It has been a good start to our trip. Venice is one of a kind, in good ways and bad. It is a very strange city. There are no cars. At all. Everywhere we go, we go on foot. There are also several versions of boats and ferries, but we have managed without them. The street is laid out on a series of canals and walking streets, with essentially no rhyme or reason. As such, we have gotten lost several times, but it's ok, since the whole city is a relatively small island. It is also a strange city because it is dying. The city is essentially an homage to what it used to be. Residents have been moving away for decades now, and there are almost as many tourists as Venetians in the city on any given day. Other than tourism, very little happens in Venice. Even so, it is a really neat experience to walk around the city. There are lots of pretty old buildings, several beautiful and impressive bridges, and lots of people. We have enjoyed walking around to nowhere in particular and taking in the shops and restaurants along the way.
Here is some of what we have spent our time doing, in pictures:
This is our hotel room at Ca' Zose. It has been a very nice home base for us in Venice.
We have spent a lot of time meandering through "streets" like these.
We do enjoy our cafes when on vacation in Europe. Plenty of stops for espresso, water, and (not pictured) lots of wine and good food.
I mentioned that the city is confusing. We have been frequently checking our maps, and consulting with our Rick Steves guide to Venice (the kindle has proven to be much easier to tote than 7 different books).
Speaking of Rick Steves, last night we went on a tour with Rick Steves approved guide Alessandro, which included a few stops for wine and food. We met a nice almost-vegetarian couple from Atlanta.
Earlier today, we stopped in at the Peggy Guggenheim collection of modern art. This museum is situated inside of Ms. Guggenheim's former residence on the Grand Canal in Venice, which is a partially-unfinished palace. Stephanie says it looks like a nice place to live.
Venice is so hauntingly beautiful. It is so sad to see the city dying. The only way to explore Venice is to just get lost...eat lots of food along the way...and consult a map when you are ready to go back to the hotel. �� How has the weather been?
ReplyDelete...first.
It has been great. Cool at night, breezy and sunny during the day. I may be jinxing it though because tomorrow's forecast includes rain. :(
DeleteHello?
ReplyDeleteCiao!
DeleteNow what did I do?
ReplyDeleteOK, this is getting old. Twice now, I've written a long reply only to have it flushed away when I try to publish it, post it, send it, display it or whatever the heck I'm doing. I've tried using my name as a URL only to be told that I'm an illegal character. What does that mean? I thought I knew what a profile is, but apparently, I don't. I finally stumbled across an old Google account that took pity on me and let me continue to the 'prove-you're-not-a-robot' test. I passed with flying colors. Where are the days of practicing my cursive handwriting on lined paper with a number 2 pencil?
ReplyDeleteAnyway....how's the honeymoon? I hope you both are having a great time. Did you experience a 'singing gondola' ride while there, or is that the Italian version of the Naked Cowboy in NYC? With all that water, I think a boat ride of any kind sounds enjoyable. I enjoy all the photos interspersed with text. Did you know that I'm also 'almost-vegetarian'? It's true. Once you remove the beef, pork and seafood from my diet, I'm mostly-vegetarian. Can't wait to read your next post. Have fun.
Sounds like a great time! You guys look refreshed. Love the pictures.
ReplyDelete"It is also a strange city because it is dying."
ReplyDeleteIn a more literal sense, it is also sinking, no?
As Rick Steves says, "the locals will say the city is not sinking nearly as fast as the water is rising"
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