Billy and Melissa came to visit us and we were so excited for their visit. Not only because we miss them and we wanted to show them Italy but Billy had a surprise planned for Melissa. He was going to propose while they were here! Billy and Melissa are high school sweethearts that survived going to separate colleges so they have been together for many years. Since day one, our family has LOVED Melissa and we are all so happy that she will soon legally belong to us!

I was constantly checking the weather app before their arrival and the weather forecast kept getting worse by forecasting cold temperatures and rain. It rained the day they flew in but then the weather miraculously changed and we had great sunny weather for most of their stay.

Billy asked me to help pan the where and when of the proposal so of course I took over! I sent him some pics of what I was thinking and then we made it happen. We rented a private taxi boat to give us a tour of Lake Como and it would drop us off to explore the gardens of Villa Balbianello. Many famous people have gotten married at Villa Balbianello and scenes from Star Wars: Attack of the Clones (2002) and Casino Royale (2006) were shot there. The gardens are spectacular and Billy found the perfect spot to ask the big question! Thankfully, she said yes! We celebrated with some Prosecco in the boat on the way back.

Funny story… Billy had asked Andy and me to take pictures and video the proposal. That was our only job. Sometime in the delivery of the instructions to Andy I must have said that he was to record (meaning video) and I would take the pictures. Well to an engineer, record means sound. Andy is very literal. So we have great pictures and a sound recording of the proposal. No video. As I said, we had one job. When we realized our mistake, we offered them a re-do but they declined.

We enjoyed the rest of the day exploring Varenna and Bellagio by shopping and eating!

The next day we went to Stresa on Lake Maggiore and ate lunch on Isolsa dei Pescatori which is an island in the lake. Then we explored Isola Bella and toured the Baroque palace and gardens of the Borromeo family. When Stacey, Craig and Devon were here this was one of their favorite spots to visit. We even took selfies in the exact same spot and Andy was wearing the same shirt and hat!

The next part of our trip brought us to Cinque Terre and Portofino on the Mediterranean.  Andy and I had been to Cinque Terre before but we brought the dogs and it rained the whole time so we really didn’t have a chance to explore and we knew that we wanted to come back. Cinque Terre means Five Towns. You can only reach the five towns by hiking, train or boat. We parked the car at the first town and took the train to the other towns as the hiking trails were closed due to mud slides. The towns are small fishing villages with shopping and restaurants to cater to the tourists. The towns are on the side of the cliff and some of them were a hike to get to from the train station. Each town was unique and so worth the climb. I think this was Billy and Melissa’s favorite part of their vacation, not counting the proposal of course!

We then went to Venice, because as I’ve said, you have to visit Venice when you come to Italy. There is no where else quite like it. This was Andy’s and my third time. Venice is crumbing and usually crowded and hot, but as I said, it is a must see.  We did the expected and took a gondola ride, ate great food and shopped. It was raining the next morning when we woke up but that didn’t stop us from taking a  taxi boat to the island of Murano to go glass shopping. The rain lessened the crowds so it was nice. Billy, Melissa and I went into (almost) every store and Andy patiently waited for us.

Andy and I had a fantastic time with these two and we are so excited for the next chapter in their lives. But don’t worry Billy and Melissa, we won’t crash your honeymoon!