Come Fly With Me

It’s always fun flying with my friend Tracey, but I had an extra bonus flying with Tracey’s dear friend Tracy Musser. We did as the Romans do! This phrase gives tourists in the Eternal City free rein to indulge in an extra scoop of gelato or feast on carbs at every meal. As well, as signifying the benefits of following the local customs and traditions to visitors to Rome.

Vatican City

First stop was to the Vatican City. Vatican City is an independent city state located in the heart of Rome, ruled by the Pope. It is the center of authority over the Roman Catholic Church. The Vatican is the smallest state in Europe. Inside the wall lives approximately 1000 people.

St. Peter’s Square

St. Peter’s Square is located in the Vatican at the feet of the Basilica. One of the most famous squares in the world.

St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Peter’s Basilica is the church built in the Renaissance style located in the Vatican City. It’s one of the holiest temples for Christendom and one of the largest churches in the world. It’s where the Pope does mass all year round. The church can accommodate 20,000 people.

An interesting note to remember, when you are visiting St. Peter’s Basilica they still go by the Roman Catholic Churches dress code. Basic guidelines mandate that the knees and shoulders must be covered before entering the Church. The greeters at the door were very kind and handed out blue paper shawls.

After exploring the inside of St. Peter’s Basilica’s beautiful mosaics and famous artworks and the many stunning details inside, it was time to move on.

We had to cross the river to get back into the heart of Rome. Our next desired destination on recommendation was to find the pub that celebrates the Pittsburg Steelers. Tracey Butler is from Pittsburg and we were not going to miss finding this gem.

La Botticella of Poggi Giovanni

We found it!

We enjoyed a cold beverage before setting off to make it back to the Spanish Steps where we would be meeting the crew for dinner.

Venchi

A must stop on the way was at Venchi, a well known Gelato Shop! It was so yummy!

Always an adventure when walking the streets of Rome. So much to see!

We made it to the Spanish Steps. Now it was time to meet the crew for Happy Hour and dinner.

Hotel De Russie

Cocktails in an urban paradise. The Hotel De Russie is an upscale hotel that exemplifies luxurious Rome living. Rooms start at $1000.00 a night. We enjoyed a cocktail in the beautiful outdoor terrace.

I had the great pleasure of being on a Rome layover with one of my special classmates Tony Cataldo. We have flown together for 33 years.

Hosteria del Mercato

Great place for dinner. The food was delicious! Lots of laughs with my crew!

What a fantastic layover I had in Rome. We definitely did what the Romans do. We indulged in delicious gelato, savored the taste of mouth watering pasta and reveled in the beauty of Rome. It’s not even like work when you get to fly with fun loving people. You can pack for every trip, but good friends will always be the best thing you can bring.

Special bracelets were bought at the Vatican. They will always be a reminder of our memorable time spent together in Rome.

I am so happy I finally made it to a beach in Barcelona. No one on my crew wanted to go to the beach, so I got the courage to venture out myself. Another flight attendant told me to go to the W Hotel and there would be a nice beach in front of the hotel. So that’s what I did. I took a 20 minute taxi ride to the W Hotel to find my happy place.

The W Hotel is a luxury hotel located on the beachfront along the famous Barceloneta Boardwalk. This hotel has a panoramic view of Barcelona and the Mediterranean Sea.

So I found a great rock near the water’s edge to sit on to enjoy the warm water, the beauty of the sea and to marvel at the courage of all the topless women.

This was my grand seat while I enjoyed the beach.

After taking a long walk on the beach it was time to find a cold beer. I found the perfect spot. In front of the W Hotel, there was a small restaurant on the beach that offered beach chairs to enjoy your cocktail.

I enjoyed a cold Sol beer that tasted like Corona.

After a fabulous day at Sant Sebastia Beach. It was time to head back to the hotel. I was meeting the crew for dinner.

Life’s too short to not enjoy a day at the beach. A day at the beach restores the soul!

I have been flying for 33 years and my energetic fun loving friend Camaryn has been flying for 1 year. We are both based in New York. I am so happy we got to meet up on our London layovers.

After Camaryn ran 9 miles through London, she still had the energy to explore London with me. First stop was to Harrods.

