JFK to Rome

On our journey to Syria we traveled from JFK to Rome with an 11 hour layover in Rome before heading to Damascus. We were able to get a day rate (almost half the regular nightly rate. These rates are not advertised, you simply call the hotel directly and ask) at a hotel in the heart of Rome and took showers to freshen up before touring the city.

You would think we were courting disaster by taking a 2 year old on such long flights, but he was a superstar traveler and slept most of the way on the JFK to Rome flight. Even though Alitalia took our car seat away from us on the long flight from JFK to Rome. They would not let us have it on board. That car seat (it is also a stroller as it converts back and forth easily) was going to be our saviour on the airplane as it contains the monkey, er Max. When he is in the car seat on a plane, he usually falls asleep within an hour of take off Without it, we've had many flights of him crawling all over us, all over the seats, front to back, etc., etc. He won't stay seated and the safety belts don't fit him. We feared the worst when the flight crew refused to allow us to take the car seat on the plane. Additionally, and more importantly, the car seat is a serious safety measure for Max, securing him safely in the seat and to the airplane seat. If the plane were to have experienced any serious turbulence without our having him in that 5 point harness within the car seat, he would have been a projectile object. I was quite angry (even though I first mentioned the part about his being confined which helps us tremendously in controlling him and his energy). In Italy and in Damascus, I don't believe car seats in cars (or planes) are a requirement which is scary.

Max fell asleep about 2.5 hours into the flight and slept through until we landed 6+ hours later. Max and I had our own row of three seats...but Alitalia's arm rests do not go all the up so if you try to stretch out and lay down the arm rests fall on you and poke you in the back, extremely annoying. I will try to never fly this airline again...it is terrible and the condition of their planes (at the least the 4 that we were on throughout our travels) were awful and I am not exaggerating.

Enough of the flight!

The pictures I included are of his sleeping (yeah) on the flight and of his arrival in Rome.