Day one in Italy...

Actually, I'm in Menaggio. But I started out in Milan. I flew out of JFK riding with full classiness in the "Business Elite"section of the plane. When I got to JFK, I stopped and grabbed a slice of pizza at Sbaro, which just happens to be a mall oriented pizza joint. Before that I exchanged $100 US for 80 euro. Not a great exchange rate but it all spends the same.
Then I sat in the waiting area hoping I'd be able to get a seat. I started out 4/5 then 2/4 on the wait list. With 45 minutes left til take off, they began boarding the plane and I didn't have a seat yet.
Seated around me was an Italian family, happily conversing in their language. This was really my first experience with authentic Italian so I was in heaven. I just sat there smiling at them. I didn't understand (except maybe 1%) what they were saying but it didn't matter. They were speaking Italian.
When the waiting room emptied of most of the passengers, I went up to the desk and asked if there was a chance I had made it on the plane. Well, I guess my name just hadn't popped up on the "cleared" list yet and I definitely had a seat. As I went to the check-in at the gate, the girl let me know that she had held me to the last so she could give me a seat in "BUSINESS ELITE"! Although, she did stop me as I was getting my passport checked. I was really freaking out. Reason being because my passport is Davis (my married name) and my name now is Jones. When I got my passport, it was because I was going on a Disney cruise and I was still married My divorce went through last February and I've never thought "pay another $100 and change your passport!". Anyway, I thought she was stopping me because my passport name didn't match the name on my ticket (because I didn't realize they needed to when my ticket was booked PLUS I had forgotten that my names didn't match). Turned out, I had never signed my passport. I've had the thing for two years, went on one trip that required a passport, and no one ever noticed. Anyway, I cruised on thru after signing my passport and actually did a happy dance down the gangplank onto the plane. I had made it! I was going to Italy. This was something I had dreamed of for four years and I was actually doing it. I was living my dream AND I was doing it practically first class.
So I walked on the plane and was directed to my (as Natalie says: "I got the damn...") pod (ala "Last Holiday"). A POD. Kind of. I wish I could explain or had taken pictures of the actual seat. If you've seen "Inception" and they're on the plane, the seats looked a little like that. About 4 feet of leg room, seats that reclined FLAT and gave you a back massage, quilted blankets, fluffy pillows, and an amenity bag with toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, comb, shoe polish, comfy socks, Chapstick, lotion, eye cover for sleeping, kleenex, and a face cleansing cloth. KEEPER. BONUS. Yeah, Business Elite is amazing. You even order your food from a menu! Three course meal. Fancy noise-canceling head phones which, sadly, only worked on the plane because, otherwise, I'd have taken those babies home. They were really nice.
So, after eating a pretty good dinner (although the beef was a little dry), and watching "People Like Us" (which is pretty good-Love love love Chris Pine), I snuggled down into my "pod", with my comfy socks and my quilted blanket and squishy pillow (but the seat was hard) and slept. I did try to watch "Snow White and the Huntsman" but only made it about halfway. Kristen Stewart just cannot hold my attention. Plus I was concerned that I would not sleep enough and be exhausted the next day. I think though, that I only slept about 3 hours at the most. Next thing I know, I can hear the flight attendant asking another passenger what they wanted for breakfast. I knew we were getting close to Milan and I would have to wake up if I wanted to eat before landing. Sadly, as much as I wanted to be in Italy, I also wanted to sleep. I was tired.
The other issue I had was that I was afraid. I knew that once I walked off the comfort and familiarity of the plane, I would be on my own in an UNfamiliar place. On my own. I had told John that I was afraid of being on my own. I've never been in a foreign country (a Disney cruise doesn't count) and I was afraid of being somewhere where I don't know the language (which at the same time is exciting) and getting lost. I had visions of sitting on a bench in the airport and falling apart because I had no idea what anyone was saying or how I was supposed to get anywhere.
So I hung out on the plane, taking my dear sweet time getting my suitcase out of the overhead bin. And it was dark outside still which, to me, made it worse.
But I had to finally walk the plank. And it was really okay. Where there were Italian words, there were also the english translation. I understood. And the first place I went as I walked off the plane? The bathroom, which luckily has the international symbol for women's bathroom. Looked like a bathroom, acted like a bathroom. Thank goodness.
From the bathroom I knew I had to find the train to Milan Centrale. That made me a little nervous. But I sat down outside the terminal, relaxed, got out my Rick Steves paperwork and book and figured out where the train ticket booth and platform was and I was good! Even took the time to spark a conversation with the ticket guy who was spinning a coin across his knuckles. I asked him if he did this when he was bored....he was a poker player. Nuff said.