HARRODS

Harrods is London’s most famous and iconic luxury department store, known for its designer retail, famous clientele for over 150 years. I wish I had taken more pictures of the luxurious counters. It have over 330 departments and 5000 brands across 7 floors, with an incredible food hall. As you roam through the store, you have a feeling of wealth and glamour.

A must have is the iconic Harrods bag that comes in all shapes and sizes.

After our retail therapy, Camaryn and I set out to find an English pub for lunch.

Camaryn found us a fun English pub! It was beautiful inside with oak panels, etched mirrors and glass work. This pub was definitely my kind of place…cold beer and a delicious lunch.

Time to move on!

WELLINGTON ARCH

The Wellington Arch is set in the heart of royal London. I t was built as an original entrance to Buckingham Palace, later becoming a victory arch proclaiming Wellington’s defeat of Napoleon.

BUCKINGHAM PALACE

Buckingham Palace is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarter of the monarch of the United Kingdom. This has been Queen Elizabeth II’s formal residence since 1936 when her father took the throne. It is said that King Charles and Queen Camilla will call Buckingham Palace their home, after renovations on the palace are completed.

It was time to walk back to our hotel. Camaryn was leaving tonight and I would be leaving in the morning back to New York.

I love walking the streets of London and seeing the architecture and luxurious properties.

It’s always fun to turn the corner and come across an Iconic Red Phone Booth. Great way to end our walk back to our hotel.

So this Oldie definitely had a great time with this Newbie. Camaryn knows how to keep you feeling young!

Camaryn here’s to many more trips together!

CHEERS, MATE!

I was so excited to get this incredible trip to Athens. Athens is full of vibrant culture, thousand of years of history, delicious food and friendly people! I can say it is one of my favorite places so far without even setting foot on one of it’s gorgeous beaches!

Before I went out to explore Athens, I visited our rooftop pool at our hotel. At night it is lively with a DJ.

ATHENS

Athens is the capital of Greece. It was also at the heart of Ancient Greece, a powerful civilization and empire. Athens houses many historic landmarks. It is known to be the birthplace of democracy and idea that all citizens should have a voice in governing their society.

PLAKA

We went to the Plaka neighborhood. It’s in the shadow of the Acropolis and ancient temples. Hillside Plaka has a village feel, with narrow cobblestone street lined with tiny shops selling jewelry, clothes and local ceramics. Plaka has lots of cafes and restaurants and of course my favorite, rooftop bars.

HYPER ASTRO ROOFTOP BAR

First stop was to the Hyper Astro Rooftop Bar in the heart of Plaka. It has a pretty terrace which offered a stunning backdrop of the Acropolis.

Fun time at the rooftop with my coworkers Annette and Margie.

After the rooftop, we met up with another flight attendant from SFO. She is Greek and took us to her favorite spots.

As we were walking up to the Acropolis, I noticed so many cats just relaxing or roaming the streets. I had to look into this phenomenon. I didn’t see any dogs. I found out that many cats were left on the streets by citizens and tourists, who often picked up cats during their stay in Greece and then discarded them at the end of their trip. Furthermore, since neutering was considered to be an unnatural process, pet cats were usually not neutered. This resulted in a large population of stray cats.

ACROPOLIS

The Acropolis of Athens is an ancient citadel located on a rocky outcrop above the city of Athens and contains the remains of several ancient buildings of great architectural and historical significance, the most famous being the Parthenon. The Acropolis was a fortress and military base during the Neolithic period, due to its position which offers a great view of the land and the sea.

So lucky to be in Athens with my Greek speaking friend Kim.

Now it was time for dinner. Kim took us to her favorite restaurant.

The view from our table at the restaurant was amazing!

I love Greek food!

Dinner was full of great food, delicious wine and fun conversation.

We made every minute of our layover count. It was getting dark so we needed to head back to our hotel. We had a 30 minute walk ahead of us.

As we walked, I looked back and I could see the beautiful Acropolis lit up on the hill. It certainly was a sight of greatness!

PANATHENAIC STADIUM

On our walk home, we came upon the Panathenaic Stadium. This spectacular stadium was home to the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens. This stadium remains the only stadium in the world built entirely out of marble. It is the oldest operating stadium in the world and it has hosted three Olympic Games.

