Three Weeks, and Counting

In three weeks from now, some of you will have already departed on your first flight! Woo Hoo!!!

I thought I'd chat with you about what to expect during your travel day. International travel is TOUGH on your body, and the more preparation you do, the better your first day of touring will be.

To start with, consider beginning to change your internal clock by an hour a day a few days before departure. Italy is 7 hours ahead of most of us, so if you start on Monday waking up early and going to bed a little earlier, it'll be easier to get to sleep on the international flight on Thursday night. If you're not that disciplined, consider doing something crazy like sleeping very little on Wednesday night, and getting up super-early. You need to be at the airport 2 1/2 hours before departure, anyways, to be sure to make it through all the check-in stuff for international flights. Yes, that's a 7 AM check-in, my 9:30 AM departure friends.

At the airport, stay on your feet as much as possible, and try to get your eating habits on Italy time. That means you want to eat something lunch-ish for breakfast. And drink lots of water/juice. When you arrive into the connecting airport and get to your Italy departure gate, wait to eat anything until you get on the flight - they'll feed you dinner within the first two hours. But keep drinking lots of water/juice. On the international flight, try not to snack throughout the night, but keep drinking lots of water/juice. Sleep as much as possible. If you find you're restless, get up and walk for about 10 minutes, then return to your seat to attempt sleeping again. And have some water every time you wake up. Getting my drift? An hour before you arrive, breakfast will be served to you - eat all of it, whether you like it or not - it'll tell your body that it's morning (and not midnight, American time).

Once you get through passport check (be sure to take the NON-EU lines), get your bags at the baggage claim, and go through Customs (nothing to claim, my friends), you'll see me there on the other side of the sliding doors, with a pink SPI sign and the same Green SPI t-shirt. And we'll be off! No stops until we break at an AutoGrill for lunch right before going to Pompeii.

Again, a list of reminders for fighting jetlag:
1. A few days before departure, start changing your internal clock - wake up earlier, go to bed earlier
2. Force yourself to sleep/be still/rest during the international flight
3. Eat a lunch-type meal at breakfast, a snack-type meal for lunch, and eat your entire served breakfast on the international flight
4. LOTS OF FLUIDS for hydration - water and juice - as often as they offer it to you, and more!

We'll see you in three weeks!!!

Hugs,
L :)