3 flights, 3 different airlines.  Delta to New York, Alitalia to Milan, Aeroflot to Moscow.  Long day of travel.  Kinda remember talking about long travel days 15 years ago…these days, I feel it.  Retrieved luggage, switched terminals & doubled thru security – both at JFK & in Milan. Near missed my connection in Italia (not a lotta sense of urgency).  2 hour cat naps & a slew of movies filled time ‘cross 9 time zones.

Giddy feeling as we broke thru cloud cover & caught first views of the large concrete Communist-era Doma[s], where a majority of Russians reside.  AWESOME to see Dima & his wife Natasha at Sheremetyevo.  Super appreciative.

First glance: Everything looks very European (airport, highways, parking garage, vehicles) – not the Cold War Russia of my expat assignment past.  Tomorrow: Red Square sightseeing.  Marathon bib pick-up at Luzhniki Stadium (1980 Summer Olympics relic, being renovated for soccer’s World Cup 2018).  Excited, stomach butterflies, can’t hardly wait!

New York ⇨Milan ⇨Moscow