Retirement Begins—We’re Finally Off to Italy!

March 26, 2026

Today marks the beginning of our very first post-retirement adventure—something we’ve been counting down to ever since we booked the cruise more than a year ago.

What started as a simple 14-night Transatlantic crossing from Fort Lauderdale to Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy, somehow grew into an epic 35-day adventure. Along the way we’ll explore Sicily, Naples, and Rome, plus make a stop in Reykjavik, Iceland, before eventually heading home. Somehow “just a cruise” turned into an entire European vacation…and we’re perfectly okay with that!

If you’ve followed our travels before, you know we love sharing the journey as it happens. I’ll continue posting updates on Facebook, while Jeff will expand those stories here on the blog with extra commentary, photos, and videos. We haven’t added anything from this Italy trip yet, but if you’re new here, feel free to browse our Alaska and Scotland adventures while you’re waiting for new entries.

An Early Start

Our adventure officially began at 7:45 a.m., when our Uber was scheduled to pick us up for the drive to Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

Our flight to Fort Lauderdale wasn’t scheduled to leave until just after noon, but with the recent partial government shutdown creating uncertainty around TSA staffing, we decided arriving ridiculously early was far better than missing the flight altogether. Better to spend extra time in the airport than watch the plane take off without us!

The Packing Challenge

Packing for 35 days is no small task.

Thanks to the magic of packing cubes (seriously, they’re amazing), we managed to fit everything into:

• one large suitcase,
• one small suitcase,
• a garment bag,
• two backpacks,
• and my small backpack, which will double as my purse.

Now we just need to locate a washing machine somewhere in Italy…otherwise the people sitting near us on the flight home may not appreciate our authentic “well-traveled” aroma!

A New Country for Jeff

Several years ago I bought a scratch-off map of Europe to record all the places Jeff and I visit together. I’ve traveled to Europe before, but this will be Jeff’s first trip across the Atlantic.

If everything goes according to plan, we’ll have two new countries to scratch off when we return home. I can’t wait.

The Airport Surprise

Our Uber arrived right on time and dropped us off at Terminal 2 at 8:03 a.m.

Since we’d built in plenty of extra time, we expected to spend a while getting through security. Instead, everything went almost perfectly.

The regular TSA line was surprisingly short, and our TSA PreCheck line was even shorter. From stepping out of the Uber to checking our luggage and clearing security took less than 20 minutes.

So much for worrying!

That left us with several hours to do one of our favorite airport activities: people-watching.

Not everything went exactly according to plan, though. Our 12:15 flight was delayed until shortly after 1:00 p.m. Thankfully, since we don’t board the ship until tomorrow, the delay was more of an inconvenience than a problem.

Welcome to Fort Lauderdale

After the delay, boarding went smoothly, and we enjoyed an easy flight to Fort Lauderdale.

Our hotel room has a great view. Off to the left we can see Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, and in the distance, near the cluster of white high-rise buildings, is Port Everglades—the place where tomorrow’s adventure really begins.

From everything I’ve read, only two or three cruise ships are expected to be in port tomorrow, so embarkation should be much less hectic than usual. Jeff is taking care of our transportation to the terminal while I enjoy the view and soak in the fact that we’re finally here.

It’s a beautiful 81-degree, sunny Florida afternoon, and after more than a year of planning, waiting, and dreaming…

Our retirement adventure has officially begun.