The Vagabond Diaries...

Will Work For Food
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VAGABOND DIARIES

CHICAGO TO ZURICH (May 29-30): My Vagabond summer begins Saturday, but I decided to arrive Wednesday to give myself a few days to acclimate. Only the guests should have jetlag hangovers!

She quit her job, sublet her apartment and gave away her car. What will she do next? Read each Vagabond Diary entry and follow along on her delicious journey!

I wasn’t sure if flying business class was worth the $185 I spent to upgrade my ticket. Sure enough, I hadn’t even put my bag down when the flight attendant asks if I’d like a glass of champagne. Poor thing didn’t know who she’s dealing with. YES I want a glass, and keep ‘em coming until I don’t look petrified. The flight was bumpier than I’d like; then again, anyone who’s flown with me knows a kitten’s sneeze is too bumpy. It calmed down after a few hours, and I managed to sleep for a while, in my head thanking the airline gods for the free champagne buzz.

Cooking Alfresco
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There’s a 12-year-old girl across the aisle flying to see her aunt in Zurich. It’s her first time on a plane, AND she’s alone. For 10 hours. That girl has kahunas.

Miles traveled: 4435 Persons arrested for falsifying personal info to steal my seat: 1; bags confiscated: 2 Total weight of my baggage: 40 out of allowable 100 lbs Non-nervous 12-year-olds who slept so soundly they had to be awoken upon landing: 1 Gratis champagnes enjoyed (by me, NOT the 12-year-old): 2. Okay 3. Who’s counting? Best money I’ve ever spent: $185 business class upgrade

ZURICH TO ROME (May 30): Skinny jeans and cigarettes My layover in Zurich was harmless, minus my heartfelt concern for European men and their equally unnatural affinities for skinny jeans and cigarettes. Swiss Air asked for one volunteer to be downgraded from business class to coach – for 320 francs – for the non-grueling 50-minute flight. That might be a dollar in American money, but I took it. Let’s see if I can actually turn this monopoly money into a night on the town!!

Miles traveled: 435 Bucks gained: 320 f Obvious honeymoon couples on my flight: 3 (doesn’t anyone go to Hawaii anymore?)

ROME TO FLORENCE (May 30, a.m.): Don’t teach your kids to drive like this Here’s where the adventure begins, kids. No, I don’t speak Italian. No, I’ve never driven in Europe. Yes, I picked up a rental car and drove three hours to Florence from Rome after 10 hours of flying. My contacts are stuck to my eyeballs like stale potato chips and I haven’t peed since Iceland. Why was my mother worried?

Okay, have you ever driven in Italy? Those nutjobs might be sexy in movies, but they drive so fast they make me physically uncomfortable. And I’m a city girl – I’ve been driving like an asshole for 10 years. But this is insane. If you are going any less than 20km ABOVE the speed limit, they get on your tail faster than a whore at a frat party to flash their lights and demand that you move over immediately. The nice thing is, after they do it, there’s no expressive hand gestures or x-rated lip syncing like if you had cut off an NYC cabbie. They just speed by you and are gone before you can say Chianti. But the pressure to drive 140km/hour is blinding. (Not unlike the lights in the rear view mirror.)

KM traveled: 330 (you do the math, I forgot my calculator) Cars that passed me: 35,762 Times I cared: 1.0 Tolls paid: 13€ ($20 US – for that mental anguish, they should pay me.) Days until my personal travel ends and my Vagabond summer begins, thus upgrading my hotel status: 2