread, but did take a photo of the lobsters. YUM!!!

I slept well and awoke to another fabulous spread. Bagels! Oh how I miss good bagels!! Cream cheese with chives, tomato slices, fresh fruit, and pastries. I think I should have booked a week at Kim's spectacular hotel.

Kim checked me in online and printed out a boarding pass for me and then drove me back to the airport. Thank you again Kim for a wonderful time. You are too kind! I am very lucky to have a friend like you.

It is a good thing I took this blurry photo when I parked my car at the airport last Thursday:

If not, I may still be at the airport right now looking for my car. Even with the photo on my camera, it took me 20 minutes to find my car!

I am back home again as you can probably guess. It was a long flight home with a delay due to someone getting off of the plane before the plane departed in San Diego (not sure why) and then another long delay waiting for my bags. Just finished a load of laundry. My long underwear (which got plenty of action) is going back up in my winter bag in my closet. I am happily back in shorts, nice and warm again.

Even though it was very cold, I had a fantastic time meeting and spending time with so many Slow Travelers at the GTG. I will write more about my stay in San Diego soon...

The view from my parking space at the airport:

I am now in Venice but will begin from the beginning…

Tuesday, May 31st:
A week before my trip, I started gathering all of the things I planned to pack using the same packing list I have used for the past few trips. I knew it was going to be a challenge this year to fit my new camera, lenses, and MacBook Air as well as everything else into the same bags I took with me on my last trip. I was hoping to not have to take a larger bag. On the day of my flight, everything was going so smoothly until a couple of hours before I planned to leave for the airport when I tried to fit one last thing into my bag. That is when my mini-meltdown occurred. I tried over and over to fit everything inside my bags but nothing worked. It was getting later and later. At one point, I even dragged out my larger bag. I finally ended up unzipping the expander zipper of the original bag I planned to take, something I hate to do until the last leg of my trip, and managed to make everything fit.

I arrived at the airport just in time to check my bag, go through security, and arrive at my gate as the last call was being announced for my flight. Phew! I really cut things close this time! A big thank you to my dear friend who stood calmly by as I had my mini-meltdown and drove me to the airport.

When I reached my seat and began to lift my carry-on roller up into the overhead bin, the man sitting behind me offered to help. I thanked him and told him that I could manage. I have been working very hard the past few months trying to build up my strength in my arms and shoulders. My goal was to be able to lift my bag up into the overhead bin without any problems. My workouts paid off as I easily hoisted it up and even got a bravo from the man who offered to help me. I smiled and told him that my trainers would be proud! As I was settling into my seat, I realized that I had met this man years ago while studying Italian in Hawaii. He is the owner of La Gelateria in Honolulu and was also traveling to Italy. As I introduced myself, he told me that the man sitting behind him was the owner of an Italian restaurant in Honolulu and was also traveling to Italy. Small world!

My two flights were uneventful. I was able to sleep some on both flights. The wait in Newark between flights was long as usual. This whole Continental and United merger thing seemed to be a bit confusing. When I first saw that the name on the plane said United instead of Continental, I was worried that the plane was no longer one of the Continental planes, the ones with the little movie screens in front of every seat. I was happy to find out that the plane was still one of the Continental planes. I guess all the planes now have the name United on them. Everything else seemed to still be Continental although they no longer serve free food on the long 9 hour flight from Honolulu to Newark, although they do continue to serve food on the shorter flight from Newark to Milan/Malpensa (both dinner and breakfast). I heard a few passengers complain in Newark about the upgrade procedures . I think they were loyal United customers.

Thursday, June 2nd:
When we arrived at Malpensa, one of those stairway things was driven up to the door of the plane. I don’t recall having to walk down stairs when arriving at Malpensa in the past but I am always in a jetlag haze so I may have and just didn’t remember. Shuttle buses zipped us all over to the arrivi door. Passport clearance was quick. My bag also arrived very quickly which was a first.

There was a huge crowd waiting for four small elevators to go down one flight to get to the train station area. I figured it would take at least 30 minutes to get on one of those elevators, so I searched for another way to the train station below. I followed these green arrows and found both an escalator and stairs heading down to the train station. My plane arrived on time, exactly at 8:50. I just missed the 9:33 train. I took the 10:03 train and arrived in Milan 30 minutes later, finding a row of taxis right outside the train station. The train ticket cost 11 euros and the taxi cost 8 something.

My room was not ready when I first arrived. I started switching some stuff around in my bags so that I could gather up a few things to take with me while I checked out the area around my hotel. Just when I finished getting out my camera and a few other things, I was told that my room was ready. The bed in my room was very inviting. I was so tempted to take a nap but knew if I did that, I would sleep the rest of the day. Instead unpacked my stuff, took a quick shower, and headed out to explore Milan.

It was gray and cloudy and a bit chilly outside. I headed straight for the Duomo. I visited Milan for a few hours with my friend Katia many years ago before the Duomo restoration work was done. I have been looking forward to returning to the Duomo now that it was all nice a clean.

After taking a few photos, I walked around a bit looking for the Obika mozzarella bar that I had read about. This restaurant is located on the roof of the La Rinascente store. I was seated in the bar area and had a wonderful lunch. After lunch, I spent a few minutes checking out some of the other levels of the store while it was sprinkling outside.

Once the rain stopped, I went inside of the Duomo. The entrance into the Duomo is free. Here are a few photos from inside the Duomo.