Monday, November 17, 2014

Venice


We had an early start to our day beginning at 5.30am.  It was beautiful watching the sunrise as we drove down the mountain to the train station.  Because there is no driving in Venice and expensive parking on the outskirts we caught the train from Verona.

Arriving in Venice is the most marvellous sight; you literally walk out of the train station and are met by the Grand Canal busy with boats and bustling with people.  We began our morning by getting purposefully lost in the streets; it is made up of 177 small islands linked together by 409 bridges.  Leo had a wonderful time leading us through the labyrinth of Venice streets.   Venice streets are full of quaint little shops and hundreds of shops selling masks.

After wondering through the streets we joined a walking tour at 10.30am.  We learnt about the islands, water level, bridges, cathedrals, fish markets, masks and gondolas.  This was Leo’s first tour that he was awake and walking, he did very well.

Following our tour we found a comfy spot on a jetty near the Rialto Bridge.  It was amazing watching people working from their boats, shuffling goods around on carts or their heads and the general way of life in Venice. 

Refuelled and ready to move on we made our way to the Basilica of Saint Mark, (Venice's main cathedral), St Marks Square, the waterfront and the Bridge of Sighs. 

It was starting to get late so we took a gondola from one side of the Grand Canal to the other, brought some Italian gelato and made our way back to the train station.  We were lucky enough to see the sunset and Venice turn from day to night, such a wonderful place!

It was an exceptionally long day; Leo and Corban did such a great job of being on the go and had a great sleep in the next morning!

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