St. John's, Newfoundland & Labrador (Canada)

Checked out of my room at the Mid-Atlantic Lodge (Air Force Inns) at 0715L. We departed Lajes Air Base on time and made our way back towards North America. Stopped for fuel in St. John's, Newfoundland - very cold! I haven't been up here in a long time, but it seems like a better place than the west side of the island... I'm told this is the standard stop on the way across the Atlantic, so I hope to have another opportunity to visit. We then departed Canada, bound for Atlanta.  Our last leg was uneventful and, after completing all the necessary paperwork, I left NAS Atlanta for home. Great Detachment!

Vila Praia da Vitoria, Azores (Portugal)

Last day of the detachment... Checked out of my room at NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing very early. We departed Sicily earlier than usual (so I'm told) and had a quick turn in Rota, Spain. It all helped make it possible to arrive in Lajes early! Weather was much worse and the ride was pretty rough on final approach in the Azores (although Tim seemed unfazed). Once on the ground at Lajes Air Base, we checked into the Mid-Atlantic Lodge (Air Force Inns).  Meanwhile, Joe S. and Jamie set up transportation for dinner. We ended up eating at a great restaurant called O Pescadors tonight - the food was outstanding! I had some fish seared on a hot plate [Cataplanas]. Everyone in the group was happy and it was a great finish to our trip. We have tried to get in here before, but you need to arrive really early or he closes his doors (and the restaurant is full of people!).

Sigonella, Sicilia (Italy)

[Working all day... spent the night in the NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing]

Sigonella, Sicilia (Italy)

[flew all day with Tim - (destinations uncertain - Sicily to Naples to Olbia to Naples to Sicily?) - spent the night in the NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing]

Caltagirone, Sicilia (Italy)

[quick out & in mission to Souda Bay in the morning - we had about an hour on the ground and (Tim) took me over to get some souvlaki, a kind of gyro with lamb, onions and sour cream - very tasty! - found some good souvenirs - afterwards, we flew back to Sicily]  Later, some of the guys took to visit Caltagirone, a little town in the middle of Sicily. Some of the notable things you can see here involve the delicate and brightly painted ceramic pottery they make. Even the 143 stairs leading up to the top of a hill in town are covered with ceramic tiles - you can tell the town is very proud of their ceramics.  After another afternoon of fun, we returned to the base.  Spent the night at NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing.

Siracusa, Sicilia (Italy)

[no flights today - Euros at ATM (1225L) - lunch in Motta S. Anastasia at a pizzeria (finished at 1400L) - drove south on the Autostrada to Siracusa - visited an interesting museum - (ate dinner there ?) - spent the night at NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing]

Sigonella, Sicilia (Italy)

[flew all day with Tim - destinations uncertain (Sicily, Naples, Olbia, Rota, Sicily ?) - spent the night at NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing]

Patti, Sicilia (Italy)

[no flights today - picked up a disposable camera at the shopette - along with other members of the crew, drove to Patti (Caleca) for pottery "seconds" (1245L) - on the way back, we stopped in Misterbianco (Auchan) for wine (1800L) - spent the night at the NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing]

Akrotiri (Cyprus)

[flying with Tim - after taking off from NAS Sigonella this morning, we stopped at Souda Bay Air Base - I was able to pick up souvenirs there - we then flew from Crete to Cyprus (Akrotiri) - this was (like other things I've mentioned on this trip) the first time I'd ever been to this interesting place - we had great weather - I learned about flying with QFE - we were only on deck for a little while and then (flew back to Sicily) - spent the night in NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing]

Mount Etna, Sicilia (Italy)

No flights today, wo we tried to drive up the famous volcano (where Vulcan makes Jupiter's thunderbolts) today - but that was easier said than done because of the snow. We naively thought it would be an easy matter to get a small van up there with seven people. However, we soon determined that the roads were too slippery - around 5000 feet. By the time we had decided to turn around, even that was impossible. We all got out and rotated the car on the road so we could go back down. I guess we should have known that this would be too hard when we saw all the locals stopping to put their snow chains on their tires...  After this fun excursion, we returned to NAS Sigonella.  Spent the night in the Bachelor Housing.

