Good news, Bad news, times of boredom and then excitement

We left the bank parking lot on time and had a very uneventful trip to DFW, stopping twice for bathroom/snack breaks.


When we checked in for the flight at the airport , we were told to our delight that our bags were being checked to Milan and we wouldn’t have to deal with them until then. (Good thing- keep reading)

We loaded at the correct time11:15, with the flight supposed to leave at 11:45. We got the plane about half loaded and an announcement was made that we wouldn’t be leaving until 1:45. The reason given was too many planes for too few runways and bad weather. People had the option to de-plane taking all their things and go thru the process again, when the time came to board again, or just stay on and deal. We knew that we had a scant hour and a half from the time the plane was originally scheduled to land and the one for Milan was to take off. This delay put us two hours behind. We figured we’d have to spend the night in the airport and miss the first day of the tour.
The Dallas to JFK leg of the journey was uneventful, other than not having ANYTHING for free to eat. They were selling $6-10 sandwiches, a $4 plate of cheese and crackers or a collection of mixed nuts, a $3 package of chips or a cookie. We were given drinks (tea, sodas, water, juice) As we neared JFK, the announcement was made to please let the folks bound for Milan off the plane first. There were 32 of us--not all our tour group. When the plane stopped at the gate, we hopped up and sprinted just a little ways to the plane for Milan which was waiting for us. We got on board at 6 and didn’t leave the runway til 7:10--loading of baggage, waiting in line, etc. Later our tour guide, told us he didn’t expect us to make the filght. The American Airlines folks were very kind and accommodating to wait for us and see that we got where we needed to be.

I talked to Nki via cell phone when we got settled on the Milan plane, she had sent me a text message that the grandbaby is indeed a girl and that in the picture they had seen, “she has Pike cheeks”. A curse Nki feels that she has lived with all her life.

Food had been rather sparse with breakfast being a banana before loading the bus, a med. frozen yogurt in DFW



and nothing since other than snacks we carried (granola bar and some candies). We were served airline food about 8:30 pm and I would have eaten an old shoe. It wasn’t great, but it was filling.

Tried to watch a little of the movie “BedTime Stories” a really silly film. The earplugs that were provided didn’t fit my ears at all and even hurt a little. I didn’t watch it all and tried to sleep. HA! At home I have trouble making it to the 10 o’clock news before I crash. I DID NOT SLEEP MORE THAN 10 OR 15 MINUTES AT A STRETCH. Noises, lights,cramped seat.

Breakfast was served at 12:15 (Texas time-add 7 hrs for Milan time) which consisted of a croissant, juice and tea so strong, I’m surprised it stayed in the cup. From then on we just waited to land.


The Alps from the plane window--Wow!

As the stewardesses (I know that word is passe’ but you know who I mean) were circulating, getting things cleaned up before landing, we heard a heated conversation (in Italian) on the far side of the plane between a stewardess and a passenger. It continued and escalated with the “head” stewardess joining in the shouting. All this in Italian , so I/we had no clue what was being said. I was using my limited Spanish to try to figure out the cause of the problem. I did hear the head lady tell the passenger that she would be arrested as the confrontation ended. Not much more was said by either party. We taxied into the gate and sat and waited and waited and waited. It finally dawned on me that we were waiting for police. First what seemed to be an airline official came in to stand by the woman passenger, then another, then two policemen and another airline official (these folks’ uniforms were different, hence my guesses about who they were) The woman was physically escorted out and as we deplaned, she was sitting on the floor of the passageway surrounded by official folks. I guess one of our Bwd tour members, took a pictuire of the police surrounding the woman on the plane, because her camera was confiscated and the offending picture was deleted and the camera was returned to her. No UTube for that picture.

Customs in the Milan (Malpensa) airport is super simple. Get your passport stamped and that is it. In other places, we have had to fill outr forms, answer questions, let folks look thru our baggage, all sorts of rigamarole, but here, none of that. Now, we were given a printed form from the Minister of Health telling us what to do if we feel sick. No masks, no other cautions. But that was just random folks handing out papers in a hallway and had nothing to do with customs. (and yes, Nki, I’ve been using the antibacterial wipes and gel)

We have been joined by a group from New York and more are arriving this afternoon. As we drove to Stresa, at the foot of the Alps, we saw snow covered mountains, a granite quarry, many, many flowering bushes and Lago Maggiore.

Our hotel is the Bristol and it is ultra elegant, old world style. Lots of chandeliers , stained glass, balconies overlooking the lake and a super neat push button operated secutiry gate over the patio door.. Btw/ that IS the air conditioning, open the patio door.




As we walked around this afternoon, looking for lunch we saw elegantly landscaped lawns of other “Grand” hotels, we saw several Smart Cars (but none as cute as ours--these were boring black) and we enjoyed toasted ham and cheese sandwiches with a really fancy name. I ordered water and the waiter asked “gas or natural”? It took me a minute, but I responded “natural”. Someone else in our group received the “gassy” water and said it was way too carbonated. We’re back in the room for a short nap. I’m wrriting “off line” and will download later. May be able to add pic tures laster as well.

I’ve learned some Italian,-- thank you is GRATZI and you are welcome is PREGO. BENVENUTO is hello or welcome.

Thanks for joining us on our adventure.