Athens, this Ancient Greek metropolis has a lot to see and do. It has so much rich culture and history. I was so blessed to get such a wonderful layover. I can’t wait to come back. Next time I will enjoy Greece’s stunning beaches! For now, I will treasure the unforgettable memories of the vibrant city called Athens!

It’s hard to describe the beauty and the feeling of being in Rome, especially for the first time. American Airlines gave us flight attendants a gift, by putting us up in a hotel in the heart of Rome. Every place of interest is in walking distance. Every corner I turned I was in awe!

HOTEL SAVOY

It was so hard to take a nap because of the anticipated excitement that lied ahead. Without hesitation, I had to force myself to nap. I needed the energy to see all that I could see in one day.

ROME

Rome is the capital of Italy and the largest city in the country. It is located on the western coast of central Italy along the Tiber River. Rome known as the “Eternal City” is called that because it is a place of great beauty, contrast and life. The city is home to numerous iconic landmarks that are a testament to its rich heritage. Rome is famous for having fabulous foods such as spaghetti, pizza and delicious creamy gelato.

THE SPANISH STEPS

The Spanish Steps are one of the most famous stairs in the world. The steps were built in 1723 and 1726. They are the steps that lead from the Piazza di Spagna ( Spanish Square) at the base and Piazza Trinita del Monti that has the Trinita dei Monti church at the top. There are 135 steps and 12 ramps. Also it has 3 terraces that represent the Holy Trinity. The Spanish Steps represent figuratively and metaphorically the close relationship between the Sacred and the Eternal city. This landmark in Rome hosts many events, such as fashion shows, filming of movies and special Italian ceremonies. A fun fact is that the stairs were also considered as a place to rest from the long walks through the city of Rome, but in 2019 a law came into effect saying it is illegal to sit on the steps. By doing this, they hope to preserve this special landmark.

View from one of the terraces on the Spanish Steps.

Fontana della Barcaccia

This is the fountain, which is found at the foot of the Spanish Steps. This fountain looks like an old fishing boat.

We continued walking through the streets of Rome.

The Trevi Fountain

The Trevi Fountain is the most famous fountain in the world and definitely in Rome. It has intricate artwork and lots of history. The Fountain also showcases the skills in the ancient Roman’s. I could not believe I didn’t have a coin to toss in. According to the legend, one coin: you will return to Rome, two coins: you will fall in love with an attractive Italian, three coins: you will return, find love, and marry. Luck or no luck, the money goes to a good cause. It was fun seeing everyone throwing the coins in!

Pantheon

Next stop, was The Pantheon. The Pantheon is a former Roman temple and since 609 AD, a Catholic Church in Rome. It is the most preserved monument off Ancient Rome. It was constructed as a temple dedicated to the Gods and became the burial ground for several important artists and kings.

We decided it was time to stop for a cold drink!

As we were sitting there enjoying our cold drink, we witnessed a marriage proposal in front of us! It was very romantic. The bride to be was in tears!

Cat Sanctuary

For all you cat lovers, you would love the Roman Cats Torre Argentina Cat Sanctuary. I loved that we fell upon this place. This Cat Sanctuary is a cat shelter in Rome. It makes use of the ancient ruins of Largo di Torre Argentina by providing a home within them for around 150 cats. After the excavation of the temple ruins in 1929, feral cats were drawn to the area, sheltered by the Roman pillars and fed by locals. If you zoom into the photo on the right you can see 2 of the cats just loving life and lounging on the rocks. Unfortunately, I couldn’t take any photos when we got down into the ruins because the cameras scare the cats. I left the Sanctuary with a happy heart!

Altara della Patria (Wedding Cake in Rome)

The Altara della Patria commemorates the unification of Italy in 1861 and the first king of Italy, Victor Emmanuel II. It is known in Rome as the wedding cake because of the building is layered and white, like a wedding cake.

We left the Altara della Patria and headed to the Colosseum. Along the route, we appreciated the beautiful buildings, accompanied with multiple ruins.

Colosseum

The Colosseum is the largest amphitheater built during the Roman Empire. It’s one of the New 7 Wonders of the World. The Colosseum is over 1,900 years old. The gladiator games were held at the Colosseum. Aside from the games, the Colosseum also hosted dramas, reenactments, and even public executions. A series of earthquakes during the fifth century damaged the structure.

