Water Water Everywhere November 18, 2006
We went to breakfast at the Zecchini Hotel where we are staying to find a room about 12 feet wide and 15 feet long. There were maybe 20 people sitting at breakfast and every chair was occupied with the tables and chairs packed tightly into the small room that also contained a small table that held one kind of cereal, a strange red “juice”, yogurt, and a couple kinds of crackers or biscuits. Breakfast was included with the room so we sat for a few minutes and waited for a table to open up. Once it did we found that the one waiter would also bring scrambled eggs if we requested, which we did. A lesson relearned; you never know what you’re going to get until you’re there.
After breakfast we made our way to the train station info office and bought a three day pass for the water bus. Once we figured out which boat to board we were off to visit Basilica di San Marco and the Palazzo Ducale. On the way our “bus” gave us the grand view of the Canalazzo (Grand Canal to us non-Venetians). This is one place that looks like the pictures that you see in advertisements and movies. Small boats loaded with anything from people to sacks of cement ply the waters within the city and it is amazing that all the pilots seem to keep their heads as they make their way through the melee. After several stops, with passengers hopping on and off, we reached our stop at Piazza San Marco. With your first step on terra firma you know you are in tourist heaven as booths selling all sorts of memorable souvenirs of your visit to the Aquaville. Being the hardened tourist that we are we sauntered past not glancing right or left. Eye contact is to be avoided as it invites unwanted attention of tenacious street vendors.
We turned the corner and there was what is billed as the most beautiful church in Christendom; Basilica di San Marco. It is certainly the most ornate we have seen. The real wonder of the cathedral is the interior. It is famous for its mosaics which cover 43,055 square feet of the walls and floors. On this cloudy day it was somewhat dark but still a marvel to see. The cathedral originally built in 828 to house the body of St. Mark when according to legend it was brought from Alexandria in a barrel of pickled pork in order to smuggle it past the Muslim guards. It was mostly destroyed by a fire in 976 but was rebuilt and reopened in 1094. It was once a treasure trove of riches from the crusades and donations of Venice’s rich and powerful merchants. When Napoleon conquered northern Italy he looted most of the treasures and took them back to Paris where some may still be seen today in museums there.
Next came the Pallazo Ducale which is the Venetian Doge’s palace. The Doge was the figurehead leader of the Venetian government with the real power lying with the Great Council. The palace is attached to the Basilica di San Marco as it was originally built to be the Doge’s private chapel. While the building is grand furnishings are sparse. They were removed by each Doge’s heirs after their death. The government has managed to put quite a collection of art in the palace including a piece by Tintoretto that is 23’ x 75’ and is the world’s largest oil painting. Not surprisingly it is set in the Great Council Hall which is also one of the largest open rooms in Europe. One should not miss the tour of the dungeons just over the Sighing Bridge. The bridge is so named for the sound the prisoners made as they were led away. The cells remind me of some of the hotels we have stayed in on this trip.
A late lunch at a nice café and it was on to the “have to do” in Venice. We took a gondola ride complete with a singing gondolier…well he sang a little. He pointed out the home of Casanova, where Marco Polo lived, where Vagner resided but mostly joked with his compatriots as we met other gondolas carrying romantically inclined couples like us. It is a nice way to see the city and well worth the time and money.
We walked back to the hotel following signs to the rail station. We crossed fifteen to twenty bridges on the hour long walk and reached the hotel just before the rain started happy to be able to just sit and relax.
After breakfast we made our way to the train station info office and bought a three day pass for the water bus. Once we figured out which boat to board we were off to visit Basilica di San Marco and the Palazzo Ducale. On the way our “bus” gave us the grand view of the Canalazzo (Grand Canal to us non-Venetians). This is one place that looks like the pictures that you see in advertisements and movies. Small boats loaded with anything from people to sacks of cement ply the waters within the city and it is amazing that all the pilots seem to keep their heads as they make their way through the melee. After several stops, with passengers hopping on and off, we reached our stop at Piazza San Marco. With your first step on terra firma you know you are in tourist heaven as booths selling all sorts of memorable souvenirs of your visit to the Aquaville. Being the hardened tourist that we are we sauntered past not glancing right or left. Eye contact is to be avoided as it invites unwanted attention of tenacious street vendors.
We turned the corner and there was what is billed as the most beautiful church in Christendom; Basilica di San Marco. It is certainly the most ornate we have seen. The real wonder of the cathedral is the interior. It is famous for its mosaics which cover 43,055 square feet of the walls and floors. On this cloudy day it was somewhat dark but still a marvel to see. The cathedral originally built in 828 to house the body of St. Mark when according to legend it was brought from Alexandria in a barrel of pickled pork in order to smuggle it past the Muslim guards. It was mostly destroyed by a fire in 976 but was rebuilt and reopened in 1094. It was once a treasure trove of riches from the crusades and donations of Venice’s rich and powerful merchants. When Napoleon conquered northern Italy he looted most of the treasures and took them back to Paris where some may still be seen today in museums there.
Next came the Pallazo Ducale which is the Venetian Doge’s palace. The Doge was the figurehead leader of the Venetian government with the real power lying with the Great Council. The palace is attached to the Basilica di San Marco as it was originally built to be the Doge’s private chapel. While the building is grand furnishings are sparse. They were removed by each Doge’s heirs after their death. The government has managed to put quite a collection of art in the palace including a piece by Tintoretto that is 23’ x 75’ and is the world’s largest oil painting. Not surprisingly it is set in the Great Council Hall which is also one of the largest open rooms in Europe. One should not miss the tour of the dungeons just over the Sighing Bridge. The bridge is so named for the sound the prisoners made as they were led away. The cells remind me of some of the hotels we have stayed in on this trip.
A late lunch at a nice café and it was on to the “have to do” in Venice. We took a gondola ride complete with a singing gondolier…well he sang a little. He pointed out the home of Casanova, where Marco Polo lived, where Vagner resided but mostly joked with his compatriots as we met other gondolas carrying romantically inclined couples like us. It is a nice way to see the city and well worth the time and money.
We walked back to the hotel following signs to the rail station. We crossed fifteen to twenty bridges on the hour long walk and reached the hotel just before the rain started happy to be able to just sit and relax.
posted by Gary and Holly Davis @ 11:31 AM
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