Buongiorno! As I mentioned in my previous post, I moved. And it’s a big move.

Yep, that’s right. I moved again.

About a week ago I landed in Naples, Italy. (Napoli, if speaking Italian.)

Happily, unlike my last international move, this time it’s not covid. So the flight, which was also shorter than my last move’s flight, was not as painful. I also got lucky on the first leg of the flight (DC to Munich), it was not full and there was an empty seat beside me.

Bonus, there’s no quarantine period this time either. Huzzah!

This time, I traveled with my kitten Jasper. Before I left, I had so many people ask me if I was going to bring him with me. The answer is duh, of course. I wouldn’t get a pet just to turn around and re-home him.

My pets go where I go. My beloved Dexter (who cross rainbow bridge in 2020) moved cross-country with me 3 times. Jasper got to do an international move.

I will note here that there are a few hoops to jump through to bring a pet overseas. Each country has different requirements, so if you do move or even just travel with a pet, definitely check out what the various country or countries require. For U.S. folks, I recommend starting with the U.S. State Department‘s page about pets and international travel.

Jasper is small enough that he could go on the plane with me. This required a carrier that could fit underneath the seat and the EU requires that the pet has to be able to move around at least some in the carrier. Also note that different airlines have different requirements. So definitely check with that out.

My long flight was on United. Then I changed planes in Munich to Lufthansa. While United did not have a weight limitation only a carrier size limitation, Lufthansa had a weight limitation. In order to pre-book Jasper on the Lufthansa flight, I had to tell Lufthansa the combined weight of Jasper + his carrier. But I did have to check in at the “Special Assistance” United counter, where Jasper did get a bag tag (the bright yellow tag in the photo).

I also learned from United that restrictions are also based on the type of plane. I was on a Boeing 777-200 for the United flight and was only allowed to get a coach seat. No upgrades for pet parents on the triple 7. And don’t think I didn’t provide some constructive feedback to United about that since I had plenty of points to upgrade but got stuck in economy.

But Jasper did great. We spent most of our pre-flight time in United’s lounge because it’s quiet. Once we were onboard, he only cried once about half-way through. Then he settled down again. When we stopped in Munich, I went to the family restroom and let him out of his carrier for a bit to stretch his legs. (Huge tanks to my friend P for that tip!)

Despite the hoops we had to jump through to get the International Health Certificate, not one person looked at it. Of course, if I hadn’t gotten it, someone would have asked for it. And it is required, so better to have it than not. But both at Dulles and in Munich, they were more concerned about scanning his carrier than about him and his paperwork.

So we made it to Napoli with no problems.

Once again, I’m in temporary lodging. First, I don’t yet have a car. Hopefully, that will be remedied by this weekend. Although, driving in Italy is quite a bit different from Japan. While the challenge in Japan was driving on the opposite side of the road with the windshield wipers and turn signal sticks also switched, the Japanese do follow the rules of the road. Here in Italy, they drive on the same side as in the United States, but the challenge is that road rules are more like nice suggestions than actual rules.

Second, my furniture and household goods will likely not get here until the end of April. But once I have a car, I plan to move out of the Navy Lodge (where the mattress and pillows are about as comfortable as a concrete floor) to an Air BnB where I can have some space and an actual kitchen. Luckily, Italians love pets, so having Jasper won’t be a problem.

Like last time, I did mail myself a couple of boxes of books and a few mini puzzles. Thank goodness for USPS flat rate boxes! Because no one wants to be without their books for 2 months. At least I don’t. Books are essential right after clean air, clean water, and a comfortable bed. Hopefully I mailed myself enough to last until the rest of my books arrive.

Until then, I’ve already dived into work. Saturday, I did take a day bus trip to Sorrento. Sorrento is around a hour from Napoli, just north of the Amalfi Coast. While it doesn’t have as many famous sights as the Amalfi coast, it’s also a bit cheaper and not as overrun with tourists. Of course, this is the off season anyway. I did a limoncello tasting and had the gnocchi alla sorrentina, which is Sorrento’s dish, which was delicious. I also enjoyed walking around this interesting town.

I’ve also been busy making lists of all the places in Europe I want to visit. So many places and Ryanair has so many cheap fairs. I’ve also been trying to learn Italian, which I started back in November when I learned I was transferring to this post. I did start with the Duolingo app, but I switched to Babble because Duo doesn’t explain the grammar rules and Babble does. So for me, I like Babble more because I want to understand the why.

Anyway, this is just the start of my life living abroad (again). I’m here for at least three years (hopefully if certain people don’t decide to fire the lot of us or don’t pull us into a war or something equally as tragic because who knows based on how the first 6 weeks have gone).

I will continue to share my wanderings and adventures, and will hopefully share some new tidbits along the way.

Alla prossima volta amici (until next time friends), Ciao!