Goodbye Venice, Hello Paris!

Our last night in Venice was wonderful. Our pilgrimage group met in the outdoor sitting area of our hotel and had a local drink called a Bellini (named after the artist) which is Italian champagne with real peach juice. After a few toasts we made our way to our restaurant just pass St. Mark's Square. We enjoyed the largest meal of our trip - the antipasti included fried vegetables like cauliflower, zucchini, and artichokes along with stuffed mushrooms, the first course was fettuchini Alfredo with the most amazing noodles I have ever had, along with some kind of pasta stuffed with chopped veal. Then we had a light salad to clear our palates, and then the second course was the meat dish, with samples of beef, pork, sausage, bacon, etc. Then we had this delicious chocolate cream puff for dessert followed by cappuccino, of course. It was a fabulous meal at the end of a fabulous trip. After dinner we hung out in St. Mark's Square and listened to the bands playing around the square. No one could quite believe we were there, it was a surreal experience.

The next morning my fellow pilgrims and I said our goodbyes, and I was off to the Venice airport along with a dozen others. My destination was Paris! However, when we arrived at the airport (after a boat trip and shuttle) I discovered that British Airways was on strike in Venice and thus my plane was not leaving. Just my luck. I was immediately put on a bus to Verona and was able to catch a flight to Gatwik Airport in London. When I got to Gatwik and went to baggage claim for my luggage, it didn't show up. No kidding. The British Airways people did a report, and then I hopped a bus to Heathrow, the point of my departure for Paris. So technically I was in England for at least an hour, driving through the countryside to get to Heathrow. England was beautiful, with tons of green grass, trees, and bushes. I passed cows, sheep, and people driving from the passenger side seats of the car. ;) When I finally got on my plane to Paris (three hours later then originally scheduled) I saw a fox hanging out on a grassy area near the runway - crazy.

We landed in Paris as the sun was setting and I was able to see the Eiffel Tower in the distance. Laura met me at the airport and we took a bus to the metro station, passing the Arc de Triomphe all lit up in the dark - it was a cool welcome to Paris. After a few problems at the metro station, we made it to Bougival, the suburb outside of Paris where Laura will be living for a year.