The day of traveling always ends up being the worst. All of the variables depend on each other and one delay can mess up everything. I was traveling with another student Katie which ended up being a good thing. The first flight was from Raleigh to Charlotte. We boarded the plane and were ready for takeoff when the pilot told us that we were delayed. We were forced to deplane and wait a hour before taking off. This caused us to miss our flight from Charlotte to Rome. Instead they rerouted us to London.Once in Heathrow we had to get on a plane to Rome.
In Rome we had to go through customs and baggage claim. We then walked as fast as possible to try and make our prearranged train. Luckily we were able to make the train and arrive in Florence.
Leaving the Rome terminal
View from the train
Once in Florence I unpacked and headed to the NCSU welcome dinner. The dinner was tasty and a great introduction to the trip. They served red wine and five different types of pasta. Salad and chicken followed the pasta. The dessert was a sampler tray of a strawberry item, chocolate cake, tiramisu, and cheesecake.