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| Night Ride on a Gondola |
I am floating down the narrow canals in Venice listening to the water slap against the gondola. The gentle rocking makes my eyes heavy. It had been two sleepless nights. Slap, slap, slap, rock rock rock; the gondola silently slithers through the canal. The night sky joins in with its blanket of darkness. Slap, slap, slap, rock, rock, rock......
RING!!! RING!!! Who's phone is disrupting this perfect evening!! How unthoughtful.
RING!!! RING!!! It continued with its abrasive noise. I opened my eyes to find the culprit who owned that phone, but was greeted with a land phone sitting next to my bed! (Oh s#it, we overslept)
I answered and heard Bruce's concerned voice, "The water taxi is waiting for us now." ADRENALINE RUSH!
I don't know what I said to Ray, but he was already throwing our belongings into our packs and getting dressed at the same time. How fortunate that our luggage was still lost and we did not have to ponder on which outfit to wear. It was just the same old one. Also, how fortunate that we had showered the night before and had most of our stuff packed.
We made it to the lobby, a bit disheveled and disorientated. Michael and Ann had also overslept, and had awoken before us. But they had to do without a shower. That is what Michael said when he saw the clock.
"Brush Teeth! No Shower!" And they scurried to the lobby with clean teeth, and three day old clothes.
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| At the Venice Train Station. Having no luggage made it easier to travel. |
Thank goodness the water taxi waited for us, and thank goodness Stephanie and Bruce did not oversleep. We made it to the train station, found our seats and were able to relax for a couple of hours for our next destination: Florence.
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| Our train was on time and ready for our trip to Florence. |
We met a kind couple from Australia, Mark and Cynthia, while on the train. Cynthia overheard us talking about our lost luggage and told us she had just had a similar experience. When she found out that my hat had been packed in my suitcase, she generously offered me her second hat (since she had to buy one when her luggage was lost).
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| Cynthia was determined I take her hat. |
Next stop: Artists' Palace Hotel in Florence. I loved this place and want to return to spend more time there. The Artists' Palace is located in Piazza San Lorenzo right in the heart of the art and historic section of Florence. Across the street is the oldest church in Florence, The Santa Tranita. It looks so plain on the outside but inside is full of paintings, and colorful religious figures.
The Artists' Palace had at one time been a place for priests to stay, and it also hosted Leonardo da Vinci in 1508. So this place was packed with history. Here is a YouTube that I found on line about this hotel. We loved it, and want to return. I know I have said that earlier, but I really mean it.
Here is the link. You may want to stay there, too, if you visit Florence.
We had the rest of the day to explore. In the evening we were going on a walking tour of the area. That will be the next post in this blog.
To be continued...
I’m loving your adventure story.
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