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Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Woman, 77, moves onto cruise ship permanently — says it's cheaper than living in California
Last month, 77-year-old Sharon Lane moved out of her retirement village in Orange County, California, to embark on her dream adventure: A 15-year trip around the world. Lane invested in her own cabin on Villa Vie's Odyssey, which bills itself as the first perpetual world cruise, with many of its passengers booking a 'permanent home' on board. Odyssey launched in October and is set to visit 147 countries and 425 destinations over a three-and-a-half-year cycle. The ship offers long-term living options, allowing residents to either purchase cabins outright for its entire lifespan of 15 years or opt for a pay-as-you-go plan. Cabin prices begin at $129,000 for an interior cabin with a 15-year lease. Monthly fees are $2,000 per person for double occupancy or $3,000 for singles. For outside cabins, prices start at $169,000, with monthly fees increasing by $500 per person. Lane joind Odyssey in June, spending her life savings on an interior cabin that would be hers for the ship's lifetime. Over the years, the cruise will continually circle the globe, stopping at destinations like Japan and New Zealand. 'I'm finally able to do what I've wanted to do for years,' she told CNN Travel. 'I buy the cabin, I live in the cabin, and that's it. And then there's no end.' Odyssey saw a few issues before it took off in October. It set sail four months later than planned after a string of last-minute repairs. During that delay, passengers were stuck in Belfast, Ireland, leaving dozens of ports unvisited and countries unexplored. However, Lane felt confident that the ship 'worked out the kinks' when she joined the trip mid-June. 'I don't want complications in my life, you know, I'm at a point in my life where I want simplicity,' she explained. Despite the steep cost, Lane believes she's getting great value, as her payments cover meals, drinks, alcohol with dinner, Wi-Fi, and medical visits. Her package also includes room service, weekly housekeeping, and bi-weekly laundry service. 'I don't have to do my laundry anymore. I don't have to do grocery shopping,' she explained. 'Living on the ship is much less expensive than living in Southern California.' Lane's 15-year trip is just getting started, and while she has the option to sell or rent her cabin down the line, she doesn't plan on shortening her trip. 'There's no end,' she explained. 'Sure, in 15 years… but in 15 years, I'll be ready for a home… Or maybe, at the end, I'll go on their next ship… I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.' Villa Vie Residences bought Odyssey, the 31-year-old ship, in 2023, with the ship arriving at Queen's Island in Belfast to be outfitted in April 2024. The 542ft-long cruise ship was built in 1993 in Valencia, Spain, consisting of eight decks, 485 cabins, and can carry up to 650 residents. The ship was extensively refurbished at a historic dry dock in the Northern Irish capital, owned by Harland and Wolff, a maritime engineering company that produced the ill-fated Titanic. It was also transformed to include a pub, cocktail bar, business center, and a pool on the top deck. A fitness center, medical room, dining hall, and spa are also onboard the all-inclusive cruise for residents to use. Other amenities for passengers, according to Villa Vie's website, include a pickleball court, different shows and performances, wellness classes, and social events, from elegant dinners to casual meet-ups. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
23-07-2025
- Yahoo
US slips again in passport power rankings
Sign up for Unlocking the World, CNN Travel's weekly newsletter. Get news about destinations, plus the latest in aviation, food and drink, and where to stay. The United States is on the brink of dropping out of the top 10 ranking of the world's most powerful passports. In the latest quarterly update of the Henley Passport Index, created by the London-based global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners, the US — which held the No. 1 position back in 2014 — has slipped down to the 10th place in the rankings. It's the lowest position ever for the US in the 20-year history of the index, which tracks the global freedom of movement for holders of 199 passports to 227 countries and territories around the world, using exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). And because Henley counts multiple countries with the same score as a single spot in its standings, there are actually 33 countries that outrank the US on the list. As we enter the second half of the year, Singapore has held onto its No.1 position as the world's most powerful passport for 2025. Holders of this most desirable of travel documents enjoy visa-free access to 193 out of 227 destinations worldwide, more than citizens of any other place on the planet. Naturally, Singapore isn't handing out passports to foreign nationals like candy. Applying for Singaporean citizenship requires at least two years of permanent residency, a review of 'economic contributions' and other qualifications, and compulsory national service for male applicants. South Korea has climbed to join Japan at No.2 in the ranking, with an open door to 190 destinations, ensuring that Asian nations have a solid lead in the global mobility race. The EU member states of Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, and Spain are all at No.3 behind them, in the third tier, along with Finland, with access to 189 destinations with no prior visa needed. Europe holds sway over the fourth position in the rankings, too, which belongs to seven countries: Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal and Sweden. All enjoy visa-free access to 188 destinations. Squeaking into fifth place are Greece, Switzerland and New Zealand, all of which have visa-free access to 187 destinations. The mobility gap At the opposite end of the list, at No. 99, Afghanistan remains locked in bottom place, with visa-free access to just 25 destinations, one fewer than at the start of this year. Syria is at No. 98 (with 27 destinations) and Iraq is at No. 97 (with 30 destinations). That's a yawning mobility gap of 168 destinations between the top- and bottom-ranked passports. The UK has dropped one spot to No. 6 in the rankings, with visa-free access to 186 destinations. Australia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Malta and Poland are tied at No. 7, while Canada, Estonia and the United Arab Emirates are at No. 8. The UAE is one of the biggest success stories on the index, having risen 34 places in the past decade, from No. 42 to eighth place. China has also jumped from No. 94 to No. 60 since 2015, a rise that's been achieved even without visa-free access to the 29 countries in Europe's Schengen Area. 'Active and strategic diplomacy' Ninth place is shared by Croatia, Latvia, Slovakia and Slovenia, while No.10 is held by Iceland, Lithuania and the United States. The US now has visa-free access to 182 destinations worldwide. In a provision in the Trump administration's recently enacted domestic policy bill, the United States will soon require international visitors to pay a new 'visa integrity fee' of at least $250, added to existing visa application costs. The fee will apply to all visitors who are required to obtain nonimmigrant visas to enter the United States. Critics including the U.S. Travel Association, a national nonprofit organization aimed at increasing travel to the United States, have panned the new visa fee as discouraging to visitors. Christian H. Kaelin, chair of Henley and Partners, said in a release that the latest Henley Passport Index reveals an increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility. 