Solo Travelers Enjoy the Kindness of Strangers

The first time I traveled alone internationally was Spring of 2008. I knew I was in trouble when American Airlines could not print out my boarding passes for my Alitalia connection, a difficulty experienced again with the same airline a year later, with my daughter. The Rome airport is not easy to navigate, especially the first time, coming from the International concourse C to the local concourse A. Finding an Alitalia ticket counter is difficult and when you do it is often unmanned. Not giving up and not one to panic, I went to the gate which was not well marked. I eventually found it in a small bay on the lower level. My troubles were compounded because I had less than a 2 hour layover and our airplane had landed late. Oddly my baggage was tagged all the way through to my destination. I pleaded with the ticket agent to let me on the plane in my broken Italian. At first he appeared impassive to my dilemma. My winning argument was that my luggage would arrive, but I would not. Reluctantly, he printed out a new boarding pass, clearly indicating to me that he was violating policy. I felt so grateful and lucky; he was my hero for the day. I am not sure, but I like to think that my attempt to speak Italian helped. I sat down relieved but still stressed. I wasn’t sure when to board because there was no announcement or sign. When I saw people lineup, I inquired of two of them if this was the flight to Brindisi; then I joined the rear of the line. My main concern was I had a friend waiting for me at the airport and I had no international phone to tell her I would miss my flight. The nice thing about the Rome airport is they do have coin-operated telephones and a call cost only 1 Euro at that time (I had coins left from my last trip).

My daughter, also traveling alone to Italy, did not fare so well the following year. She missed her flight. She made it to the gate but the agent this time did not let her board without a boarding pass. So she argued up a storm with the ticket agents until they booked her on the next flight to Bari; of course, she is fluent in Italian. We were going crazy at home because it was the holidays and everything was sold out, even the trains. Her friend at the Bari airport left to go home but she reached him on the payphone and he returned to the airport to meet her. Then she and many other passengers discovered their luggage didn’t make it. She received her suitcase still wet from the tarmac, but intact, a whole week later. This time we had  purchased travel insurance and she was able to buy $300 dollars of clothes, which in Italy, pays for a coat, one outfit and some underwear. She had to borrow clothes until stores opened after Christmas.

Lessons learned: Allow three or more hours layover at international airports (we usually don’t do this because frequent flyer seats are usually only available on short layovers or extremely long ones). Lately our international flights have been 1-3 hours late. Buy travel insurance. One caveat, if you change your flight for any reason the insurance is voided. We learned that this year 2011. Get an international mobile phone. We have one from Telestial; it works fantastic in Europe and is spotty in America. It also publishes a travel log for you. It took awhile to figure out how to use it. For starters I plugged the SIM card in wrong. Text messages on the UK phone number are free; so we used that a lot. Avoid travel during holidays if you can. It always helps if you try to speak a little of the language. Do get a phrasebook; if you can’t pronounce it, you can point to the phrase. Most airlines do print all boarding passes. Tell your credit card company where you are going; the fraud departments are over-zealous. In Italy most transactions are in cash (common in Europe) so scout out ATMs (can be done online). There is a maximum withdrawal of around 150 Euros per day, depending on the bank.

Happy journeying, Eva

I love this story. This and others are testaments to all the good in the world.

Hi Joei. I’m so sorry for your loss. When I lost my husband we were both surrounded by family and friends. I can’t imagine how difficult it would have been under your circumstances. Yes, it is often thanks to the wonderful support and compassion of strangers that we make it through this world. Thank you for sharing.

That is wonderful. I love stories like these. I truly have goosebumps.