All that glitters will not only be gold but also precious stones when the Bermuda National Trust hosts `A Jewelled Extravaganza' in the lobby of the XL building on Bermudiana Road on November 2.

Stunning jewellery from the winter auction collection of Christies in New York is to be shown by local models, while a jewellery expert from Christies will give an informative commentary.

This is just one of the highlights of an upscale black tie evening, during which an unprecedented collection of 50 fabulous items will also be auctioned. These include superlative travel packages to destinations as diverse as Portugal, the Caribbean, and Canada, as well as gourmet dinners in famous places, skiing holidays, helicopter and private airplane journeys, luxury hotel stays, original art, designer products, an auxiliary cycle, sunset cruises, an interior design consultation, palm trees and seedlings, valuable books, superior wines and vintage champagne, and even a donkey-driven buggy ride.

The items have been carefully chosen to pique all interests, and will be auctioned both live and silently. However, for anyone who simply wishes to bid on the items without attending the event, a special form is obtainable from the National Trust headquarters in Paget.

A sampling of the items for auction is as follows:

For the discerning traveller:

Two tickets from Venice to London on the Orient Express.

Three-day weekend round trip (maximum ten passengers) to Toronto, New York or Florida on Mr. Michael DeGroote's private aircraft..

Five-day luxury bicycling trip for two in Provence, France.

One-week Gourmet Cruises trip for six guests through the Bahamas Cays.

Three-night stay at Langdon Hall Country House Hotel and Spa, a Relais & Chateaux hotel, set in 200 acres, near Toronto.

One-week stay at a Prospect Plantation four-bedroom villa in Jamaica, including food, drink and airport transfers for up to eight people.

One-week stay in a private home in Sugarbush, Vermont.

One-week stay in fabulous house on St. Michael's Island, Azores.

One-week stay in a ski cabin in the Canadian Rockies, plus one day of ski lessons.

90-minute helicopter ride for two over the centre of London, along the Thames.

For the art lover:

Paintings by Henry Ward, Kathy Zuill, Jodie Tucker, Nancy Nichols and others. Painted antique table by Niall and Jeremy Woofe. Flower pot painted with scene of successful bidder's home by Californian artist Anna Bondarenko.

For the house and garden aficianado:

A day of interior design or architectural consultation from The Studio Ltd.

Mixed selection of mature palms plus garden installation consultation.

Consultation by Sanders Frith-Brown on planting, and private tour of his gardens.

Voucher for 200 seedlings for flowers, herbs and vegetables.

For the non-domestic god/goddess:

Six-course dinner for ten prepared in your home by gourmet chef Serge Bottelli

For the sportsman/woman:

Package of five lessons at Riddells Bay Golf & Country Club, plus complimentary round of golf for two, including golf cart.

Robin Blackburne tennis racquet.

For the designer label devotee:

Louis Vuitton hard-sided suitcase

Sharon Stone soft vanity case

Gucci leather handbag

For the bookworm:

Hyde's `Bermuda's Antique Furniture & Silver' (uncirculated, inscribed, limited edition copy)

Coffee table books by famous photographer Harry Benson.

'My Kind of Garden' by David Hicks

Masterworks Bermudiana Collection by Patricia Calnan

For the musician:

Signed guitar plus CD by Mick Jones of rock band Popular

For the wine connoisseur:

Bottle of 1970 Chateau Haut-Brion vintage wine

Bottle of 1967 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild wine

Case Dom Perignon 1990 champagne

Magnum Heitz Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard 1974

For fun-lovers:

Ready-to-eat picnic hamper for ten, including champagne, caviar, smoked salmon and strawberry tartlets.

Sunday morning donkey buggy ride with `Thelma' and `Louise' around Spanish Point/North Shore with breakfast at Spanish Point Park for two adults or three children.

For Bermuda explorers:

100cc T-Rex PGO 2002 cycle

Sunset cruise for eight on `Warrior', including drinks/hors d'oeuvres

Picnic champagne lunch for six on matching Sea-Ray cocktail cruising boats. The evening will begin with champagne and cocktails, followed by dinner and dancing to the sounds of the nine-piece Tommy Ray B and well-known New York DJ Mark Wike, who is volunteering his services. It will end with breakfast at 1.30 a.m.

`A Jewelled Extravaganza', whose committee is chaired by Mrs. Madeleine Webster, is planned as a major fund-raiser for the Trust. The proceeds will go to its Endowment Fund, which provides funding for education, museum and open spaces programmes.

Tickets are $1,000 and $500 per person, or tables for ten may be booked. These are $10,000 for a `Diamond' table, and $5000 for an `Emerald' table. For tickets, table reservations and further information ( 236-4510.

"The reason we can have an event of this nature is because of the wonderful XL building, which enables us to make it very, very elegant," Mrs. Webster says. "It is going to be a really wonderful splash. We have really raised the stakes as far as charity events are concerned, and we hope to raise half a million dollars.

"In previous years the most the Trust has ever raised from its annual event is $55,000. This is putting us into the big city league. The minimum ticket for some events in New York is $1200. Our whole objective is to make money for the Trust, and this event brings a section of the community with the money into the arena. The Trust is an appealing organisation to give money to. Everyone enjoys the beauty of Bermuda, and we want to keep it that way."