The fun did not stop here. Actually, the fun began because the Rome Gay Pride Parade was about to end their parade here at the Colosseum.

It was time to leave the festivities and head to dinner.

Sunset at the Colosseum

Dinner Time

My pizza was so delicious!

When in Rome, you always make room for creamy gelato. I had chocolate chip that was so scrumptious!!

I couldn’t have asked for a better crew to explore Rome with. We walked over 10 miles that day. Every step was filled with fun and laughter. Even though I didn’t get to throw the coin into the fountain, I know I will return to this breathtaking, romantic, timeless place called Rome.

CIAO, A PRESTO!

Barcelona, Spain captured my heart! Not only was I enchanted with the beautiful views and a fun city, I was so happy to being experiencing Barcelona with my dear friend, Tracey! Yes, we are flying together again! We are both now based in New York.
Happiness is flying with the people you love.

First stop after a couple of hours of sleep was to our rooftop at our hotel! Wow!! What a beautiful view and the white sangaria was a yummy way to start our day!

Our Captain Heinz, knowing that it was my first time to Barcelona offered to take us to a few of his favorite places. Another crew member Meilan joined the fun.

BOQUERIA MERCADO BARCELONA
La Boqueria is the most famous market in Barcelona located in the center of the city (Las Ramblas). It is so picturesque with all the different types of food. This is a place to spend feasting the senses!

After having a delicious lunch, we set afoot to enjoy the streets of Barcelona.

IGLESIA SANTA MARIA DEL MAR

We came upon this beautiful church to stop and give thanks for our incredible day!

So much to see, but not enough time to see it all. It was time for dinner. Heinz brought us to one of his favorite restaurants.
CALABASA RESTARANT

We cooked our meat on a a hot stone , that perfectly sears the meat keeping it very juicy to our own liking. The steak was absolutely delicious!

It was time to head back to our hotel. Loved walking along the water and seeing stunning yachts. It was a fun filled day but not over yet! We headed back to our hotel to enjoy the sunset from where we had started our day!

ROOFTOP

BUENAS NOCHES

Unfortunately Marianne wasn’t able to join me on this trip!! Here’s to you Marianne!
You are truly missed! Can’t wait til we fly together again soon!❌⭕️

What a dream come true! I could never have imagined I would get to experience the extraordinary beauty and charm of Lake Como!
Marianne was such a good sport. In order to have a full day at Lake Como, there would be no time to take a nap when we arrived at our hotel in Milan. We had to start our day running! We tried to nap from the airport to the hotel on the bus. It certainly wasn’t easy!

Even though we didn’t sleep, we were still very excited to take the 1 1/2 hour ride on the train to Lake Como.

We arrived!! The lookout for George Clooney began.
LAKE COMO

Lake Como, is in northern Italy’s Lombardy Region and is an upscale resort area known for its dramatic scenery set against the foothills of the Alps. It has been a popular retreat for aristocrats and wealthy people since Roman times. George Clooney purchased a lavish villa on Lake Como in 2002.

Funicular Railway

This Funicular Railway (cable car) goes from Como near the lake waterfront to the top of a hill in the Village of Brunate. The 7 minute ride passes through a scenic stretch of countryside with sweeping views of Italy’s Lake Como as far as the Swiss Alps. So of course, Marianne and I waited in line for the Funicular Railway so we could see the view of the lake from above. Absolutely beautiful!

The view from above was breathtaking! Now it was time to enjoy the waterfront and have a delicious bite to eat!

It was a lot of fun sitting outside and watching the world go by!

To our amazement, Lake Como is filled with elegant white swans. They were calmly swimming and grooming themselves in the midst of all the human activity.

Towards the evening, we were pleasantly surprised when 2 of our SFO family members, Beth and Sinda joined us to make fun memories at Lake Como!

Sad to say, it was getting late and we had to get to the train station for our return trip to Milan. These International flight Attendants needed to get some sleep. Our passengers depended on us to be fresh and energized to work our trip back to New York in the morning.

Our wonderful day at Lake Como, will always hold a special place in our hearts.

ARRIVEDERCI LAKE COMO

Marianne and I happily arrived in Milan Friday morning. Passengers were nice, no drama to be had! Even the rain wasn’t going to dampen our spirits!

