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Administrative Assistant to the Chief
Il Volo, Our Stories

Jana and Lorna’s Adventure – Part III

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Part III: Just about at the 2.5/3 week point!

 

Wow, what an exciting week it has been! I posted on my friend, Giada Valenti’s FaceBook page and told her we were coming to Venice and what could she recommend for us to do or see, but we really only had the one day and evening and we had already planned the Murano/Burano tour. She responded back to go to her favorite restaurant, “where the Venetian’s eat,” she said! Giada is a lovely lady that Chris and I met through PBS last December. She is originally from Venice and now lives between Italy and the US, I think? She is a singer and has a wonderful voice. We got to meet her and she an absolute 1 group w giadasweetheart, talking to all the volunteers and doing selfies with us! She even answers her own FaceBook posts! We actually got to talk to her and asked her if she knew the guys – she did! She said they met up at some event last fall in the US. We said they’d be great together, but she said there were a lot of complications in order to collaborate together. However, she did tell me to say “hi to the guys” if we see them! She even said to ask for the owner of the restaurant; that he is a good friend. I’m not used to being a “name dropper” but what the heck!?

Well, the restaurant she suggested was literally on the island of Venice – across the canal actually from our hotel. Technically, we are staying in Mestre. She said the restaurant was just a 5 minute walk from the train station. So, on Saturday, I spent a good hour or so, trying to figure out where this restaurant was and if we could actually make it there? Brought it up on Google earth maps, etc. and tried to find it. From the way I looked at it, it seemed really far away. I was a bit disappointed to think we could not make it there after all.

Got to work on Monday and one of the guys in my group is Italian and speaks Italian. He came into my office and asked how things were going. I told him about Giada and this restaurant. He had never heard of her, but he helped me find the restaurant. I initially asked him if he was familiar with Venice and he said it was one of his favorite cities! 1 restaurantJackpot! Lol! So, he found it on the map and we realized it was just a 5-minute walk from the train station – however, it was the OTHER train station, not the one near our hotel. But he said you can take the train from one station to the next, for just a few euros or so, across the causeway. Of course – never thought there was a causeway – just like Florida! So, we’ve added that to our itinerary now! Just hope we can get a train back to our hotel.   I hear they eat late over there? He also suggested to make reservations, which I probably will. Our other tour probably won’t get back until about 6:30p or so, and then we literally go back from where we started – unless we just stay on the island, which is a possibility. The restaurant opens at 6:30p, maybe reservations around 7p?

I also heard from Lorna that she got her passport already! Yea! But, where was mine? Ok, got my birth certificate back on Monday, passport must be close behind. I checked online and you can track it. Pretty cool… so, popped in my info and it said it had processed and I should get it about June 8 – Wednesday. Ok, will check on Wednesday. I was volunteering with Chris on Tuesday at PBS, went right after work and I wasn’t going to check the mail at 12 midnight! Went to work and checked the mail when I got home. No passport!? What? Where was it? I was a little concerned….to say the least. Ok, went online again. This time I actually clicked on the tracking number. I didn’t bother before because it said it wasn’t going to be there until Wednesday. To my shock and horror, it said it had been delivered – Saturday! Yes, same day as Lorna’s. But it wasn’t in my mailbox and it was Wednesday! Oh, no, panic mode is quickly setting in. Oddly, when I checked my mail on Saturday, I hadn’t gotten any mail, but that was not unusual, as I don’t much except for junk mail and Amazon packages! Lol!

There was a paper with an 800 number on it that came with my birth certificate, so I called that number. Trying to remain calm, but it wasn’t easy. I did get hold of a live person, which was nice and the wait was not long at all. I explained the situation and asked what do I do now? Of course, by then, it was after 7pm and the post office was closed, so I couldn’t even call them. I was getting frantic. She said to first call the post office and if they can’t find it, I have to declare it lost or stolen and MAIL in this form. Like I’m really trusting the mail right now??? She’s like giving me the address to mail it to. I kept asking, is it online, I’ll get it from there. I was so upset. I was beginning to think this was a sign – a bad sign, that maybe I shouldn’t be going? I called Lorna and she came over for a little while and we shared a few glasses of the red Moscato – Barefoot Bubbly – good stuff! She asked me if I felt any better? Not really, now just tired and tipsy! She left and I played around a bit on the computer and went to bed about 12:30am.