Lentini, Sicilia (Italy)

[after spending the night at Naval Station Rota (Navy Gateway Inn), I got up early to do some shopping - after meeting the rest of the crew, we checked out of our hotel and returned to the aircraft - we then few (with Jamie) from Spain to Italy - after landing, I returned to my room at NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing - at 1700L, I got some Euros at an on-base ATM]  We (me and several members of my crew) went up to see the gold that is for sale in the ancient city of Lentini this evening. This was one of the earliest Greek settlements on the island. We stopped at a local winemaker on the way and got clear glass bottles of white and red wine straight from huge casks in a big warehouse - for only one Euro! [Later note: Nicky loved this wine more than the more expensive bottles I found later in the trip] While everyone else visited the gold sellers, I strolled around town. It soon got dark and we had dinner in an upstairs restaurant nearby. The menu included five courses: antipasto, salad, pasta, meat, desert. There was a lot of wine, too...  After a fun evening in Sicily, we returned to NAS Sigonella.  Interesting day!

Ramstein (Germany)

[mission with Jamie (Sicily, Germany, Spain, Sicily) - it was supposed to be a day trip - our flight from Sigonella to Ramstein was uneventful - however, we then ended up with a VERY long delay on the ground - everything looked very "snowy": - during the delay, I got a ride to buy some gifts for the girls (1305L) and beer (Fenster-Flasche) for the crew (1320L) - ate lunch at Taco Bell (1430L) - back at aircraft, I learned that nothing had been loaded and that we still had to wait a few more hours - got a second ride to the BX with Jamie and bought more souvenirs (1650L) - we finally got on our way to Rota just before dark - due to all the delays, Jamie got permission for an overnight in Rota - we arrived very late - checked into our room at Naval Station Rota (Navy Gateway Inn) and we later caught a cab to (Santa Maria) - had some good Cuban rum - later, ate at a restaurant and tried some liquor de hierbas - took cab "home" very late]

Napoli, Campania (Italy)

Had an mission to Naples today - we flew up from Sicily (with great weather) early this morning. Saw Salerno, Amalfi Coast, Capri and got a great view of Vesuvius. Spent an hour or so at the airport then flew back to Sicily. Later in the day (1730L), had some good gelato [in Motta - via Principe Amedeo ?].  Staying the night at NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing.

London, England (United Kingdom)

Flew mission (from Sicily) with Jamie. We landed at Stansted Airport, located on the outskirts of London.  We got a good view of the city when we were in the air. I had never been to London or the UK, and talking to the handler gave us all a feel for how fun it would be. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay...  On the way back to Italy, we saw Paris (pretty after dark). We stopped in Naples to drop off our DV and then continued on to Sicily.  We arrived "home" very late.  Staying the night at NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing.

Sigonella, Sicilia (Italy)

[Worked all day... In the afternoon (1500L), I went with a big group over to the shopping center and picked up groceries to last me through the trip. I was hoping to save some money, but when I got back to the room later, it became clear that the crews go out to eat every night...  Staying the night at NAS Sigonella Bachelor Housing.]

Rota, Andalucía (Spain)

Checked out of my room at the Mid-Atlantic Lodge VERY early - it was still dark when we got to the aircraft. Sun came up as we were getting ready to take off from Lajes Air Base. I was surprised to see very rocky terrain visible this morning; there was a BIG mountain was near the airfield (I didn't see that yesterday...). Our flight to Europe was smooth until we got stuffed (descent clearance issued very late) on the arrival to Rota.  Fortunately, Jamie helped me out... This was my first time on mainland Spain and it seems like a nice place - even in winter, beaches look very inviting... We had a good fuel turn and no problems on the way to Sicily.  I saw Gibralter and Ibiza on the way - Sardinia too. After landing in Sigonella, we got our check-in brief and then headed to the Bachelor Housing check-in. Along with other "firsts" today, I realized I hadn't been on this island since 1999.  This time I got a much better room! [Dinner in Motta ?]

Terceira, Azores (Portugal)

[EUCOM Detachment] Left Atlanta in the morning. Stopped through Halifax, Nova Scotia, on the way - very cold (snow was so high, there were blue flags sticking out of the ground along the runway and taxiways to identify paved surfaces)! Trip to the Azores OK ee landed at Lajes Air Base in the dark.  First time in Portugal - interesting experience.  I'd read some of the history in the hotel and it was quite amazing to realize that people stumbled across this place about 600 years ago... Terceira is rainy and windy - not cold, though.  Spent the night in the Mid-Atlantic Lodge (Air Force Inns).