'The consolidation we're seeing at the top underscores that access is earned — and must be maintained — through active and strategic diplomacy,' he said. 'Nations that proactively negotiate visa waivers and nurture reciprocal agreements continue to rise, while the opposite applies to those that are less engaged in such efforts.' Henley & Partners' list is one of several indexes created by financial firms to rank global passports according to the access they provide to their citizens. Arton Capital's Passport Index takes into consideration the passports of 193 United Nations member countries and six territories — Taiwan, Macao, Hong Kong, Kosovo, the Palestinian territories and the Vatican. Territories annexed to other countries are excluded. It's also updated in real-time throughout the year and its data is gathered by close monitoring of individual governments' portals. Arton's Global Passport Power Rank 2025 puts the United Arab Emirates in the top spot, with a visa-free/visa-on-arrival score of 179. Second place is held by Spain, with a score of 176. The most powerful passports for 2025 Singapore (193 destinations) Japan, South Korea (190) Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain (189) Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden (188) Greece, New Zealand, Switzerland (187) United Kingdom (186) Australia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Malta, Poland (185) Canada, Estonia, United Arab Emirates (184) Croatia, Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia (183) Iceland, Lithuania, United States (182) Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
A librarian ran off with a yacht captain in the summer of 1968. It was the start of an incredible love story
Editor's Note: This story was originally published in March 2025. It was republished in July 2025 to include a corresponding episode of CNN's Chance Encounters podcast featuring Beverly's story The first time Beverly Carriveau saw Bob Parsons, she felt like a 'thunderbolt' passed between them. 'This man stepped out of a taxi, and we both just stared at each other,' Beverly tells CNN Travel today. 'You have to remember, this is the '60s. Girls didn't stare at men. But it was a thunderbolt.' It was June 1968. Beverly was a 23-year-old Canadian university librarian on vacation in Mazatlán, Mexico, with a good friend in tow. Beverly had arrived in Mazatlán that morning. She'd been blown away by the Pacific Ocean views, the colorful 19th-century buildings, the palm trees. Now, Beverly was browsing the hotel gift store, admiring a pair of earrings, when she looked up and spotted the man getting out of the taxi. The gift shop was facing the parking lot, and there he was. 'I was riveted,' says Beverly. 'He was tall, handsome…' Eventually, Beverly tore away her gaze, bought the earrings and dashed out of the store. 'We locked eyes so long, I was embarrassed,' she says. No words had passed between them. They hadn't even smiled at each other. But Beverly felt like she'd revealed something of herself. She felt like something had happened, but she couldn't describe it. Beverly rushed to meet her friend, still feeling flustered. Over dinner in the hotel restaurant, Beverly confided in her friend about the 'thunderbolt' moment. 'I told my girlfriend, 'Something just happened to me. I stared at this man, and I couldn't help myself.'' Then, the server approached Beverly's table. 'He said, 'I have some wine for you, from a man over there.'' The waiter was holding a bottle of white wine, indicating at the bar, which was packed with people. As a rule, Beverly avoided accepting drinks from men in bars. She never felt especially comfortable with the power dynamic — plus, she had a long-term partner back in Canada. 'I had a serious boyfriend at home and thought my life was on course,' she says. Prior to traveling to Mexico, Beverly had spent a year exploring Europe and working in the UK. Throughout this period she'd politely declined whenever men in bars had offered to buy her cocktails. 'It wasn't like I'd never met men before,' she says today. 'I'd been all over Europe for a year.' But that evening in Mazatlán, after pausing for a moment, Beverly and her friend accepted the bottle of wine. Neither of them were quite sure why they agreed. And almost as soon as the waiter started pouring, the two women started panicking. They weren't sure who exactly had sent the wine, for one thing. The waiter had just gestured in the direction of the bar, which was packed. The man from the taxi did cross Beverly's mind, but she couldn't spot him, and there were a lot of other people sitting at the bar too. 'We started talking amongst ourselves, 'What are we going to do? We have to thank him,'' says Beverly. 'Which was pretty funny, really.' Eventually, Beverly's friend persuaded her to go and seek out the mysterious wine donor. Slightly warily, Beverly made her way across the restaurant to the bar. She glanced around at the various people, sitting on bar stools, sipping margaritas and sharing appetizers. And then, she locked eyes, for the second time, with the man from the taxi. He was holding a drink, and tipped it forward to acknowledge her. This time, he smiled. Beverly felt herself blush again. 'I got all flustered,' she says. 'But I asked him if he'd like to come over and sit with us.' Beverly returned to her table with the man from the taxi, much to the amusement of her friend. He introduced himself for the first time: Bob Parsons: a 30-year-old yacht captain from the US. Bob managed a few yachts, he explained, and his main boat, the Sugar Shack, was parked in Mazatlán for the time being. 'We had a nice dinner and a chat,' says Beverly. 'He was not aggressive at all, a very quiet, straightforward guy.' Throughout the meal, Beverly and Bob kept exchanging glances at each other. Every time, Beverly felt the same 'thunderbolt' feeling from earlier. She was drawn to Bob. He was friendly and polite to her friend, too. But when his attention turned to Beverly, it felt different. After dinner, Bob suggested the trio 'go downtown, to the Copa de Leche.' This was a bar on the beach, he explained. Beverly hesitated. 'I didn't know what kind of place that was. It was our first day,' she says today. 'But my girlfriend wanted to go. And so I said, 'Okay, but I want you to know it doesn't mean anything.' And he said, 'I just asked you for a drink.'' Bob, Beverly and her friend spent the rest of the evening drinking, dancing and chatting at the Copa de Leche, an Art Deco club facing onto the ocean. 'We had a nice time, but my father always taught me about sailors and Americans, and you know, you have to be careful,' says Beverly. 'And I had Doug, my boyfriend at home. I wasn't looking for anything.' But for all Beverly's reservations and hesitations, she still felt something distinct, every time she looked at Bob, that she'd never felt before. 'I was just flabbergasted, and I could not think of anything else,' she says. For the next week of her vacation, Beverly saw Bob every day. She outwardly set boundaries — she was never alone with him, they always went out for the evening with Beverly's friend completing their party. But when he asked for her contact details, Beverly agreed, giving Bob her phone number and address. After returning home to Vancouver, Canada, Beverly went straight to her mailbox. She'd been thinking about Bob the entire plane journey home. 