Next morning…there is a distribution center called the Annex and there is the post office. The Annex opens first at 8:30a and the post office at 9:30a. So, promptly at 8:30a, I frantically started making phone calls. First call, got a nice lady on the phone who confirmed that, indeed, the passport was delivered. I confirmed that I didn’t get it! I begged her to look around to make sure it wasn’t tucked in a corner somewhere, or under a box.

It was just about 9:30a, so I called the post office. They did a quick look, and they said it wasn’t there either. The supervisor didn’t get in until after 11a, so call back then. The lady at the Annex said she’d call me back in about an hour, so at 10:30a, I called her back. Sorry, she said, hadn’t had time to look yet. Ok, waiting til 11a to call the post office back. Of course, I was “trying” to get some work done. My boss is so sweet, I think he took pity on me and didn’t ask me to do much at all….he knew I was pretty upset. Ok, getting close to lunchtime, I called the post office back. No luck, they were busy and they took my name to call me back. Suggested I call the Annex again and ask for the delivery supervisor. Called the Annex again and asked for the delivery supervisor. The lady I was speaking with was the manager – lol! And the supervisors were all in a meeting until 1p! Really?? This can’t be happening! Ok, I will stick with her. She promised to call me back. In the meantime, I called the post office back, it was shortly after 1p. This time when they answered, I think they knew my voice by then, she said, oh, you just missed the manager, he went out for lunch, for about 20 minutes. Ok, need to try and get a little work done. Did a few things to make the time pass, called back about 2p, figured that was plenty of time to eat. This time she says, oh, you just missed him again, he’s on his way back to the Annex! Again?? She said to call at precisely 2:35pm, which I did.

In the meantime, I was getting desperate! I often pray to St. Anthony, as I am always losing something! So, looked up St. Anthony again online, and what do my wondering eyes see, but a website where you can put your intentions on and someone looks at them, and prays and intercedes for you. What the heck, I had nothing to lose! I said, “Please find my passport, so I can visit Italy on June 29!” Jana, Detroit. I was literally close to tears at that point. I wanted to be sure and exhaust all of my options before I had to give up and claim that it was lost or stolen. Worst case, I would have to go downtown and have them expedite it. Oh, and while on the phone with the lady the night before from the passport office she says, “oh, we can’t guarantee you’ll get it in time to leave.” Oh yes, panic mode for sure!

It was 2:34p, so I called the Annex, yet again. Got a different supervisor/manager on the phone. I kind of recognized this guy as the one that found my dishes last fall (you may remember I was having terrible issues with my mail being forwarded after I moved?) Anyway, he took me a little more serious than the other lady and literally looked in spots for me while he had me on hold. He verified all that I already knew – it had been delivered, but I didn’t get it, it could be lost, it could be stolen. There were really only two options. One – he checked the GPS – yes, they GPS/track your packages! He said he could tell that it actually arrived at my apartment complex and they indeed delivered it. I was quickly losing hope, dreading the thought of having to send in the lost/stolen form. By the way, you can’t sue the post office – they are protected! I also asked if I had to send in the form if they would pay for it, as it was their fault. He agreed with me, however, he said no, they would not pay for overnight costs! He said, the last option was to call the carrier on the route, right then, and have them take a look to make sure it didn’t get delivered to someone else’s mailbox, etc. I had doubted it was stolen, as there is a bank of mailboxes all with locks. The only person that could have stolen it was the postal carrier! I did find out they had a sub working that day, too. Hmmm….a sub and they stole my passport! Great! By now, it was like close to 3p. I really had to get some work done. There was little I could do, but put my faith in St. Anthony and the manager at the Annex! He promised he would call me if he found any good news today and if not, he promised to call me the next day as a follow-up. Well…. All I could do now was wait and wait until 4:30p until it was time to leave. I tried my best to get a few things done….

Here is your cliffhanger…. Did they find my passport? Was it really stolen? Did I have to mail in the form? How much wine did I drink when I got home tonight? Did he call me back before I left? Ah…the mystery will remain…..for a little while, at least.

