Trip - Day 14

Sunday, June 12th

Venetzia!

We enjoyed another restful night at the Villa Zane. After breakfast we head to the Treviso train station. All aboard for Venice! We're fortunate to get three seats together on the crowded train. It's just a short 35 minutes to the last stop, Venice. First thing we do at the Veince station is check the schedules to plan what time we need be back for our return trip.

As soon as we step out of the Stazione Santa Lucia, we enter a large square on the Grand Canal. To our left is the Ponte Degli Scalzi which takes us over to the first of the many islands that make Venice. It's a warm day and the square is very crowded with tourists from all over the world, and the canal is busy with gondolas, row boats, power boats, taxis and ferries. 

We work our way through the crowd, across the bridge...then down through the narrow streets. Some streets are so narrow you can reach out your hands and touch both sides at the same time. As we walk we cross over smaller bridges, pass though smaller squares then large ones. Occasionally we stop for photos, or to peak inside a church. Almost every shop we pass is there strictly for the tourists; trinkets, Venetian Masks, or quick eats. There's a temptation to photograph every inch, but I manage some self control and try to be selective.

It seems the closer we get to a square, the more shops there are. This is especially true of the area around the famed Rialto Bridge, the oldest in Venice. Brigitte is our excellent guide and leads us to the Piazza San Marco. There is a sea of people ahead of us. To our right is the Cafe Florian where musicians play a Strauss Waltz (I joked it was solely for our benefit). The Doge's Palace and the great St. Mark's Basilica are the prominent features, as is the granite tower with the winged lion - the symbol of St. Mark.

There's a long line to enter St. Mark's Basilica. At first it seems too long, but Brigitte notices the line is actually moving quickly. George and I get in line while Brigitte waits for us, holding our bags, which are not permitted inside. There are two options at the entrance, follow the crowd up to the balcony for a higher view, or enter the chapel for a fee. I would have gone into the chapel if photographs were permitted. Because we're only here for one day with so much yet to see, we decide to move on.

Brigitte leads us to our oasis for lunch. From there we head to the Jewish Ghetto. The term "ghetto" originated here in Venice for the area were Jews were compelled to live. The buildings here a little higher, and we pass several old temples.

On the far side of the Ghetto we catch a ferry that takes us to the Lido, where - compared to the crowds of the central areas of Venice - it seems peaceful. (On our ride over we pass under the Rialto. The canals are busier than normal because there are some small boats races going on this weekend. At several times we saw gondola gridlock.)

Lido is also where the annual Venice Film Festival is held. On Lido (Italian for 'beach') we stroll past some villas and an ornate hotel to visit the famed Lido Beach. On our way back to the ferry we stop for a cool drink and for gelato, then back to a ferry which takes us around Venice to a point close to the square where we began, and we walk back to the stazione. We've timed things well and catch a train, again lucky to get seats together. This train had air conditioning, which was welcome to me after our warm day in Venice.

We exit back at Treviso station, get into George's Yaris and drive back to Villa Zane, but we decide to pick-up a pizza along the on our way. We spend the evening in the quiet of the grounds, enjoying our pizza near a Linde tree while sharing a bottle of wine provided by the gracious host of Villa Zane.