'I was frantic,' she recalls. 'You couldn't afford phone calls in those days, we had to write to people — we didn't have communications like we do now. So I was hoping I'd have heard from him, and I went through all the mail and there were no letters… but at the bottom was a note from my roommate that said: 'Who the hell is Captain Parsons on the Sugar Shack?'' When Beverly saw the note, she laughed out loud. She already knew, in her heart, that she had to give this connection a chance. The fact he'd called already cemented this certainty. 'The next day, my boyfriend, the one I had for three years, Doug, came to see me. And before he even had his jacket off, I just said, 'Doug, I've met somebody.'' Beverly told Doug that this 'somebody' was based in Mexico, that nothing had happened between them, but she'd felt a connection she couldn't deny. Doug was surprised, but took it relatively well. 'He said, 'Well, that's crazy. You better go down and figure this out.'' Throughout July 1968, Beverly and Bob wrote letters to each other. 'But writing back and forth to Mexico was a bit crazy,' she recalls. 'Took forever.' Then, towards the end of July, Beverly got a call from an unknown number. It was the wife of the owner of the Sugar Shack, who explained they were heading to California to pick up a new motor yacht the following weekend. 'She said, 'Our captain wants you to fly to San Diego for the weekend, and he asked me to get you a hotel room,'' recalls Beverly. Without hesitation, Beverly said she'd be there. She knew it was 'crazy.' 'I'd only known him a week, never been alone with him…' she says today. But Beverly couldn't stop thinking about Bob. And if it hadn't been love at first sight in Mexico, Beverly and Bob knew for certain they were falling for each other following this whirlwind weekend in San Diego. Beverly enjoyed being in Bob's company. 'He was not aggressive at all, he was just a very quiet, straightforward guy, not effusive,' she recalls. 'He was tall, handsome… he didn't know he was, that made him even more attractive. He was a presence.' And together, they just clicked. 'I flew home Monday morning, and with my jacket still on, typed my resignation, and gave it to all three departments that I was working for — political science, economics and sociology — and I sent them all a letter,' she recalls. 'And I called Doug and I said, 'Well, you told me to figure it out. I don't know what I'm doing, but I have to do it.' My parents were shocked, but my friends were even more in shock, and I just couldn't help myself. I knew it was stupid and wrong, because, you know, people didn't do this kind of thing then.' But whenever Beverly encountered concerns or hesitations from her loved ones, she remembered the moment she'd seen Bob for the first time. She relived the weekend in San Diego in her mind. She knew this was the right decision. 'I was so excited,' she says. 'I couldn't wait, and so I didn't wait. I thought…'If I don't go, I'll wonder the rest of my life.'' Beverly arrived in Mazatlán at the end of August, 1968. She and Bob were thrilled to be together. In Mexico, Bob managed four boats: the Sugar Shack, El Hefe, Gold Coaster and movie star Jerry Lewis' boat, Pussy Cat 2, later called Shady Lady. Beverly started working on board the yachts in an informal capacity. One day, Beverly and Bob were both on board, when Bob sought her out. 'He came out of the engine room, wiping grease off his hands, and he said, 'I would like to get married,'' recalls Beverly. Beverly was totally taken aback. And then she surprised herself by thinking about Doug, the ex-boyfriend back home. And her parents. In her shock, she actually mentioned Doug aloud to Bob. 'He said, 'Well, if you were concerned about Doug, you would be in Canada, not here,'' recalls Beverly. Still in disbelief, Beverly said they should call her parents. Bob agreed. So from the boat, they dialed Beverly's parents, thousands of miles away in Canada. 'We called on the single-sideband, which means that you call from a radio to a point where an operator can hook you to a telephone,' recalls Beverly. 'And by the way, the whole ocean can listen to the call, because it's on the radio.' The operator connected the phone, and Beverly's mother answered. Shouting into the phone, Beverly told her she and Bob were going to get married. 'You had to say, 'over,' when you're supposed to talk and everything,' recalls Beverly. 'And so she's saying 'over' all the time, and we're screaming into the radio — I don't know why we had to scream, but we were screaming.' Eventually, the message got across. And Beverly's mother's response was matter-of-fact. 'She says, 'Well, if you're getting married, you're coming up here and getting married in the church.'' Beverly was surprised, she'd expected her mother would object or suggest her daughter should wait. Meanwhile, the radio operator, who could hear the whole call, 'was laughing so hard.' 'The whole conversation was so crazy,' reflects Beverly. She woke up the next day feeling vaguely dazed. Happy, yes. But still kind of in shock. 'I'm getting married,' she thought. 'I need a dress.' Meanwhile, in Vancouver, Beverly's mother was busy pulling a last-minute celebration together. 'My mom, in three weeks, found a cancellation of a beautiful place, planned a seated dinner with a live orchestra for 90 people, all by herself.' A new friend Beverly had made in Mazatlán helped her sew her wedding dress. 'I would go to her house at eight and sew my wedding dress, hand seeded pearls all over the veil. Did the veil too — Mexican lace.' As Beverly perfected her wedding dress and sought out material for bridesmaid dresses, she found herself thinking about the decision to marry someone she'd only known a few months, and analyzing what it meant. 'I was excited. I was scared. But my thinking was — I followed this man from Canada to Mexico. I'm going to follow him wherever he goes next. So, therefore, I must be in love, and getting married is just fine, the right thing to do,' she says. 'So we met end of June, I came down (to California) in July, went back to Mexico in August, and flew up to get married in September.' Beverly and Bob arrived in Vancouver with her handmade dress and vibrant bridesmaid outfits in her suitcase. Bob met Beverly's parents and Canadian friends for the first time. Beverly's parents were enthusiastic and welcoming to Bob, and Beverly's mother promised Beverly the wedding plans had come together perfectly. For Beverly, on the morning of her wedding day ,there was an air of the surreal. She was thrilled, she knew she loved Bob, and was confident in her decision. But she couldn't quite believe this was happening. And she could tell some of the guests were a bit baffled. 'I didn't know anything about my wedding, and I'm sure all my friends were there, just wondering who this guy was,' says Beverly. 'They were all friends with the other guy, Doug.' But as the day progressed, any reservations from Beverly's loved ones melted away. 'Bob got up and made a toast to the bride. And when he did, he got all choked up, and then everyone fell in love with him,' recalls Beverly. 'So all my friends and family actually loved him from the very beginning, and so that was a wonderful thing, because we've done many trips with my old friends and vacations and back and forth, and it was really wonderful.' Looking back today, Beverly is thankful the wedding panned out the way it did. 