VENEZIA

So Venice is beautiful.  Some people love it, and others absolutely hate it.  I’m definitely one of those that has fallen for this unique place.  Figured I should put up some pictures to share its beauty! 


The bridges were all so unique.  There’s the main ones across the grand canal (the prettiest is the Rialto bridge which is that white one behind me and my dad as we traversed the Grand Canal), and then there are the smaller ones connecting streets or sometimes leading directly into buildings. 

 My first views of the city were at night…I think it’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen.  It's all SO PRETTY. 

The Doge’s Palace/Palazzo Ducale is right by the most popular area of Venice, Piazza de San Marco and has one of the coolest bridges in Venezia, called the Bridge of Sighs (tragically romantic…its where the condemned prisoners got their last look at their beloved city).  Unfortunately, its under restoration so there's a giant billboard advertisement on the outside, which is awkward.  The Palace also has some pretty awesome rooms.  There is a ton of interesting stuff in this Palace/Museum, including dungeons, HUGE paintings, and beautiful statues.  The view out of the Bridge of Sighs:

 Forget St. Marks Square, this Basicala Santa Maria della Salute was breathtaking.  It stands out and the inside is just as pretty.  Somehow in all the churches we visited, they closed as we were were leaving, and we even got to see a part of a service here.  This is also located right where the Grand Canal ends on this side, so that’s really cool to be able to walk right up to the edge.  Venice is kind of shaped like a fish!

They also really like lions in Venezia.  It’s a symbol of the city, and they are EVERYWHERE.  It was pretty funny to see lions decorating a ton of buildings, including palaces, door knockers, water fountains, statues, and clocks.  This is at the Arsenale.

 The above three pictures where taken during the Regata Storica.  The races after the first parade were kind of long, but it was incredible to see boats of all shapes, sizes and colors going up and down the canals.  They shut down transportation services and basically the city comes to a halt to watch.  People came out and lined the streets, balconies, docks, and even parked boats to watch this historical procession that occurs every first Sunday in September.  A bunch of people dress in costume and ride elaborate boats, and others come representing things, such as a church or even America.  It was really cool to see how the locals greeted certain competitors as they came back after their races, or cheered them on, or wore certain colors for their teams.  There was even a pink “Just Married” boat!  

It's Italy.  Getting gelato is basically a requirement.  This is fico, pera, e lampone.  YUMMY.

Gondolas.  Ok, so they are totally a tourist trap now, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t beautiful and pretty awesome to watch as they maneuver down the canals.  It got a little bit old after seeing them everywhere, but only just by the tiniest bit.  It was especially funny when you saw the ones that serenaded the passengers at the same time.  One gondolier pointed out Mozart’s house to everyone as we were crossing the bridge.  Plus, it was hilarious to see that Italians get into traffic jams even on canals.

So one thing I've learned is that I really like looking at domes.  Not sure why, but I think they are the coolest architectural aspects of the cities in Italy so far.  I’m a little bit obsessed.  We went to the Belltower overlooking the city and got some amazing views.  Needless to say, we stayed up there for a while, watching the sun set over the water and buildings.  And we even got the special treat of being there when the bells tolled, leaving everyone almost deaf or cringing in pain.  I’ll upload the video I took of that sometime.

 You never know what you are going to stumble across as you wander through the maze that is Venice.

And of course: St. Mark's (currently under construction, unfortunately, but still impressive). Playing with the pigeons is apparently a tradition, but I am not a fan of these ugly creatures so I didn't let any of them land on me. Haha.

Now I am currently in Florence (not for much longer though…off to Siena, Pisa, and Milan next). Since Florence is the art capital of the world, we hit the big museums: the Uffizi and the Accademia (to see Michelangelo’s “David,” plus some beautiful instruments, etc) as well as palaces, churches and the tombs of Macchiavelli, Galileo, Dante and Michelangelo. “David” was pretty much incredible and definitely my favorite. Plus, in addition to all the sight-seeing, I got to meet up with Sarah while I was here! Will update on Florence next time. :) xx