Official - You are over the hill at 25 LOL

Admin wrote:

hyatum wrote:Ahhh you all make me laugh so much! I have missed your cheeky chirps and clever witty comments....Strawbs I loved Venice, I was there a few years ago after skiing (badly) in Livigno and Madonna di Campiglio. I just so enjoyed watching all the glass-blowers, such beautiful pieces. On the grand canal is a collection of the famous Peggy Guggenheim Art Collection, really inspirational... and I loved the Doges as well. I was like a pig in shite there with the art-works. Actually I left the ski place and bravely caught a bus to Venice then a train all across Italy and France to England. Actually I never knew where the train was going half the time, I just went west!!! but honestly I expected to end up in Moscow with a Molotov up my butt. My return flight left from Paris....so imagine my horror when I returned there from London and was told that I did not have a 'visa' for longer than 1 day!!!! Yikes I had to kiss arse with that one....anyway the very dark immigration officer once convinced that you do get pale blonde Africans, let me shuffle off to catch my flight.

Hugs to you all

Nicks
xxx

Hi Nicks,

Oh yes, I can just imagine how you must love Venice - what with being an artist and painting......I bet you felt like you'd landed in paradise! I can see how it's an artist's dream with not just all the beautiful architecture, but the changing light from dawn to dusk and how the water amplifies the light.....it is just like fairyland isn't it?

We were going to catch the vaporetto over to Murano, but even though we had three days and nights there, we never got round to it (another excuse to go back!) Monsieur Strawberry did buy me some Murano jewellery, though, from a shop that had all the Murano certification - and you could just see it was unique and handmade. I've got a beautiful blue Murano necklace and bracelet - which I will put up on the site - it is just SOlovely, and is handsigned by the glassmaker. I bought my daughter two Murano drinking glasses - and I'm going to warn her not to drink out of them! haha We also bought a few other gifts (a Murano gondolier - quite plain, actually, all black glass) and a few other pieces. I fell in love with a pink and clear glass chandelier, but the man wanted 2,000 Euros for it, so I'm still deciding....he does ship (and he showed me his list of customers (Michael Winner has bought from him it seems) and his pieces are just wonderful. I also fell in love with a turtle.....but that was far too heavy to carry, and I couldn't bear to have dropped it (cost an arm and leg) so may have that shipped over too. All shipping is insured, so no worries of it getting broken en route....be a terrible diappoinntment though!

Before we went over there I did some research and discovered there are fake Chinese glass that some stalls sell out there (some small shops too) but even with my inexperienced eye I could see STRAIGHT AWAY the Murano from the fake. They're like chalk and cheese! I definitely want to go to the glass factory in Murano, though; those glassblowers are incredibly talented! As you know yourself some of those works of art are INCREDIBLY detailed! They're just amazing. And Murano glass itself is in a class all of its own.....

We also wanted to go to Burano where all the pretty painted houses are, but on the morning when we tried to go there they had a strike on or something - so that's another to-do for next time! To be honest, we had so much to see and do in Venice itself, and what with getting lost at night (which was a wonderfully exciting feeling with the quiet streets and atmosphere there) we just took a lot of it in our stride, and went with the flow.... We were lucky to stay in San Marco, because late at night it seemed as though, except for a few people dotted about - we had it all to ourselves! Those soft pink lanterns in the square are just sooooo romantic - and to think Casanova and Napolean feasted their eyes on that very same square is somehow really incredible.

We passed the Peggy Guggenheim art centre, and everyone we spoke to told us it was a must-do, but again, we never got round to it. Next time though, for sure! We only touched the surface really - San Marco, the Rialto, Bridge of Sighs, Grand Canal tour, the Lido - plus the gondolier ride of course, and lots and lots of walking through backstreet canals and alleyways.....

Your adventure across Italy, France and England sounds like it was huge fun! I love things like that - impulsive trips! I've done a few of them in the past....moons ago.........great fun! You not really knowing where you were going reminds me of something I read years ago - which I found hilarious! A Chinese tourist in London went into one of the big stations (Waterloo or somewhere) and asked for a ticket to 'Torquay' - which she promptly bought and sat herself on the train she was told to get on. About 50 miles before reaching Torquay she asked a fellow passenger how it was so quick to 'Torquay' and it transpired she wanted to go to Turkey! haha And that is a true story that I read in the Daily Mail!

Anyway, hope you're having a brilliant weekend...and look forward to hearing from you soon!

By the way, are you still doing Florence this year?

Strawbs

hyatum wrote:

Admin wrote:

hyatum wrote:Ahhh you all make me laugh so much! I have missed your cheeky chirps and clever witty comments....Strawbs I loved Venice, I was there a few years ago after skiing (badly) in Livigno and Madonna di Campiglio. I just so enjoyed watching all the glass-blowers, such beautiful pieces. On the grand canal is a collection of the famous Peggy Guggenheim Art Collection, really inspirational... and I loved the Doges as well. I was like a pig in shite there with the art-works. Actually I left the ski place and bravely caught a bus to Venice then a train all across Italy and France to England. Actually I never knew where the train was going half the time, I just went west!!! but honestly I expected to end up in Moscow with a Molotov up my butt. My return flight left from Paris....so imagine my horror when I returned there from London and was told that I did not have a 'visa' for longer than 1 day!!!! Yikes I had to kiss arse with that one....anyway the very dark immigration officer once convinced that you do get pale blonde Africans, let me shuffle off to catch my flight.