'I'm really glad my mother made me get married in the church,' she reflects. 'It means a lot, actually, it's part of the commitment and having all your friends there, and it was a good thing getting them to know him, too. So it was good. It was all good.' Beverly took Bob's name when they married, becoming Beverly Parsons. Together, Beverly and Bob returned to Mexico to reunite with the boat owners. This time, they were heading to Cabo San Lucas — now a bustling resort town, then a sleepy beachside spot with just over 1,700 residents. The couple rented a home on the beach, with one of the yacht deckhands. It was the perfect location. 'Bob was just a dinghy ride away from the boat. It was just right in front,' recalls Beverly. 'I started learning Spanish from the deckhand who was living with us, he would speak to me in Spanish, and I would respond in English, and we had this two-language conversation — and I still see him once in a while when I go to Mazatlán.' In time, Beverly became a cook on the yacht, and she and Bob started living on board. They became really close with the boat owners. 'They had money, but they were just regular people,' says Beverly. 'We lived through things. We went through hurricanes together. We traveled together. We spent a year in Acapulco — Bob was rebuilding another boat for them.' unknown content item - It was a glamorous, fun lifestyle. Sometimes. Beverly felt as if she was living in a movie. This feeling was enhanced when, on more than one occasion, Bob was mistaken for a movie star. 'I remember going to Las Vegas, and he went to the bathroom… and some girls came running up to me and said, 'We know he's a movie star, but we just can't put our finger on his name,'' Beverly laughs. Beverly and Bob were happy together. They loved each other, loved being in each other's company. But occasionally, Beverly felt less-than-fulfilled, professionally speaking. 'Sometimes I felt like a bird in a gilded cage,' she says. 'I was used to making my own money. I had put myself through university. I had taken myself to Europe for a year. 'But I did not know that I was preparing myself for the most amazing career any woman could have, ever, I think.' After a few years in Mexico, Beverly and Bob found themselves in San Diego, where Bob was now working as a captain and navigator on a commercial fishing vessel. 'One day, I got a call from a big yachting company,' says Beverly. 'A friend of mine who worked there as their marina manager, she said, 'Bev, we don't have a weekend person. Can you come in on weekends?'' This temporary job was the beginning of Beverly's career as a boat agent. And in time, Bob stopped working on board boats and became a yacht broker. The couple settled on land — even though their work still involved getting out on the water from time to time. 'Someone could buy a boat from Bob, insure it from him, charter it, manage it with me and charter it out. And we were sort of like a package, and we were really quite successful,' says Beverly. Early on in their relationship, Bob and Beverly had discussed the idea of having children. When they lived on yachts it felt like kids were out of the question, but they agreed to revisit the conversation in a few years. When Beverly turned 30, the couple decided that they were still on the same page — they weren't going to have children. They had a fulfilled, happy, exciting life, and Bob was also close to his nieces and nephews. Over the next decades, the couple traveled a lot for work, including to Turkey, Tahiti, all across the Caribbean. 'We just had a beautiful life, beautiful friends, beautiful industry,' says Beverly. 'We were always happy… A lot of people say you can't work with your husband, but I loved it.' Their early years on the yacht had built a strong foundation, she says, both for working together and enjoying married life together. 'When you live that close to someone for five years on a boat, you know them. You know you trust them. I trusted him with my life,' says Beverly. 'I totally trusted him in every way. And I think when you have a partner, I think you need love — which obviously we had — trust and respect. I had all those things.' Looking back on meeting Bob, those early years, working together across the globe, and their eventual 52 years of marriage, Beverly says she feels like 'one of the luckiest people ever.' 'I totally loved him, and it was just great,' she says. 'He got dementia at the end, and I was not going to put him in any facility. Even though I was working, I cut back on hours, and I made it the best I could for him and me.' Bob lived with dementia for several years before he passed away in early 2020. 'When Bob would have incidents with his dementia, I put myself in his shoes. And I knew he was just scared — and who wouldn't be — I just held him really tight, and I would just say, 'I love you, I'll never leave you, and I'm sorry.' And he would calm right down,' says Beverly. 'It's so easy if you really love someone. And I know that that was actually a good part of our life… it was just a different stage.' In the five years since Bob's death, Beverly has continued to thrive in the yachting business. She turns 80 this year, but she still loves her career, loves her industry. In the mid-1960s, before she met Bob, Beverly had reservations about the institution of marriage. She'd have long conversations with her Vancouver roommate about the importance of staying independent, not being tied down in an era where marriage was still looked at through a patriarchal lens and traditional gender roles. 'We always thought of marriage as a cage,' she recalls. But now, Beverly reflects that her marriage to Bob propelled her forward. He loved her independence, and his love gave her the foundation and anchor to explore the world and be herself, find her place. 'In our day, you could be a teacher, you could be a secretary, or you could be a nurse, basically. And that was your three choices, and I got to be something else, and with his, not only support, but encouragement,' she says. 'I had that support. He always supported me.' Today, Beverly lives in California. She's still close with all her old friends — from the ones who sat there, unbelieving, at her wedding, to the people she met in Mexico, on the yachts. She's even, perhaps against the odds, become good friends with her ex-boyfriend Doug in recent years. Beverly had always felt a bit guilty about how they'd ended things. When they got back in touch, she apologized, even though it was decades ago, and she'd lived a whole life with Bob in the meantime. Doug told her, 'You don't need forgiveness.' This year, Beverly turns 80 and she's going on a cruise around Alaska with Doug to celebrate. 'We're both born the same month,' she says. When she thinks back on her decade-spanning romance with Bob, Beverly often finds herself reflecting on a conversation she had with her father on her wedding day — right after Bob had wowed everyone with his heartfelt, emotional toast. 'He said to me, when I got married, 'I can't imagine much worse than my only daughter going away to a foreign country, floating around on a boat, not being able to contact her, not knowing where she is or if she's safe,'' Beverly recalls. 'But then he said, 'I looked at the two of you and… I didn't want to stop you, because I could see how much you cared.' And so, I mean, how lucky can someone be? And to be able to have 50 years? It's just unbelievable when you think about it. I'm just so glad that I took a chance.'