We needed to eat something small before tackling Milan so we walked to the local grocery store and brought back snacks. We ate our snacks at a table in front of our elevator, on the floor in which our rooms are located. It was actually quite nice. So now we are ready to enjoy the day.

The train station is 1 block from our hotel, so it’s very easy to get around in Milan. Our desired destination was to see the Canals in Milan.

Of course in Nancy’s fashion, my umbrella broke. That was not going to stop our fun! Our friend Sinda from San Francisco joined our outing.

We came across a pizza place that we couldn’t resist! The Italian crust is very thin like a cracker where Anerican pizza can vary from thin to thick. Instead of slow cooked tomato sauce that is offered in the US. Italy uses olive oil, puréed fresh tomatoes, garlic and oregano. The pizza was scrumptious!

We continued on our walk to come across the enchanting view of the Duomo. No time to stop, we continued on with our walk to find the canals,

As my Mother always told me, every time you walk into a new church, you can make a wish! With my wish done, I also lit a candle for my beautiful Mother!💗. Lighting a candle for someone is a way to extend our prayers and show solidarity with the person the prayer is being made on behalf of. The faithful also light candles as a sign of gratitude to God for answered prayers.

We made it to the canals!! Milan’s canals were built because of the Duomo. They were constructed to transport goods from nearby lakes to build the Duomo in 1482 by Leonardo de Vinci. The canals are filled with bars, restaurants and boutiques!

Our kind Captain mentioned he made a dinner reservation at his favorite restaurant on the canal. So we took it upon ourselves to surprise him by sitting at his reserved table when he arrived. He was very gracious to have us join him.

After our stomachs full of pasta, we headed back to the hotel to enjoy a goodnight sleep before our return to New York. We would be staying at our Crashpad before heading back to Milan the next day.

Of course, the rain followed us from Milan to New York. However, this did not dampen our spirits!

BUONA NOTTE

Marianne and I returned to our beloved São Paulo. We left Wednesday night from New York arriving in São Paulo Thursday morning. We were suppose to have heavy rains, but boy did we luck out with sunny skies. After a brief nap, my tour director, Marianne came up with a plan. We were to adventure out to find the highest point of São Paulo by foot. As you can imagine, many pitfalls came our way!

Our destination was to a rooftop at an apartment complex that allowed guests at 3pm to enjoy the view of the city. Our walking trip was suppose to be 2.9 miles and with a speedy gait we would make it on time.

Everything was going perfect until we came upon Little Italy and stopped to take photos. To our dismay we lost our way. We missed an important left turn. This is when the craziness began.

We thought we could get back on track if we took the next left, unfortunately we were definitely out of our element. We asked directions from the locals, in which, they only spoke fast Portuguese to us. We knew that we were left to our own initiative. After many twists and turns, we came upon a police station. We enthusiastically ran up the steps to find 2 nice police officers that also didn’t speak English, but they were eager to help. We showed them on our phone the destination we planned to go. They showed us on their phone how to go. We definitely thought we could do this. One of the police officers walked us out and the only English parting word to us was DANGEROUS! He pointed to our phone and showed us to keep the phone hidden. Yikes, now we had to memorize the directions. The São Paulo bad guys love to steal phones by riding by on their bikes and snatching the phone out of your hand. It happens so fast. You can’t even react. Thank goodness Marianne has a good memory. We were doing just fine until we reached the church. We couldn’t remember whether to take a left or right. Of course we took the wrong way.

We walked up this steep street and couldn’t see our destination. So we stopped and asked construction workers. They pointed back down the hill.

The photo above shows the tall building, which was our desired destination, Edoficio Copan. It’s a 38-story residential building in São Paulo. It’s one of the largest building in Brazil. Copan has guided tours to the top of the building to see the amazing skyline of São Paulo.

We couldn’t believe after almost 5 miles, we found Copan. We were late but we quickened our step to see if we could be lucky enough to get to the top to see the view. We entered the building and noticed not much was happening in the lobby. We asked a guard how to get to the top and the only English word we could make out was COVID. We figured it out that the tours at Copan had stopped because of Covid and never started up again. With a sigh and disappointment, we looked at each other with dismay. Although in an instant, our luck changed. The guard was kind enough to say and point to another building that was next door. We had no idea what we were going to encounter.

