Today was the first full day in Venice. I have read about it in books and I have seen it in the movies and on TV, but, many of the streets really are canals. There are no cars to dodge, just a labyrinth of streets and bridges (over 400) to navigate. A complication I was not anticipating in Italy was the very narrow streets. They wreak havoc on GPS. The good new is I can actually read a map! I know for me, I am very reliant on electronics and GPS, but I did not want to be looking down at my phone, navigating, when there was so much too see and little time to see it.
We started the day with another walking tour. The walking tours in each of our primary stops have been extremely helpful. We touch the major sites of the area and the guides have to be from the place where they give tours. All of our local guides have been great and Arianna was no exception. She took us around the city center for three hours and showed us the Doge's Palace and we walked across the Bridge of Sighs. The Venetian Gothic architecture in Venice is very different than in Rome and Florence, and is quite beautiful with its pointed arches, pinnacles, tracery stonework, and stained glass.
We saw St. Mark's Basilica in Piazza San Marco. Some of the amazing artwork we saw had the most beautiful blues in the skies. Apparently Venice had ample access to suppliers of lapis, and it was used to flex on the rest of Italy because lapis was very expensive to import to the other areas and was used much more sparingly. We then walked through the streets to a modern shopping mall in Fondaco dei Tedeschi, originally built in 1508. I thought this was a bit of an odd place to end the tour. We have plenty of malls in the US. But, on the roof of this historic building is a terrace that provides spectacular views of the Grand Canal and the city of Venice. It was a real treat. As the tour concluded, Arianna offered a few recommendations for places to eat, and they were spot on!
We are very active vacationers and the family was starting to feel the pace. Melissa and Audrey wanted to go back to the hotel. Elizabeth, Ryan, and Gillian decided to take a leisurely stroll through the local markets looking for fun stuff to buy. It was decided to re-group in Piazza San Marco mid-afternoon. I wasn't worried about anyone getting lost (remember the GPS problem) because on a lot of the street corners there are signs pointing to the centers of the major areas. If you get turned around, just follow the signs to San Marco. From there, finding the hotel is easy. Again, thank you Arianna for this great tip. While Melissa and Audrey took a brief siesta, I went down to Caffè Lavena in Piazza San Marco for a cappuccino. This is where I had my first full small conversation completely in Italian. I exchanged pleasantries with the cashier, ordered my drink, enjoyed my coffee while standing at the bar, then said goodbye and went on my way. It was extremely satisfying. Once the family hooked back up, we enjoyed an apertivo on the square before dinner.
Now knowing the trick to navigating the city, finding the restaurant with our dinner reservation was pretty straight forward. We had another fantastic meal (and wine) and went pack to the hotel for a good night's sleep before our last full day in Italy.
Commenti