In the meantime….SOMEONE emailed me to tell me someone had a friend who was selling 2 tickets to Verona! Gee, maybe they were better than our “in the spirit” seats? No, don’t do it, you are already breaking your budget! Oh, but they might be really good seats?? And this is a one-time shot. We did this for California and didn’t regret a dime of it (ok, maybe a penny….?). Nope, not a penny, nickel, or dime! Oh, heck. I’m a goner! So, I contacted this person. Where are the tickets and how much? Second row and row 30! WHAT? 2nd row!? Did I read that right? Of course, they were 2 tickets and not together. Ok, how much? OMG, 400 euros! The other was 120 euros. Oh, wow, that’s a bit more than I was expecting….we chatted a bit more and told her I’d have to call my friend.

 As you all know me pretty well by now…you can only guess what I did? And that, amici miei is your 2nd cliffhanger!!

 

A presto Italia!

Concert Photos/Reviews, Gianluca, Ignazio, Il Volo, Our Stories, Piero

Jana & Lorna – Week 4!

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Ok, June 1 – just at the 4-week point!  Did a lot in the last week. My “non” Il Volo related weekend over the holiday weekend was quite busy, but I managed to research and make some decisions. I did take Bernard’s advice and looked into the links he had submitted in his comments. Ironically, I was already looking into Sienna and Chianti.

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The Palio horse race I believe, is not for me. However, I did book a day tour on July 2, and it goes near where the horse race is! So, we will see if anything happens to our tour. On the first day we arrive, I booked a “make your own pizza and gelato” tour in Tuscany. We travel by a mini-bus through the region at about 6p to this villa to make our own pizza and gelato and get a history on how wine is made in the Chianti region. Then we get to eat what we make! Lol! That is on June 30. Not sure how jet-lagged we will be, but I just remember that I couldn’t sleep the first night I was in Germany! The next day is the concert and I left that day pretty open for sight-seeing and museum/church hopping. Wanted to stay as close to town as possible and to the Santa Croce – as we will be so close. Hope to get sightings of the guys, etc. Maybe even be able to listen to the sound check? Of course, probably loud enough, could listen from our hotel!

 

I’m going to be sure to take my VIP passes from the concerts and from the Flight Crew Fan Faire – maybe I’ll get special access to somewhere? As I’d mentioned, July 2, I booked an all day tour into Sienna and Gimignano, and another city I cannot pronounce. It is a 10 hour tour, but we should be back no later than 8p or so, still plenty of time to get to bed and get up early the next morning. We are now spending a night in Venice!

 

Yes, July 3 is Venice day! We take the train from Florence, into Venice, arriving approximately 10:30a. I booked an afternoon tour to the Murano Glass factory and Burano – it’s about a 4 hour tour. Should get us back early evening for a nice dinner, and again, lots of time to get a good night’s sleep. The next morning, we again take the train to Verona, just about an hour train ride from Venice. We arrive by 10a or so and have the whole day to tour Verona. Again, I left the day open to whatever and wherever the moment takes us. I doubt we’ll be able to get too near the Arena di Verona before the concert though?

 

I watched the Verona concert again and was trying to figure out where our seats will be. Well, we will be really far back! We are in the “no cushion/no backrest” zone, but the 2nd row, which is pretty good, and they are assigned seats. We really weren’t paying too much attention when we booked our tickets for Verona, but we will be there in spirit and the guys will be about as big as our thumbnails, if we are lucky! Maybe even our little fingers? Lol!

 

On Monday, Lorna came over and we actually booked our day trips, train tickets, and reserved the car. I am getting a lot of good advice from people who have been there before, so that is nice. Yes, it is getting more real! Still a few decisions to make, but it’s coming along. I found a different train website and decided it would be cheaper to just get direct train tickets for each trip, instead of the Eurail pass. So, that is what I did, and they are first class tickets on the fast trains – they weren’t much more than the 2nd class.

 

The day after Verona, we will be taking the train again to Rome, where we pick up the rental car. We also still need to get our international driver’s licenses from AAA. One of the easier things on our list of things to do. Even though Lorna will be doing the driving, I think I will get one too, just in case….

 

I checked with Dani on the “bug” issue and yikes, there are mosquitoes there! I am going to be fresh, foreign blood for them. I’m a mosquito magnet and I purposely don’t go out at night, if I can help it to avoid them – now I will be outside for HOURS for 2 concerts! Any suggestions on bug spray or repellant? Should I take some with me, or try to buy it there? I was also just reading today that the Zika virus is in Italy! Hope the guys are protected!

