VA1: Venice with Oak Hall

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Saturday 24th
After a morning of getting ready, Ruth drove me to the airport, where some guests had already managed to check in using their e-tickets. Couple of late arrivals, but we all got through in plenty of time, and slowly started to meet the guests - going for the tried and tested method of learning 2-3 names at a time - any more and they all go out of my head! Sat on the plane next to Craig and Hannah, good conversations - fun already! All the luggage arrived safely. No sign of anyone to meet us at the exit, but soon found a coach over at the coach park. Hour or so to the hotel, nice/friendly hotel, soon had rooms allocated/checked in. I’m sharing with Hannah. Any more queries can wait til morning!!

Sunday 25th
After prayer meeting (praying for Italy), breakfast, and arrange to meet 10am for a meander round the local area. Pretty much everyone comes and we walk about 2k up to a Piazza, distracted by a number of gelateries! Most then head for the beach (after a supermarket stop for lunch), as we arrange to have meeting 7pm, followed by 8pm dinner. We’ve been told people need to sit in the same foods so that orders can be fulfilled… what a strange rule! Tasty dinner - about 5 courses all in, and most come to the meeting. Thankfully also have a guitarist - Irene! Chill out in the evening over a cup of tea (or whatever) in the hotel’s outside lobby!

Monday 26th
Early up as we’re into Venice today. Temperatures still scorching… so that forecast of rain all week was incorrect (thankfully)! Venice looks pretty much as I expected it to as it comes into view… not sure if this is reassuring or disappointing, but it looks pretty (as per usual scaffolding marring the skyline). Manage not to lose anyone before we find the tour guide (Rafaelo), although it’s a close call for Matt & Caroline! Rafaelo is full of interesting information and humour, although sometimes difficult to hear him through his 1960s style megaphone which he zooms the mouthpiece past his mouth occasionally - rather like a disjointed telephone conversation. Not long after he abandons it and those who are particularly keen just crowd in. He shows us a number of things in San Marco Pizza before he takes us into the Basilica. We head past the Doge’s Palace, the Bridge of Sighs and down a side-street where we see a number of mask shops, beautifully arranged other shops and Cornettos for sale! This area of Venice (Castello) is great - away from the tourist tracks! Get some nice quiet ‘side-street’ shots, and lots of useful information (all cafes with tables outside will have a toilet, but you need to buy something before asking to use it!), before heading back towards Rialto Bridge. Great market on the other side and some great ice-cream too! Some head off for a gondola ride - I join Matt & Caroline people-watching at the side of the Grant Canal. See many of my group head past in their gondolas, so it’s a good spot to see them. We head back in plenty of time for meeting/dinner and another chill-out evening!

Tuesday 27th
After prayer meeting/breakfast, we had a meeting on the beach. Never tried anything like this before so an interesting experience - especially with all the ‘looky-looky’ men coming past with their sunglasses/towels, etc.! We have lunch at the hotel 12.30 before heading into Venice for the afternoon/evening. Public transport this time as it’s not an official excursion - we buy Euro21.80 tickets which get us on the bus, the ferry, and all the waterbuses in Venice. First stop is a gondola ride for those who haven’t had one/want a second one… I decide I want to try it just once, and reckon we can get it for 80 Euro or under… we have 2 boat-loads of 5, and get them for 75 Euro per boat - pretty good - we’ve headed back on exactly the same route as yesterday to find the Rialto Bridge! Have a great time taking photos, with our humorous gondolier - who even sounds a bit like he’s singing ‘Just One Cornetto’ to us at one point! Get what we think is the No. 1 Waterbus on the Grand Canal - think it can’t be as it went past the end of the Grand Canal and we found ourselves looking at a bit of Venice we hadn’t expected to! Got off as soon as we could and zoomed back (via Academia Bridge) across to meet Hannah under the Campanile - she wasn’t bothered - she knew we’d get there eventually. Went up the lift in the Campanile - was just admiring the view when the bells began to ring - bit of a surprise - but a good surprise! Time for some daft photos, headed back to Rialto area for some pizza (not the greatest ever), before taking photos of Rialto/San Marco in the dark, and catching the 10pm ferry back… with some great fun with some Operatic wigs! Exhausted group to sleep!

