Italia '08

Why wouldn't anyone jump at the opportunity to take a toddler overseas for a zero-planning vacation tagged onto the end of a long TDY? My sentiments exactly. But, the last minute trip to Italy went off with out a hitch. Well almost anyway...

I ended up there as part of a three destination TDY recently. Jess and Reagan joined me about half way through the last leg of the trip (in Italy). Then we spent a few days criss-crossing Italian boot to see some sights and enjoy a little family R&R. The girls arrived in Venice after an extra day spent in the lovely Atlanta aiport due to mechanical issues, and re-routing through NYC the next day. Despite the extra 24 hours to get their bags on the right airplane, all of the luggage went to Paris for some bizarre reason. And there it remained for two days after their arrival in Italy. Thanks Delta. But not all was lost. Jess and Reagan needed time to recover from the time change anyway, and the bags arrived (in stages) partway through their first weekend.
Overall – international travel with a toddler is not for the faint of heart. And Jess did it solo on the first part of her trip. But Reagan is an amazing little trooper. And we all had a fantastic time. We got to see friends from AK (the Aystas) from SD (the Blacks) and add a few more sights and adventures to our list. Pics follow in the next couple of posts.

Here's our basic itinerary breakdown.
We stayed in Sacile (northeast Italy) for the first week. I was still working at Aviano Air Base for the first few days of the trip.
Day trip to Venice on Labor Day.
Visit to Rezzanello (south of Milano and Piacenza) for 3 days to catch up with John and Stephanie Black at their outrageous Italian villa.
Two days in Tuscan wine country with visits to Lucca and Florence.
The last three days in Rome (with a side trip through Pisa on the way) before jumping on a jet back to the USA.