 

And gasoline? We really can’t complain about our gas prices here! Dani was saying they are about 1.60 euros a liter! That’s like what, almost $7.00 a gallon or so (3.78 liters to 1 gallon)? Good thing we are renting a very small economy car!

 

Also, had a little anxiety attack on Sunday. As I was creating our itinerary, for some reason, I wanted to double check our seat assignments. So, I signed in on Delta to check our seats. Uh oh, we weren’t in Kansas anymore, or the comfort class either, on our return flight home from Rome! We were in row 18 and that was preferred seating, but didn’t say comfort class. We paid extra for the upgrades, so I had to change our seats back to rows 12/13. We are at least behind each other. Maybe we can switch seats with someone at check-in? Yes, getting chest pains there. I had to tell myself “breathe, Jana, breathe…” I had a few glasses of wine and some aspirin and felt a lot better an hour later! I’m going to check again later, just to make sure we still have those seats!!

 

Also found another Flight Crew member who will be joining us for both concerts. She is from New Orleans. She was also able to book a few of the same hotels we are in for Florence, Venice, and Verona. She has been there before, so it will be nice to hang with someone for a little while to show us around town!

 

Since many of you responded that you don’t want me to limit my ramblings here, I will continue to give you my play-by-play of my planning – all the details! I just hope I don’t pass my panic attacks on to you!

 

That just about sums it up for now – still many things to do, like what to pack, we can check a bag for free, so do I take the 2nd bag? Not used to having to claim luggage… lol! The rest of our trip is fairly open after we get to Silvi, except for an outing to the beach.

1 - italia frame

Ok, what is next on my agenda? I have a few things up my sleeve… have to leave you with a little cliffhanger? Lol!  And, what do we have here?  Another empty frame?  lol!

Oh, one more thing… I bought a 128GB micro SD card disk for my phone for extra room for pictures and videos – you think that’s enough?  It was the largest my phone would hold! lol!  Geez, I remember the old days when my PC was upgraded at work and it had a whole 1GB of space on it!

Ciao – Jana!

General news, Il Volo, Site News

Jana and Lorna’s Extraordinary Adventure!

49 Comments

To my fellow flight crew members and readers, the opportunity 1. santa croceof a lifetime has bestowed itself upon me, and in the words of Ignazio’s tattoo – “Carpe Diem!”

 

No, I’m not the first to go to Italy. We all know Lisa Joy attended many concerts last year! And we can’t forget the Granny Groupies, either!

However, Marie is graciously letting me do a little countdown here on the site – so I can take you all with me – before, during, and after – at least as virtually as possible! And, in the words of Piero – “I hope I do not disappoint!”

 

Ok, here goes….

First, a little intro on how I got to this point….just about 7 weeks ago, the tickets for their Florence concert went on sale for presale to those that had the Il Volo membership. My new, dear friend, and Italian pen pal, Dani, sent me the link to the ticket site. On a really big whim, I bought two tickets. Third row, kind of in the middle, on the right of the stage. I really did not think I would be able to go, but had fun toying with the idea and figured I could easily sell the tickets. A few days later, I was explaining to Lorna my dilemma and she said, “I’ll go with you!” “Really??,” I said. Oh, OMG! I think I’m going to Italy! I called several people so they could try and talk me out of it, but no one would? (some friends, they are – lol!) It was quite a big expense, but thanks to a really, really, good friend; I was able to go!

 

Approximately, the 6-week point: I quickly went online to check out the flights – yikes! I had no idea they cost that much! Should we go direct to Rome, and then to Florence? Detroit to Florence, via Amsterdam? Ok, gotta book the hotels – made sure I booked ones that had no penalties for changes or cancellations and didn’t need a credit card deposit. Ok, got those! Whew! Checked the flights again and decided to fly directly into Florence, via Amsterdam. Was actually a little cheaper than flying directly into Rome from Detroit. The cheapest flights I really could find were on Delta, which was a good thing, because that is how I wanted to fly! Ok, checking on the seats – wow, not many left in the comfort class (Delta upgrade – free alcohol! Lol!). I was going to have Lorna come over on Friday, but felt the seats would go quickly, so called her up last Tuesday, and she came over so we could book our flights.