Wednesday 28th
Another early start for the next official excursion. We all get on a bus, only to be told that actually it’s not ours, so onto ours which is just coming. Good couple of hours to Verona, where we head straight for the Roman Arena to see if we can get a group deal - find an even better deal with the one-day Verona card (8 Euro), which offers one-time entry to 16 attractions for the price of 2. We managed to see four in the time that we were there: the Roman Arena (great photos), Juliet’s House (she’s not even real, but the chance to climb inside the house, on the balcony, see the love-graffiti wall, and “touch” Juliet for the chance for a new lover), the Bell Tower (great views, bit wobbly for those scared of heights) and the Roman Museum (nice views!). Also some time to chill out in Pizza d’Erbe with fruit/ice-cream, pizza, etc. Offered the guests of coming back on their own if they want to get the half-hourly train to Venice (which takes 1.5 hours), then get across Venice, then get the ferry to Punta Sabbioni and then the bus back to the hotel - no one took me up on it - they’re all on the bus! Nice dinner, meeting, and debuted my “Uno Quiz” - quiz book from WH Smith, pack of Uno Cards. Every time a team gets a question right they get an Uno card. They get the score on the Uno card, but if it’s one of the cards which would be nasty to the next player, it’s -1! Sure this scoring system can be fine-tuned!

Thursday 29th
A relaxing day for most, some nipped back into Venice, but most took advantage of the beach, or walking round the local area. Took a while to find a birthday card for Hannah, but finally got one that I thought wasn’t rude! Caught up on some tasks. After dinner/meeting, scouted out some possible places to go for ice-cream tomorrow evening - took those who wanted to go for a late-night walk upon the beach which was a nice chance to chat to a few - and some tried out the ice-creams in advance of tomorrow!

Friday 30th
We met on the beach again in the morning for our last meeting - again distracted by the ‘looky-looky men’, although the masseur lady was reading the words of the hymns over our shoulders. Still really hot so for the rest of the morning people relaxed/had food, before we got ready for our coach to Punta Sabbioni where we had a private boat waiting to take us to Murano and Burano. We arranged a timetable with the driver, and decided 1 hour Murano, 1 hour Burano and 40 minutes Torcello. After Murano, where we watched an interesting free ‘glass-making demonstration’ - no compulsion to buy (and it’s cheaper on the Rialto Market (even with the ‘group discount’)) before a short amount of time to wander. Could just hang out here - and no time really for the glass museum! Once on the boat, the boat-driver has been told by his boss that we can’t come back that late, so Torcello has to be bumped from the agenda, but we get 1 hour 20 on Burano instead. Very pretty, not sure I’m into lace, but got the best Passion Fruit ice-cream ever in a shop with a massive ice-cream cone outside it - I’ll put a picture of the shop up - definitely the best and 1 Euro a scoop again! Gradually bumped into everyone as people relaxed with coffee’s before we headed back to the boat, back to Punta Sabbioni for the bus. Time before dinner as we thought we’d be back later (hence the morning meeting) - reminded everyone to leave space for the evening, when we went to the recommended place for ice-cream, where we were all able to have up to 3 MORE scoops of ice-cream before another walk back along the beach.

Saturday 31st
Hannah’s birthday - had managed to get most people to sign her card, and the hotel made us a complimentary cake for which I’d found a candle! We had to be checked out of the rooms by 10am, so arranged one room for all the bags, before preparing to take the books/hymn books and guitar to Hotel Colonna where the next trip is. Was planning a taxi, but Craig is determined to go out on one of the 4-seater bikes, so Hannah, David, Craig and I load up the books/guitar on there and pedal the 1.5/2k to the hotel! Fun ride back too, then a bit of time on the beach, including a pedalo. After lunch, coach turned up in plenty of time and we made such good time it was an hour before we could check in, but better to be safe then sorry. Long queue for security, then Claire bought me ANOTHER ice-cream at the airport, whilst we sat around waiting for boarding. Easy flight back, all the luggage turned up, waved everyone off, and was met by Mary and Chris for a lift back to the Manor, via a dinner stop! Up late trying to get clothes washed as have an early train to Winchester in the morning.

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Photos

Venetian Lighting...
wonder if it's Murano glass?