We arrived in Venice (Venezia S. Lucia) by train from Rome in the afternoon and entered the Venetian island in broad daylight and emerged from the train station straight into the waterfront. Our apartment was in San Polo, seven water bus stops away from the water bus station called Ferrovia. We had to disembark at Rialto Mercato stop, one before the Rialto stop to get to our apartment. Lady Sandra, mother of Christina through whom we booked, greeted us at the Rialto Mercato stop. We walked 10 minutes to the apartment through narrow alleys dotted with shops and houses, eateries and sidewalk cafes and she explained some of the best places to grab coffee on the way. The apartment was on the first floor. She opened the apartment and led us into a modern sparkling white house, that gave one an impression of a high end sixth avenue apartment in New York, walls filled with Hollywood pictures, Roman holiday on the walls of the living room, pictures of James Dean, Audrey Hepburn on the passage walls, all upholstery done in shades of grey, black and white, the walls sparkling white, the cabinets in dark black. It was a breath of freshness for us. Lady Sandra gave us a tour of the house explaining to us where things were kept, how to use the kitchen, the rules around garbage disposal. In Venice, the fine for garbage littering and non-segregation is 200 euros. She asked us to leave the garbage inside the house in case we were not sure and if we are out in the morning when the garbage collector rings the bell between 9:30 and 10:00 am. Finally, she sat us down at the square dining table with a map of Venice to give us a guided tour of the must-do restaurants, shopping places, and sightseeing, marking the map with legends and numbers to make it totally easy for us. We got the apartment along with a tour guide in one go. The apartment had a living cum dining room with television, a huge double sofa cum bed, and a single one too. (Btw, this was the best sofa bed and quality mattress that I have seen in a long time). There were two bedrooms, one with a double bed, the second with three singles (2 joined and 1 separate). The 1st bedroom had an attached bathroom that also had a sauna, the second with a bathroom next to it. The kitchen was an open one between the two bedrooms along the passage. The second bedroom had a small balcony with a clothes line hanging over a canal. She had a good stock of all-white crockery, stainless steel cutlery, bath towels and toilet rolls. The kitchen had enough stock of tea, coffee and spices for us. There was a separate store room next to the living room. All in all a perfect living space for four adults and three children. Lady Sandra finished her duty with us and bade us...