In the meantime, I was instant messaging again with Dani, and we were lamenting on how they kept saying the Verona concert was sold out, and yet we knew the tickets had been bought up by 3rd party vendors. Well, again, Dani sent me a few links to websites for possible tickets.

When Lorna arrived, I asked her, “How crazy are you?” (ok, we won’t answer that one – lol!) But I told her of the possible opportunity to go to the Verona concert if we could get tickets from one of these sites? I told her it might be a gamble and we might lose our money and not get the tickets. She said she was in! After some trial and error, and the banks trying to protect us, we finally managed to get a few tickets to Verona! We decided on a tiered/balcony seat – figuring we could see better, instead of staring through all the heads on the main floor area. Our tickets are sort of in the middle, in the front balcony area, on the right. Besides, we will have just seen them a few nights ago from the 3rd row!

After ordering our tickets, we quickly found a hotel in Verona – just about a mile and walking distance to the Arena di Verona! Our hotel for Florence is also just down the block from the Piazza Santa Croce – where the guys will be performing. Ok, on to the plane tickets! After some more technical difficulties, and a little bit of operator error, we finally got our seats booked on the flights. I am really glad we booked when we did, as there were only 3 seats left on the flight back to Detroit from Rome in the comfort class section! (also, I looked today, just for fun and our tickets have already gone up about $200!) We had also decided to take the train from Verona, to Rome, and then rent a car to go to Silvi, to meet up with Dani. We will stay in a quaint hotel for 2 nights nearby, that is connected to a winery (and overlooks the Adriatic Sea!) – what fun that will be! She also offered to guide us to Rosetto and Montepagano. Hmm… those cities sound really familiar? Oh, right – Gianluca! Lol! We will then drive back to Rome, stay the night in Rome, and fly out of Rome, back to Detroit. Yes, found our hotel in Rome, also. Unfortunately, I doubt we’ll run into any of them, as they will likely be on their way back to Mexico July 7 & 8. We might cross paths with them on the train from Verona to Rome – depending if Gian goes back home for a day before they take off?

 

So, this is just about all we have planned so far. The only other thing I want to make sure I do is take a side trip to Venice, during one of the days we are in Florence, but other than that, everything else is open for the days in Florence. Someone I work with suggested taking a cooking class, which sounded like fun – his wife did that when they went.

 

So, this is just about the 5-week point now: last Friday, we sent off to get our passports – expedited, of course. We should have those in about 2-3 weeks, they said. So, basically, we are leaving Detroit on June 29, and returning on July 8. I’ll have Saturday and Sunday to recover before having to return to work.

 

I promise the next posts will be much shorter! Really! Now, is there anyone else going to one or both concerts, from the USA? I know of two others, but she did not know of anyone else. We should try to make a point to at least meet up at some mutually convenient location!

 

Also, I’d love to hear any suggestions for other side trips from Florence from anyone who has been there or even lives there, or near there! We will have at least a half day when we arrive – shortly after 11am, and most of the day on Friday, as the concert does not start until after 9p. Then all day Saturday or Sunday, leaving one of those days for Venice. Still debating on whether to get a Eurail pass and which kind to get. Still many decisions to make!

 

Come along with me – I hope you enjoy the ride!

p.s. the Verona tickets arrived today!! It is real. We are going!

1. Verona tickets

Concert Photos/Reviews, Gianluca, Ignazio, Il Volo, Our Stories, Piero

Fantasies and Dreams do Come True – Finale Part III

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California Dreamin’…. Part III

We managed to get up and out at our scheduled time of shortly after 8a. We took Uber to Enterprise to pick up the car and we lovingly threw Sharon in the back with a pillow! Lol! We left shortly after 9a and we were on our way. Had a Nissan Altima – nice car! Drove like a crazy person – not my usual driving style, but it was drive fast, or get left behind! After a few hours, Sharon woke up and said “when’s lunch?” We stopped briefly for lunch at Denny’s in Barstow for about an hour and were on our way again. We reached Sharon’s hotel, The Roosevelt, shortly after 3p. We left there and made it to our hotel around the corner about 20 minutes later. The traffic was just awful in the city there and took us 10 – 15 minutes to just get around the corner. We looked and felt like we’d been travelling all day, so we quickly got ready. We were going to take Uber to the Dolby as we thought there was just the one entrance from the front. Our very nice hotel concierge asked us where we were going and we told him.1 la lobby He said you can walk, we asked is it far? He said, just down the street and through the parking garage ramp! Ok, cancelled Uber and literally walked there in like less than 5 minutes. The hotel was practically right behind the Dolby Theatre complex! I could not have planned that one any better!!

