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Published: February 23rd 2012
Activities:
The train ride from Munich to Verona was nice, from what I saw. I was falling asleep for the majority of it but I do remember that we went from a snowing Munich to a blanketed forest/mountain region before the snow stopped and it got sunny. The geography has changed. There are mountains, no snow, but I can see some blanketed mountains in the distance (The Alps?). Onwards from Verona to Venice!
Now, I'd been given joining instructions by the tour company which I was trying to follow to the letter. At Mestre Station I found out the bus route I needed had been discontinued. I now needed a new bus and was given fuzzy instructions about leaving the station and going to some other place to catch it. So, I left the station via the back route which opened onto a very sketchy looking side street. Then I tried to follow busses in order to get to the place I’d been given the name of, but not how to get there, for about an hour. Recipe for success, eh? The whole time I was wandering I felt very conspicuous and really stood out because of my multiple
backpacks. Eventually I turned around and retraced my steps back to a hotel where the receptionist was very kind and called the campsite. She gave me a map and told me where to wait for the number 16 bus. I went to the stop and, about 5 minutes before the bus came, a group of people arrived who seemed just as lost as I had been. We had just established that we were, in fact, all on the same tour when the bus came around the corner. There was one Canadian in the group, Suzanne from Ottawa, who is a chef living in London. I was the first fellow Canadian she’d met while travelling and was one of the other five girls that I grouped myself with.
For a half hour the bus took us to a very industrial part of the mainland and we were beginning to think we the campsite was in the middle of nowhere (it was). But we arrived safely and checked in just fine. The rooms were trailers with two beds and a bathroom. Thankfully they were lovely and warm due to a heater that ran nearly constantly. Later that night at the campsite
restaurant I met Lauren (from Aus) and Yvette (a Kiwi).
Next day we got up for a breakfast of apricot scones, ham, and some bread rolls with the hardest crust I’ve ever seen. After breakfast we all headed out on the Vaporetto to get to the islands of Venice! We were given a very brief orientation of the city (only as far as St. Marc’s Square) before we went to a lace shop where we learned a little about Venetian lace and why that art form is dying out. (See: It takes a crazy amount of time, patience, and skill to produce even a small piece. Women today just don’t have that much time and they can’t make a living off it.) After that we went on an optional half hour gondola ride and that’s when we met Sam and Ashleigh. After the ride was over the six of us went exploring/shopping. Before the end of the day each of us had bought a mask to wear. We went to the Rialto Bridge over the grand canal before stopping for lunch. Our next stop was the Bridge of Sighs and then dinner! After dinner we split into three groups
Rialto Bridge
Taken from on the gondola!of two and wandered/shopped/headed back to the campsite at our own paces.
Our final full tour day started off with the same rock hard rolls as before and then the majority of the group went with our guide to see the islands of Murano and Burano. Murano is famous for the glasswork that goes on there and we were all amazed to watch the glassblowing and glass pulling demonstration that was given. After a wander around the island we headed off to Burano which is famous for its lace production and it’s multicoloured houses. The story is that the fishermen coming home late at night couldn’t recognize which house was theirs and would end up sleeping with women other than their wives. To remedy this they painted the houses different colours. The island itself was very small and not busy at all. I didn’t think that it would be that special but was pleasantly surprised to find that I very much enjoyed the time we spent there. After that we headed back the main Venetian islands for the final day of Carnival. Three of us got our faces painted before we went back to the square to watch the
final presentation of most original costume and the best costume. Following that we all headed back to the campsite.
Next morning we were all out for breakfast again before checking on the bus and shuttle situation. The buses don’t run early enough for me to catch them to the airport the next day and there were no campsite shuttles to the airport either. So I would have to wait around the campsite until the afternoon and then catch a bus to Mestre, then to Treviso and then wait in the airport for about 12 hours. The whole Topdeck group hung out in the restaurant, each of us saying our goodbyes as people drifted off to their next destinations. I waited until I had to go in Sam and Ashleigh's cabin. I was really tired and wanted to get sleep but the beds were both taken and the floor was dirty so all I could do was sit on the desk and try to sleep. It didn’t work but I was able to close my eyes for about two hours.
At 4:15pm Ashleigh and I said goodbye to Sam and went to catch the bus to take us to
Mestre. At 6:30pm I left to get my bus to the airport. I tried but couldn’t get to sleep on the bus either. Treviso Airport is very small but I was able to find a nice little corner with a plug so that I can watch movies/type up my Venice impressions.
At about 1:30am one of the police (or airport security, but I think it was the police because the uniform was pretty ornate) came and told me that I had to stay in the airport and that I’m allowed to be where I am or in the bathroom but not outside. He then pointed to the camera I already knew was above my head, indicating they’d be watching me. But, I’m positioned exactly under the camera so they can’t actually see me. Whatever, back to the movies.
I did end up flying out at 7:55am that morning and got a nice hour of solid sleep on the plane. Of course, after that I got lost, wandered, got found, checked-in, got a job, got trained and then was pushed off the deep end to see if I'd sink or swim. But that'll have to be in the next
update. But in the end I think I ended up only getting about 2-3 hours of sleep in that 42 hour period between waking up on the final day at Fusina and going to bed in Prague.
People: I’ve noticed this before but on many of the tours there are more girls than boys. This was especially apparent on this Topdeck tour as there were only about 4 boys (including the tour leader) and something like 30-40 girls. I was very lucky that I met some people before I arrived at the campsite and it was very easy from there to make friends. I’ve also been quite relieved to discover that not all people my age that travel are drunken party-goers. It’s nice to know that there are other people like me out there.
Weather: The weather has become steadily worse in Italy. When I arrived in Verona it was sunny and almost warm! The next day in Venice was sunny with cloudy patches and then the next day was overcast all day with a bit of rain and then the following day was miserable and windy and rainy until about 2pm. I’m really glad that it held
out for the majority of the trip though. Carnival wouldn’t have been as enjoyable if it had rained.
Food: I’ve decided that when I’m in Italy I’m going to splurge and try as much Italian food as possible. So far I’ve had pizza, tiramisu, gelato, gnocchi, and lasagna. The pizza I’ve had at the campsite was _really_ good. It’s lighter, less greasy and somehow more flavourful than the pizzas I have at home. The tiramisu was also at the campsite. It was good but not amazing. The gelato I had was caramel with chocolate and hazelnuts. It tasted like a chocolate bar! Gnocci was also something new and I wasn’t surprised to find I liked it also. And finally, the lasagna I had was on the island of Burano. It was small but very cheesy and creamy. The last two things I’ve still to try are a pasta (lasagna doesn’t count) and risotto. I’m sure I’ll be able to find something in Milan while I’m there.
Carnival: More than anything Carnival reminds me of an anime convention. Granted, the people are dressed better, the food isn't all junk and it doesn’t smell as much like sweat but still…
I suppose it is, just on a city-wide scale. There are people in costume, food and souvenirs being sold, and it is jam packed everywhere. There’s even the same out of place people who wear costumes that don’t really have to do with Carnival (and yes, sadly, I saw two people dressed in anime costumes). On a semi-ralated note there was confetti that could be purchased by the bag and was strewn around the city streets. It must be a nightmare to clean up, but it’s a festive touch that I reminded me that I was seeing something that doesn't happen everyday.
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Meg
non-member comment
Aahhh! This is so awesome! I wonder what it would cost to design a costume like that sun O_O