It is late April, around 10 in the morning, someday in an already distant past.
Venice just awoke from a misty night, and the sun has just whisked away the last hints of fog.
Numerous small and mid-sized launches hurry their wide assortments of colorful loads around the canals.
At Santa Lucia train station, a Vaporetto just off loads a group of smartly dressed passengers.
Another group arrives on board the private launch from the Cipriani Hotel, a luxury resort at the tip of the Isola della Giudecca, where they have just spent a couple of pampered relaxing days!
A mysterious young woman, dressed in an elegant grey suit, her face unrecognizable behind her voilette, delicately jumps from the gondola that had brought her from Palazzo Popodopoli where she was, as many celebrities,a private guest for a few days.
She briskly walks up the stairs to the station.
For a moment, the only things on the Piazetta are her high-heels briskly impacting the pavement and her undulating silhouette.
Soon, she dissapears inside the station, and the piazzetta, after stopping for a few seconds, moves on...
Inside the station, a rutilant rake of 17 CIWL Blue, White and Gold coaches has pulled along platform n°2, where uniformed attendants are busy showing the arriving passengers to their compartments, all along loading their luggages and helping with installation.
The Orient Express, bound to Paris, Calais and London is about ready for its scheduled 10.57 AM departure.
The Maître d'hôtel is already walking along the corridors, taking reservations for the two servings of lunch:
"A table for two, Madam? Very well."
"First or second serving?"
"Would you like the Lalique Pulmann restaurant-car or the Chinese car?"
10.57am!
The signal ahead of the two locomotives has just turned to green.
The 934 tons heavy train pulls out exactly on time, and starts its crossing of the Venice Laguna on the Ponte de La Liberta.
Passengers settle in, as the conductor passes through each compartments, offering a glass of Champagne to each passenger.
While the train accelerates accross the Venetian landscape, passengers discover the beautiful Art-nouveau interior decoration, each coach different from the others.
Some have marquetry panels designed by French decorator René Prou, other were decorated by British artists Maple, Nelson and Morison.
The piano-bar car in the middle of the train is a creation of the French Gérard Gallet.
The first restaurant car, also known as the Chinese car, bears a series of black lacquered panels, showing various scenes with naively painted animals.
The Lalique Pulmann restaurant-car is the most original of the three: Lalique's designed glass panels showing "Bacchanalian Maidens" adorn its walls in perfectly mid-1930's art-nouveau style...!
Around Verona comes the call for first serving of lunch...and passengers start gathering in the three restaurant-cars.
Orders are taken and soon one can hear the first corks popping from the wine and champagne bottles...
The menu reads like the promise for a culinary Parnassus...
*White asparagus and poached egg*
*Truffle flavoured sabayon and its caviar*
*Pan fried John Dory in Wasabi sour cream*
*Bacon and vegetable savoury pie*
*Parsley steamed potatoes*
*Cinnamon spiced rice pudding*
*Chocolate, hazelnut and Almond caramel*
*Colombian coffee*
To be continued...
Edited by user 08 October 2012 10:09:23(UTC)
| Reason: Not specified
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