The founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezosand the journalist Lauren Sánchez left their luxury hotel on the Great Venetian Canal this Friday (27) for the wedding ceremonythe central point of a three -day party with dozens of stars, but also protests from local activists.
55, nodded and threw kisses to the viewers while boarding an elegant motor boat outside the Aman Hotel, wearing a short-sleeved suit, cream, tight skirt, sunglasses and a head scarf to protect it from the scorching summer sun.
About two hours later, bezos, 61, wearing a black tuxedo and butterfly tie on a white shirt, made the same trip to the lagoon to the small island of San Giorgio, where the couple would exchange alliances, accompanied by the song of Matteo Bocelli, son of Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli.
It will not have legal status under Italian law, a tall city official told Reuters, suggesting that the couple may have already married legally in the United States, avoiding the bureaucracy associated with an Italian marriage.
Three -day Estimated cost of about $ 50 million (more than $ 200 millionin the current quotation). The party comes to an end on Saturday (28), with a party at an old medieval shipyard, and some media outlets say Lady Gaga and Elton John should perform.
Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom, Tom Brady, Jordan Queen, Oprah Winfrey, Kris Jenner, Kim and Khloe Kardashian, as well as Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner and Domenico Dolce, from Dolce & Gabbana, are including 200 to 250 guests.
Amid strong security, there were some moments when celebrities were seen circulating around the city, with women in summer dresses and high heels coming out with some care of the boats that transported them through the city’s canals.
The celebrations in the cloisters of Madonna Dell’Orto, a medieval church in the central neighborhood of Cannaregio that houses masterpieces of the 16th century painter Tintoretto.
“This magical place presented us with unforgettable memories,” the bride and groom said in the wedding invitation, in which they asked for “no gifts” and promised charity donations to three Venetian institutions. Donations are worth 3 million euros (about $ 19 million).
Protests in the city
Companies have welcomed brightness and glamor, but face the opposition of a movement of local protests, whose members resent what they consider Venice wrapped for gift for ultra-rich outside. Bezos occupies fourth place on Forbes’s list of global billionaires.
Giulia Cacopardo, a 28 -year -old representative of the “No Bezos Space,” complained that the needs of ordinary people were being neglected in a city that is a tourist magnet and is quickly depopting, largely due to the high cost of living.
The city center of Venice has less than 50,000 residents compared to almost 100,000 in the late 1970s.
“When you empty a city of your inhabitants, you can turn it into a stage for big events,” Cacopard told Reuters. “(But) the money that Bezos spends on this marriage does not end in the pockets of the Venetians. The owners of luxury hotels are not Venetians.”
Cacopard was one of the 30 to 40 activists who organized a protest in St. Mark’s Square on Thursday (26), shouting: “We are 99%.” A masked couple imitated the bride and groom and a man rose on a pole to unfold a track with the words “1% arrange the world.”
The police intervened, removing the protesters forcibly.
The Anti-Bezos Front is planning a march on Saturday, and its activities have already led the authorities to reinforce safety and change the closing party site for a more isolated part of Venice, the former Arsenale shipyard.
Charlotte Perkins, an Australian tourist, said he could understand the resident’s resentment because his city was treated as a playground of celebrities.
“I would probably feel the same thing if I lived here,” she said.
But politicians, hoteliers, and some other Venice residents are happy with the marriage, saying that such events do more to support the local economy than the multitudes of tourists who normally crowd the city.
“We are happy and honored to welcome Jeff Bezos and his consort Lauren Sánchez,” said Mayor Luigi Brugnaro, who sent white roses to the bride and a large bottle of red luxury wine Amarone to the groom.
A study by the Ministry of Tourism of Italy estimated the general economic impact of marriage by 957 million euros, with an increase of 896 million euros from “media visibility” and the rest from direct or indirect spending related to the event.
Bezos, CEO of Amazon, was engaged to Sanchez in 2023, four years after the end of his 25 -year marriage to Mackenzie Scott.
