Venizia

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We have had two nights in Venice already – how time flies by. We have a lovely little boutique hotel and were upgraded to a canal view room, which is lovely. From about 5pm we can hear the singers and musicians on the gondolas pass our room (Gondolier ride is about E120, but you have to pay extra for the musicians, so we are enjoying them each night for free.)

Everything is dearer in Venice of course, but we have just last night noticed that every meal has a 2.50Euro cover charge per person, then a 12% service charge, then the waiter last night was so rude and demanded a tip on top! Must have thought we were Americans!
It is jam packed with tourists and hot and smelly around the canals. Some lovely restaurants we have come across are positioned on the fundamentals (streets that run alongside a canal), but the smell is a little off putting for the ambience.

Piazza San Marco is packed, and an eye opener for sure. It is surrounded by jewellery shops with necklaces, brooches and bracelets etc so big and often whimsical that you would thin they have to be costume jewelry, but alas no, this must be where the movie stars and billionaires shop for their gems. I will try to take some photos in the windows as I will surely forget their luxury. Some were quite funny even and I couldn’t imagine anyone paying the price for real gems in that style. If 'black face’ is frowned upon and causes such an uproar of racism in Australia I don’t understand some brooches in several shops with black Indian faces carved maybe out of ebony (?) and a jewel encrusted turban and chest. They are quite large and when I saw the first one, I thought it must have been a little of a joke, but they were in several jewelers along the piazza.

Yesterday we enjoyed a private 3 hour walking tour with a local guide, Antonella, followed by a 1 hour boat trip along the Grand Canal. We learnt so much more about Venice having a private guide.

There are sooooo many artists selling their paintings for a song along the canal and in piazzas, and art galleries on every corner. We are enjoying looking at the works, although many are quite similar of course because they are all painting Venice scenes for the tourists. The art galleries have a higher standard of work and we have found 3 artists work which we like.

Today we will travel to the 3 islands Murano, Burano, and Torcello. We have seen some incredible examples of Murano glass in the shops - oh to have a container to send home, if it was as cheap to do as Bali - there are some amazing lights made of Murano glass.

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Photos

Piazza San Marco
and the Doges Palace - like a government building for the figurehead (prime minister type character with no real power) and courts

Gelati
Bell and Baz you would be in heaven

Basilica and Bell Tower
Piazza San Marco

The artists strip
jam packed with people