Sunday, April 11, 2010

a hundred thousand steps in Venice... and a few unexpected ones in Milan

Had a wonderful time in Venice (until our departure, which was a whole big adventure all in itself). It's a tad chilly in England (12 degrees here today and it was 23 in Venice on Friday), but LOVELY to be home.

I'd actually rate this as the best trip of my entire life: the people were lovely, the staff in our hotel were kind and helpful, the accommodation was really comfortable and the food was good, and the sights were unbelievably beautiful. Am glad we waited until the kids were old enough to enjoy it, and am also glad we did it the expensive way (posh hotel) for their first trip abroad - I wanted it to be something they'd remember their whole lives. (They will. And they'll also remember the opposite extreme, on the way home!)

Some of the things we did were terribly touristy, but definitely worth doing. And Venice by night just HAS to be seen. I've never, ever seen anything so glorious.

Discovered that my SD card holds 350 pics, so it's just as well that I took a spare!

And yes, we really did do that many steps. I had the pedometer with me, because I'm nerdy and I wanted to know. I ate lots and lots and LOTS of gelati; I had lots of carbs (bread, pizza, pasta, risotto, polenta - well, hey, if you're going to break the low-carb rules for four days, you might as well break them and enjoy it); and I lost 5.5lbs while I was out there.

Over the coming few days, I will be telling all about Venezia and the wonderful things we experienced (with photos - though not all of them as I'm sure you don't want to see my research photos of palazzi, glass and other little things that caught my eye).

And I will also be telling all about our unexpected journey across Italy on Friday, when we'd figured on going home but had to travel 175 miles westwards instead!

8 comments:

Caroline said...

Welcome back Kate! So glad you all had a great time. Caroline x

Scarlet Wilson said...

Hi Kate, can't wait to see your pictures!

Kate Hardy said...

Thank you, Caroline - and we did, thanks! Lots of pics coming over the next two weeks...

Kate Hardy said...

Susan - they're coming soon :o) And you're just about to go there yourself, aren't you? You'll have a wonderful time because it's the most gorgeous place.

PS I didn't realise we shared a birthday! And good luck with your NWS book/feedback from M&B (Lucy is an absolute sweetheart).

Jan Jones said...

Welcome back, hon! Looking forward to hearing all about it.

Michelle Styles said...

Oh I am so glad you had a good time (the journey home not withstanding!)
I am looking forwardto seeing your photos and hearing about your trip.

I am pleased the water taxi lived up to expectations!

Katie said...

Yay! Welcome back! Love the first Venice post and photos and really looking forward to the rest. The water taxi looks so much fun!

Diane said...

Welcome back and well done - on the steps and the weightloss.