Snow in Partigliano - views from our house
Dom with luggage at Gatwick Airport
We were so early at the airport that we hauled our bags inside and checked in before meeting Rosario (our rental agent) outside to return the car. That took all of thirty seconds so we then had time for cappuccino and pastry before boarding our flight.
The trip to London was smooth as was our transfer from Gatwick Airport to Heathrow Airport. Trolleys at each stop made moving our bags fairly simple. The only glitch came when we boarded the flight to Seattle. The plane was ready to go but apparently we were parked so close to the taxiway that we could not maneuver away from the gate in order to join the take-off queue. It was nearly an hour before the queue diminished enough for us to leave.
We landed in Seattle almost an hour late but we were soon through immigration and customs. My parents met us at baggage claim and we spent the night at their house. The next morning my mother drove us to Mukilteo where we walked on the ferry. Actually, it was more like waddling onto the ferry. With no trolley to help us, hauling our bags on and off the boat proved a challenge. The ferry personnel were practically laughing at us. We must have looked like refugees returning home.
Once the boat docked at Clinton we waddled off and tossed all our bags onto the bus. Whidbey Island has a great bus system. It is free and will drop you anywhere you ask. Thus, we were able to get off right at the end of our long driveway. It was not raining so I waited by the road with the bags while Dom walked down to the house, found his keys and brought the truck back up for me and the luggage.
It was great to finally be home. We spent the rest of Tuesday turning things on, plugging things in, going for groceries and the cat, and unpacking all the bags. We managed to stay awake until after 9 pm before collapsing in bed.
Today is more of the same. We are getting back into the rhythm of island life even as we try to get ready for the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow. We plan to be at my parents’ ski cabin at Snoqualmie Pass for the day checking out the new garage and eating too much turkey and too much pie.
Dom with luggage at Gatwick Airport
In the end we had an uneventful trip from Pisa to Seattle. However, Monday the 24th began anything but calmly.
At night we keep the shutters in our bedroom closed but the bedroom door remains open as do the shutters on the window right outside it. When I woke, the first thing I noticed was that the power had been out. It was still half dark but I grabbed my watch and was just able to make out the time—6:50 am. Then I realized there was a strange glow to the light coming in the hall window. I got up and looked outside. SNOW!
Only about an inch had fallen—just enough to nearly cover everything. It looked beautiful and if we had not had a plane to catch later in the morning I would have thought it was a grand adventure. Instead I had to fight down panic even as I was waking up Dom.
The next few hours were interesting. The power seemed “wobbly” so I quickly took a shower. Just as I finished it flickered on and off several times before going off for good for about an hour. Dom put on grubby clothes and went outside to finish up what needed to be done there. We had cold water and the gas burners worked so we had breakfast in the semi-darkness and continued doing things that did not require power.
My biggest worries were Dom getting a shower (how awful to have to fly home without one) and what the roads would be like. Dom was much calmer about it and suggested I call some of our friends who live closer to Lucca. Mary and Orlando were surprised to learn that we had snow as they had nothing. Since they can see down to the road to Lucca they were able to reassure us that it was pretty localized. By this time it was also raining outside and the snow on our patio was becoming thick and sloppy. It seemed that we would be able to reach the airport with few problems.
Finally the lights came back on. Dom was able to get his shower. I was able to iron the clothes I planned to wear. While Dom hand carried the larger bags up to our car in the village parking area I finished doing the dishes and tidying up the house. The utilities were turned off and we were ready to go. Actually, we were ready to go with time to spare so we sat down and watched the news for a while. Shortly after 10 am we grabbed the last of the bags, flipped off the electricity and locked up.
The drive to the airport proved uneventful. By the time we left, enough other cars had been down the hill so the center of the road was merely bare and wet. All the snow disappeared after a couple of miles. By the time we halfway to Lucca there was no sign of it at all. However, when we stopped at the toll plaza outside of Pisa (20 miles away) the attendant asked where it had snowed because somehow the inch of snow managed to stay on the roof of the car all the way there.
