Italy, Italy, Italy.  Quite the adventure for the four of us.  Thankfully we all know how to laugh at ourselves.  Without that, this trip would have been way less enjoyable than it was.  So what were we laughing at (or in some cases, afterward)? A lot.  We missed our flight, were blacklisted, struggled with misrepresented AirBnB stairs, figured out you’re supposed to wear gloves when buying fruit, and more.  For our top bloopers and mishaps, keep reading! 

Flight missed.  The first major mishap on our trip that was mentioned in the Italy Part 1: Planning for Italy post.  But how did it really go down?  Soooo, I got an Apple Watch as an MBA graduation present.  Since I’ve been pretty obsessed with the Ping Your iPhone feature.  Anytime I misplace my phone (which happens a lot) I can tap a button and my phone makes a noise for me to find even when it’s on silent.  This is honestly (and sadly) what I use my Apple Watch for the most.

Back to the story.  We’re in the Paris airport, already running late because the JFK flight was delayed.  We make it through security and are approaching the European Union entry point when I decide to check my watch and see my phone is out of reach!  Oh crap, I think… I must’ve left it at security in the bin.  I literally run back to security and frantically search for my phone for 10 minutes and security says they haven’t come across anything.  Check my watch and it’s still not within distance.  I knew something was wrong then as I remembered putting it away at security.

For some reason, I open my backpack and viola! I had my phone the whole time.  SMH.  Because I wasn’t on cellular or WiFi my Apple Watch was unable to connect to the phone so no matter where it was it appeared to be MIA.  Regardless of the phone, we would’ve missed the flight, but hey, it’s a funny story to tell.

Cobblestones.  Day 1 in Rome we realized we underestimated the power of the cobblestone.  Living in Ohio with our flat roads, accessibility literally everywhere, we were in over our heads on using a wheelchair.  Prior to leaving we did some research and read that Italy was supposedly handicap friendly…LIES!  We eventually got used to navigating the streets, using taxis more often, but the beautiful cobblestone streets were the cause of much sweat and tears on this trip.

Kicked out of the Sistine Chapel.  Yeah, this happened.  Apparently, you are not allowed to take photos in the Sistine Chapel.  From a little research, it seems this rule was part of a now-expired rights agreement, but the Vatican still enforces it.  The man who has the job of catching anyone and kicking them out LOVES his job and performs it with gusto.  #careergoals

Why was I taking a photo in the Sistine Chapel?  Well, we walked in via an alternate entrance because the main was not handicap accessible and I honestly did not see the main sign saying do not take a photo.  So I was “caught”, shamed, and promptly kicked out.  Sigh.  My sister says she saw a sign in the corner (read corner, not front and center) of the Chapel and told my mom, but didn’t think to warn me.  I later snuck back in the front entrance and still experienced the art in the Chapel.

What’s even worse is I deleted the photo after also very quickly Google-ing consequences of taking a photo and read that people have been taken to a back room and requested to delete the photos they took. WHAT!  Vatican needs to chill.  Being the genius I am, my plan was to temporarily delete the photo in case I was approached and then restore.  However, I forgot one detail.  We visited the Sistine Chapel on July 6.  August 13 when I went to pull the photo, the 30 days had passed and my photo was deleted forever.  Now I only have the memory of being shamed by the Vatican photo police. 

Blacklisted.  Mama Mia!  Blacklisted from the EasyTaxi app.  While in Rome we used the EasyTaxi app to book taxis for door to door service.  In Rome you’re not really supposed to hail taxis, instead, going to designated Taxi stands.  This made life easier since we also had the wheelchair.  It’s also important to note that Rome taxis have set meter starting points depending on the time of day with peak time being 6.5 Euros.

How did we end up blacklisted?  We ordered a taxi with the app and when it arrived after about 15 minutes with the first time estimated being 3 minutes, the meter was at 16 Euros and the driver didn’t reset it.  So Mommy asked, why is the meter already at 16 Euros? He gave some BS excuse that when you order on the app, they start the meter from wherever they are.  He claimed he was delayed an extra 12 minutes because of traffic, but there was no traffic as we drove around the city center to our destination.  I told him no other taxi has started that high or has been so far delayed even with traffic.  Our driver became upset (I think because he was caught) and said we could get out and get another taxi, but we didn’t want to do that with my dad.  So we drove to the destination and he said we didn’t have to pay.  We were going to pay, of course, but he insisted we didn’t and immediately hopped out of the car to tell a waiter at the restaurant we were going to what happened.  Like what does this waiter have to do anything with you joyriding for 15 minutes? 

After dinner, we tried to book a taxi back to the apartment, but EVERY SINGLE ONE CANCELLED.  After maybe four cancellations, a taxi passed by us and we were able to hail it.  It wasn’t until we change the account name that we were able to book a taxi…THE NEXT DAY.  I’m convinced the driver told all the other drivers and I am now forever blacklisted from Italian taxi apps.

Keys.  We finally found our groove in Italy, had a pleasant last week, and were headed back home.  Prior to leaving our AirBnB, we made sure the trash, dirty towels, refrigerator cleared, and AirCon turned off.  One thing I didn’t think we’d forget were the keys.   The doors to our apartment locked automatically, requiring the key for reentry.  Because of this, we could leave the key on the front table and be good for check out. 

Well, things happen.  After my dad and I left, my mom and sister were left to bring the last couple bags.  I’d already left the keys on the table since we didn’t need them to exit.  Mommy, being the Southern Florida Belle she is, needed to apply lipstick at 4:30 in the morning.  You know, just in case.  In the process, she knocked over a plate on the table, which contained the keys.  The two of them quickly placed the contents of the plate back on the table and we all happily (so we thought) left for the airport. 

Midway through the flight from Rome to Paris, I wake up from a light snooze.  Mommy is again applying lipstick nudges me and shows me she has the keys in her makeup bag.  Y’all, the keys fell from the plate into her purse and into her makeup bag!  I sleepily looked at what she was holding, widened my eyes to make sure I wasn’t dreaming, and said OH SHIT.  Obviously, the only option was the mail them back, so we spent the rest of the flight chuckling and speculating how the sister would react.  Her reaction was priceless…we told her just as she was saying with everything that went wrong we still had a great trip.  Cue Mommy pulling out the keys and her face…wide eyes, mouth agape. 

A lot went down in Italy.  We had a great time and were to laugh at every situation that came our way.  I hope you laughed at our bloopers and mishaps as much as we have! 

-Me

Share your funniest travel blooper or mishap in the comments!