 

Ah, some bittersweet moments… our last concert, last meet/greet. We found the VIP table and they let us buy the mugs there? Go figure?! What was I going to say this time? Our seats were very good, in row J, thanks to a “friend” of Chris’s! Orchestra section on the left. Not super close, but we could still see pretty well. As most know by now, the concert started just like any other….the usual Godfather routine, the other jokes….during “Ciao, Ciao…” Ignazio gave a good portion of the audience a scare! They brought this little girl up on stage with Piero and Gian, and the next thing we knew, Igna was picking this girl up, and up, and over his head, and she landed on the back of his shoulders! I swear, half of the audience just sucked in their breath, remembering what happened in Tampa! So, I guess he has no fear of picking up children anymore and orch LAhis shoulder must be just fine? Good thing she was only 5 years old! Talk about a thrill ride for her! Hope she wasn’t afraid of heights, that was about 7 feet in the air she went! Then Ignazio comes out and sits down at the piano. I thought he was going to sing his Pino Daniele medley and was thrilled, but then he says he’s going to sing a song that he wrote! What? OMG! Better record this one! As we all know now, it was “Hablando de ti” or “Talking about you.” Even though it was in Spanish, it was beautiful, as anything that comes from Ignazio is the most beautiful sound ever! Of course it was quickly translated for us non-Spanish persons the next morning and the words, oh, the words! I was starting to tear up, 1 igna hablajust reading them! To me, it was an apology, a proposal, and wedding vows, all wrapped up into one song. Prior to that, Gian and Igna did their “routine” intro to Unchained Melody. This time Gian asked Igna if he was in love? Igna replied, “so much in love…” Gian said, “me, too!” I swear you could hear half the audience just go “aw……” We later found out that Alessandra was in the audience (and meet/greet) so that explains a lot! 🙂  (We think that is who he was texting through the entire Vegas mg/!)   After we were already in awe after Ignazio sang his own song, Gian comes out to do his solo. Again, we were expecting Anime Core, but then he starts speaking and talking about some song that Paul Simon wrote and Aretha Franklin and Elvis sang? Huh? By the time he said “Bridge….” I was quickly fumbling for my camera and missed the first few words! Yes, it was as truly awesome as everyone is saying it was, so emotional and he really did sound like Elvis in many parts! Chris and I actually “bored” the Uber driver on the way back from the airport on Sunday with his rendition. Lol! He liked it though! Remember Ignazio wanted to lose 10 pounds? I think he must have met his goal, as he kept pulling up his pants during the concert! After being stunned twice, there were no more surprises and again, it was over all too quickly, to the tunes of O Sole Mio, Surrender, and Grande Amore! Remember I said I kept running into Gaetano? At one point, Chris turned around and realized he was sitting in the row behind us, on the aisle seat for a little while! No, didn’t wave this time – lol!

 

Ok, the last meet/greet. This was it…our Il Volo adventure was quickly coming to an end…. We waited a bit, shuffled some more, then went out in to the main lobby area. I have to say, this was one of the most well-organized meet and greets, although I’ve only been to 3…. Lol! Although firm, I felt most of the personnel were fairly nice. Us fans were pretty used to the drill by now anyway….hurry up and wait…at least the guys were in a nice room this time with plenty of light and there was plenty of room. They led people about 5 at a time into the room and when you got there, there were about 10 persons ahead of you. Sharon wanted me to tape her, so I did, as I was a few persons behind her and it worked out well that way. Ok, my time, this was it. I worked hard on my scarf and wanted to make sure the guys actually took notice of it. So, I guess, that was my main priority. Well, it was my turn and I went up there, they were kind of standing together, but Gian and Piero 1a scarfseemed otherwise pre-occupied… anyway, I walked up, held out my scarf and Igna was there and I said, “I wanted to be sure you saw my scarf” and held it out so they could see their wing and their name on the other side, I told them I made it and it was Swarovski crystals. Again, Igna is the one who surprised me… he said, “Oh, Gianlu, look…” (hey, at least it was in English this time!) Gian looked, and then Piero. Well, I 1 scarfguess I was overstaying my welcome too long because before I knew it, it was turn around take a picture again! Darn, no hugs ancora! I quickly mumbled that they were great and it was snap, me guys los angyou are done! As before, I gave Ignazio a squeeze around his waist and then gave him an extra little pat/rub on his back – his shirt was so soft…. And that was that! It was over and they ushered me out the door!