At night we keep the shutters in our bedroom closed but the bedroom door remains open as do the shutters on the window right outside it. When I woke, the first thing I noticed was that the power had been out. It was still half dark but I grabbed my watch and was just able to make out the time—6:50 am. Then I realized there was a strange glow to the light coming in the hall window. I got up and looked outside. SNOW!
Only about an inch had fallen—just enough to nearly cover everything. It looked beautiful and if we had not had a plane to catch later in the morning I would have thought it was a grand adventure. Instead I had to fight down panic even as I was waking up Dom.
The next few hours were interesting. The power seemed “wobbly” so I quickly took a shower. Just as I finished it flickered on and off several times before going off for good for about an hour. Dom put on grubby clothes and went outside to finish up what needed to be done there. We had cold water and the gas burners worked so we had breakfast in the semi-darkness and continued doing things that did not require power.
My biggest worries were Dom getting a shower (how awful to have to fly home without one) and what the roads would be like. Dom was much calmer about it and suggested I call some of our friends who live closer to Lucca. Mary and Orlando were surprised to learn that we had snow as they had nothing. Since they can see down to the road to Lucca they were able to reassure us that it was pretty localized. By this time it was also raining outside and the snow on our patio was becoming thick and sloppy. It seemed that we would be able to reach the airport with few problems.
Finally the lights came back on. Dom was able to get his shower. I was able to iron the clothes I planned to wear. While Dom hand carried the larger bags up to our car in the village parking area I finished doing the dishes and tidying up the house. The utilities were turned off and we were ready to go. Actually, we were ready to go with time to spare so we sat down and watched the news for a while. Shortly after 10 am we grabbed the last of the bags, flipped off the electricity and locked up.
The drive to the airport proved uneventful. By the time we left, enough other cars had been down the hill so the center of the road was merely bare and wet. All the snow disappeared after a couple of miles. By the time we halfway to Lucca there was no sign of it at all. However, when we stopped at the toll plaza outside of Pisa (20 miles away) the attendant asked where it had snowed because somehow the inch of snow managed to stay on the roof of the car all the way there.
We were so early at the airport that we hauled our bags inside and checked in before meeting Rosario (our rental agent) outside to return the car. That took all of thirty seconds so we then had time for cappuccino and pastry before boarding our flight.
The trip to London was smooth as was our transfer from Gatwick Airport to Heathrow Airport. Trolleys at each stop made moving our bags fairly simple. The only glitch came when we boarded the flight to Seattle. The plane was ready to go but apparently we were parked so close to the taxiway that we could not maneuver away from the gate in order to join the take-off queue. It was nearly an hour before the queue diminished enough for us to leave.
We landed in Seattle almost an hour late but we were soon through immigration and customs. My parents met us at baggage claim and we spent the night at their house. The next morning my mother drove us to Mukilteo where we walked on the ferry. Actually, it was more like waddling onto the ferry. With no trolley to help us, hauling our bags on and off the boat proved a challenge. The ferry personnel were practically laughing at us. We must have looked like refugees returning home.
Once the boat docked at Clinton we waddled off and tossed all our bags onto the bus. Whidbey Island has a great bus system. It is free and will drop you anywhere you ask. Thus, we were able to get off right at the end of our long driveway. It was not raining so I waited by the road with the bags while Dom walked down to the house, found his keys and brought the truck back up for me and the luggage.
It was great to finally be home. We spent the rest of Tuesday turning things on, plugging things in, going for groceries and the cat, and unpacking all the bags. We managed to stay awake until after 9 pm before collapsing in bed.
Today is more of the same. We are getting back into the rhythm of island life even as we try to get ready for the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow. We plan to be at my parents’ ski cabin at Snoqualmie Pass for the day checking out the new garage and eating too much turkey and too much pie.
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