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Published: July 31st 2008
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Saturday 19th July Hideously early start after only 2 hours sleep... Ruth drops me off at Otford train station and I make my way to Heathrow, where I meet up with Karen (yay!) - last time I saw Karen I was in the Barossa Valley in Australia - now she's back working in London. Tell BMI that I have too much luggage as I have all the tour leader stuff and they let me through anyway. We're sat all over the plane (some in the NICE seats) so don't get to meet people so much until we're on the transfer coach... Settle in easy enough, check out the immediate area... most people head for the beach before dinner, after which we have a quick meeting on the beach - Andy lets us know "where he comes from" before we go for a bit of a walk down the beach.
Sunday 20th July Latish morning, most people take the time out to chill - I make sure I have some of the week's worship sessions & excursions planned. Still feeling really tired, but most people seem to be down on the beach relaxing - get back in time to find Tony
has arrived. Evening, another dinner (veal & something!), evening worship down on the beach - get to sing Amazing Grace again! As Andy starts to speak it starts to rain, and everyone runs for the lifeguard shelter - makes it a memorable evening anyway before most head out for a coffee!
Monday 21st July Today is excursion to Venice day - get everyone there safely and in time, on a bargain ticket! Meet Alfie, our guide this time. His microphone works well, he's funny, and he shows us SOME different bits to Rafaello the last time - very enjoyable! We finish near the Rialto Bridge - everyone disappears off for lunch (I have the same salad/at the same restaurant, as I had on the Europe Tour) - we re-meet and I get us 3 Gondolas for €75 per boat - very happy guests on this! Just time for a gelato for some guests (I'm hanging out for my Passion Fruit icecream on Burano on Friday!), and we hop on the ferry - we miscount and hold the ferry up thinking 5 are missing - it has to go, and as we get off the other end - there is
everyone! Phew! Coach back to the hotel, more veal, a meeting in the semi-darkness (planning to move the meetings before dinner after tonight!), and the guys head out to see what is going on in Jesolo - plenty going on here! My voice has nearly disappeared again - this is not good!
Tuesday 22nd July OK, so today is a restful morning... we have the meeting 9.30, lunch is for 12.30, when Andy takes everyone into Venice for the evening. I was supposed to go but I clearly can't talk - spend most of the day hiding under a sun umbrella half-asleep, before heading out for pizza in the evening with some of the people who haven't gone in. Very early night whilst they head off for Kareoke!
Wednesday 23rd July Feeling bit better after resting yesterday and so make it into Verona. Know roughly where I am here too, so soon find our way into the Roman Arena where everyone buys the Verona Day Card (€8 Euros for the day... covering 1 x entry to 16 different places - otherwise €6 to get into each place!). Head into the Arena, where see a bit more of it
than last time - do the same crazy photos, plus a few more! Head on up to Juliet's House and advise everyone to head right up to the top - some odds and ends from the Zafarelli film sets, some more daft photos, before we head off for lunch. Some of the group head off a little ahead and disappear off for snacks - we stop at the first restaurant and are offered €16 of food for €10 (pizza, drink & tip all covered - bargain!). Nice pizza - Penny & I both couldn't decide between 2 so we get to share... Then find the whalebone (didn't notice it last time!), and up the tower to look over the city - good views again! Not too excited by the Roman Museum last time, so the lunch-group joins me for a stroll alongside the river to the Castle, where some go in, and some have a gelato. Had a good look round - good views from here too and then headed down, grabbed an ice-cream on the way back to the coach, and we left in plenty of time. Slightly scary incident on the way back when the lorry next to
us blew it's tyre, but the driver held it! Back in time for meeting on the beach (weather is definitely improving) and dinner, and the guys head out for more kareoke.
Thursday 24th July Complete rest day today - we have the meeting 9.30am, then pretty much everyone is collapsed out on the sunchairs on the beach. A few head back into Venice, and some decide to go out for a proper pizza tonight so is not too many of us for dinner to sing Happy Birthday to Veronica, but more cake to hand around, before we head to local patisserie for late night drinks/cakes. Find a Vodafone store in Jesolo - result - can top up the Italian phone which didn't manage to do on Tuesday as I didn't go in.
Friday 25th July Guests vote for another morning meeting, so we enjoy that, relax on the beach (I wander up & down looking for places to take group for ice-cream tonight), make our own lunch and head into Punta Sabbioni for the afternoon - I have a scare as had 1pm in my head as the coach time and it's always been early - was 1.30pm,
so phew! Boat is ready so we head off to Murano, an hour in Murano - with a quick chance to watch the glassblowing (remembered where it was from last time), before a brief wander round the area, and some decide to test the ice-cream in both places - most are waiting for the Passion Fruit ice-cream I've so highly recommended for Burano. In Burano, however, disaster strikes - Passion Fruit is not on the menu today, but most enjoy another flavour anyway! Wander around for 1.5 hours, some chilling out with coffee/ice cream, some checking out the lace (no one's really INTO lace) or other bargains available on this island! Everyone's back on the boat on time, back to the hotel for a bit of a meal before we head out for the Gelati Spectacular - most of the group are there and negotiated a 10%!d(MISSING)iscount for everyone (she'd offered 5%!,(MISSING) and didn't want to budge!)... good ice creams! Plenty of live music going on in the area too..
Saturday 26th July We need everyone out of their rooms by 9.30am - we're pretty much sorted, Andy & I sit with the bookstall, but nothing's moving today.
SO, 10.30am meet up with Peter, Sally & Megan and we hire one of the 4-wheeled cycles and peddle like mad down to Hotel President to leave them there... Sheldon is not quite expecting us, but promises to find us, and we peddle back like mad to get the bike back in just over half-hour (but, phew, only charged for half-hour). Peter takes me for a triple ice-cream on the way back from the bike shop, and then most of us hang out in the lobby until the coach arrives - a bit late - but in plenty of time for us. None of us get the nice seats this time, but we have more chance of company! The flight is apparently going at 3.20pm (even at 3.40pm), but we eventually land about an hour late. Make my own way back to the Manor, collected by Nick & Mel, say a quick hello to Jeremy, Andy & Jo who are here for the first Venice trip reunion. Early to bed though - still need recovery time!!!
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