Roma - Day One, Continues...

We got to Chicago without too much trouble and then boarded the plane for Toronto. Everything went pretty well in the airport, as we only had to walk a few gates to get to our overseas flight. I was already starting to get a little tired of trucking all the bags we had, so it's a good thing.

We boarded the flight for Toronto and got there about 10 minutes early. Apparently Canada forces all travellers (even those not staying in the country for more than the time it takes to board the next plane) to retrieve all their checked luggage and go through customs. Fabulous. As if I don't have enough stuff.

We went through the border agent line where I was asked if Ainsley's father knew she was on this trip. Umm...yes. He informed me that next time I traveled through Canada without him I would need a letter indicating he was aware of the trip. Interesting.


Canada's one redeeming quality, in my mind, is the fact that they had a playscape near our gate at the airport. It's a wonderful way for a 4 year old to blow off a little steam before getting on a 5+ hour flight.


Ainsley really loved this thing...I think we stayed here for at least an hour.

We boarded the plane in Toronto after a 4+ hour layover and got ready for our VERY long .overseas flight to London. We boarded around 6:30 p.m. local time (4:30 CST), but we were already completely exhausted. We ate dinner shortly after takeoff, and then Ainsley and I settled in to sleep. Our seats reclined almost completely, so she got about 3 hours of sleep. I was worried about her waking up and walking off by herself to the bathroom or somewhere else, so I slept VERY little.


First class is the ONLY way to travel when going across the pond. This section absolutely saved my sanity on this long flight. Ainsley also loved all the buttons she got to push to move her seat around.


Miss Ainsley was treated like a queen the entire time we were traveling. Everyone who met her called her princess, and she certainly lived up to the moniker.

We got to London about 6:30 a.m. and immediately boarded our flight for Rome. Ainsley promptly spilled orange juice all over herself, and I had no extra clothes for her to change into. Oh well, it'll dry, right?

We finally landed in Rome around 11 a.m., retrieved our bags and headed for the car. Our driver took us to the hotel and pointed out some of the major sites along the way. I'll post pictures later since I managed to forget my USB cable for my camera. Nice.

Our hotel is spectacular. We're in a suite with a view of Rome and the Vatican. It's truly stunning. I have one word for Europe. And it's not the word you think. Yes, it's beautiful. Yes, it's culturally stimulating. But my word is different. EXPENSIVE. It is amazingly expensive here. Like CRAZY expensive. Don't plan on making the trip unless you have some serious money to burn. I'm going to be paying off this sucker for years.