Dreaming City In The Sea

Ahead of the Italian tour, Jo and I spent a fantastic weekend in Venice, a uniquely wonderful city... reflecting its numerous artists, composers, musicians and travellers from over the centuries... Those inspired dreams are celebrated in its magical turrets, domes and Eastern inspired windows of the most magnificent old buildings, rising above all those extraordinarily atmospheric canals.

Taking a water taxi from the airport at nightfall, as the moonlight shone in the lagoon as the lights of the splendid city came into view, we immediately felt the thrill of approaching such an exceptional place. Our lovely friend Vania was there to greet us on the jetty, and we headed off to our hotel, with a fabulous view of San Marco Square.

It felt incredible to spend two days winding our way through the tiny alleys, often crossing remarkable old bridges with so many special views of the canals, and those beautiful gondolas gliding by. We visited some of the building interiors too, including a church, which possessed a spooky flooded crypt, and also a huge Medieval building, once a monastery and now a hospital... Crossing the Rialto Bridge was a high point in more ways than one! Like the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, it holds up houses with shops in the style of other Medieval bridges, most of which are now lost to time...

Thanks to Jacqueline and Silvia from Teatro Goldoni, we got to see a fantastic acrobatic and musical performance in the style of the Cirque du Soleil and reflecting Venice life over the centuries... It was a great ending to a perfect weekend. Spending time with Vania and other friends Raffa and Jonathan at one point too was a total joy, adding to the special feeling of being in such a spectacular place. I highly recommend Venice to anyone. Since Jo and I have been together, the sun has shone on all our visits there, sparkling in the water and shining bright on the many marble statues and dreaming spires...

Many thanks to Vania for all her wonderful hospitality and friendship, and to Thames Travel too for finding such a special hotel for us to stay.

Now we're in Milan, preparing for the first show of the Italian tour...