Airport

D -3
This morning I went on a test run to the airport. It took exactly 18 minutes from the time I started the car until I turned it off in the car park. (I love living off of I-215!) The surprising thing was how many cars were on the road that time of day. There was a fair crowd at the terminal and it took about 20-30 min in line for a person just to get through security.

We take off from Terminal 2. As you come down to the ground level from parking there is a large open seating area to the left of the escalator. Its by the luggage carousels. We'll all meet there at 5:45 a.m. Thursday June 17th. That's giving you an extra 15 minutes to sleep but it means you can't be late!

Boarding passes are printed based on a scan of our passports. Have your passport on you when you get to the airport! Remember an empty water bottle to fill once you're through security. There will be a charge for food, pillows & blankets on the flight to NY, it's expensive! Tuck some snacks in your carry on or have some cash to buy something at the airport. There is no charge for those items on the flight to Rome but they do charge for headphones. Most of you will have your set from your iPod/MP3 - no problem.

Now to cautionary tales of flying trauma - First was a young lady that left her passport sitting home & had to go back to get it. Do I need to say it again? Yep, don't forget or pack your passport! NEVER put anything in the pocket of the seat in front of you. One girl left her passport there but remembered in time & luckily the flight crew let her back on board to get it. Next was a young man who tucked his boarding pass in that pocket. As we hurried to disembark he forgot & left it there. We spent all our layover/connecting time trying to work things out. They wouldn't let him on the plane & wouldn't let me miss my flight, so he was left behind. Eventually he had to catch a later flight & pay $300 for the ticket change! Finally, pay attention at the airports. Flight times are based on local time not SLC time. Don't wander too far from the group or our gate during layovers. During the rush through the large terminals to make connections stay in a group. We almost lost a traveler in Frankfurt last trip because I was dealing with the above mentioned and no one was watching the back of the group. Smart boy asked for help and made it to the plane on time!