Venice

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It was a nice change to get free drink and very nice Swiss chocolate on the flights from Birmingham. Immidiately bought my Rolling Venice card at the airport for 22 euros and hopped on the bus into Venice. My hostel was a sweaty 20 minute walk away from the bus station. I was impressed with the hostel's exterior - gothic style building surrounded by canal and accessed by a cute little bridge. Inside it wasn't the nicest hostel I've stayed in but it would do! I got changed and hit the streets and had a look round. I ate spag bol at a restaurant and it was run by Thais so unfortunately it wasn't the lovely spag bol I was expecting (I had learned in SE Asia to not have western food in Asian establishments...they just don't do it right) but it got rid of the hunger anyway!

There was a chill in the air, and I was already feeling the atmosphere I was expecting, with a violinist in the street surrounded by observers, countless theatre mask shops and of course the canals, oh and a lot of Somalians trying to flog knock off bags.

My sleep was interrupted by some idiotic girls who came in at about 1:30 drunk and being shamelessly loud...one girl in my room shhh'd them and the response was 'don't shush me'...vile. In went the earplugs!

Got up at about 8 the following day and took a vaporetto to St Mark's Square (after getting lost in the surrounding streets which was fab! Found a leaning tower and some lovely general surroundings).

I finally found St Mark's square and was blown away! The pics say it all really! The exquisite Doges Palace, the Bascilia and the views from the tower were immense! Venice really is beautiful! It was a really hot day too, not a cloud in the sky - perfect. I spent a few hours here and then took the vaporetto down the Grand Canal which was equally fab going past the gorgous baroque and gothic buildings, the Peggy Guggenheim museum and under the many bridges, and past the many canal streets. I ended the day by paying a quick visit to the lace - making island of Burano which is in the Venice lagoon and it was so picturesque, with its pastel coloured houses and leaning tower - so so pretty.

It was getting on for dinnertime back at the hostel so I made my way back, and had a free pasta dinner which was the icing on the cake. No horrible noisy girls tonight thank god 😊

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Photos

I love this shot
stumbled across this while looking for St Marks

Wreckage
I loved this artwork in the Doges Palace

View over Switzerland/Italy
from the plane

St Mark's Campanile
I went to the top of this