Sharon was lucky enough to realize that Alessandra was there and was able to speak with her a little bit. I think she may have left by the time I got up there, or I just didn’t notice her. Again, I saw Gaetano on the way out, as he was speaking with a few of the band members outside the lobby area of the theatre. I did not bother him this time either. It was late and we wanted to get back to the hotel. We had a quick snack and went to bed.

The next morning, we made it to Santa Monica Pier/Beach. It was beautiful and Chris got to santa monica beach wavestick her toes into the Pacific Ocean for the first time! It was the 2nd time for me! We made our way back to the car and we were on our way. Yes, getting out of the actual LA area was positively awful, but actually worse coming into the city, like a moving parking lot in many spots! We were so glad to make it back to Vegas, just before it got dark. My trusty GPS, and human navigator, Chris, got us safely back to Enterprise! Of course, I kept having this vibe that the guys were around us somewhere…sure enough, we got back to town and I saw on Instagram that the guys, were indeed, at Santa Monica Pier, riding bikes! Unfortunately, we had left quite a long time before they got there and they were further up on the pier than we were; my sleuthing senses were working overtime, that is for sure!

We spent some time with Marie for a few hours when we got back and then it was off to bed! Our fantasy dream weekend was quickly coming to an end and we had our flight to catch the next afternoon.

The end of our journey has come!  I hope you enjoyed joining me in reminiscing my Vegas/Hollywood adventure!  We made it safely back to Detroit with treasured memories to keep us warm, for at least a little while – until the next time…

P.S.  I just wanted to add that I am so sorry I was not able to meet more of the Flight Crew members!  It was a pleasure meeting those that I did meet – everyone is so nice!  I’m so glad I had a chance to finally meet Kelly.  She helped me out so much in the beginning when I ran into a few snags here and there on the site!  Thanks!

Concert Photos/Reviews, Gianluca, Ignazio, Il Volo, Our Stories, Piero

Fantasies and Dreams do Come True! Part II

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Part II – Vegas Concert!

 

Before they came out, the Pearl manager came out on stage and said he had heard their sound check and that we were in for something special and emotional. The orchestra finally came out and started to play. Just love the Grande Amore intro….then, the opening chords of Volare and there was Gianluca! Ah, there were our guys again, just 20 feet away!orch las veg Wondered if they recognized any of the faces from the Fan Faire in the front row? (later on, we find that they did, indeed, recognize several of the front row persons!) They sang one gorgeous song after the next. It was nice for me, that I was able to hear them sing some of the Spanish songs, so at least I got to hear ONE of my favorite songs (twice, even) “Si me falta tu Mirada…” The persons in the front row had been to many concerts and I thought for sure someone was going to steal the punch line from some of their jokes! At one point, where Gianluca is making a pretense of trying to sit on the stage because his pants are too tight, I think someone said “but your pants are too tight…” Yes, Gianluca heard them and said “yes, but my pants are too tight….” And then started to talk to those in the front row saying “all of you in the front row here….” And swept his arm across them! It’s actually quite ironic because I don’t think they wear their pants too tight at all…? They almost look rather loose, and funny, no one seems to wear a belt? Don’t know if it was me, but I swear they made every song just a little different for us – a note or phrase here and there. It was special. Although some are not so enchanted with Ignazio’s Godfather routine, he is wonderful at adlibbing in the moment! (also, Gianluca gave Igna REALLY big pieces of bread to put in his mouth – he really looked like he had chipmunk cheeks!”)  About halfway through the Godfather, some girl in the front row decided she was hungry, so she attempted to get up and leave, probably figuring she wouldn’t miss much since they weren’t singing. Well, she was right in line with Ignazio’s view and he saw her. He says, in his Sicilian Godfather accent…”where, are you going?” She said she was hungry. He says, “Come back here…” She did as he said and I think she was pretty mortified by then! They talk some more and he went on with his “show.” Someone said she did get up later and come back with some water and chips! Here is the link, I hope it works… Godfather Ignazio Las Vegas igna pieroEarlier in the show, they sit on the stage, but Ignazio runs off for a moment. Piero asks where he is going. Someone gave him a cup. Ignazio puts his hand on his tummy and says he does not feel good, he ate too much. Must have been some Alka Seltzer or something? Piero smells it and makes a face. Ignazio smells it, makes a face, and drinks it! He made a few more funny faces and finishes it off!  Then he sang right after – not sure how he did that, but his voice was fine!   Another time, they brought up a little girl and everyone got a kiss from her except Ignazio. They went to sit on the stage again to sing and when Ignazio sat down he was kind of gesturing with Piero about not getting a kiss from the little girl, so Piero leans over and kisses him on the cheek! Ignazio is so funny, he quickly “wipes” the kiss off his face, then goes over to the water bottle and splashes water on his face! Then comes back and sits down. Piero says – you have water in your hair! Lol!