So onto the train to Milan Centrale. At first it was pretty empty and I made the mistake of not sitting right by the window but, then it filled up with commuters and my view of the scenery I had dreamed for four years of seeing was a seat away. I listened to Mormon Tabernacle Choir on that leg of my travels and it made for beautiful theme music. Although, when "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" started, I started to cry. That song has special meaning for me. I hear it and get teary-eyed.
So, once I got to the Milan Centrale station, that started the next adventure: find the ticket booth to buy the ticket for the train to Varenna.
The hard part of being a tourist is the hauling of the suitcase every where. Up the moving (steep hill) sidewalk, down the sidewalk, dodging passengers and tourists. Don't bother going in a souvenir shop. Too much bother. Saves me a lot of money though.
So, I re-read my Rick Steves instructions about how to purchase a ticket for the trenno and headed downstairs to find the magic machines. When I found them, there was a little man (not old) that took it upon himself to help me buy my ticket...I was under the impression he was either an employee and it was his job to help travelers work the automated ticket machines OR he was just helpful. Nope. Wrong on both counts. He asked me, in broken english, to buy him a cup of coffee. Yeah, sure, that's what you want my extra change for. I just told him I didn't have cash...I lied. I wasn't going to give that guy 20euro! That was all I had! And his helpful ticket purchasing assistance wasn't worth 20 euro.
After getting my ticket, I hauled myself and my caravan of stuff back up stairs to find the correct train platform. And that's where I got confused.
Look for Lecco not Varenna and not Verona. Whaaaa?
SO, I found a couple that looked American and asked if they could help me. They weren't american. They were Australian BUT they knew what they were doing...except when they started asking Italian passers-by if they spoke English because they thought I had to get my seat on the train reserved. My instructions didn't say I needed to reserve a ticket but they must know more than I. They're AUSTRALIANS. And a lovely couple, by the way. My train that I needed was 2556 but the Australian man said "two double-five six". So much better than the way we say it. So they stopped an Italian woman who spoke english pretty well and she let them know I just needed to get the ticket punched (validated) prior to boarding the train (which is what my Rick Steves instructions said).
The train to Varenna was about 90 minutes away so, once I figured out how the reader board worked and kept an eye on what platform I would be on. Figured out by watching the other travelers how to get my ticket punched in the machine (and how to find a validation machine that is actually working). Managed to get on the right train and then just sat back and watched the world go by.
I sat on the left side of the train as Rick Steves had suggested to get the best view of Lake Como. Most of the trip was buildings and bushes. A lot of going in and out of tunnels under mountainsides. But once we got into view of the lake, I was glad I had chosen to take his suggestion to heart. The view was amazing. My camera did not capture what I saw outside that window. As we sped towards Varenna, I would often gasp at the amazing views that passed by my window. I ended up recording about 15 minutes of the trip just to make sure I saw everything that was there. Trying to take pictures of scenery when you are on a speeding train is useless. A lot of blurred pictures.
Once again reading my Rick Steves paperwork that told me when to prepare to get off of the train, I was ready when we pulled into the station. Varenna.
Since I hadn't used the bathroom since the airport, the first thing I did was look for a restroom. Easy enough. Right on the station platform and easily recognizable. There was only one stall though so I had to wait for the other tourists ahead of me. As I was standing, waiting for my turn into the skinny single stall,I heard the familiar (and most welcome) sound of Americans. Not just regular Americans but SOUTHERN Americans. "Thank goodness. You're American," I said to them. Flight attendants from Delta airlines who had a layover and wanted to see more than just Milan. We spent the next hour or so together wandering Varenna and looking for the ferry dock so I could take my boat over to Menaggio. They were very friendly and polite and I was glad to have something familiar in a strange land.
Once we purchased our tickets, me to Menaggio, they to Bellagio, we said our goodbyes. They're ferry left before mine so I had some time alone to take in the scenery and listen to the tourists (several of them from Germany and Switzerland). Once my ferry arrived, I headed to Menaggio and one step closer to a hot shower.
I did find, that since I only got about three hours of sleep on the airplane form JFK to Milan, that I was getting sleepy on the train. There was no way I was going to fall asleep and miss the view. I can sleep when I get home
When I arrived in Menaggio, it was an easy and short stroll to the hostel I was staying in. And the front desk girl spoke perfect english!! I am having an easy go of Italy.