Ciao e buon, ciao

 Helicopter rides to work, 5-course dinners, fresh mountain air....it's the Italy entry

The Adventure

By far one of my favorite parts of this job is riding in a helicopter. The first I did was the episode we did in Whales, I was scared but I was also excited, and I have loved it ever since then. Which, since we were filming in mountains, on mountain tops, and in little valleys, the best ways in and out were to take the heli. We took off right from the back yard of the hotel and had some of the most beautiful views I've ever seen. Views that can be likened to Dr. Grant and Dr. Satler seeing the dinosaurs for the first time. Our pilot was an old pro and made sure we had roller coaster rides coming back home into the hotel. 

My second favorite part of this job is the amazing challenges we endure to make tv good. I felt like this location was kind of easy in comparison to some of the past challenges until we landed on the summit of Mt. Palermo. We hadn't recced this location so I had never been there, but instantly upon landing, we had to clip onto a rope with our Via Ferrata kit. The landing spot where we had to stand was a snow-covered, icy maybe meter wide. Then I found out that I had to go to the bottom of this small cliff to catch the talent as he rappelled down, this meant that we had to do travel down the mountain following icy, snow, rock covered switchbacks. Our mountain guide led the way and down we went, my producer freaking out the entire time about how was 'going to die on this mountain today.' I NAILED IT! It was dangerous, it was exhilarating, it was the most fun I had in Italy!

The Locations

Were breathtaking, photos can't describe just how amazing there are. The Dolomites are located in the Italian Alps in Northern Italy. 

These are the Dolomites....                                        

There was also an adorable rock valley that was surrounded by towering mountains on all sides, we had a 360 view of the beautiful Italian Alps. 

Pictures don't come close to capturing how truly amazing this location was. 

The sun was warm, but when the shadows came the temperature dropped about 10 degrees. 

One of the most awe-inspiring locations was actually nestled into the mountain, dating back to some time from 1915-1918 with oxygen tunnels. The WWI Bunker. This bunker was built into the mountain because the Italians were afraid the Austrians were going to come in and try to take over the Dolomites so they built this elaborate bunker into the mountain. The tunnels were extensive and the stairwells went on forever. The floors were covered in tiles that were still perfectly intact. 

All along the walls and around the doorways was a thin indent built-in to allow the flow of oxygen when the doors were closed during battle. It was one of the deadliest battles of WWI, and not because of wartime, but because of the cold. In fact, 10,000 men died in an avalanche, not to mention the many froze to death. 

This was a true step back in time. 

The bunker had its fair share of tiny stalactites hanging down from the ceilings and doorways. This photo ➡️ 

shows the calcium build up and tiny stalactites that were building up in a doorway. 

Our third location was your typical mountain forest. It may be typical but it was also beautiful. The way the moss grows on the rocks, the frost on the ground, the fresh scent of pine in the air. 

I took a hike on my last day in Italy, the path began across the street from the hotel and went back behind several ski resorts. I saw llama's and goats and the most beautiful river that flows down from the mountains. The water was crystal clear, cold, and refreshing. The path also had a great view of the little town, hotel, and of course the mountains.

The Travel

Let's talk about is the travel, everyone wants to know what was travel like in the time of Covid. Let me tell you, it was GREAT! As someone who used to fly approximately 5-10 times a year and hated being cramped and crammed up against other travelers, social distancing has made flying a spacious event. No one sat in the middle seat and oftentimes you had the whole row to yourself. The only annoying thing was the mask. On the entire time unless you were eating or drinking. Oh, and you get a your very own sanitary wipe as you enter the plane. 

There's another part of international travel that must be dealt with and that is customs. As I attempted to check-in at the Delta counter is CLE I was met with extreme apprehension from the Agent. He told me Americans couldn't go to Italy until Nov. 24, and I quickly replied, "I have special permission." I pulled out all my paperwork (in Italian) and handed it over. He proceeded to look over the documents asking questions and making notes, he was sure to tell me that another agent had recently been fired for letting someone fly internationally and that my suitcase has better not be over 50lbs because I was looking at $100. His demeanor was not friendly, to say the least. He left for the back room where he had to call Customs and was put on hold. He came back and made a snide comment about how my suitcase had better not be over 50lbs and then was summoned back to the phone. When he returned he simply said, "they had no idea what I was talking about." He proceeded to check me in, but he had to get a few more comments in first, warning me that when I got to Amsterdam they were going to be more strict than America about getting in...... When I went through customs in Amsterdam, he let me right on through :)

The Hotel

We stayed at The Family Rainer Hotel. The rooms were wonderful, our 5-course dinners were amazing. We had a veal dish one night that was so tender, juicy, and delicious that we gave the chef a round of applause, that really happened. Because of Covid, we each sat at our own individual table with the usual plexiglass partition between each table. It was interesting, to say the least, but became kind of fun, you could talk to so many people across the restaurant. We couldn't leave our hotel, so we couldn't explore the town around us, this was the one disappointment of the trip. But, the hotel had a great pool with a view of the Alps. The pool room was a wall of windows leaving you with a breathtaking view. There was also a spa, my co-works had the best time trying out all the pools and seeing how long they could take it in the cold pool. 3 minutes was the conclusion they came to. 

Oh, and the thing everyone is wondering about....yes there was a bidet! 

One more interesting fact, the region we stayed in, is actually a German Speaking region. There was more German around than Italian. 

Here is the tour of my room, with the infamous bidet....

Final Words

Unfortunately, this was my last hoorah on YVW, because we won't be getting picked up for another season. I thank everyone on that show for changing my life, my perspective, my goals, and most of all for all the adventures! 

More PHOTOS!