Venice, Swimming in the Adriatic Sea and....

Wow! Venice was beyond all expectations! David quietly took it all in until he finally woke up. I think he was just amazed he was actually here. Hunter's head was spinning as he tried to took it in. Ii think Hunter loved the boats as much as I did. David and Hunter loved the water taxis. Jessica and Samantha kept pinching themselves to make sure this wasn't just a dream. Connor and Drew had the biggest grins on their faces all day. Your kids loved loved loved Venice and so did I.

We went to Doges Palace and had a private tour. We all learned a a lot and loved every bit of the opulence, art and history. Then we were on our own, left to explore the islands of Venice. It was amazing indeed. We didn't get lost and I think we walked almost every street. (And our feet feel like we walked every street) We walked over countless bridges and took amazing photos at the Rialto bridge on the Grand Canal. I'm trying to add the pics to this post but pics take a long time to load due to lame WiFi at our hotel. Hunter is our de facto IT specialist and he says it has to do with how they've set up their Internet. (my last post was made from the top of the hotel but this time I'm actually sitting on the street on the patio enjoying a nice glass of Pinot Grigio while I write to you. Hunter told me what to do! (not the wine part, but the Internet part!). It's after midnight and your children are all asleep. Well, I'm concerned that Hunter may be a bit sleepless because he chose clark chocolate and coffee gelato and a Coca Cola at about 9:30 pm tonight as we walked the streets of Lido de Jesolo after dinner.... But I'm getting ahead of myself.....

So, back to Venice.... We frugally chose a shop selling panini and pizza for lunch which we enjoyed sitting on the steps of a little used bridge overlooking the canals of Venice. This was Jessica's idea and Jessica and Samantha led us down many streets until they settled on the lovely lunch spot. FYI- Venice is expensive!! But we are pretty savvy after one whole day in Italy and we did alright! We even avoided spending 1.20 Euro for the privilege of using a bathroom by going into a sandwich shop and purchasing a bottled water each for just 1E and using their facilities! Yeah, we're that good already. Hahaha. The kids were proud as we watched the lines for the WC and all the tourists paying to pee! Your kids are so much fun.

AHHHH, I bird walk again! Okay, so onward through Venice and up and down the winding streets. We wanted to find the famous BridgeRialto and followed the street name signs to success. We were rewarded with the most awesome sight and we were all thrilled with the amazing water scene below us! I think we stood there for 20 minutes just watching. You've never heard anyone say WOW so many times in your life. We all said we felt like James Bond was going to come flying by on a gorgeous speedboat at any moment. I took some great pics of your kids on the bridge overlooking the Grand Canal. They may be fit for framing.

We all took a gondola ride today too. All 6 kids filled one gondola and I went in another one. I got some darling pics of them in their boat and can't wait to upload them! We all agreed it was a whole different perspective to see Venice by water than by land so we're very glad we spent the 20E and did it.

When we got back to our hotel we were hot and tired so everyone put on their swimming suits and within 5 minutes they were all running into the warm, salty and waveless Adriatic Sea. I got some great pics again and marveled at how well they all get along and how much fun they're having. We all collected shells from the beach as a momento of their Adriatic swim and went to dinner at 8 pm. I could barely convince them to come in from the sea, they were so happy in the water, but the mere mention of missing dinner and having to spend Euros in a restaurant got them running! Dinner was horrible but they are all so polite and ate what they liked. All the boys ate about 12 bread rolls dipped into olive oil and balsamic vinegar! I'm not exaggerating by much. They inhaled the bread and swear its the best bread they've ever had. In fact, Connor and Drew ate bread in olive oil and balsamic vinegar for breakfast this morning!! All the girls raved about the salad and how much better the lettuce is in Italy.

Although we all enjoyed a triple scoop portion of amazing gelato in Venice, Connor took us on a Lido de Jesolo hunt for the cheapest but best gelato. He was so funny as he checked out about 8 gelato storefronts and finally made his choice. Drew kept shaking his head and laughing. David didn't have gelato- I think he was too full from the bread and pasta from dinner.

We walked the streets of Jesolo until 10:30 pm and then came back to the hotel. We took a tour of each others hotel rooms because they are all quite unique! The girls have a lovely and normal room with a balcony view of the sea but the boys are together in a funny room with a 'build your own shower'. They all have pics of the funny bathroom and crazy bright bedspreads. And I'm in what looks like a garage that has been refurbished. The kids all have lovely balconies and sneak peek views of the sea and Jesolo. I do not have even one window and your knees hit the wall when you're on the toilet.... Oh, and all the kids are so interested in the bidets that are common here and in their bathrooms. But it's all very European and funny and your kids are the best travelers as they take everything in stride and really concentrate on the good! As we keep saying, it's all a good and new experience! I think the hotels get better from here and we don't eat at anymore hotels so food should improve too. It's not terrible, just different! I promise.

Everyone is getting along brilliantly and I can almost watch them get closer and bond more with each new experience.

Well, it's very late and we have a 6:45 wake up call so we can leave for Florence by 8:00 am. Oh, and we are all going to Florence via Pisa! It was a group consensus of the whole 49 person group so it won't cost a dime and we get to see Pisa. The kids are really excited.

I have to warn you that your children are already speaking of studying abroad while in college. So you might want to start saving now!!

Off to bed and Pisa and Florence tomorrow. (sorry this post is sort of all over the place, it's exhaustion and the time, 1:00am. I promise it's not my glass of wine.....

See you in Florence- Ciao