Celebrities join protesters in Venice ahead of Bezos-Sanchez wedding

Billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and former journalist Lauren Sanchez arrived in Venice on Wednesday — kicking off what is expected to be a weekend of lavish wedding festivities for the couple, attended by some of the world’s top celebrities and drawing the ire of locals and protesters, who view it as a crass example of the huge disparity between the one per cent and everyone else.

Bald man with sunglasses smiling broadly and waving — Bezos waves as he leaves the hotel by boat. It’s estimated the festivities are costing the billionaire 40 million to 48 million euros ($64 million to $76 million Cdn). (Luca Bruno/The Associated Press)

Woman with long dark hair wearing a black and white striped dress waves and smiles — Sanchez, a former TV journalist, travelled to space earlier this year aboard Bezos’s Blue Origin, alongside celebrities Katy Perry and Gayle King. (Yara Nardi/Reuters)

Bezos and Sanchez waved as they arrived at the dock of the Aman hotel, a five-star hotel on the Italian city’s Grand Canal, with two security boats in tow.

Ivanka Trump, right, daughter of U.S. President Donald Trump, and her husband, Jared Kushner, arrive at the Venice airport on Tuesday. (Guglielmo Mangiapane/Reuters)

Blond woman wearing sunglasses and sundress, with three children, a girl with long dark hair and two younger dark haired boys. — Trump and her children prepare to board a water taxi in Venice. (Yara Nardi/Reuters)

Some 90 jets are expected to arrive at local airports ahead of the weekend event. About 200 guests are expected, among them Ivanka Trump and her family, Mick Jagger, Oprah Winfrey, Katy Perry and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Two men in tee shirts gesture as they walk onto a boat — Canadian investor and former talent agent Michael Kives, centre, boards a water taxi on Wednesday. (Andrea Pattaro/AFP/Getty Images)

Woman with red shoulder length hair and sunglasses, wearing a striped blue outfit walks behind a man with a neon yellow vest — Fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, a wedding guest, is shown at the Venice airport on Tuesday. (Manuel Silvestri/Reuters)

Venice City Hall issued a directive on Wednesday cordoning off the area — isolating guests from activists who have been protesting for weeks that the celebrations will turn the city of gondolas and palazzi into a private amusement park for the rich.

“There’s only one thing that rules now: money, money, money, so we are the losers,” Venice resident Nadia Rigo said.

Security guards in dark clothes stand in front of an old stone church — Security team members stand outside the Madonna dell’Orto church on Wednesday. (Yara Nardi/Reuters)

Several gondolas tied up at docks with Venetian buildings in backdrop — Gondolas line up outside St. Mark’s Square in Venice on Wednesday. (Luca Bruno/The Associated Press)

Festivities will kick off on Thursday night with an open-air gathering in the cloisters of Madonna dell’Orto, a medieval church in the central area of Cannaregio known for its lively nightlife, a source close to the matter told Reuters.

The date and venue of the wedding itself are still unknown, and some have speculated that Bezos, 61, and Sanchez, 55, may already have tied the knot in a private ceremony in the United States.

Boat laden with supplies and two individuals moving through water with backdrop of Venice — Boats loaded with supplies are seen in the waters ahead of the wedding. (Luca Bruno/The Associated Press)

Protesters have also been in the city all week. Activists argue that the Bezos-Sanchez wedding exemplifies broader failures in municipal governance. Chief among their concerns is the lack of investment in affordable housing and essential services.

City officials have defended the wedding. Mayor Luigi Brugnaro called the event an honour for Venice, and the city denied the wedding would cause disruptions.

“Venice once again reveals itself to be a global stage,” Brugnaro told The Associated Press, adding he hoped to meet Bezos while he was in town.

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