7NEWS
13-07-2025
- Business
- 7NEWS
Sharon left her home in California to live on a cruise ship for 15 years
When Sharon Lane stepped onto Villa Vie Odyssey cruise ship in mid-June, she was flooded with feelings of joy and relief. This moment was the fulfillment of a dream a long time coming. 'I'm finally able to do what I've wanted to do for years,' she tells CNN Travel. For Lane, this is no brief cruise vacation. The 77-year-old Californian plans to be on this ship for the next 15 years, perpetually circumnavigating the world's oceans and stopping off at destinations from Japan to New Zealand. Villa Vie Odyssey is a 'residential' cruise ship, meaning passengers don't generally board for just a quick jaunt. Its cabins are sold on a permanent basis — or at least for the estimated 15-year lifetime of the Odyssey, which is a recently renovated, three-decade-old ship. 'I buy the cabin, I live in the cabin, and that's it. And then there's no end,' says Lane. Or at least that's the hope. Residential ships are still new territory for the cruise ship industry. While the Odyssey is currently sailing smoothly up the US West Coast, its initial launch was delayed by months. Meanwhile some passengers, including Lane, had already experienced the disappointment of an earlier long-term residential cruise collapsing before it even secured a boat. Living at sea Operated by cruise startup Villa Vie Residences, the Odyssey finally set sail at the end of September last year. There are still cabins available to purchase. Lane bought hers at the end of last year and boarded several months later, when the ship passed through her home port of San Diego, California. Villa Vie Residences' CEO Mikael Petterson says cabin prices start at $129,000 for an inside for 15 years, on top of which there are monthly fees — $2,000 per person per month for double occupancy, $3,000 for single. Outside cabins start at $169,000, with monthly fees rising $500 per person. These figures aren't cheap — but remain comparatively so in contrast to The World, the only other residential cruise ship experience currently at sea, which caters for a more luxury market with a starting price of $2.5 million. There are other residential ship projects in the works — such as NJORD, a self-described 'exclusive community at sea' — but they've yet to be realised. Odyssey's concept is also potentially cheaper than hopping from one shorter cruise voyage to another. Villa Vie owners can also rent their cabin out to others, which means short-term passengers can still come and go from Odyssey. But the majority of owners have purchased their cabin with the intention of living on board, according to the cruise company. 'Most of our cabins are sold to full-time or mostly full-time residents,' Petterson tells CNN Travel. 'I only know of a couple of residents who have investment cabins that they actively rent out. Most rentals come from owners who decide to stay off the ship for a period of time.' Much less expensive Lane says she used her life savings to purchase her interior cabin, but she sees this as a good deal. Food and soft drinks are included in residents' monthly fee. So is alcohol at dinner, Wi-Fi and medical visits (but not procedures or medicines). There's also 24/7 room service, weekly housekeeping and bi-weekly laundry service at no extra cost. 'I don't have to do my laundry anymore. I don't have to do grocery shopping,' says Lane. 'Living on the ship is much less expensive than living in Southern California.' Entertainment is also provided, including 'a singing duet, pianist, professional dancers,' according to Petterson. Local performers are booked at ports of call, and residents are also encouraged to host their own events at a regular 'speakers' corner'. 'Residents present every week,' Petterson says. 'We have a very diverse community including a Nobel Peace Prize winner, a White House chief of staff, an astronaut and many scientists and doctors onboard that share their knowledge and experiences.' Odyssey usually stops for a couple of days in each port, where optional shore excursions are organised for an additional fee. Throughout the course of its anticipated 15-year life span, the ship will continually circle the globe, calling at different locations with each circumnavigation. Lane says she is excited about the destinations, but being on the ship is her favourite part of cruising and she plans to spend most of her downtime on the deck. She says her windowless cabin is simply for sleeping. Her berth is 'toward the front of the ship, because I can feel the ocean more there,' she adds. 'I like the ocean motion.' The eight-deck Odyssey can 'technically' accommodate 924 people, according to Villa Vie's Petterson, but some cabins have now been combined into one, meaning 'about 450 cabins in total'. 'Given the solo rate and that residents often travel away from the ship, we don't expect more than 500 residents onboard at any given time,' he explains. 'I find that delightful,' Lane says. 'It's very roomy for the number of people.' In November 2024 Villa Vie said that 50 per cent of passengers in the first take-up were traveling solo. Today, Petterson confirms single travelers now make up 'close to 55 per cent' of those on board — Lane among them. Petterson says 80 per cent of Villa Vie Odyssey's owners are from the US and Canada, with Australia and New Zealand a close second. As a recent addition to the on-board community, Lane is enjoying meeting and mingling with her fellow residents. 'There's very, very few, if any, people on the ship who are not lifelong travelers,' she says. 'When you're with a group of people that think like you, life gets easier.' Rocky beginnings Villa Vie Odyssey was originally supposed to embark in mid-2024, but ended up stalled in Belfast, Northern Ireland, for four months, awaiting safety certification. When the vessel eventually set sail, Villa Vie contended with some cancelled ports and itinerary changes. Missed stop-offs in the Galapagos Islands, the Falklands in the South Atlantic and Antarctica led to some disappointment among passengers. 'Residents understand for the most part that we are doing something new and there will be occasional challenges but I think overall we are getting better,' says Petterson. Petterson blames cancelled ports on weather, red tape and logistical problems in destinations where smaller 'tender' vessels are needed to carry passengers ashore. 'Galapagos was not possible for us to go because you need 100 per cent Ecuadorian crew,' he says. 'Falklands was due to 50 knot winds.' Petterson says that in Antarctica, Villa Vie 'did not get the certificates in time and the weather did not allow for an exemption. We had some other missed tender ports where waves were simply not safe for tender operations.' Petterson suggests these teething problems will be overcome as Villa Vie Residences' gains more experience. He points out this is a kind of voyage never really attempted before. Villa Vie is currently building a custom walkway to link the ship and tender boats to reduce movement from waves and swell. This, says Petterson, will 'greatly reduce these missed ports'. 'We have a very capable itinerary planner who plans about a year ahead,' Petterson adds. 'It is an extremely difficult task as there is really nobody that has done this sort of itinerary before so it is challenging to understand all regulations in every region of the world. However, we are learning a tremendous amount.' To make up for the missed ports, a new segment has been added to the cruise 'which offers everything that was missed in 2024, including Antarctica, Falklands, Greenland, and northern Europe,' according to Petterson. This will involve an extended stay in the Argentine port of Ushuaia, on the southern tip of South America. 'This time we are spending an entire month in Ushuaia, giving us plenty of opportunity to work with the weather to make sure we hit the Falklands and Antarctica,' he adds. 'We learned that the weather down there is highly unpredictable so giving us this flexibility will ensure an amazing customer experience.' Lane says she's relieved to have missed much of the Odyssey's early drama and is confident that Villa Vie had enough time to 'work out the kinks' by the time she joined in mid-June. 'I don't want complications in my life, you know, I'm at a point in my life where I want simplicity,' she says. Long journey Lane has, however, experienced first-hand some of the uncertainties of the nascent years-long cruising industry. She was among hundreds of passengers who committed thousands of dollars toward a three-year-long cruise voyage planned by a start-up called Life at Sea. After repeated postponements, that project collapsed, with management company Miray Cruises never actually managing to secure a ship to host the voyage. Lane got a refund, but by then had given up her rental lease and sold many of her belongings. When the cruise dream collapsed, she moved into a retirement village in Orange County, California, where she felt stagnant. 'The whole two years I was there, I was looking for someplace else to go … I wasn't settled. I didn't feel settled. Because it wasn't the life I wanted,' says Lane. Lane explains she wasn't aware of the progress with Villa Vie Residences until the Odyssey made headlines when it finally set sail in fall 2024. She was immediately sold. Her reaction, she says, was just two words: 'Holy cow.' 'I called them up and I gave them money the same day,' recalls Lane. Petterson, who worked for Life at Sea until departing in a management schism, says about half of the passengers let down by Life at Sea have followed him to his new company. 'We have about half of them on the Odyssey,' he says. Those who purchase long-term cabins on Odyssey do have the option to sell up should circumstances change. Lane says she currently hopes to see out the full 15 years at sea, finally living her dream life. 'There's no end,' she says. 'Sure, in 15 years … but in 15 years, I'll be ready for a home … Or maybe, at the end, I'll go on their next ship … I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.' 'Being on a ship deck, that's my happy place,' Lane adds. 'Whenever the weather is good, I will be on that deck. And when the weather isn't quite good, I'll bundle up and be on that deck, because that is my happy place. You can stand there, you can sit there, you can chat with people, you can read a book. You have the ocean breeze, you have sea air.'
