Venice once again

On our way back from Croatia, we stopped for 4 days in Venice, another one of our favourite cities. We always discover something new in Venice. This time we spent a lot of time in Cannaregio, the most local suburb in central Venice. We found some great restaurants, including Il Paradiso Perduto, serving Venetian seafood. They also have live music most nights, which is rare in Venice. Instead of visiting Murano, we went to photogenic and touristy Burano this time. We also visited the almost uninhabited island of Torcello and had an amazing lunch at Locando Cipriani, a local institution which has hosted everyone from the Queen of England to Bill Clinton to Elton John over it's long history. Cichetti is the Venetian version of Tapas and we spent lots of time in the osteria anticos ( old inns), sampling the snacks and learning more about local wines. Neil discovered Ripasso, a red varietal something like Amarone, but at much more affordable prices. We went to Lido, the beachy island too. We can also recommend the Peggy Guggenheim Museum of Modern Art for a shot of culture.

Locando Cipriani

Burano

 Il Paradiso Perduto

 Peggy Guggenheim Museum

Sailing in Croatia

Nothing like being upgraded to "Super Yacht"( move over you Oligarchs, the Saffers are on board) from Wooden Gulag at the last minute for a week of sailing/cruising around the islands of Croatia with a bunch of jollers and celebrating both our birthdays in style. Unlike the massive cruise ships, this boat only had 40 guests and sailed during the day, docking in a different port each night so we were able to eat at local restaurants and enjoy a few nights of music and dancing in various spots. The weather was glorious for September and we all had a great time. It's the kind of trip we could do over again with a group.