Sunday, 12 April, 2020
Day XXXV of the Great Italian Lockdown was both Easter Sunday and the start of my journey home to California.
Things would definitely not go smoothly . . .
First and foremost,
HAPPY EASTER!
Religious facts of life during
the Great Italian Lockdown
Easter Sunday started early in the
wee hours of the morning for me
Enzo Petrillo, in possession of all the appropriate Letters of Transit to legally drive me to the airport in accordance with the Lockdown's rigorous regulations, picked me at 4:30 a.m.
As is normal for me when I take one of these early morning flights, I only got about two hours sleep as I was both excited to be going home and figured to sleep on the plane.
Our drive to the airport took a mere 30 minutes as we only saw one other vehicle on the road during our trip.
My Alitalia flight to Rome was scheduled to leave at 7:00 a.m. from Malpensa Airport's large Terminal 1 that handles international flight. From Rome, it would be on to London and then Los Angeles in what would have been a 20 hour and 20 minute itinerary.
Would have been . . .
No one was at Terminal 1
when we arrived . . .
. . . I mean NO ONE!
And for good reason too, when Enzo and I got to the doors, they were locked. A sign on the doors informed us that Terminal 1 was closed until further notice and that all flights would be leaving from Terminal 2 only until further notice.
Terminal 2 is about a mile or two from Terminal 1 and is usually the domino only easyJet, Italy's answer to our Southwest Air. Thus Terminal 2 is quite small in comparison to Terminal 1.
Some signs of life but still
not many people at Terminal 2
Thank goodness that at both Terminals, Enzo stayed with me and did not just drive off after unloading my bags.
When we looked at the Departure Board,
we had a big surprise
Annullato is Italian for Cancelled.
My 7:00 a.m. flight to Rome was cancelled and, if you look at the last entry on this board, you will note that tomorrow's same 7:00 a.m. flight to Rome is also Annullato.
It was 5:12 in the morning and none of the airline check-in desks were open as the next flight from Terminal 2 was not scheduled to leave for Frankfurt, Germany until 10:25 a.m.
The next Alitalia flight wasn't scheduled to depart until 3:00 p.m.
Note that the Departure Board only lists eight flights leaving Malpensa Airport the entire day.
Again, HAPPY EASTER!
from the Catania Elephants
By comparison . . .
This is a photo of Malpensa's Arrival Board a year ago when I was waiting to pick up Laurie. Note that in the hour and ten minute displayed, 18 flights were due in with only one flight Annullato.
After exploring other options to Rome including flights out of Milano's Linate Airport, Bergamo' airport and even the bullet train, it became clear that none of those options could get me to Rome in time to make my connecting flight to London.
Thus, we opted to return me to The Bunker while Enzo waited for the team's travel agent to get back to us on what our next move should be and when.
I felt bad that when we returned to The Bunker, it was still dark and I had no keys to open the gate as I had left them behind when I departed this morning.
I had to disrupt Santa Barbara's warm embrace from Morpheus to open the gate for me.
As always, she was understanding and happy to help.
I was tired, so a morning nap was the call.
At around Noon, I got a message from Santa Barbara inviting me to partake in the Nardi's Easter lunch in the backyard at 1:00 p.m.
In unintended retribution, her message awoke me from my Morpheus moment.
Our table was set for an
unexpected, enjoyable meal
Santa Barbara was pouring
a Prosecco and Apollo 11 concoction
It was refreshing.
Federica would be serving
the food today
Raffa was there with me
to offer everyone support
Cin-Cin!
The first of several rich,
filling dishes
HAPPY EASTER
Nardi Family!
Giorgio even joined us from his Bunker in Switzerland via WhatsApp.
Chocolate anybody?
PJ Masks, Frozen and Peppa Pig
Every chocolate egg has a surprise inside related to the theme on the attached cardboard sign.
We ate some fine chocolates for
dessert but most of it would be saved
for consumption in the days ahead
As for my travel plans, the team's travel agent informed me that my next window to start my Great Escape would be on Tuesday and that more than likely I would have a long layover in either Rome or London.
Or both.
Stay positive, it is nobody's fault and these travel plans are things that I can not control in these difficult Coronavirus times.
The Skorpions made a
Farewell Video for me to enjoy
when I arrived in California
Unfortunately, I first saw it in The Bunker.
I truly appreciate all of this outpouring of affection from the Skorpions family. It is part of what has brought me to Varese for three straight years.
Finally . . .
HAPPY EASTER!
from your Los Angeles Rams
and their controversial new logo
Stay tuned . . .
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