Venice

Venice

I abandoned all hope of getting my luggage, and we bought a high speed train tickets from Milan to Venice. Only it was not a smooth ride-- somehow we had been sold duplicate tickets and our seats were taken. I sat down in the chair next to our seats, contemplating what we should do, when I had a near confrontation with an irate lady, whose seat I was sitting in. The train conductor thankfully sorted it all out and we were given new seats. My first impression of Italians was not a good one.
Our arrival in Venice was magical. The land seemed to just end, there at the port-- only the city kept going out into the sea. All transportation was now by boat, or on foot. Emily and Bob were to arrive around the same time, but we did not cross paths there at the train station, so we set out by boat to St. Marks Square to find our hotel. It truly is the GRAND CANAL. Unlike a freeway though, there are no lanes and boats careen across the canal at all speeds. It was a real adventure! We wandered around the square looking for the tourism information and directions to the hotel. There are not really any "street addresses" in Venice. We were just given general directions, and miraculously we found the hotel with Emily and Bob waiting on us. It was the most round- about- obscure place- ever, but completely charming and we loved our two nights there. Bob did good!

Our grand hotel

View from the window

Lunch on the square

A view from the Campanile Bell Tower

Emily feeding the pigeons at San Marco Square with St. Marks Basilica in the background

Mardi Gras masks donned many of the shops. The long-nose beak one was worn by the medical physicians during the plague to keep away the smells of death.

Sinking churches













Be careful what you order! Emily ordered Squid (thinking along the lines of Calimari) What she got was Squid- with ink!!!

She said it tasted good- as long as she didn't look at it- only we had to look at her eating it!!!

The Magical Venice Grand Canal

Tight quarters

St. Marks Basilica

Inside St. Marks Basilica; note the gold ceilings

Doges Palace, and the "winged lion" of Venice

Emily and Bob with the Tetrarchs in the background

The Clock tower of San Marco Square

The "Bridge of Sighs" A prison walkway across the canal from Doges Palace where you could hear the prisoners "sigh" from the canal below

Venice- the most romantic city!

The winged lion is the symbol of Venice

Up on the Rialto Bridge

A view of the Grand Canal from the Rialto Bridge

Brad at the Fish market, checking out the EEL

Our Gondola Ride!

Locking our love to the bridge, and throwing away the key...

Our trip to Venice was fabulous! We had such a good time exploring the streets and canals, even at night. We took a boat ride over to the glass factory, and rode the canal several different directions just to take it all in. Our favorite pizza was from a corner street cafe. This was Bobs first trip to Venice, and he won't admit it- but he had a good time too! Yes, I am wearing the same clothes the whole time. Emily was kind enough to lend me an outfit of hers while we were there- and I wore it both days. I was finally able to find some flip flops on the second day too, and save my feet from the fancy sandals I wore on the plane.

Milan

Milan

On July 10th we took off from DC (Dulles) on the new A380 Airbus, after the most thorough search and frisking by security that Brad and I have ever encountered.  We landed in Paris by morning and flew on to Milan with a stunning view of the Alps as we crossed into Italy.  The flights were fabulous, with good food and lots of leg room/sleeping room, and way too many movies to watch.  I had a melt-down moment in the airport when we discovered that my luggage had not arrived.  But we regrouped and found a hotel where we could crash for couple of hours before we went sight seeing in Milan.  Taking the subway to the Duomo was an adventure, but thanks to a kind stranger, we got tickets and were headed in the right direction. It was a magical sight to come out of the subway and see the Duomo.  Jacob served his mission here in Milan, and it felt like we were walking on sacred ground. I wish he and Jenny could have been here to share it with us.  The Duomo was under scaffolding most of his mission, for cleaning- but we got to see it in all its glory- only a tiny area at the top is still covered in scaffolding. We toured inside, outside, and up on the roof.  Rick Steve's Travel guide gave us insight to tiny details in the Duomo that we would have overlooked.  It became our travel bible all through Italy.  

The Duomo

The Galleria across the square from the Duomo is full of high priced shops.  We checked out a purse for a mere 1800 Euro's

Inside the Duomo

St. Bartolomeo- sculptured by one of Leonardo da Vinci's students

St Bartolomeo was a martyr who was skinned alive by the Romans. Notice the flesh hanging off his back- a study in Anatomy, which was forbidden by the church at that time. 

Confessional- appropriate for the bishop.

Well preserved Priests...

The massive Baroque doors of the Duomo

Up on the Roof of the Duomo

The Duomo was built from 1386-1810- It started out with Gothic architecture and was finished under Napoleon, with hundreds of sculptures added over the centuries.  Final touches were put on in 1965- I am pretty sure tennis was not around in 1386, so this is a newer sculpture we found on a stairway on our way to the roof of the Duomo..  

We enjoyed dinner in Milan and a good nights sleep before we caught the train to Venice.  I was told my luggage would arrive by morning.  It didn't happen--washing underwear in the sink.