October 11, 2022

October 11, 2022

We rose very early this morning, checked out of the hotel, and took a taxi to the Bologna airport. This airfield is named after Marconi, inventor of radio. This is one more reminder that during the Renaissance, the city-states of northern Italy were the hotbed of science, architecture, industry and the arts. It all started because a group of Venetians experimented with democracy and capitalism. Not wanting to be left behind their neighbors began innovating too. The wealth generated offered almost unlimited opportunities to artists and architects. Nowhere else is there such a concentration of high art. No wonder all seven cities we visited were World Heritage Sites.

Our first flight to London takes us over Modena, the Balsamic Vinegar capital of Italy, then Lake Como and the Alps. We have clear skies over London. Since we just missed Queen Elizabeth's funeral on the flight over, it is only appropriate that our return flight path goes right over the funeral site of Westminster Abbey, and her home of Buckingham Palace.

In London, we board our next flight to Chicago. Our flight was full of dejected Green Bay Packer fans who had flown to London only to see their team defeated by the New York Giants. Our last flight to Tucson seemed the longest. We have been awake too long. We are happy to be home. We are tired of pay toilets and my feet need a break from pounding the pavement.