WEATHER: Beautiful day – I’d have to say 20C and sunny
HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY : The beautiful city of Venezia
BUMMER OF THE DAY: Not enough time in Venice
BUYS OF THE DAY: 2 murano glass rings for 6EUR
WORD OF THE DAY: - Chow bello – hello handsome in Italian
Well I hate to be a show off but I have been to Venice twice prior to yesterday, and it really is a place that you can never get sick off. I do have my general rule of not going back to a place twice, but there are some exceptions to this rule and Venice is one of them. I find London, Rome and Paris cities you can visit more than once also, as there is just so much to see and do and you never tire of the atmosphere.
If you haven’t been to Venice, you need to get your butt into gear. This city is truly something you not experience anywhere else in the world. After an early departure this morning at 7.45am we pretty much motored into Venice Port at 1.30pm, after the compulsory stop for Pete and lunch of course. We then had a boat waiting to take us from the mainland to the island of Venice itself. As there are no roads on the whole island, boat is the only form of getting directly onto Venice. There is a railway station that gets you just as far, and then you cross a bridge to get you on the island, other than that they are the only 2 forms to get you there.
As we are staying off the island, we had 7.5 hours to maximize our time here, before our boat left at 9pm back to the mainland, and I believe we did just that. We had some spare time before our walking tour started to soak up San Marco Square. When I was here last year, it was a public holiday and the place was manic. It was so busy, you couldn’t even see the bridge of sighs as there were so many people on it, and it5 was terrible. But I am happy to report, even though it was busy, you could still take it all in without getting bumped and pushed. Our walking tour went for 1 hour and our guide took us off the major beaten track, and showed us some places, heading our way to the Rialto Bridge as our final destination. From here we had some free time till 5pm, to do a spot of shopping before the glass blowing demonstration. I have to say all the murano glass jewellery I have bought on previous trips, makes it home and then sits in the jewellery box to never be worn. So I swore I wasn’t going to get any this visit. So it is beyond me why I even stepped into one of the murano shops, as soon as I saw all the beautiful glass shining and calling my name, I had no chance of getting out of that shop without buying something! To be honest, it is really not that expensive either which helps fuel the fire of spending. I did control myself f and I only got 2 rings for 6EUR. At the end of the day you get what you pay for and the murano costs can go into the thousands, but I was happy with my 6EUR purchase.
In saying that the glass blowing demonstration was really cool to see. He made a vase and a cat out of glass in like 10 minutes. He was a 5th generation glass blower and like all things for free, we had to do the compulsory walk through their shop before we could leave. They had some beautiful pieces in their shop, but certainly way out of any Contiki’ers budget. There was a chandelier hanging from the roof that was 52,000EUR!!! That is pretty much the cost of my trip hanging there. It was beautiful in a garish kind of way, but not my cup of tea. We also had a close shave with a glass headed horse for 45,000EUR, when 2 separate backpacks nearly swept it off its perch!!!! Now that wouldn’t have been funny – would it??
From here we headed to the gondolas. I didn’t do this last time, as they were so busy, so I didn’t want to miss it this time. We could purchase sparkling wine ( aka champagne ) before we boarded our gondola, so we got 2 bottles for 20EUR and the six of us boarded for our 40 minute glide around Venice’s canals. This really was a magic experience, even if I was with 5 other gals. I could see how this could be so romantic if you had that special some-one to share it with. I think there is a rule that you have to kiss under every bridge that you pass under, which we didn’t do of course, but there must have been at least 7 bridges!!! Our gondolier didn’t sing to our disappointment, but he spoke good English and he is a 4th generation gondolier. What a great way to see Venice, and if you are ever in Venice, it may seem corny, but definitely do the gondola ride as it is so worth it!!!!
From the gondola, we headed for dinner and as you do in Italy had an antipasto, an entrée and a main meal of the most delicious pasta I have ever eaten and of course dessert was gelato. A wonderful meal to have in Venice and we also got serenaded by a couple of guys on a trumpet and accordion.
Venice is a beautiful and unusual city and I think I will be back. Maybe not for a few years now, but Venice I will come again…..
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