Hugs to you all

Nicks
xxx

Hi Nicks,

Oh yes, I can just imagine how you must love Venice - what with being an artist and painting......I bet you felt like you'd landed in paradise! I can see how it's an artist's dream with not just all the beautiful architecture, but the changing light from dawn to dusk and how the water amplifies the light.....it is just like fairyland isn't it?

We were going to catch the vaporetto over to Murano, but even though we had three days and nights there, we never got round to it (another excuse to go back!) Monsieur Strawberry did buy me some Murano jewellery, though, from a shop that had all the Murano certification - and you could just see it was unique and handmade. I've got a beautiful blue Murano necklace and bracelet - which I will put up on the site - it is just SOlovely, and is handsigned by the glassmaker. I bought my daughter two Murano drinking glasses - and I'm going to warn her not to drink out of them! haha We also bought a few other gifts (a Murano gondolier - quite plain, actually, all black glass) and a few other pieces. I fell in love with a pink and clear glass chandelier, but the man wanted 2,000 Euros for it, so I'm still deciding....he does ship (and he showed me his list of customers (Michael Winner has bought from him it seems) and his pieces are just wonderful. I also fell in love with a turtle.....but that was far too heavy to carry, and I couldn't bear to have dropped it (cost an arm and leg) so may have that shipped over too. All shipping is insured, so no worries of it getting broken en route....be a terrible diappoinntment though!

Before we went over there I did some research and discovered there are fake Chinese glass that some stalls sell out there (some small shops too) but even with my inexperienced eye I could see STRAIGHT AWAY the Murano from the fake. They're like chalk and cheese! I definitely want to go to the glass factory in Murano, though; those glassblowers are incredibly talented! As you know yourself some of those works of art are INCREDIBLY detailed! They're just amazing. And Murano glass itself is in a class all of its own.....

We also wanted to go to Burano where all the pretty painted houses are, but on the morning when we tried to go there they had a strike on or something - so that's another to-do for next time! To be honest, we had so much to see and do in Venice itself, and what with getting lost at night (which was a wonderfully exciting feeling with the quiet streets and atmosphere there) we just took a lot of it in our stride, and went with the flow.... We were lucky to stay in San Marco, because late at night it seemed as though, except for a few people dotted about - we had it all to ourselves! Those soft pink lanterns in the square are just sooooo romantic - and to think Casanova and Napolean feasted their eyes on that very same square is somehow really incredible.

We passed the Peggy Guggenheim art centre, and everyone we spoke to told us it was a must-do, but again, we never got round to it. Next time though, for sure! We only touched the surface really - San Marco, the Rialto, Bridge of Sighs, Grand Canal tour, the Lido - plus the gondolier ride of course, and lots and lots of walking through backstreet canals and alleyways.....

Your adventure across Italy, France and England sounds like it was huge fun! I love things like that - impulsive trips! I've done a few of them in the past....moons ago.........great fun! You not really knowing where you were going reminds me of something I read years ago - which I found hilarious! A Chinese tourist in London went into one of the big stations (Waterloo or somewhere) and asked for a ticket to 'Torquay' - which she promptly bought and sat herself on the train she was told to get on. About 50 miles before reaching Torquay she asked a fellow passenger how it was so quick to 'Torquay' and it transpired she wanted to go to Turkey! haha And that is a true story that I read in the Daily Mail!

Anyway, hope you're having a brilliant weekend...and look forward to hearing from you soon!

By the way, are you still doing Florence this year?

Strawbs

Hi Strawbs

Am pleased your back and had such a great time, your pics are lovely!

Yes, I am still hoping to go to Florence, but right now I am soooo hectically busy......have a bunch of commissions, people staying with me, weddings (thank God were are getting rid of all the spinsters in the family, we can't seem to give them away) and planning another trans-Africa trip (going west this time not north). I hope to go in the summer but in the meantime I will be attending an amazing work-shop with other SA artists, so I am really looking forward to that.

I am a bit impulsive about traveling, it's great to have everything booked but every now and then its good to just go with your instincts and see where you end up!

I loved the Murano glass factory.......


figurines. A friend of mine also went there and she ordered expensive hand-blown glass dolphins (which I thought were hideous) and had them shipped here! Well, the dolphins arrived looking much brighter than the ones she ordered, so she sent them back!!!!!! and although it took about a year, they were replaced with really beautiful crystal glasses!! Which were actually much nicer than the fecking dolphin.

Take care and hope this week has been great for you

Nicks xx