Just a one-a light-a bulb-o...Give it to me?

We were excited, we were just about packed, we had sorted out pet care, we had googled things to do...we didn't anticipate the 6 inches of show that fell, onto the existing snow - overnight before a carefully calculated 5.40 am drive to the airport for a weekend away in Venice.

Ho hum, I woke, I drank coffee, I dug out the car and swept off the all new 6 inches of snow from the car roof. Then loaded up the car and walked the dogs...what's missing? Oh yes, the shower had to go. Pity anyone sat next to me on the plane...oh, it's just family, that's ok!

A bit sweaty, but relieved we arrive to sunshine and a warm welcome from the Italian border control. Although I suspect border control people from all over the world go to the same training course. Training day 2: "No matter how much the visitors try to engage you with their very bad attempts at saying hello in your spoken language, do not smile or respond under any circumstances" It's a finely honed skill I've developed to see through the training to recognise the glimmer of warm welcome.

I purchase a 'plastic map' and some vaparetto tickets from a newspaper stand. Leanne has admitted that my Italian is better than hers (thanks to an iphone app) but I think this is a ruse to make me do all the transactions. The vaparetto is fun and we arrive at St Marks, equipped with a map and a desire to check in quickly and find food, it was getting on and breakfast was ages ago in a different country.

However, our destination appeared not to have an actual street name, just a proximity. It's 100 meters from this theatre, if you see this shop, you are quite close...a little like a treasure hunt really. Quite exciting UNLESS you are three fairly strong minded individuals with very low blood sugar and one has a desire to pee. We were a little frantic, careering up and down tiny streets, being accosted by people trying to sell us handbags, reaching dead ends...eventually a lone gondolier driver (?) seemed to appear and offer us assistance. It seemed we had been unknowingly circumnavigating our destination a few times, it was quite obvious where it was when we got there.

It was all worth it, the light fitting in our room was well worth the hike, stress, low blood sugar and mild bickering experienced to get there. We were all mesmerised. One bulb was out, but 9 out of 10 ain't bad.