day ten - venice to home

I have no pictures to share with you from  this long day, but I do have some final thoughts.

We arrived in San Basilio early in the morning, our luggage having been taken away for unloading promptly at 6:30am.  We had a quick breakfast and then were in the first group off the ship at 8:00am..  After retrieving our luggage from inside the small port terminal, we were directed to a bus to take us to the airport - no water taxi this time.  A long causeway connects Venice to the mainland and we were traveling on an extremely uncomfortable bus - the seats were small, there was virtually no leg room and even the aisle down the center of the bus was narrow and difficult to navigate.  Additionally, the assistant from the transfer company talked to the driver nonstop.  We were lucky he could concentrate enough on his driving to make the turn into the airport.  We were definitely out of our travel cocoon and back in the real world.

The airport was hopping and the lines to check in for flights went on and on.  We retrieved our luggage and headed for the US Airways ticket counter.  Once checked in and through security, we had a wait of several hours for our 11:35am non-stop flight to Philadelphia.

The flight was uneventful (no maintenance issues this time) and we even arrived in Philadelphia an hour early.  That gave us the opportunity to try to get on an earlier flight to Rochester.  We cleared customs and went to the US Airways transfer desk.  After consulting a non-smiling clerk who took 30 minutes to get us on the earlier flight, we had to RUN through the airport, go through security again and then RUN again, take a bus and RUN again to get to the gate.  We were the last people to get on the plane, the doors closed behind us, and off we went to Rochester.  Our bags, on the other hand, stayed in Philadelphia.  When we landed in Rochester, we spoke to the baggage supervisor and were told the bags would be coming on our original flight, even tho they had been tagged for our new flight and had a "rush" tag placed on them by the non-smiling clerk.  Living an hour from the airport meant we would have to drive back the next day to retrieve them,...or, if we were lucky...they would be delivered to our home late that same night.  At 12:30am, the bags were placed on our front porch and Larry brought them in.  Our trip was officially complete.

A few thoughts stay with us:

• A lot of the success of traveling with a group depends on the Tour Director(s).  We met but didn't get to know Stephan Grosse, who led a third group of our fellow travelers, so we can't comment on his abilities.  But Steve Weiler and his wife, Melissa, who work as a team on their trips, were outstanding.  Steve (the lead Tour Director) was, by chance, our group leader and he really knew what he was doing.  He knew all the vendors, he knew the ship's crew, he knew the itinerary like the back of his hand and he knew how to keep track of all 3 groups without seeming to be doing that at all.  At the end of the trip, Tauck asks all its guests to complete a questionnaire on their experience and we gave high points to Steve.  Tauck should be very proud of his work ethic and how he presents the company to its customers.
• This itinerary is a fascinating one.  We loved Venice and we loved seeing Croatia and Montenegro, countries that in the past might not have been so open to having visitors from the US.  We were suprised at the arid, tropical climate and were pleased that the weather was so cooperative.  September is a great time to travel in that part of the world and the summer crowds have thinned out a bit.
• L'Austral is a lovely ship and the crew is very friendly and willing to go to any lengths to take care of you.  Our only complaint, and it was not ours alone, was that the food in the main dining room was often inedible.  The chef seemed to be trying to be "too gourmet" and served dishes that incorporated ingredients that didn't go together.  At one point, the 4 people at our table who were having a soup at dinner took one spoonful and couldn't eat the rest.
• Travel with Tauck is easy and while you're on the trip, everything seems "free."  Of course you've paid for that privilege already, but not having to tip the guides, the ship's crew, the Tour Directors, the hotel staff, etc. etc. makes for a very comfortable travel experience.  And having your luggage handled so efficiently by others is another blessing.  We also learned A LOT from  the guides and were exposed to cultural experiences that we would never have had if we were traveling on our own.
• As mentioned before, the downside of traveling with Tauck is that the schedule must go on, and there is little down time for those who want a break.  Traveling on a ship, where your transportation is also your hotel, makes it easier to say "no" to an event or to an afternoon of touring.  Traveling on a group bus trip, as we did in France, means you pretty much have to go with the group to each event and on each tour.
• Will we travel again with Tauck?  Most certainly, yes.  Will we still travel independently at times?  Most certainly, yes.  Did we meet nice people on this trip?  Most certainly, yes.  Did we come back exhausted but happy?  You bet!!