Barrington Resort and Spa: Dual Adventure Days (one not so good, one great)...

I apologize for not updating the blog sooner. As some of you know I (we) were back in the States for the Holidays and to pack/load the container of our items to be moved to Italy.

To start we had a WONDFERFUL Time on our little vacation. We need to thank everybody for everything!!!! Seeing everybody we were able to see was the Greatest Holiday Gift we could receive (even though I was ill for the first few days).

Once we were down in Richmond then the fun began.

I can't believe it fit in our driveway!

- Finalizing what we were packing to bring to Italy and what would stay in Richmond (to be lovingly cared for by Tabitha, Freida, Sunny, and Frisco).

- Tom left to go back to Switzerland. Then more fun...

- Then came Packing day. Two guys showed up for about 8 hours and packed everything. At that point the house was no longer a big mess of piles but now a big warehouse of boxes/crates.

- Finally, load day! Four guys arrived with a huge 40 foot container, backed it into the driveway, and started wrapping/loading the Barrington Resort & Spa for it's trip to the Barrington Resort & Spa Europe! About 8 hours later they were done and the house became very big once again.

- As of the 14th our belongings will be on their way to their new home!

The next thing I needed to do was go to DC and get my Visa for our new country... I must say the Italian Embassy in Washington DC is a really nice place. I had a 10am appointment to get my Visa. As in true Italian fashion they did not open until 10am (I am also sure they will be at lunch from 12-2). It was a very interesting experience in that you basically walked up to, what can best be described as, a bank teller station with a thick plexiglass partition between me and 'the teller'. It all went very smoothly and now I IS LEGAL!

Watch out Italy, here I come....

^ Official Seal of the Italian Embassy in DC

The last thing I needed to accomplish was getting back to Switzerland and Tom... (this is the not so good adventure day)

At 8am, the day I was supposed to leave, I received a phone call from my airline. I will be nice and not mention their name...though it is 5 letters, starts with a D, ends with an A, and my brother is a pilot for them. The call was automated telling me that my flight that afternoon was canceled and that they were booking me on a flight later that evening. No explanation was given for why the flight was canceled, no consideration was given to the new flight getting me in later than my flight to Switzerland. So, being the good geek that I am, I found another/better flight, spoke with a rather odd person (I am being very nice here) at the airlines customer service department (might I add - it is REALLY hard to find that airlines phone number on their website - hiding I think!). Unfortunately, the flight I found was less than 2 hours from the point of my re-booking. I must thank Tabitha, who had agreed to take me to the airport, for rushing me there much earlier than originally planned!

Now I am at JFK airport about 7+ hours earlier than I need to be. I decided to go to the gate agents of Swiss Air in the international terminal, check my bag, and go to the Swiss Air lounge to relax for long wait. My half full glass then shattered... After taking a self-imposed trip around the airport on the AirTrain, I attempted to find the counted/gate agent I required to check my bag. After about thirty minutes of bad directions from about six supposedly trained and qualified airport personnel I found the area the counter was in. No one was around so I asked an Asian American lady behind the counter where the Swiss Air was (she was sitting under a sign for Swiss Air), she told me she didn't know and walked away. Finally, I found someone with a brain who told me that the counter did not open for Swiss Air until 2:30pm. I decided to find the Swiss Air lounge and hang out until that time. After another dose of JFK personnel ignorance, I found the lounge on my own. I walked in found someone and was told that they were closed until 2:30 also... I will stop there. I think I made my point. I also think I will never fly through JFK, if possible, ever again. It's a truly nice looking airport but their hiring and training practices need some drastic updating!

Caio Richmond (my last view Richmond from the plane)

I was met at the airport by Tom with a wonderful cup of coffee! One of Tom's favorite blends - a cappuccino with a chocolate something on top (Tom calls the topping Swiss crack-cocaine).

So now I am back in Switzerland, with Tom, and all is Good! We are planning on going to Rome this coming weekend to get the keys to our new place. I will post pictures upon our return.

Another Great Adventure Day in Bern Switzerland, Enjoy!!

A model of Bern at the Museum

The town crest.
Note: Bern is the Capitol
City of Switzerland

Before I left for the States I did have an adventure day in Bern Switzerland it was a wonderful day in another beautiful city... Bern, the city of the Bear was in full Christmas swing. They had an amazing Holiday village and magnificent shopping but the most fun was the Einstein Museum. The museum was just intense. I knew that Albert Einstein was brilliant but I never knew some of the things he invented. I was shocked to find out that he is credited with inventing something we flush everyday...the toilet. His life, in my eyes, can be best summed up at that he was a modern day Leonardo da Vinci.

Because of my babbling above I will keep verbiage to minimum and just show you a few of the wonderful images...

< What I found the most fun was the entrance to the exhibit, it was a staircase with mirrors and video screens showing all aspects of Einstein's life...way cool! >