March 24, 2016
Did you know, this time of year, it turns daylight in London at 4:15 a.m. I glanced at the clock beside the bed and rolled out as the first sign of daylight crept into the window. Turns out, the second hand was on 12 and the long hand was on 6, which, at a glance, made me think it was 6:00. The sky was light. Made sense to me. I set the alarm for 6:30, so I decided to get an early start. I hopped in the shower, got dressed and began to pack the rest of my gear only to discover that it was really only 4:00 when I got out of bed. Well, I can't go back to sleep now. Might as well get an early start on the blog. You know what happens when I have time on my hands ... I tend to get philosophical. Just kidding. It's too darn early for that.
We've been in London for 3 full days and we've seen Selfridges. Selfridges and more of Selfridges. We're on a first name basis with the doorman there. Doesn't make us bad people, does it? From our Langham Hotel window, we can see Big Ben, The Eye of London, The London Bridge and the skyline of London. Good enough for me. Especially since I've visited those sites on previous visits. Besides, I've been a little concerned about safety in highly traveled tourist areas here in London. It's just better to be safe than sorry. Selfridges seemed pretty safe to me.
We arrived in Venice today around 2:00. I'd forgotten how spectacular Venice is. We were last here on a family vacation in 2007 with the whole family including Jeff's mom and Aunt Ace. A flood of wonderful memories came over me this afternoon as we approached Venice in our water taxi.
We didn't have much time to explore this afternoon because the Run to Monaco festivities began right away with a brief Gondola ride followed by a get acquainted hour with Bellini's on the waterside bar deck.
We caught up with Bruce and Gail and Henry and Trish over Bellini's and then rushed upstairs to get dressed for our black tie affair on the rooftop of the Gritti Palace Hotel. The organizers, Chris, Chris and Jessica didn't miss a lick tonight. We signed in and received a special mask to wear for the evening.
Champagne, wine and cocktails were flowing like water. Fabulous Hors d'oeuvres were served all while the sun was setting on Venice. The view of St. Mary's Cathedral was so beautiful. A Puppeteer on stilts with human puppets poured wine for us.
The waiters and waitresses were dressed in costumes. The atmosphere was festive and exciting.
Jacqueline and I couldn't believe we were on the rooftop of an incredible hotel in Venice for a black tie event. It was a magical evening.
Afterwards, we went downstairs for dinner with Bruce and Gail. Hopefully one of many this week.
We're getting an early start tomorrow on the drive across Italy. Tomorrow, we load up in our Ferraris and drive to a beautiful villa just outside of Florence. Yay!
Did you know, this time of year, it turns daylight in London at 4:15 a.m. I glanced at the clock beside the bed and rolled out as the first sign of daylight crept into the window. Turns out, the second hand was on 12 and the long hand was on 6, which, at a glance, made me think it was 6:00. The sky was light. Made sense to me. I set the alarm for 6:30, so I decided to get an early start. I hopped in the shower, got dressed and began to pack the rest of my gear only to discover that it was really only 4:00 when I got out of bed. Well, I can't go back to sleep now. Might as well get an early start on the blog. You know what happens when I have time on my hands ... I tend to get philosophical. Just kidding. It's too darn early for that.
We've been in London for 3 full days and we've seen Selfridges. Selfridges and more of Selfridges. We're on a first name basis with the doorman there. Doesn't make us bad people, does it? From our Langham Hotel window, we can see Big Ben, The Eye of London, The London Bridge and the skyline of London. Good enough for me. Especially since I've visited those sites on previous visits. Besides, I've been a little concerned about safety in highly traveled tourist areas here in London. It's just better to be safe than sorry. Selfridges seemed pretty safe to me.
 |
| The ride from the airport is via Water Taxi to Venice. |
 |
| Venice Gondola ride. |
 |
| Bellinis on the waterside deck bar. |
 |
| Masquerade masks. |
 |
| Jac and Gail Masquerade Ball. |
 |
| Guess who!! |
 |
| Puppets pour wine. |
 |
| Black Tie Dinner tonight. |
 |
| View from the rooftop terrace of the Gritti Palace Hotel. |
 |
| Panoramic View of the Grande Canal. Jac's photo. |
We're getting an early start tomorrow on the drive across Italy. Tomorrow, we load up in our Ferraris and drive to a beautiful villa just outside of Florence. Yay!
No comments:
Post a Comment