Ciao to Venice - for Now

Well - Murphy's Law, the best laid plans, etc., etc.  The last couple of weeks I've not been feeling great which culminated in a trip to the emergency room on Friday.  Had to have the billiary drain put back in, so instead of flying off to Venice in two days, will spend a few weeks recovering and getting my strength back.  If I could  just have cancer without all the side dishes, it would be so much easier!
We plan to reschedule, hopefully soon after the new year. I am so blessed to be married to the most wonderful woman in the world.  Margot is getting us through this latest setback with grace and aplomb and so much love.

Our Venice Apartment!

This is where we'll be living for 10 days in Venice next month.  The cream coloured building to the left of the bridge, on the third floor - the one with the arched windows and a lovely view of the canal and the bridge.   Renewed passports have arrived, ditto electric converters and the shoe repair guy gave my classy walking boots (that I used in Venice 9 years ago) an overhaul and they look brand new.  Three weeks to go!

Buongiorno Venezia!

The big news here is that next month Margot and I will be visiting Venice for 10 days!
My chemo will be over for awhile and the doctor has given us the OK to travel. As you can imagine, we are both very excited.  Plane tickets have been purchased, we have  reserved a delightful little apartment on a small canal, and I'm busy gathering supplies for my travel journal.

Mille grazie, mia amica Lyn!

Lyn Bleiler, wonderful artist and workshop coordinator extraordinaire, recently completed a 6 week residency in Venice (I know!). While she was there I realized I was about to use my last marbled paper covered pencil (purchased in 2005 when we were in Venice). And I thought "Aha! I know someone in Venice right now."

Lyn very graciously agreed to help me out and brought home this round dozen of marbled beauties. They arrived in the post a few days ago from Lyn's home base in Taos. Not only are they lovely, but holding one is like a little bit of Venice in your palm. Brava, Lyn and mille grazie.

Different Boats, Different Canal

Another, very different canal. The Grand Canal of Venice. The major thoroughfare of that most serene city. I had expected gondolas, as everyone does, when going to Venice for the first time.

But what was surprising was the vast amount of boats of all kinds. Vaporettos - water buses (sort of like the Metro only on the water instead of underground), traghettos - long skinny gondolas that ferry people across, instead of up and down the canal.

Ambulance boats, police boats, fire boats, mail boats, delivery boats in all shapes and sizes, boats filled with produce and fish for the local street markets, fancy-fancy private motor launches, and even a regulation brown boat for UPS delivery all are found daily on the Grand Canal.

Ala Venezia!

Ala Venezia!

This was fun. I cut the painting in half and then put each half in a different frame. Hand-marbled paper was affixed to each edge with matte medium. The glass handled paint brush was found in a little paper shop across from the La Fenice Opera House in Venice. And one of those great finds - the bracelet with scenes of Venice (including the Rialto Bridge and St. Mark's Square) was unearthed on a crisp fall morning at the Revere Flea Market just north of Boston.

A few more treasures from the paper shops of Venice.

The Colours of Burano

The beautiful, brilliant colours of Burano - a tiny island 7 km north of Venice. The vaporetto ride there takes you past San Michele (the cementary island), Murano (the glass-blowing island),Isola di San Francesco del Deserto (the island with the deserted monastery) and finally into Burano.

The houses, that line the small canels or surround tiny campos, are all painted in different colours. Fishing boats set out every day, but the major industry is lace-making. This ancient art has been handed down through the generations, some of the finest hand-made lace in the world comes from this tiny bit of land surrounded by the lagoon.

There is a fascinating lace museum, and several lace makers that demonstrate the how-tos of their art. And of course it's a painter's paradise - the wonderful houses and that famous Venetian light.

A sleek Burano cat watching us watch her!