7NEWS
13-07-2025
- Entertainment
- 7NEWS
Catherine threw three coins in the Trevi Fountain and immediately met the man she would marry
Catherine Tondelli was standing underneath the Trevi Fountain, on a summer's evening in Rome, about to throw three coins into the fountain's waters. Growing up in the US, Catherine had seen romance movies set in Italy. She'd read books about Rome. She'd heard the city's famous fountain was impressive. But nothing could have prepared her for the first view of the marble figures, illuminated by moonlight. 'Suddenly, there it was — a massive, breathtaking fountain,' Catherine tells CNN Travel today. 'It was a blue moon that night, which was really beautiful. The fountain was gorgeous.' Catherine was standing with her mother, Mary Lee, watching the water cascading over the statues. Catherine's mother encouraged her to embrace the tradition of throwing coins into the Trevi Fountain and making a wish — or three. Mary Lee took three coins from her purse and pressed them into her daughter's palm. 'Honey,' she said, 'You took me on this beautiful trip. I think it's time you met someone special. Make a wish.' While Catherine was happily single, she enjoyed the idea of embracing this Roman tradition. So, smiling at her mother, she went ahead and threw each coin over her shoulder, with her right hand. 'Just like in the movies,' recalls Catherine. 'Then, all of a sudden, I heard this voice just saying, 'If you want the wish to come true, you must throw with the left hand because it's closer to your heart'.' Catherine turned around and there he was: Fausto Mezzana. An Italian stranger who was about to change her life. A Trevi Fountain connection Catherine met Fausto in front of the Trevi Fountain in the northern summer of 1999. Back then, Catherine was 39 and based in California. After a couple of difficult relationships, she'd resigned herself to the idea she might never find a life partner who could support her dreams and cheerlead her ambition. But Catherine was happy with her life. She enjoyed being single. She felt fulfilled. 'I didn't really care,' Catherine says today. 'I had my cats, I had a great job.' Catherine's job involved working for a major cosmetics company, selling high-end products to luxury hotels. And through a stroke of good luck, it was via this company that Catherine won a trip of a lifetime to Italy. When her name was picked for the trip for two, Catherine knew right away who she wanted to accompany her: her mother, Mary Lee, a retired airline accountant. 'There was no one else in my life I'd rather take,' says Catherine. The resulting trip was 'beautiful,' says Catherine. 'We went to Venice, and we went to Florence, and then the last night was in Rome, and my mother said, 'Let's go to the Trevi Fountain',' recalls Catherine. Three coins in the fountain That's how Catherine found herself throwing three coins in the fountain and then standing, face-to-face, with Fausto Mezzana for the first time. After explaining the throwing of the coins with the left hand, Fausto asked Catherine and her mother if they knew what each of the three coins in the Trevi Fountain symbolise. When the American women said no, Fausto said: 'The first coin, you come back to Rome. The second coin, you find your love in Rome and the third coin … you marry a Roman.' Catherine and her mother looked at Fausto, then each other and laughed. Ice broken, Fausto introduced himself — he was from Rome, he explained, and worked for an Italian airline. He said he was out for an evening stroll around his home city, because summer evenings in Rome were his favourite. Mary Lee immediately bonded with Fausto over their shared aviation jobs. Soon, the two were deep in conversation about the travel industry. But as Mary Lee and Fausto talked about airplanes and airports, Fausto kept making eye contact with Catherine. Catherine couldn't take her eyes off him, either. 'He was very cute. He was very handsome, he was very funny. He made me and my mum laugh so much,' says Catherine. 'There was an immediate connection … They say, you know, ' colpo di fulmine ' in Italian, which is 'the love at first sight'. And I really believe that. I think I looked at him and was like, 'Oh, my God, this fountain works magic'.' And while Catherine didn't necessarily believe all of the coins' wishes were about to come true, she did feel like 'destiny, whatever you want to call it' had suddenly intervened. 'Suddenly, it felt like fate,' she says. A tour of Rome at night Like Catherine, Fausto wasn't sure if he'd ever find love back in 1999. He was 45. He'd had a few relationships, but none had lasted long. He enjoyed his airline job and moonlighting as an actor working in television commercials. But he wanted someone to share his life with. 'I said, 'My God, I think in my life something must change, because I can't continue like that',' he tells CNN Travel today. When he met Catherine at the fountain, Fausto felt like she was a 'present from the sky'. He liked her mother, too. 'He was so sweet to her,' says Catherine. 'They were both airline people. So airline people sort of find each other. They always have this common bond.' Looking back, Fausto jokes it's the 'best strategy to attack the mother to conquer the daughter'. But he genuinely enjoyed Mary Lee's company — as much as he was also struck by Catherine from the moment he saw her throwing the coins into the Trevi Fountain. 'The first impression, for me, was the beauty,' says Fausto of Catherine. Right away, he says, he knew it was about to be 'a magic night'. It helps, Fausto adds, that Rome is such an incredible backdrop for romance. 'The night in Rome in summertime is so beautiful,' he says. Catherine, Fausto and Catherine's mother talked for some time that evening, standing as a trio in front of the Trevi Fountain. When Catherine and Mary Lee told Fausto they'd just arrived in the city, he suggested he could take the two of them on a tour of Rome, stopping off at all his favourite spots. Fausto suggested reconvening in the Piazza Navona a little later that evening. Catherine's mother enthusiastically agreed, but Catherine was a little more hesitant. Sure, she was charmed by Fausto — but he was also a stranger. 'Mothers can tell' 'I said, 'Mum, we just met him. Maybe he's a fountain hanger. Maybe just hangs around fountains picking up women',' recalls Catherine. Her mother dismissed this suggestion. 'She goes, 'Oh, no, honey, I can tell. Mothers can tell.' She was convinced he was this great guy,' recalls Catherine. So Catherine and her mother reunited with Fausto at the Piazza Navona later that night. 'When they arrived, I was in a big Audi,' Fausto says. 