After saving up for quite a long time, my wife and I returned to Rome in celebration of our tenth wedding anniversary (isn't the tenth anniversary pizza ? :>) We were married a few days before Christmas in 1999 and went to Rome on our honeymoon.
When we visited a couple of weeks ago, we brought along my 17 year old stepson and his 14 year old sister. And, their grandma also made the trip.
All in all, it was a wonderful trip. Grandma ran some necessary interference between excited adolescents and excited parents. It turned out to be a unique experience which we will remember together and draw on for the rest of our lives.
What clouded our trip somewhat was the failed bombing plot on Christmas Day (we left on December 26). When we landed in Amsterdam on the first leg of our journey, we all knew that the terrorist had left the very same airport about 24 hours before.
On the trip back to St. Cloud on New Year's Day, we flew out of Amsterdam under very strict security which included interviews by security personnel and body "pat-downs." A few minutes before boarding, the lead security officer went up to a young man who was sitting near me. He said, " Sir, could I talk to you again?" The officer directed him to a corner of the waiting area and had a quiet conversation for several minutes. I was kind of hoping that the young man would not be allowed on the plane--but he was.
I think it was Thomas Jefferson who said that the price of freedom is constant vigilance. Jefferson was right in the late 1700's and he is perhaps even more right today. It easily could have been me and my family on a doomed flight from Amsterdam to the United States. But, on the day I came back, the vigilance was in place and we arrived safely.
Have a safe and wonderful New Year whether you travel the world or just travel to the supermarket.
--RZ
