Off to Rome, the eternal city.

No one ever said it was going to be easy. Sometimes we just expect too much. Sometimes things just do not go “right.” 

I’m off on another pilgrimage, this time to spend some time in the eternal city of Rome and to walk in the steps of St. Benedict. All the reservations were made. It looked fairly easy. There was a close connection in Newark, but if all went well things would work out just fine. 

I had mounted an enormous fret about the 55 minutes I would have to connect in Newark. That, it turned out was the least of the problems. It began in Sioux Falls. The flight to Chicago was delayed because the plane had not arrived from Lincoln, Nebraska. I originally had more than an hour to make the connection in Chicago. That time was rapidly shrinking as the arriving plane was later and later. We finally boarded and snuggled in for the one hour and 15 minute flight. Then we had to wait on the taxi-way for 17 minutes, not 15 or 20 but 17! 

After a bumpy arrival at O’Hare, I had to wait for my gate-checked bag which further delayed the process. I was directed to the shuttle to Terminal 1, which sounds ominous in and of itself. I arrived just as the announcement was made for the final call for the flight to Newark. I fell into my seat with a sigh of relief which was short-lived.

We experienced problems viewing the video concerning the intricate instructions for fastening our seat belts. This had to be restarted several times. The “cabin” then announced there were problems with the aircraft that they would attempt to repair without returning to the gate.  Alas, the problems were evidently too complex so we did return. By now the 55 minutes I had to connect in Newark had evaporated. We were told to take all our belongings and exit the aircraft. Obediently following like lemmings off the cliff, we went.

The consolation offered at the gate was to go to customer service (which I firmly believe is an oxymoron). I detoured to the United Club and encountered Nancy K. who did (I think) a marvelous job of rerouting me through Frankfurt to Rome. It seems like a reasonable way to travel. I don’t know about my checked bag, however. She spent over 30 minutes on the phone trying to contact someone in “Baggage Match” who would route my bag in the way of righteousness. Finally, she reached a real person who would try his/her best to see that the bag was (1) found, and (2) sent to Frankfurt and then to Rome.

I’m currently whiling away the time by eating cheese and crackers, trail mix, pretzels, and something round covered in white. This is called lunch which was to have been on the plane, but, alas, was not. 

According to the master plan I was to meet two of my traveling companions from Denver in Newark. We were booked on the same flight to Rome. They, however, were delayed in Denver to the point that they would miss their connection in Newark, so they were rebooked through Frankfurt. Fortuitously, we are now on the same flight from Frankfurt to Rome. If all goes well, which I fully expect it not to, we will connect in Deutschland and still arrive in Roma at the same time! 

Here the endeth the lesson on the perils of air travel. To sum up, I left home at 8:30 this morning and have traveled no further than Chicago, less than two hours by air from home. It is now 4:30.

(FYI - the round things covered in white appear to be white chocolate covered raisins, or white chocolate covered something.)

On a more positive note, pilgrimage is an ongoing experience. As I’ve written previously, I always learn something new, and return a different person from the one who left Sioux Falls. I’ve been to Rome before. This will be a new experience, in a way, since I will be able to spend several days there which always gives one a better perspective for good or bad. One cannot come to know a place in a few hours or a few days. Nearly two weeks there will allow time for reflection and a more leisurely pace of seeing and doing. I’m really looking forward to having time to experience the city without chasing from the airport to the port to the city to the airport to the rail station, etc. 

One of my traveling companions has mapped out a plan which will include several places of interest which I’ve not visited previously. Rather than seeing the same “old” things, there will be several new experiences. 

Part of this trip will be walking (driving, bussing) in the steps of St. Benedict. The father of western monasticism will be instructing us along the way as we visit places of import to him, his sister Scholastica, and those who follow in his path by attempting, day by day, to live by his rule.

I will look forward to sharing these experiences with you.

Peace.