Saturday, June 6 was our last full day in Lido. Our friend Patrizia had arranged for me to meet with a publisher at a little outdoor café right next to the Roxy Ristorante and Bar on the Gran Viale. So, at 10 a.m. I sat and talked with Davide, with Patrizia translating my English into Italian and his Italian into English as we discussed the possibilities of having “Ellynne’s Top Tomato Cookbook” published in Italy! Both Patrizia and Davide enjoyed espressos while we chatted, inviting me to join them. It was so hot, even at 10 a.m., that I couldn’t imagine drinking anything hot, so I declined.
Davide was already familiar with the Top Tomato cookbook, as he had borrowed Patrizia’s copy before I’d arrived in Italy. He explained to me in detail what he thought would appeal to Italian readers regarding my recipes, and said that he had someone on staff who would translate each recipe into Italian! He enthusiastically told me that everyone (in Italy) loves tomatoes and he already had several ideas for marketing strategies. I immediately presented him with his very own autographed copy of the cookbook, with a personal inscription in Italian (I relied on Patrizia’s advice as to what to write!). I am hoping to hear more about this project from him in the very near future.
The three of us walked together to visit the nearby Lido Library where many of Davide’s books were available for sale. This library resembled a bookstore more than an American library. After we parted, I walked past the Roxy Ristorante and Bar one last time, saying a final goodbye to some of the staff members who were there, and returned to the apartment to finish packing.
We had eaten so much the day before that we decided to simply finish up the leftovers at the apartment instead of going out for dinner. Anne and I had time to enjoy one last swim in the Adriatic and then it was a final goodnight on our last day in Venice.
We were up before 6 a.m. on Sunday, June 7. Patrizia came with her car to transport us and our suitcases to the vaporetto even though the dock was only a few blocks away. There was simply no way that we would be able to roll and/or drag our heavy luggage down 2 flights of steps from the apartment and through the streets to catch the Alilaguna to the Marco Polo Airport! We had time for a “photo op” while waiting at the dock for our 7:40 a.m. Alilaguna; the cruise ship Musica (Music) passed by artfully dodging vaporetti and other smaller craft.
The trip to the airport took almost an hour. Somehow we managed to get our luggage onto and off of the boat, but there was a short uphill ramp as we docked at the airport and there was no way I could budge my suitcase. Luckily, a very kind gentleman jumped to my rescue and carried my suitcase out of the way of others who were trying to get by.
Another stroke of luck: we noticed rolling carts stored right next to the dock, and Patrizia secured one for us (putting a 1 euro coin in the slot to unchain it). We loaded 4 of our 6 bags onto the cart which I pushed easily for the duration of the walk into the airport. It was easier for me to push the 4 bags on this cart than it would have been for me to manage even one of my bags by itself without the cart.
Patrizia said goodbye to us as we got in line to check our bag; she returned to Lido on the next Alilaguna. It was sad to have to say “arrivederci” to our good friend who had been instrumental in seeing that we’d had a memorable trip. If we had returned the rolling cart to the correct spot, Patrizia could have retrieved her euro but we left it at the closest courtyard instead.
I am happy to report that our flight home was smooth and uneventful. We left Venice at 11:12 a.m. We were dreading the thought of airline food, but we were pleasantly surprised at what was served. We were offered complimentary wine with our main meal (chicken) and I discovered that I could combine a can of Bloody Mary mix (non-alcoholic) with a can of tomato juice and lull myself into thinking it had a kick to it! It should be noted that all of the food was of European packaging (I checked the labels). It seemed that in no time at all we were landing at the Philadelphia Airport at around 3 p.m.
We claimed our baggage (all 4 of our checked bags had made it home with us on the same flight, then needed to find the shuttle to the Airport Marriott Hotel. We realized that even though our flight had been smooth, we were already starting to feel the effects of jetlag. We could not find the courtesy phone where we thought it should be, and I set off to ask directions while Anne guarded our baggage. An “angel” at the information desk near the baggage claim saw my distress. I told her we’d just landed and I was feeling really “funny.” She pulled out a phone book and read me the number of the Marriott. Unbelievably, I was able to use my cell phone to reach the hotel, and learned that the shuttle was on its way; we were already at the correct exit.
The Marriott was a 10 to 15 minute shuttle ride away. We were greeted at the Reception desk by Heather, who could easily see that we were not navigating too well. Once she learned that Anne had a Marriott Rewards Gold Card, she upgraded us to a quiet room. She said she thought we’d need it and offered us a beverage from the kiosk. She even added complimentary hot coffee and tea to our breakfast order the next morning.
Anne’s husband arrived at the Marriott shortly after we did, and Anne was able to designate which pieces of her luggage he could take with him to their home in New Jersey that evening. Anne and I would be taking the Amtrak from Philadelphia the next morning to the New Carrollton station. We called Amtrak to make our reservations before going down to dinner. We had expected to pay about $40 apiece for one-way tickets, but due to the fact that only a few tickets for our requested time slot remained, we were charged $75 each. Bob joined us for dinner downstairs in the Marriott Bistro, and then left for New Jersey while the two of us end recuperating from our flight. Anne turned in shortly after 8 p.m. I struggled to stay awake past 9:30 and finally just gave up trying to read and turned off the light.
We enjoyed our breakfast the next morning, with our complimentary hot drinks. I called Verizon and had them restore my phone to a USA plan. That phone call also probably cost me $50. We ordered chicken salads “to go” for our Amtrak trip, and the Bistro’s Edwin graciously packed them up for us and kept them cold until our taxi arrived to take us to the 30 th Street Station in downtown Philadelphia. The taxi ride was a fixed rate of $28.50 from the Airport Marriott Hotel.
Since we now had less luggage to drag around we were able to easily board the train for the just-over 2-hour ride to New Carrollton
The conductor jokingly remarked that we looked like two college sophomores on a trip as he came through the car and checked my SmartPhone ticket. And when we arrived in New Carrollton, he indicated where the elevator was and even leaned out of the train and called out again to us to be sure we would find it. So very nice of him!
We were met by my loving husband, Jim. I’d told him to keep an eye out for the two little ladies bogged down with heavy bags and suffering from jetlag and of course, he spotted us as soon as he turned into the parking lot. We regaled him with stories of our exciting trip as we drove to Waldorf. We dropped Anne off at the Verizon store. She needed to get her phone working as she’d lost her USA SIM card a few days before we’d left Venice. She was met by her son who was then driving her to her family summer cottage in Virginia.
We’d had a fabulous trip. We’d seen and done wonderful things which will live in our memories forever. We’d made every transportation connection on time, and stayed on schedule for a full five weeks utilizing trains, planes, taxis, buses, and vaporetti. Anne and I are so grateful to The Bay Net for providing us with our press passes which we estimate saved us between 50 and 100 euros apiece with discounted or free museum passes. We’d encountered friendly, welcoming people at each and every turn in our travels in every single big city and little town during our stay in Italy as well as on our return to the USA. It was great being in Italy, but as Dorothy Gale said at the end of the movie The Wizard of Oz, ”there’s no place like home.”