'They were both surprised. The mother said, 'Oh my God, a four-door car.' So maybe she was thinking I'd arrive like Gregory Peck, you remember, with a little motorbike …' Despite her initial disappointment at the lack of Roman Holiday vibes, Catherine's mother was glad to see the car — they'd been walking around all day. She happily got inside. Catherine was still more hesitant. But her nerves soon dissipated as Fausto drove around Rome, pointing out everything from the Coliseum — illuminated under that blue moon — to his favourite jazz bar. She was charmed by the attention Fausto showed Mary Lee and found herself fascinated by his stories of his life in Rome. 'Thank God I listened to my mother,' Catherine says today. 'He took us on this whole trip and showed us everything.' Later, when Catherine's mother retreated to the hotel to sleep, Catherine and Fausto stayed out for several more hours. "Maybe she was thinking I'd arrive like Gregory Peck, you remember, with a little motorbike …" They bar hopped, talking and laughing into the next morning. Already, 'something had happened so fast,' as Fausto puts it. Catherine felt the same way, especially when Fausto took her to his house and played his piano. 'Oh my God, it was so beautiful,' says Catherine. 'I'm a musician too. I play trumpet. So, it was like, 'Oh my God. We both love music. We both love the arts. We both love the culture'.' 'It was a very magic night,' says Fausto. 'We just had so much fun,' adds Catherine. 'I didn't want the night to end … It was a night you remember forever.' The next day, Fausto invited Catherine and her mother out for dinner. Catherine enthusiastically agreed, but her mother declined, with a knowing glance between Catherine and Fausto. 'She said, 'I can see that you have a connection with each other, and I really would love to give you guys the night together to get to know each other better',' recalls Catherine. When Catherine protested — sure, she wanted time with Fausto, but she also wanted to spend the vacation time with her mother — her mother feigned tiredness. 'She was completely lying,' says Fausto today, laughing. But Catherine and Fausto were grateful for more time together. That evening they stayed up late again, talked about their past relationships, their passions, their family, their hopes for the future. And then, when it came time for Catherine to travel home to the US the next day, she gave Fausto her business card. 'I knew that I wanted to be in touch with him. I knew that I was going to be more than this, and I wanted it to be,' she says. 'We kissed under the hotel window.' A surprise plane ticket Catherine reluctantly returned to California, hoping she'd hear from Fausto but unsure what the future held. 'The whole flight back home I was very sad and didn't talk much to my mum,' she recalls. But she'd barely been back in the US a few days when Fausto got in touch. 'He sent me a ticket and asked me to come back for four days — to see if our chance encounter was real or if it was just that I was on holiday,' recalls Catherine. 'He told me he had never felt this way before and wanted to know if I felt the same.' Catherine had to negotiate extra vacation time with her boss. She was honest with her manager, saying: 'If I don't go, I'll always regret it.' He reluctantly agreed to four days off, warning Catherine any more vacation and she'd lose the job. 'So I went, I took the risk, and it was great. It was four beautiful days,' says Catherine. Over those extra days in Italy, Catherine and Fausto became more and more sure they wanted to be together. 'I finally found somebody that I was really attracted to — not just physically, but also mentally. And for me, someone who can make me laugh is so important, and he was really entertaining and charming,' says Catherine. 'I'm like, 'Finally, I meet someone I really, really want to be with and he lives, you know, 14 hours away on a plane'.' But Catherine was determined to 'fight for this one,' as she puts it, and Fausto was too. The two committed to a long-distance, cross-continental relationship. 'Every month commuting from Rome to California. California to Rome, Rome, California …' recalls Fausto. This mammoth journey was made a little easier by Fausto's job offering complimentary airline tickets. 'Thank God, that helped us keep the relationship going,' says Catherine. Nevertheless, 'the first year was very hard,' says Fausto. He really struggled with the regular farewells. In the end, they stopped using the word 'goodbye'. 'I would say, 'I'll go left',' he recalls. 'She said, 'I go right'.' Then, after about a year of long distance, Catherine found herself at a work conference speaking to a guy in her industry who mentioned he was looking for a marketing executive willing to relocate to London. Catherine's ears perked up — the UK was one step closer to Italy. But it also wasn't as intense as moving to Rome. She put herself forward for the London role. 'I was not lucky in love — lucky in my job, but not in love. And I didn't want to make another mistake,' says Catherine today. 'So, I said, 'I really want to take this one slower, and I'm going to move to London … Every weekend, we will be together'.' 'You're thinking about moving for this man you met at a fountain?' While Catherine thought moving to the UK over Italy was the pragmatic choice, her California friends and loved ones still raised an eyebrow at the decision. 'My girlfriends were like, 'You are crazy. What are you doing? You're thinking about moving for this man you met at a fountain, throwing your coins?',' she recalls. Catherine's twin sister was especially dubious. She'd never met Fausto, and wasn't sure what to make of him. 'She was mad at him,' says Catherine. 'She's like, 'You can't take my twin away from me.' Because twins are sort of like one unit. 'And so when he came in, it was very hard for her. It took her a long time to really start to love him and get to know him, and she finally did, but I had a lot of resistance from a lot of people.' The night before Catherine was due to leave California, she woke up in a sweat, these voices of resistance reverberating around her head. 'It's a major step in your life,' she says today. 'You're leaving your family, you're leaving your career, you're leaving your country that you've lived in … It wasn't just moving to another state, it was moving to another country.' But Catherine's mother Mary Lee encouraged the move — even as she feared the distance. She'd seen how Fausto made her daughter light up. How the two of them worked as a team. She knew leaving California was the right step for Catherine. Catherine moved to London on August 10, 2000. Compared to the trek across the Atlantic, Catherine and Fausto found navigating the distance between London and Rome easy. Due to differences in pet quarantine laws in the UK and Italy, Catherine's beloved cats settled in Rome with Fausto. Every other weekend, she'd visit Rome to see Fausto — and the cats. 