Venice... just fantastic!

Venice... just fantastic!

Venice was one of our more anticipated destinations and it didn’t fail to deliver. After our three days we were left wishing that we had planned for a longer stay, it was that good. We arrived mid afternoon on the train from Milan and made our way to the Vaporetto (water bus) to take us to our hotel near the famous Piazza San Marco (St Mark’s Square). The Vaporetti crews are obviously accustomed to their vessels and are not afraid to cram in as many people as possible. Thankfully, we were able to quickly make our way aft and got seats outside that provided us with a wonderful view of the Grand Canal, its beautiful palaces and the crazy water traffic around us!

We were met at the Vaporetti stop by a young boy of no more than twelve named Andreas, who led us through the maze of streets to our hotel, “Locanda Antico Casin”. It was rather strange being checked in by a child but he was very helpful and we were soon settled into our room. The hotel appears to have been recently renovated and we can say that it certainly paid off! Our room was beautiful, on the top floor with exposed wooden beams, a sloped ceiling and a skylight which let the sunlight flood in (but also had a remote controlled cover to ensure that we could sleep in)! There were two large windows with wooden shutters which looked out over the neighbouring buildings. The bathroom was compact but had a strange set of sliding and swinging glass panels which allowed you to change the layout. There was no plug hole in the shower, but instead the floor was split into three panels and the water just drained away through the gaps. Oh, and the ceiling above the shower had fibre optic stars on it!! Very groovy!

On our first evening we headed to Piazza San Marco and walked around taking in the sights and sounds. The square is lined with restaurants which had bands playing classical music at each. Once the sun has gone down the square is surrounded by the lights of hundreds of windows which lead the eye down to the beautiful facade of the Basilica, whose gilded frescos glisten in the lamp light. It is wonderfully romantic and I couldn’t help twirling and dancing around a slightly embarrassed Michael. After getting slightly lost looking at different restaurants, I finally picked one based solely on the fact the it had nicely matching decor, a candle and flower on each table, and above all, it had fairy lights... (*Michael rolls his eyes*)
We sat outside in a tiny laneway and watched people walking by. It was wonderful!

The next day we woke to beautiful sunshine flooding into our room and decided that we would use this opportunity to just walk around exploring and getting happily lost. It was also a Monday so most museums were closed anyway. Not long after starting out we rounded a corner to stumble upon the Gran Teatro La Fenice! This famous theatre named after the fabled Phoenix ironically all but totally burnt down in a terrible fire in 1993, but has been meticulously rebuilt and is absolutely stunning inside today. We were lucky to visit while they were bumping out the current show and got a lovely view of the stage, backstage, flies etc, from the auditorium (backstage was unfortunately not included on the tour). Interestingly, the front section of the stage can be lowered down to create an orchestra pit, kept level to the increase seating area, or can be raised up to extend the stage depending on the type of show currently being performed. The auditorium is beautifully decorated with sculptures, frescos and LOTS of gold leaf! It is spectacular as a work of art in itself. Once we left the theatre we walked around to its water entrance and found the workmen loading the flats and props onto the low barges to be taken away. It really makes bump-out with small truck seem much less difficult than we had previously thought!

We then walked across the bridge to the southern Accademia area where we got quite lost, strolling along the water’s edge looking out at La Giudecca (another of the Venetian Islands). Wandering out of the more touristy areas we then ventured through some of the seemingly wider residential streets and canals, failing badly in trying to blend in with the locals. After a few hours we had just decided to find somewhere to eat when a mask shop, La Comedia, caught my eye. I entered with the intention of buying one mask - an hour later we left with FIVE. (*Michael shudders at the memory*) We bought two matching red and gold Comedy & Tragedy masks to put on a wall (somewhere), a lovely green and silver cat mask... and the others are gifts so we will say no more about them! :-)

After a very late lunch we slowly made our way home for a well earned nap. On waking a few hours later we decided to have a takeaway pizza in our room but following that headed out to take some night photos and walk off the food. We also bought a lovely oil painting of a Venetian sunset from a street vendor just off Piazza San Marco. After taking lots of lovely shots of lamps, stairs, the Bridge of Sighs (will provide description later) and Michael dragging Kate out of more mask shops, we headed back to our hotel to have a quiet drink on the terrace and contemplate our day. It turned out we were not the only ones with this idea, and we soon got chatting to a lovely American couple who gave us a few helpful hints about some of the sights, such as a sneaky short cut to get into the Basilica.

