Happy birthday

Today is Nicole’s 23rd birthday.  We all over slept.  We had thought to go out to a brunch, but decided we needed to finish off the food in the refrigerator.  After breakfast Nicole and I went out to coffee, and then to the Academia.  The Academia is the major renaissance gallery in Venice.  We went there last fall with my family, but it is worth a second look.  Now we have packed our bags.  Jürgen and Sarah are taking half our stuff to the car.  We hope to leave in the morning (early before the crowds arrive).  We could stay until Saturday but I think we have all had our fill of Venice.  The beds are not so comfortable.  The crowds are unbearable.  I have seen so much, I cannot process it all. I’m just full of art and architecture.  I would love to make a stop at an Italian food store before we leave the country.  And if we can buy onion and garlic, artichoke and cabbage plants…well that would be really wonderful!  The plan is to walk Jessica to the train early tomorrow morning.  Hopefully it will not take us 7 hours to get her back to the car.  We will leave the keys in the apartment.  If she does not walk across the island I do not know what we can do.  It should take us between 8 and 10 hours to drive home.  We plan to drive through Austria.  But it is vacation time.  The traffic could be pretty bad.  But we think it will be worse on Saturday.

This afternoon I want to see the inside of St Marks, and go up to the top of the tower in St Mark’s square to watch the sunset.  But the crowds are so great, I may end up passing on both things. I am really so tired of all these people!