After five weeks in Italy, it is finally time to return home … well, back to the US at least.  Our flight was scheduled at 4pm and we left our hotel at 11:15am in order to walk the short mile to the train station and catch the express train to Malpesna Airport.  When we came to the Emirates Airlines check-in area, there were three lines:  one for first class/business class, one for online check-in, and one for regular passengers.  The regular passenger line was very long!  The online check in line only had a wait of two or three people.  Sure am glad I opted to do the prior online check-in, which initially I wasn’t going to do but after seeing that line, I’ll be sure to do it as often as I am able to!  We were greeted at the line by a airline employee, who asked if we were willing to give up our seats  and fly the next day in exchange for free airline tickets.  Of course we’d love to!  But logistically, we were not able to.  Our Amtrak train leaves at 3:15pm on Friday and we wouldn’t land into JFK until 7pm so we would completely miss our train.  Plus I had already made arrangements with my brother Quelen to pick us up at the airport for our original flight.  So although we would have jumped at the opportunity, it just wasn’t in the cards for us, dang it!

After check in, security clearance and customs, we headed to the lounge offered by our Priority Pass membership, a perk from our credit cards.  We lingered for almost two hours, enjoying some great chicken curry and other light snacks, before heading to the gate where we had another lengthy process that lasted for over an hour.  This was because they “randomly” selected some passengers for extra security screening, as identified by an ‘SSSS’ designation on boarding passes.  However, it seemed that at least half of the passengers had this extra security screening, so it made for a very long wait at the gate.  But once we finally got through and seated on the plane, it was a “short” nine-hour flight to JFK — short because we had plenty of entertainment options at our seat to keep us occupied.  I just pretended that I was at the movie theater for an all-day affair, but this time without having to sneak into other theaters.  I ended up watching four movies, plus enjoyed the dinner, pizza snack and complimentary drinks offered by the flight attendants.  And just like that, nine hours in the air had passed and I didn’t sleep one wink, which is exactly how I wanted to avoid my jet lag.  Mission accomplished.

Apertivo!  Translated into American lingo, it’s basically happy hour but with a little twist.  In America, happy hour is known more for discounted drinks and sometimes some discounted food as well.  But here in Italy, apertivo is the big social time before dinner.  Normally starting anywhere around 6pm – 7pm and running until around 9:30pm or 10:00pm, the concept is pretty simple:  buy a drink and you get an unlimited buffet of finger foods.  Sometimes the waiters will bring the snack items to your table, such as bread, cheese, salami, olives and potato chips.  Other times there will be a spread of food set up inside the restaurant with things such as pasta salad or pasta with ragu sauce.  That’s pretty standard, and just enough to tide you over before the main dinner meal.

However, here in Milan apertivo is taken to another level!  For a cost of around ten Euro, you’ll get your drink all right, but you’ll also get a bountiful spread of food that can basically replace dinner.  And that’s what Lisa and I did for these last two nights, we just filled up on a buffet of pastas, salads, breads, fruits and more.  The magic hour is right around 6:30pm, when things aren’t quite super busy and we don’t have to compete with others for the food.  We walked past at least twenty restaurants and bars that offered some pretty great looking spreads — some better than others of course — and we were pretty happy with our choices, one of them recommended by the desk clerk at our hotel.  Yay for apertivo, Yummy!

Coming up on the last 48 hours here in Italy.  Which means surviving against the onslaught of carbs.  Breakfast, lunch, dinner — all carbs.  I don’t want to sound like I’m complaining, but my body has definitely been less accepting of the constant barrage of carbohydrates in my diet with not enough fruit, veggies, dairy and protein.  I hasn’t helped that over the past 72 hours I have been battling a cold, complete with stupid constant coughing and a sensitive throat with the hurts-when-I-swallow action.  Because of my constant coughing, my sleep has been sporadic and incomplete these last two nights.  My body is craving more nutrients, but all I’ve fed it are croissants, cereals, sweet breads, pasta, focaccia bread, and of course pizza.  I have been able to get some more fruit into my system, but it hasn’t been enough.  I’m actually looking forward to going home, so I can have more control of what I eat and balance my meals much better than I have been lately.  Each Italian city has specialty dishes to try, so Lisa and I do our best to sample them.  But having different versions of pasta with different versions of sauces can get tiresome, and I think I’ve hit my limit.  The good news is that we have hit upon the magic dinner hour of “apertivo” — and here in Milan, they take it to another level.  Stay tuned!

Breakfast … let’s see, croissants, sweet breads, rolls, toast, even pancakes! Carb heaven!

We spent our last morning in Riomaggiore taking a stroll around the village, which meant many steps going up and going down and climbing uphill and going downhill.  Even at 8am with the sun barely out, we got sweaty and hot in a very short while of just walking around.  But once again it was all worth it.  Such a beautiful place and there is just so much more to explore but so little time!