Getting to Italy!

Its been done!! I have taken my first steps on European soil. My first stop Venice, where the cars don't go.

Before I go into the details of Venice, Rome and Milan. Lets discuss the circus I call......

"Getting to Europe as Cheaply as Possible"

In an effort to save money I decided to fly with Ryanair from Liverpool to Venice. A smart decision my dad would say.....a penny saved is a penny spent on FOOD later on. After 3 hours of sleep ( I went out on Friday night, and then had to pack at around midnight) I awoke at 4 am on Saturday Oct 20th to catch a cab to the Leeds train station where I hopped on the 4:30 am train to Manchester, then I waited 1 hr to catch a train to the Liverpool train station. Once there I needed to get on a shuttle bus to the John Lennon Airport. (It is now approx. 9:00 am)
After checking in for my flight I settled down in the airport by the statue of John Lennon to wait for 2 hours for my plane. (You need to be at the airport 2 hrs before your flight!!!!!! Even though it took 5 min to check my bag. Grrrr.....) I pass the time by eating breakfast and reading a book, trying to read ever so slowly, so that the book would last the entire trip. After about 1 hr in the airport I glance up to the departure board to notice that my flight has been delayed 1.5 hours.

Cest la vie!

Still in a good mood, (I am going to ITALY!!!! How could I be in a bad mood) I settle down to a cup of caffinated tea to keep me awake (Remember I am working on 3hrs of sleep) Eventually the flight leaves the airport and I am aboard. We touch down in Tevisio (Please note that this is not Venice) where I hop on another shuttle bus that will take me into Venice for 4 Euros, what a deal! Finally, I have arrived! (It is about 5pm)

I get off the bus, and I am rejuvinated with energy.
I AM IN ITALY!!!
What to see first?
What to eat first?
Obviously the first thing you do is go for a stroll along the nearby canal to see your first gondolier, and then you continue to walk down the canal following the sites and smells of ITALIAN PIZZA. Hmmmmm....... Others, more experienced than I, might maintain that the first thing you do in Venice is get your luggage off the shuttle bus, before heading down the canal. It took me almost 20 minutes to clue in to the fact that I had left my luggage behind at the bus station. (Yes I am paid to educate others!!! No snide remarks now.) Next ensues what I call the "500m Dodge the Penshioner DASH" I scramble past what feels like 1 million slow moving senior citizens with canes and walkers, praying that the bus driver has not left. I dodge the suitcases and the traffic to come around the corner of the bus station where my bus is NOT where I left it.

Panick sets in.

I am not worried about the luggage, but more about how I admit to friends and family how stupid I've been. The luggage is somewhere in Venice, I just need to call the bus company and find out. (See I can remain practical in the midst of stupidity)
Out comes the cell phone and I call the number on the back of the ticket. I start explaining the situation to the first person who answers the phone, I am talking so fast that I haven't noticed that the person on the other end of the phone is not speaking ENGLISH!!! Who knew that Italians speak Italian??? Eventually the person on the other end of the line conveys to me in broken english that the Lost and Found center is across the street (Under a huge lit up sign with the bus company name, and the words in English LOST AND FOUND) Within 5 minutes I am hugging my luggage and saying thank you with a bad italian accent.

After the luggage incident I find my Hotel with very little effort and I settle in for a bit of siteseeing. It is now 6:30pm. It has taken me 14hrs to arrive in Venice from Leeds!! The lesson I learned was that next time I will spend 50 pounds more to catch a flight direct from Leeds to Venice. Then the whole trip would only take a maximum of 5 to 6 hours door to door.