Hotel Rialto, Venice

 We arrived safely in Venice after a further six hours travel to seven degrees and foggy skies. Even getting to our hotel was an adventure aboard the Alilaguna water bus, but we easily found our hotel right by the Rialto Bridge.

Our old-world room is small but comfortable with ornate furniture and a Murano glass chandelier. We settled in with a quick shower and then went out on foot to explore the narrow canals and laneways around our hotel.

When the six of us had all arrived, we explored further and finished the evening with dinner of an enormous steak cooked on a hot stone right at the table in front of us, accompanied by a local wine. The atmosphere was warm and cosy, even though a little chilly towards the end.