 

There was no extra conductor this time and Giampiero conducted from the piano. All too igna tonightsoon, they sang O Solo Mio, Surrender, and Grand Amore! At least the audience was a little more active this time. I think we stood after almost every song, not just their solos or duets, which were magnificent, as always. Then it was meet and greet time!

 

We went back out to the main lobby area and we watched as they set up the backdrop for the pictures. It was nearly 10:45p or so before I think they finally came out. I had been standing all that time and my feet were beginning to hurt! It was in a really open area, although a little on the dark side. Was kind of nice, as we could watch everyone else go up there before we even got in line. I think they let all the PBS persons go through first, then the rest of us got in line. I was so tired by the time I got to the guys, but I think with all this waiting and fatigue, any nervousness I had was long gone! My plan was to hug them all this time – of course, and give the notes to Gianluca and Ignazio. So much for plans! They were standing, left to right, Gian, Piero, Igna. Must be the standard pose… I quickly went to Gianluca and I did give him a hug and gave him my note, I then went to Piero – shook his hand again and thanked him for being so nice to my dad in Detroit. He smiled, even though I’m sure he did not remember. I gave Ignazio my note and I think told him to read it later, and told him Tonight was wonderful. He did say, in his ever so soft and sweet voice, “thank you so much!”   I find it comical that these guys have these powerhouse voices that could move mountains and their regular speaking voices are soft as silk? (I was able to record the song “Tonight!” this time, so I was happy!) Then again, it was hurry up take the picture. No, no hug for Piero or Ignazio!  I don’t even remember shaking Ignazio’s hand that time? I do remember, however, turning around and saying, “ok, let’s make this quick!” But my arm was firmly around Ignazio’s waist! I didn’t get a hug from him, but he got one from me! me guys VegasSmile, and it was over! The guys literally had to get on the bus as soon as it was over to head to LA. I believe Sharon was the last person and she was back in our room about 12:30a or so. She told us Gaetano was running for the bus! Oh, saw Papa Barone again, on our way up to our room after the meet and greet. He was waiting at the other elevator tower that went to the pent houses… lol! I said “Ciao” to him again and “great night!” He just kind of looked at me and nodded… I doubt he recognized me from earlier in the day! Also, Ignazio seemed to be texting the whole time he was at the meet and greet – wonder who he was texting with?

 

I gave up and took off my shoes and back to the room we went. Chris and I were too charged to go to bed, so we went down for a drink and some cake.  By midnight, all they had left was red velvet with the cream cheese frosting – oh, it was yummy, along with my white Russian!  We saw the “group” in the 24/7 Café at a large table. I teased Jeannette, as she said she was too tired earlier and there she was! Lol! I just said hello and went back to our table. We went back to our room and fell into bed about 1am, after we quickly packed – we had another big day ahead of us, as we were heading for LA – the third, and last, of our concerts!

Part III – California Dreamin…