We arrived next door to ask to go up to the top; the concierge asked if we had a reservation. We said no. She waited a couple of moments and said would we like to go to the bar. Is she kidding , this is a dream come true for us. Have a drink at the bar and see the spectacular view. She said a fee of 50 reals per person would go on our tab, which is around $10.00 each. We agreed without hesitation. We didn’t walk all this way to go home without seeing the view.

Edificio Italia

Edifico Italia is a 46 story office tower which has the Terraio Italia Restaurant and Bar on the 41st floor. The view was definitely worth the 5 mile walk.

The great part of this experience was for the most part we had the place to ourselves. Brazalians come out much later for drinks and dinner.

Since we arrived at our destination late, we were right on time for a spectacular sunset at 5:34pm.

What a day we had! We decided to uber back to our hood and go to our favorite restaurant…Monte Carlo.

The next day was low keyed since we had to work on our bids. What are bids you might be asking? This is very important in a flight attendant’s world. Each month between the 10th and 15th, a flight attendant has to request what trips and days off he or she may need for the following month. So we start off by putting dream trips in and then we get back to reality. The last day is the 15th to put bids in and then the waiting game. Your bid results come out of the 18th. It’s all done by seniority. The bid results are always a surprise on what trips you get and the days off. Nothing is predictable! That’s why at our interviews over 30 years ago, we were asked if we could be flexible! American wasn’t kidding!

Marianne and I worked on our bids in the hotel lobby.

Time to say goodbye to São Paulo! Thanks for the memories.

We knew we made it back to New York when the purser put the red, white and blue lights on!

GOD BLESS AMERICA

I am a firm believer that it doesn’t matter where you travel to, the magic happens when you travel with best buds to enhance the journey! Marianne is on vacation and is visiting her family in Sweden. I was incredibly fortunate to get on this Milan trip with my SFO buddies who I call family. We have flown together in SFO for over 30 years. We have been through so much together….boyfriends, husbands, children, pets, sicknesses and loss, but at the end of the day we have laughter. Through it all, we have always been San Francisco Strong!! We have each other’s back!

First stop after our nap, was to the local grocery store. I am no foodie, but these girls know their stuff. A few of the items that they bring back home are dry pasta, olive oil and cheese. After a successful shopping experience, we headed back to the hotel to have a debrief. (A debrief in Flight Attendant jargon means we go to one of our rooms and have a beverage of some sort and snacks to discuss our next plan of action.)

Debrief complete. Game plan decided. We are ready to tackle Milan.

We jumped on the Metro to go see Duomo di Milano.

It was so impressive. The Duomo is the largest Gothic Church in the world and the largest church in Italy. It is a Cathedral that is home to the archbishop of Milan. It has 3,400 statues , plus marble figures stand all over the cathedral. It took 600 years to complete.

Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square) is the main piazza (city square) of Milan.

The mall, named La Rinascente, is situated right next to the Duomo in the Piazza del Duomo. It has 4 floors with stylish department stores with the best brands of fashion and much more.

It was time for dinner. We were going to an Italian Restaurant that was recommended by another flight attendant. The walk through the town felt magical. I loved all the cobblestone streets.

It was a delicious Italian dinner at a nice restaurant with sidewalk seating. I had spaghetti, but the girls who love seafood had an incredible plate..seafood over linguini. To our surprise it had a delicious crust covering the seafood.

Time to get back to the hotel. It was an unforgettable day spent with my dear friends.

Our night was not over yet, Beth had a surprise for us. She has a dear friend that owns a restaurant across the street from our hotel. It’s closed on Sundays, but he opened it just for us to have a nightcap! That’s Italian hospitality for you!!

We had to get up early the next day to fly our 8 hour flight back to New York. Like the SFO tradition the flight was full of laughter.

Being silly, the 5 of us squished into the crew bunk area for a photo shoot! We couldn’t even move! I’m sure the passengers were shocked when we all piled out from this hidden door.

This is our beautiful view from our office. This trip was definitely full of new footprints and memories from Milan. I am very blessed to have such wonderful coworkers that became dear friends. Sometimes all you need is a great friend and thirst for adventure to make life more fun.

CIAO