venice bellisimo

Venice Trip from lolafly on Vimeo.

on a sleeper train from vienna to venice. 12 hour ride. we get our own comportment; it’s surprisingly very comfortable. clean sheets, sink with water and soap, some snacks, and outlet for my computer to catch up with my blog.

after a well-rested night on the train, right out of the station, the bright morning sun in venice, glistening on the grand canal greats us. what a feeling! no cars, bikes, buses... just water. we take the water bus to our hotel. it’s a 20-minute ride on the grand canal. it feels as if i am in fantasy-land. venetian style; moldy, old buildings. lots of boats and gondolas pass us by. it seems like hectic water traffic on the canal but somehow they all maneuver just fine. we arrive at our stop. san marco square.

yet another great selection of hotel. it’s right on the canal and by the san marco square. location cannot get any better than this. our room is unfortunately not overlooking the canal. but no problemo. it has a huge balcony, at the very top overlooking the many other rooftops and balconies of buildings. it’s also on the corner; down below is a street café. on the right is the campanile di san marco tower looking down at us. the street is very narrow; i can definitely jump to the garden like balcony of the house across.
the room is charming with hard wood floors, venetian glass sconces, wallpaper, and furniture. but enough of the hotel, let’s talk some venice now.

venice, amazing, different, bellisimo, amusement land for grown-ups, a must-see before it’s claimed by the adriatic see. lots and lots of tourists on certain parts but like rick steves says; venice is 80% not touristic. believe it or not, it’s true. we veer of to the non-touristic parts of venice to get a glimpse of the lives of venetians living on this magical land. we walk along the grand canal, come across a huge park with green grass, tall pine trees; kids swinging and playing, joggers running.then we sit on the bench by the water and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere and sun; burning into our skin. such a different view than san marco square. then we go deep into the narrow streets. our goal: to get lost.

no traffic of any kind, so very pleasant experience to walk on the narrow, cobble stoned, quiet streets. old people; walking slowly, possibly coming from church, old lady staring out the window, young girl opening the shutters of the window to chit chat with her possible love interest right across the street. another lady watering the flowers on her windowsill while the other hanging more pants above our heads on the laundry rope that stretches across the street. there is lots of laundry drying on the streets. socks, pants, coats, bed sheets, underwear (i even spotted thongs) drying and swinging carelessly by the gentle breeze, emanating flowery aromas.

we walk like crazy again trying to cover as much Venice as we can. some parts are very crowded, hard to move especially on narrow streets. we come across a pizza place, get 2 huge slices and coke. then find a perfect location to enjoy our out of this world pizzas. we sit and dangle our feet on the canal by the rialto bridge. (rialto bridge is very touristic and crowded but our spot is perfect, away from the crowds). sea gulls around us along with many gondolas passing by, accordion music playing in the background, sun shining on our faces. such a happy day!
pizza is to dye for. i don’t think i will ever be able to eat pizza again after tasting this great piece of art. it is the art of dough. it’s thin, crunchy yet soft and not greasy at all. you can eat with your hands and it won’t leave any traces of grease on your fingers. now time for gelato. do I need to say that gelato is out of this world too?

walk miles and miles... many narrow, old streets with shops, cafes, restaurants, all connected with cute little bridges. it would be a shame to come this far and not to ride the gondola. eddie and i hop into it and enjoy together the once in a lifetime experience as we quietly glide though the narrow canals. atmosphere is so peaceful, so quiet, so lovely, so surreal. as i step out of the gondola, i feel my soul light as a feather; cleansed and rejuvenated. (tip: ride the gondola that goes through the narrow and quiet streets, instead of the grand canal, if you prefer peacefulness with your experience).

for dinner, another great pizza accompanied with great red wine as we sit outside on a busy street of a cute restaurant.

nighttime in venice is as quiet as it can get except the lovely band playing in the square. all the cruise people, millions of tourists desert this island to the people who really savor it. as i am standing in the dimly lit san marco square under the black starry sky, feasting my ears with sounds of violin; venetian night lands a kiss on my cheek.