The Most Romantic City in the World: Venice

02 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment

by Alicia in Mediterranean Cruise, Venice, Italy

Arriving in Venice, Italy

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Mom and I were out on our balcony at 6 a.m. to watch as our ship arrived in Venice and sailed through the Venezia harbor. It was such a calm, peaceful experience to watch the glow of the sunrise over the quiet city. It was well worth getting out of bed so early. It just so happened that our room was on the right side of the ship to see St. Mark’s Square.

Passing by Venice's famous St. Mark's Square

Mom and I got ready for the day and headed to breakfast in the dining room around 7 a.m. Since Tracey had been out until the wee hours of the morning, she decided to stay in the room and sleep. She promised to join us later in St. Mark’s Square.

We’re exploring Venice on our own today; no guided excursion since we’ve been here before in 2008. As we left the ship, we found a water taxi, which would take us directly into St. Mark’s Square, the main (tourist) square of the city. Venice may very well be the most unique city in the world. There are absolutely no motor vehicles anywhere in the city. You get around by water taxi, gondolas or by walking. And, it can be a lot of walking with a lot of bridges to cross. No fear of getting hit by a car or motorcycle here!

The free-standing Campanile Tower of St. Mark's Church

The water taxi made two stops before arriving at St. Mark’s Square. We stopped for a moment to take in our surroundings. We saw the Campanile Tower, originally built in 1156 – 1173. However, the entire tower collapsed in 1902 and was rebuilt as it was in 1912. We also admired the two, free-standing granite columns symbolizing St. Theodore holding a spear and with a crocodile to represent the dragon he is said to have slain. The second column has a winged lion, a symbol of St. Mark. The columns have been there since approximately 1268. Between the columns, public executions (beheadings) took place so it is said to be bad luck to walk between the columns. On our last visit here, we had toured the inside of Doges Palace, the residence of the supreme ruler of Venice in the 1300s/1400s. The palace is connected to the prison next door by the Bridge of Sighs, aptly named because the view from the bridge’s windows was the last view of Venice that convicts saw before imprisonment. Today, the Bridge of Sighs is said to be lucky for lovers if they kiss on a gondola beneath it.

Mom in front of Doges Palace

Since we’ve toured St. Mark’s Square at length before, we decided to explore the alleys and spend the day shopping. Our first stop was an ATM and a bathroom. Believe it or not, but Venice charges 1.50 euros to use the public restrooms. That’s about $3 every time you go to the bathroom! You better make the most of it.

We set off to explore and immediately came across one of many gelato shops. Yes, please! With our gelato cones in hand, we were unstoppable. We browsed shop after shop after shop, winding our way through the various alleyways.

The Clock Tower in St. Mark's Square

Venice is known for its Murano glass, a product they’ve been perfecting since the 10th century. Authentic Murano glass will have a sticker backing on the piece. Apparently, some shops claim to sell “Murano” and it is really plastic from China. Mom and I were like kids in a candy store. We bought lots of jewelry and trinkets. We returned to St. Mark’s Square around 12:45 p.m. since we had promised to meet Tracey there at 1 p.m. She found us right away (which was a miracle considering how crowded the square gets!).

We were all ready for lunch. We decided to try Trattoria Al Leoncini, a restaurant just behind Doges Palace. Mom and I shared a Caprese Salad. Tracey had the gnocchi, Mom had spaghetti and I had lasagna. And, of course, we enjoyed some wine and Tiramisu.

Gondolas in Venice

After lunch, we continued shopping and exploring. We tried to follow the signs leading to the Rialto Bridge, but never quite got there. The alleyways turn and twist and you can easily find yourself lost. So, we stopped for more gelato and then decided to return to the ship for awhile. It’s really hot today and we’re getting tired of walking. Our return water taxi ride was a bit interesting because two men (easily in their 70s) got into a shoving match to be the first to board the taxi. The water taxi employees actually had to break them up. And, naturally, these two men were both on our cruise ship. We’re finding that the older passengers on this cruise tend to be very pushy and rude. It’s fascinating. It’s kind of like the way people might act when they think there isn’t enough food to go around. I don’t understand it at all.

Me in front of a "parking lot"

Mom in Venice

A Murano glassmaker in action

Back on the ship, we dropped off our purchases and took some time to freshen up. We’re actually scheduled to take a sunset gondola ride through the canals of Venice. We met our group in front of the ship and took a private boat back to St. Mark’s Square. Our guide led us through the alleys to the gondola boarding location. We boarded the gondolas in groups of four and enjoyed a relaxing 40-minute ride through Venice. One of the gondolas near us had an Italian opera singer and accordian player who kept us entertained with romantic songs like ‘O Sole Mio’. Five or so of the gondolas in our tour group came together, side by side, in the Grand Canal near the Rialto Bridge (we finally saw it!).