Beautiful Venice - beautiful days.

I initially thought that today's subject line might be, "We'll always have Venice." But with the frequent illusions to climate change and the maps in the boat stations about where to find high ground during acqua alta (high water), I'm not so sure we will always have Venice. Perhaps this knowledge makes me appreciate Venice even more as the days here have been beautiful, full, and glowing.

But first, our final day in Vigolo was a wonderful one. We tested grappa in the morning (11am is a bit early for me for grappa, but I persevered) and enjoyed a walk to nearby Bosentino in the afternoon (where Charles and Elisabetta were married). I love the outdoor ping-pong tables and the views of the Dolomites. (I could continually look at La Vigolana and think, 'I just climbed that!') We met Elisabetta's mother, Maria Assunta for aperitivi (why did I not get a picture all together?) and had another delicious dinner. It was a lovely day.

Mom tries to feed the donkey on the way to Bosentino

Bosentino wall art

Picturesque ping-pong

Consistently enjoying gelato

Mom attacks her ice cream while Maria Assunta looks on

Cousins in Vigolo

Beautiful Vigolo

On Thursday, it was time for Randal and I to head to Venice for our 10th anniversary trip. (Aka time to leave our kids with other adults in a foreign country.)

The crowd wished us well from the train platform before they caught their own train to Modena to see Charles's new home. (Ask Charles to start a blog to hear about that trip.)

Randal and I continued solo to Venice and took a very crowded vaparetto (water taxi) to L'Accademia from where our hotel - Hotel Galleria - is steps away. Rick Steves, our forever Italian guide, delivered once again. The hotel is fabulous and the view is unmatched. It is so easy to step back in time in Venice and imagine that we are wealthy merchants trading goods from the East. (With the addition of indoor plumbing - thank god.)

We enjoyed some champagne and had a delicious dinner where I tried three types of the city's specialty: salted cod - which sounds much better in Italian: baccalà. Delicious. We walked around the city at night - when it feels very romantic and with fewer crowds - and had a generally wonderful day. 

The view from our window

Randal enjoys the view

Cheers to 10 years!

Our hotel is the building on the right. We are the corner room in the corner closest that is just below the balcony.

Yesterday we started with a leisurely morning and had pastries for breakfast, as one does. It is the Architecture Biennale in Venice this year - the architecture event happens every two years - and Randal is familiar with some of the artists/architects presenting here. So, we hopped on a vaperetto and headed to the Giardini where there are permanent exposition buildings for many countries. We were able to see every building and they were all interesting: some silly (I'm looking at you, Spain), some thought-provoking (Hi Japan), and some inspiring (well done, Belgium!). Randal provides great context and enthusiasm and we had a wonderful time there.

Cob floors and fungus walls - Belgium was awesome.

Lunch break with vegetarian-friendly options abounding.

The US pavilion looking like many front yards in the States - except this one was "art"

Words from the curator that I loved and appreciated as I stood out of the hot sun in the shade.

The whole event was sponsored by Rolex and this might be as close to a Rolex as we ever get.

Fortunately for us, the architecture exhibits are not only located inside the gardens, but several are installed in public parks throughout the city. So, as we walked back to our hotel, we stumbled upon some thought-provoking works that we celebrated or critiqued. (I love love love that Randal always takes my uninformed opinion seriously. He really is the best.)

Permanent refugee housing

We made it back to Piazza San Marco, which was buzzing with people and pigeons.

And after a brief respite from the heat, enjoying the takeaway drinks (fresh-squeezed mimosas!), we headed back out to find some pizza.

The pizza was delicious. (Thanks Rick Steves!) We walked around again and marveled at how Venice is similar to Las Vegas and New York as another city that doesn't sleep. (We did realize that our fabulous Grand Canal view has some downsides when the windows are open because those boats are LOUD in the middle of the night.) It is a city for lovers - of each other and of food - and as we are both, we are having a wonderful time.

Today, we depart Venice and meet up with the rest of the crew who have been exploring Modena. We spend our final days in Padova/Padua and I have to say, I'm not ready for any of it to end. It is magic here and I am so happy.