Venice revisited

Tuesday 4th September Gigi and I were flying back to Naples with his mother. The wedding was over. The damage was done. It was time to go home. We were scheduled to fly from Venice at 8pm. We caught the 7.30 am train out of Udine (couldn’t get out of there fast enough) and arrived in Venice by 10am. We spent the day wandering around Venice, visiting the canals, bridges and piazzas, while Gi’s mother brought some glass souvenirs and we bought some masks. During one coffee and smoke break Rosa worked out, and then complained, that we’d been walking around for more than five hours. Her legs were completely finished. After collecting our left luggage we walked to get the bus to the airport, Rosa limping along slowly behind me while Gigi strode out in front carrying his mother’s luggage as well as his own. I felt like the rose between two thorns, having more patience and perhaps a little more compassion than Gigi. I think he expected her to say ‘you guys go off and look around on your own, while I sit here in the sun with access to coffee and cigarettes for a couple of hours’. She never did. Luckily we decided to get an early bus to the airport as the traffic was a nightmare. We checked in with plenty of time, went through security and then Gi’s mother decided she needed a cigarette. I’d already told them both there’d be no smoking on the other side, but no one ever believes me when I give advice or directions in Italy. Having discovered that there was indeed no smokers corner in an international airport she then had to go back out through security to have a fag out the front of the airport.

Of course, our flight was then delayed, due to weather problems in Naples. We watched with disbelief as they pushed the time out to 8.45pm, and even after 8.45 went by on the clock and 9.15 approached the board failed to show any updates. The 50 or so passengers stood in a ratty line at the gate for more than 40 minutes despite no call for boarding. I sat down watching them all, listening to my ipod. We finally arrived in Naples, after flying through some rain and bumpy clouds at about 11pm. Irene, unimpressed at having had to wait and having missed her dinner time, picked us up at the airport.

Venice was lovely, full of tourists of course but still a great place to poke around and photograph. The Bienniale Film festival was on so the news was full of famous film stars in Venice but it cost a bomb to attend any of the exhibitions and public transport is also really expensive in Venice so we just spent the day on foot. I had dreams of accidently bumping into Brad and Angelina, or at least George Clooney but it wasn't to be. Still I had a nice day despite my travelling companions, and take the attitude that I might as well enjoy it because it just might be the last time I get to visit such a unique city.