'He started feeding them prosciutto and mortadella, and of course, he fell in love with them,' Catherine says. Planning for a future together As the couple became more and more committed, Catherine and Fausto started talking through what their future could look like. Catherine had always wanted children and Fausto also loved the idea of being a father. 'But, by the time we met, I was almost 40, so then we tried … but at that point, as a woman, you have this clock,' says Catherine. Catherine says the couple's view on kids became: 'If we have them, great. If we don't, it's OK too. We have a great life.' One evening, while visiting Catherine in London, Fausto broached the idea of Catherine moving to Rome, permanently. 'He said 'I would like to spend the rest of my life with you, you are a lioness and I am a lion … we need to be together. Neither one of us could be with a sheep',' Catherine recalls. 'He said, 'I love that you are a lion. I have been waiting for my lioness my whole life'.' Catherine was touched. And she felt seen. 'I loved that because I always seemed to be with men that were intimidated of me or my career and he fully embraced my independence, strength, career, etc,' she reflects. And in another twist of fate, that same weekend Catherine saw a listing for a hotel company in Rome looking for a marketing director. 'I went to Rome the next week and interviewed and got the job,' she says. In autumn of 2002, Catherine moved to Rome. She and Fausto bought a house together. It was an exciting step, but adapting to life in Italy was also a 'long learning curve' for Catherine, who by then had spent a lot of time in Rome, but had still to master the Italian language. Catherine and Fausto adopted a system: they'd spend one month speaking to one another exclusively in Italian and then one month in English, switching it up each month. This method seemed to work. Soon, Catherine became more confident speaking Italian. Adjusting to Italian life was also made easier by Fausto's family and friends embracing her with open arms. 'It was a warm welcome that I had here, a beautiful welcome,' says Catherine. 'It would have been much more difficult had they not been so accepting of me.' If language was Catherine's biggest struggle when she moved to Rome, for Fausto, living with a romantic partner for the first time was his biggest adjustment. On top of cohabitation being a new experience for Fausto, his relationship with Catherine was the 'merge of two different cultures, two different traditions, two different feelings,' as he puts it. Their differences led to occasional clashes. But the foundation of love never wavered. The relationship grew stronger as they settled into Roman life. In September 2004, Catherine and Fausto decided to get married in Vitorchiano, which Catherine describes as a 'breathtaking medieval town' in Viterbo, central Italy. 'We took over the entire place — a 14th-century church for the ceremony, and the reception in a former convent that had been converted into a hotel,' she recalls. Catherine's family — including her twin sister and beloved mother — all gathered in Vitorchiano for the ceremony. Catherine loved having them all there to celebrate with her. As for Fausto, he always loved spending time with Catherine's family, especially her mother Mary Lee. Their early bond over their love of aviation in front of the Trevi Fountain blossomed into a great relationship. Mary Lee often visited Italy, and Catherine and Fausto made regular trips to California. Wishes do come true Today, over 25 years since Catherine and Fausto crossed paths at the Trevi Fountain, they still live together in Rome. The couple never had children. 'I wish we could have, but it didn't happen in the end,' says Catherine. Fausto reflects that had he and Catherine met earlier, they may have had kids. But he also thinks their relationship thrived because they met a little later in life, when they knew exactly what they wanted. 'Sometimes there is the destiny to life,' he says. 'If this story happened when we were 25, 30 years old, I think we wouldn't be here now.' 'Maybe not,' agrees Catherine. 'I think we had to get to a point where we really knew what we wanted.' Both Catherine and Fausto remain passionate about work, and encourage each other in their professional pursuits. Catherine has her own meeting and event agency and serves as the president of the Professional Women's Association in Rome, while Fausto works as an actor and musician. The couple are primarily based in the Italian capital, but they've also been busy renovating a home in green, hilly Umbria over the past few years. 'It is finally finished,' says Catherine. 'We love our home, just outside of Orvieto.' Fausto still plays piano and Catherine still plays the trumpet. They enjoy playing together — usually for fun, just the two of them, but occasionally for an audience. 'We open up our house in Umbria for summer concerts where the village bring their chairs and sit in our backyard to hear our music,' says Catherine. 'We project images of the songs on our house, so it's kind of like 'Cinema Paradiso' but with our own music and film.' In between work and concerts, the couple can also be found biking together, cooking, playing tennis, working on house projects and doting on their cats. These shared interests are a big part of their relationship, says Catherine, but what's even more important is their shared value system. 'We generally have similar morals, and make each other laugh,' she says. 'We respect each other, we give each other independence, he is good to my family, I am to his.' Fausto and Catherine always enjoy recalling Catherine's fateful 1999 trip to Italy and the moment the couple met for the first time, after Catherine threw the coins in the Trevi Fountain. 'I can remember every detail about that night,' says Catherine. 'I look back … and I still get excited. The first night being with him. Even today, 25 years later, I go, 'Wow.' It brings up a lot of emotion for me, and happiness. I never looked back.' As for Fausto, he remembers the night just as vividly, especially the moment he first saw Catherine and thought she was 'a present from the sky'. 'It's a moment that remains in my mind like yesterday,' he says. On that first night, Mary Lee took a photo of Catherine and Fausto in front of the Trevi Fountain. They'd only just met. But Mary Lee had a feeling this was going to be a moment they'd want captured for posterity. She was right. And almost every year since, on the anniversary of their meeting, Catherine and Fausto have returned to the fountain and recreated the picture, arm in arm in front of the stone statues. 'I would never in a million years think one day I would be marrying the man I met at a fountain and moving to Rome and living here. But it happened,' says Catherine. 'Sometimes wishes come true.'
