Wedding in Tuscany - Part I

I'm starting my first ever blog post while drinking a Hop Devil* in the Philadelphia Airport. I'm actually on my way home from a visit in Delaware, but if you'll permit me, I want to talk about my first trip to Italy. I was going to attend Ciarán's wedding in Tuscany. It didn't suck.

*Victory Hop Devil is just one of my favorite beers. I may be a complete homer (guy that just roots for the home team), but Victory & Dogfish Head are my two favorite breweries - anywhere. Dogfish is from downstate DE: Rehoboth Beach. Victory is actually closer to my Wilmington, DE -- Victory is in Downingtown, PA. I just had my first Victory Hop Devil from the tap in about 10 months. Yum.

On Wednesday 30-JUL I landed in Rome. This is when things started to get dicey. Normally I kind of attack vacations. Somehow I never really viewed this trip like it was a vacation. I viewed it a lot like I think about traveling for a wedding. Just go & have fun. There's no sightseeing over a wedding weekend. There's no need to study languages. There's no need for guide books. You land. Someone picks you up. They take you to where you drink & eat. Start having fun.

The thing is, I wasn't landing in Houston or St. Louis or Philly, I was landing in Rome. That's in Italy. It's a place that has a few guide books written about it. It's a place that doesn't speak English (or at least not with the fluency required for tricky transactions). And no one was there to pick me up to take me to that land of food & wine & fun. I needed to get a rental car. After taking 20 minutes to figure out that would require me to get a ticket number (like I was at the deli or Japan*), I proceeded to acquire a Volkswagen Golf and a GPS unit that would talk to me with a female British accent.

*Japan loves tickets. You need a ticket to do anything in Japan. For example, you need a ticket to ride the ferry from Fukuoka to Busan** (South Korea). That stands to reason. It's a legitimate mode of transportation. However, after you get to the ferry terminal and redeem your online purchase voucher for a ticket, you'll be directed to kiosk that will sell you a terminal usage fee ticket. Why don't they just wrap up the cost for the terminal usage fee (think about the myriad of fees in your last plane ticket) into the cost of the ferry ticket? Answer: the Japanese love tickets. This allows you to have two tickets for one ferry ride. How cool is that? Trust me, it's cool if you're Japanese.

**Depending on the time of day, which direction you are facing, and what country you are currently standing in; this city is known as Busan or Pusan. With a B or a P it's a groovy place with awesome food.

Everything was working out for the first 2 hours of my 4-7 hour journey to Tuscany. I was a tired, tired pup after the flight (I barely slept) so I stopped at least four times between Rome & Florence. At my last rest stop (where I grabbed a little nap) my GPS unit decided to stop working. Have I stressed enough how I did no planning for this trip? I was armed with sparse emailed directions written by an Italian woman; these directions were no more than five sentences long. Besides knowing that Rome was south of Florence, my geographic knowledge was limited. That GPS wouldn't work again until Monday - when Jayesh fixed it. I had no maps.

Fortunately, I've read the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe, so my first reaction to this situation was "Don't Panic". I'll have you know that I vehemently disagreed with myself over this course of action. Amazingly, the directions with which I was armed did an admirable job of finding my bed & breakfast. This was a massive win and really set me on a confidence boost. After finding the most picturesque accommodations I've ever seen or imagined, I grabbed a nap and my car keys for a white knuckle driving adventure in Florence.

But right now I've just returned home and I'm finishing the post after a long commute to Houston. I'll start back up after a decent slumber.
{Note: post was original written on 19-Aug}