On the way to Naples.....part 1

This jewel of the advertiser's art was the first thing to greet me when I walked in the door of London Stansted airport after a comfortable, restful bus ride from Heathrow. Stansted is home to one of the UK's and Ireland's great small airlines, EasyJet, that was to take me to Naples. This billboard absolutely put to rest all my fears about Naples that had been fueled by stories in recent editions of BBC.com: the garbage collection crisis (ongoing since this past Christmas), the thieves on the streets and buses, the sinister presence of the Camorra.

In fact, I could feel my U.S.-bred paranoia slipping away the longer I was exposed to the Londoners with their cheerful outlook despite having to pay about ten bucks a gallon for gas. The British humor has always cracked me up. Need a drink of soda? How about a can of Pret's "Yoga Bunny Detox, Balanced with Ginseng & Echinacea, Liquid Psychiatry, No Nasties?"



Need a cheap fare? How about one of these?



And see all those folks in the yellow vests? The British employ a small army of helpers in their airports, and they were so friendly and sweet, I wanted to bring some home with me.

"You want the Central Bus Station? Just keep on going this way, and you'll be right there. Can't miss it. What time do you have to be there? Half an hour? You've plenty of time. Have a wonderful holiday."

I get choked up just thinking about them. (Have I been in D.C. too long?)

But what's better than all that? Peggy flew all the way down from Glasgow to hang out in the airport with me until late afternoon, when my flight left for Naples. (I asked her to pose like this because it's one of her very favorites.)



She has the helpful Brit spirit, too. She asked the security people if I could take a can of Yoga Bunny Detox on the plane to give to Cathy.



Alas, this is where the soda and I parted.



More to come....next stop: Ravello!!