The following morning we headed to the Museo Correr where we saw many historical Venetian artefacts, including huge ornate ship lamps, an extensive coin collection and many other works of art. I also lost the bag check token, and after running around the entire museum discovered that someone had kindly handed it in, so we were able to get our bag (needless to say, Michael will be in charge of future bag tokens, keys etc!). We then made our way to the Doge’s Palace (for the ceremonial leaders of Venice in centuries past) and its adjoining prison. The palace is massive and there are many beautifully decorated rooms, the most spectacular being the Sala del Maggior Consiglio; This enormous hall was the meeting place for the Great Council of Venice which at one point had 2,000 members. All of the walls and the ceiling are covered with dark frescos famed in gold. It is a very imposing room that we sat in for some time to soak in!
Still in a state of wonderment, we then headed through the rooms set aside as court rooms, and then across the Bridge of Sighs to the Prison. It is said that the bridge is named for the prisoners who after sentencing would sigh as they took their last look out at the canals of Venice before they were led down into the dark cells. It really is a beautiful view too! The prison was very interesting and included an exhibition of weapons and other artefacts (including a viciously disturbing chastity belt!).
When we left the Prison and saw the huge line snaking through the rain waiting to get into the Basilica, we took the advice of our American neighbours and headed to the baggage check in a separate building in a small side street. When given our token we were advised that it would enable us to skip the line. We assumed this is because after people lined up for hours, they would reach the front of the line only to be told that they would have to check their bags before they could come in, and it wouldn’t be fair to make them go to the back of the line. Once inside we were struck by the number of gilded frescoes all over the ceiling and walls, which like those in the Doge’s Palace were very dark and oppressive but up close were beautiful! Though the entry is free, you have to pay to see all the main features of the Basilica, such as the Pala d’Oro; a magnificent alter piece covered with gold and gemstones, which was well worth the 2 Euros we paid to see it! We also got a wonderful view both of the inside of the Basilica from the galleries and of St Mark’s square from the outside landing. On the gallery level is an exhibition which includes the original 4th Century horse statues of the quadrella, which had to be replaced because they were deteriorating from having been exposed to the elements for so long. Up close you can see that the bronze statues are intentionally covered with scratches so that the sun’s reflection would not blind the people below. A neat trick!

By this stage I had managed to convince Michael that I REALLY needed a big billowy cloak to go with the masks, so we wandered around looking for one that wasn’t overly expensive, but gave up when we got hungry. Dinner was in a restaurant on the waterfront near Piazza San Marco, with a fantastic view across to the other islands. The meal was lovely, but I got too cold as the sea breeze began to pick up *Michael rolls eyes again*.

On our last morning in Venice we took a Vaporetto back to the station where we deposited our bags while we wandered the streets for the last time. This is something that I think we could never get tired of, as there are always new and interesting views down canals or laneways or of small piazza that seem to appear out of nowhere. I finally found a cloak on sale at the Rialto Bridge so we settled down for some lunch at a restaurant with an amazing view! (Kate got cold... again.)
On our way back to the station Michael decided that we just couldn’t leave Venice without taking a gondola ride (despite the 80 Euro cost), despite his earlier reticence. It was lovely and very romantic, and our gondolier took us on a tour down the Grand Canal and through many of the smaller canals as well. It allowed us to see things from a completely different perspective and was well worth it!

The short experience of Venice was just wonderful, and we said goodbye promising ourselves to return as so as we can! On to Rome...

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