Twenty-four hours to Italy

It’s 3:04 a.m. on Thursday, October 14 and we’re in the middle of the Mediterranean ocean on our way to our first port, Sorrento/Capri, Italy.

It was a whirlwind of a trip, including stopovers in three different airports along the way. Our first stop took approximately six hours and landed us in Vancouver, Canada. The design eye-candy in the signage, cultural exhibits and blazing fast Wi-Fi internet access made for an interesting airport experience and hands down one of the neatest airports I’ve ever been to.

Our layover was a few hours before hopping a plane over to our second stop, Toronto, Canada. This six-hour flight was our last before arriving in Rome, Italy. While not as design-centric as Vancouver, Toronto was a large airport and didn’t seem as busy as the last. Wi-Fi was just as quick and I was able to download the latest version of “Hawaii Five-0″ to watch on the plane. The inner geek in me opted for the HD version, making the download twice as large. Not the best idea when relying on free Airport Wi-Fi. Needless to say, I have a few comments to add to the #H50 conversation.

We grabbed a quick bite at one of the terminal restaurants and walked through the airport shops before proceeding to our gate. Next stop, FCO Leonaro da Vincci-Fiumicino airport.

Upon arriving, it was easily the most foreign place I’ve ever been. The sights, the sounds and the smells were vastly different from the last two airports and for the first time, it felt like we were far away from home.

We gathered our bags and bussed it to Rome and the port of Civitavecchia, where our cruise ship was waiting. A quick check-in and we were in our rooms and looking for food.

The 12-hour time difference here is keeping us up, but we’ll probably adjust in a couple days. I’ll be tweeting and Facebooking along the way and will post a new blog for each port that we visit. I’ll focus on the general area, the people and the food.

See you in Sorrento!

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