When I arrived in Venice, the city was awash with a fog so deep the only pin points of light were the city’s rose tinted street lamps. All means of transport throughout the city are by boat (And I mean ALL means! When a resident goes to buy a tv or furniture, or when DHL delivers a package, or when a construction company needs to transport equipment to a site – all is completed by boat!) Much like taking a bus to a location, Suzy and I hopped on the public boat to our hotel in Piazza San Marco. The hotel (Antico Panada), while in a fantastic location, was not what we had hoped for. The carpets in the hallways were tearing apart, the bathroom floor was a cracked brown tile, the shower was tiny, the glass shower door (maybe it was clean???) tended to fall in on the inhabitant of the shower, and the very firm mattress had a considerable lump in it. Definitely not an American four star by any means! But it was only for one night!
I spent the first dreary, foggy, chilly day exploring the city. While the city seemed so vast by boat, it was easy to walk from part to part. Canals ran throughout the city almost like winding wheel spokes. Bridges connected each stretch of land to the other – and the views from the bridges were fantastic! To each side of the smaller canals were docked boats, and many times gondolas. The gondoliers chant of “Gondola! Signori! Gondola!” could be heard from multiple points throughout the city. In fact, traversing was almost like being in a maze! There are tiny little alleyways that, if one were to look from an aerial view, would exactly resemble those dead end and convoluted pathways of an intricate maze. However, in this maze of a town, the streets are all well marked, and many have arrows pointing the path to choose to go to the most popular sites.
The second day brought sunny skies and warmer weather. The smell of salt water and fresh fish clung to the air. The water rippled through the canals casting lovely reflections of the aging Italian apartments onto its mirrored surface. Shop windows with carefully placed displays of Murano glass. After spending my afternoon wandering throughout the Venetian alleyways, I sat by the Grand Canal, taking in the sun, eavesdropping on the gondoliers, and lamenting my sad state of not having ridden in a gondola. And suddenly a group of five London study abroad students came to ask the gondolier for the cost of a ride. After asking many of these men in striped shirts and ribboned bahama hats for prices, I poutedly decided that I probably could not afford a 70-150 Euro ride, when I heard the girls could split the price to be 17 Euro a piece. I jumped up and offered to join them – to lower their price of course What a wonderful experience! Our gondolier sang, winked, and pointed out the sights (Casanova’s home, the women’s prison, etc). The best 30 minutes of my time in Venice! Except maybe dinner the first night (it’s hard to beat live music and a three course meal!)
While Venice is for sure a tourist town – many feel its almost like a Disneyland. I think it is a must see if you have a decent amount of time in Italy. But! It is not an example of Italian culture, normal life, or Italy in general. Only 70,000 people live in Venice and most of these are not Italians! Nevertheless, the bridges and canals are gorgeous and make for romantic photos!
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