Ciao ciao Italia!

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I spent my last day in Italy in Venice. I was determined to find Piazza San Marco. The piazza opens up onto a lagoon and was absolutely beautiful from all the postcards I had seen. I had missed it the first time I was in Venice so this time I went by all the shops without stopping and I found it 😊 It was indeed as beautiful as the postcards. The current look of the piazza has been shaped over 1,000 years, but has basically maintained the same original structure from the 9th century. St. Mark’s Square was breathtaking with the clock tower and the immense St. Mark’s Basilica towering over everything and everyone. The Square was filled with children feeding pigeons and squealing every time one flew into their hand. St. George’s Island sits in the middle of the lagoon and on this particular day it seemed like everyone in Venice was out on sailboats soaking up the sun.

As I was walking along the docks, I started to wonder where all the people lived. The parts of Venice I had seen were all extremely touristy and I imagine that most locals don’t live in these areas. As luck would have it, as I was wondering aimlessly along the little alleyways, I stumbled into the residential area. There were no shops or restaurants anywhere and clothes were hanging out to dry in the courtyards. It was nice to see the “other side” of Venice, but I ended up walking in circles for about 45 minutes trying to find my way out of that residential area. It was a maze with tiny alleys leading to dead ends along the river and bridges that went straight into buildings! By the end of it I was completely turned around and had no clue how to get back to the bus station. I ended up walking in circles for about 2 hours before finally giving in and asking for directions.

All in all, it was a wonderful way to end my 3-week stint in Italy. I even stopped in one of the local cafes and had spaghetti for dinner before heading back to the campsite. C’mon now - you can’t come to Italy and not have spaghetti!

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Comments

[Spenta]

Manik and I had the same experience when we were walking the streets of Venice and I still remember that sign S.Marco (-- and S. Marco --)....unbelievable!!