Aegean Odyssey Day 1

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS -- At San Antonio International Airport getting ready to board our flight to Philadelphia, the fist leg of our journey to Greece and more than three weeks in the Aegean! Will be keeping a running log of our odyssey here and posting interesting and useful information at once a day, Internet access permitting. So, come along and enjoy the trip with us!

There are a few things to note already:

* TSA recently implemented "Pre-Screening" for some travelers and apparently my wife Diane was approved for it (she is not sure how, as she never applied for it, but is assuming it is in part because she is retired U.S. military; I suspect it involved some sort of background check by TSA). Both of us therefore got moved into the pre-screened line, which meant we did not have to remove our shoes or belts -- I did not wear one anyway because I did not know about this -- or have to remove our laptops from our carry-on luggage. This made our trip through security the quickest and most painless one I have experienced in about 13 years. Suffice it to say, this is probably the smartest, best thing TSA has done in more than a decade, and certainly the one that will improve quality of travel for the most people -- and even people who are not pre-screened benefit because there are fewer people waiting in lines with them.

* Don't be fooled by airport bars that are open when you are waiting for early-morning flights, because you cannot get a drink at them! They are not permitted to serve alcohol earlier than 7 a.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. on Sundays. Suffice it to say that those of us who have no values at all are not particularly tolerant of those who turn theirs into legislation or presume to dictate when other people are allowed to have a drink. If we had recalled this from the last time we experienced it we could have brought a couple of vodka minis and used them to spike some "virgin Maries."

* San Antonio International Airport has free Wifi! This is nothing new but a real plus for me and goes a long way toward making them traveler-friendly so it bears mentioning.