They say travel with someone and you will find out who they are and see the good, the bad and the ugly. Now, travelling this summer may not be for everyone and requires thorough preparations, research and a healthy bank account but if you are at the start of your relationship, not too sure where it is going, you haven’t been away yet, at the crossroads of whats next and don’t want to waste your time, the extra challenges we have to go through may open up your eyes on how they act and react in difficult, unexpected, out of your control situations.
It is Friday 18th of June, early hours of the morning after not too many hours sleep I was full of energy, running around the house packing the last bits of clothing and make up. I always get excited before travelling, like a little girl would do, my inner child definitely comes out and I just love, love, love travelling. I guess most people do but for me it is crucial and lifts up my spirit, and sort of gives me a reset on return.
This time our 5 nights away is even a bigger reason to get excited and look forward to as we are going to Italy for our wedding preparations (menu tasting, seeing florist, checking the venue, hair and make up trial). All of this within 4 days and my birthday.
It is 7am, we are on the way to the station, the light rain hitting our faces, the smell of freshness and the quietness of early morning has put even a bigger smile on my face. I have to mention that the day before Lufthansa airlines had cancelled our flights (we had flights with a stop in Germany after our direct flight to Catania were cancelled by EasyJet couple of weeks ago) with less than 24 hours notice (apparently there was a change in German legislation, where to even transit via Germany you need to be a German national) despite being unable to find this information online. Anyway, after “I can’t believe this is happening”, we pick ourselves up and book another flight via Malta.
9am Heathrow Airport, still happy and excited, we are approaching the check in desk. The friendly AirMalta member of staff greats us with a smile and asks if we have our tests, which we show. A nice lady informs us that Antigen test (accepted by Italy) is not accepted by Malta even if you transit. You have to have a PCR test which takes at least 24 hours and we would be unable to fly with them today. Our happiness has quickly turned into stress. We try to negotiate and explain, but understand rules are rules and there is there nothing we can do. The thought of leaving Heathrow to go back home is unacceptable, we refuse to give up and have to get to Italy today.
Anxiously, I check Skyscanner for new flights from Heathrow and luckily there is with BA to Rome and then AlItalia to Catania the next day. I am quite relieved and happy. I love Rome, having been there twice before, once with my mum, once on my own and really wanted to one day be there with my fiancé. I am thinking this is a silver lining and that one of my little dreams is coming true!
Our one night stay in Rome is unexpected, romantic and smooth. We are quite exhausted after a long day but go for a nice walk to see the Trevi Fountain and having my favourite Italian cuisine makes me grateful and appreciative of such turnarounds.
The next morning, in 33c heat in Rome, we are wandering around not so busy streets looking for a place to have Brunch where even in a touristic location, I have the most delicious pasta and they have a gluten free pizza which my fiancé says is so tasty!
3pm we are in a taxi back to the airport, flight to Catania is nice and easy, then a Taxi ride to Taormina – our final destination at last! All the wedding preparations went well and we have managed to fit everything in, including a birthday on the beach and a nice dinner in the evening.
June 23rd, 8am, checking out from Taormina after full on but at least productive days, we are in a taxi on the way to Catania Airport. Pleased with ourselves and having our negative tests ready (done at a British Pharmacy), we are thinking nothing can go wrong and we will be back to the UK soon.
Little did we foresee that at the boarding gates, we were to be told “you cannot get on this flight because the test results are in Italian”.
At that point we are frustrated, in disbelief and don’t know whether to laugh or cry… Our flights are changed to the next day and we are having to find accommodation and a drive through testing centre near the airport, the taxi taking us there with a 30 minute wait for the results has made it a fair charge.
Arriving to the B&B destination where we have 2 hours to wait until we can check in. The streets of Catania look rough, hardly anyone around and local people are looking at us as if we were from another planet in a spooky, making us feel unsafe way (although that may be just how we perceive it). The heat is unbearable so we find a nice place to eat and have lunch (and drink), deciding we won’t move from our place in the evening as we were fully and utterly exhausted. Luckily the flat we stayed in was super nice, clean, modern and for a reasonable price it was a great find.
On the way back to the UK we talk through our experience, laughing at what we had been through and just how much we complemented each other in difficult situations in order to stay calm, take action and not lose the plot. We have found a good balance and made the best out of a bad situation. And even though we have been living together for over a year, we have learnt more, seen different sides of each other and it had brought us even closer together.
Travelling rules are a lot tougher this year compared to 2020 but don’t stop yourself from moving forward, exploring the world (especially the “Green” list countries), and of course learning and discovering more about one another! Just make sure you do your own research on what each country’s legislation and restrictions on travel are .
I know the government’s advice is not to travel but be brave to make your own decisions and choices. My fiancé and I have been through a lot during coronavirus pandemic and with everything thrown at us we are still here and I know I’ve made the right choice. And in the words of my fiancé “If you and your partner can get through this many difficulties without killing each other, then you know you’ve got a good one!” The person you are with may be your ideal partner or may not be, the only way to find out and to save everyone’s precious time is to take action.
Happy travelling!
HEAD & HEART MATTERS 