Italy 2: Venice

So, we get to Venice around 3pm.

Let me start by saying that Venice is the most spectacular place. It is one of a kind. No cars. No noise. I have seen a million pictures, but they just don’t do it justice. Unless you see it and experienced it yourself, you will not understand its splendor, beauty, and crazy uniqueness. Words cannot explain. This place is spectacular and charming and absolutely breathtaking. There is nothing else like it.

We checked into our hostel and immediately took a gondola ride across the Grand Canal and back. It lasted about an hour, and was so much fun. It was a great way to see the city, go through the hidden canals, learn a little bit of history, and experience the real Venice. Our gondola driver was awesome. He explained that it takes about 2 years to learn how to drive one of the boats. They are crazy big, and he was such a pro at maneuvering it though the tiniest canals. It is a family tradition, which is the only way you can get in the business. There are a total of 450 different gondola drivers in Venice.

After the ride we walked through the streets of Venice, which, by the way, are impossible to navigate. So confusing! But we finally made it to Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square). It was so beautiful, with the exception of all the nasty pigeons! On the way we stopped at the Ponte di Rialto (Rialto Bridge) for the view of the Grand Canal and the shops along the bridge. We walked all though St. Mark’s square, looking at the Basilica di San Marco and Palace Ducale. We went to the top of the Campanile to see a view of Venice. It was spectacular!

We then found dinner, after the place we wanted to go to was closed- surprise surprise. Then we went back to the hostel to get ready to go out. We enjoyed some Bellini, a traditional Italian drink, while getting ready.

Everyone from the hostel was going to a beach party that night, so we decided to tag along. We walked back to St. Marks to get the water bus. We met all sorts of fun people along the way that were staying at the same hostel with us. The water bus (which is such a strange way to travel) took us to an island, and we had to walk from there to get to the beach party. The party was crazy fun. Lots of dancing and drinks and fun people. We eventually made it home, luckily, because Venice is even more impossible to get around during the night!

The next morning we woke up, got some food, and immediately went to tour the Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s Palace), which is Venice’s White House, Senate, torture chamber, and prison all in one. Next we toured the Basilica di San Marco, which was full of beautiful mosaics and views of the Piazza.

We grabbed lunch by the Murano Glass factory and then walked through all the shops nearby. Next was our excursion trying to find the Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari. What should have taken 15-20 minutes to get to, took about 2 hours to find because the streets are seriously impossible to follow. We met all sorts of lost people along the way that were trying to find the SAME church. Eventually we made it, and made a quick stop at Scuola Grande di San Rocco Church to listen to the choir rehearsal. Then we had to head back to the hostel and get packed up to leave. Again we got lost on the way back, but we eventually made it after stopping for some Gelato. Lastly we walked to the bus station that would take us to the airport. We flew back to London and were home by 1:30am.

Our feet were KILLING us by the end of all the walking. It was one of the most painful experiences of my life. Getting lost 500 times is no fun! I don’t even want to know how far we walked in Italy. Hopefully enough to work off all the pasta, pizza, and gelato! I was making up for all the nasty English food!

Now we only had 3 days to get ready for Barcelona. Oh, and do our Midterm project, and our final for one of the business classes. What a task. Let’s just say we didn’t sleep very much that week. And that is why it took forever for me to blog about Italy! So busy! But no complaints…