Luxurious wedding The scheduled between Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his partner Lauren Sanchez is scheduled to take place in Venice, Italy from June 26 to 28. However, protests have been in the city for months, and in recent days have intensified the social and environmental impact of the wedding, the “Space Without Bezos” movement (referring to his aerospace investment), which will occupy many of the historic lagoon centers.
Our Knowledge of the Event
The three-day celebration promises unprecedented grandeur, located in historic buildings, luxury yachts and international VIPs. Three major events have been arranged: the exclusive evening at the Venice Hall on June 26, the exchange of vows at the Teatro Verde in San Giorgio Maggiore the next day, and the finale on June 28, will be held at the 16th-century Scuola Grande Della Misericordia.
The guest list for Bezos-Sanchez’s wedding included Microsoft founder Bill Gates, TV host Oprah Winfrey, and cast members including Leonardo DiCaprio, Barbra Streisand, Eva Longoria, Orlando Bloom and Robert Pattinson.
Exclusive gatherings are also planned at secret locations on the smaller lagoon islands, including Burano, Giudecca and Sacca Sessola. This incident will certainly leave traces in Venice, including in terms of environmental impacts and the inconvenience that may be brought to urban transit infrastructure.
80 jets and over 30 private water taxis
Guests will arrive at 80 private jets and take more than 30 water taxis, yachts and gondolas that have been reserved.
According to some official sources, flights in New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris and Dubai are planned. Not to mention the luxury yachts coming to Venice, there are already plans to moor the maritime station, Punta Della Dogana, San Basilio and Riva Degli Schiavoni.
These include Bezos’ own ship, korua 417-foot superyacht with a price of $500 million, and its 246-foot support boat Abeonaequipped with a helicopter deck and dedicated staff, although it still has not been confirmed to enter the lagoon.
The only yacht to be docked as of Tuesday is M’Brace Legendary basketball player Michael Jordan arrives with his wife. During all three days of the event, 30 to 50 water taxis were kept full-time, each time costing €400 per hour.
For or object
The grand celebrations divided public opinion. According to some, the huge expenses to organize Bezos’ weddings could have a positive impact on the territory, funding hotels, transportation, dining and exclusive locations. The Washington Post, owned by Bezos, announced that about 80% of its products and services come from local Venetian suppliers.
But how much does it cost? The other side of the coin includes a group of activists and residents who opened the space for the Bezos campaign a few months ago to denounce the city’s spectacularity at the expense of residents. Protesters are developing several plans to block roads and waterways. One reason for the protest is that the environmental impact of mass mobilization in the city of lagoon is in the fight against the overcrowding caused by tourists.
However, the city of Venice has guaranteed that the marriage between Bezos and Sanchez will not “cause any interference to the city, residents or tourists.” Over the years, Venice has actually managed to handle international events with even more influence than that, such as the G20 economy, G7 justice, bilateral national conferences, and the art, architecture and cinema biennials. Organizer, municipality then designated: “There has not been too many gondolas or water taxis yet, because as read in the newspaper, the interest is to ensure the city works properly, to everyone, without any interference with anyone.”
The story originally appeared in Italy’s wired Italy and has been translated from Italian.
