Day 9: Good Mornin' Venice!
This experience really sent home the importance of spending the night at some of these locations, right in the heart of Venice. Being able to go out at night after the cruise ships depart, waking up in the morning like you were a local is what will make you fall in love with Europe. Kathy and Con joined us for our morning stroll around Venice and it was great to be able to share it with our new friends! We included a bunch of pictures from this day, it is one of our most memorable!
[You can tell when the cruise ships arrive!]
After our morning stroll, we went back to the hotel as the rest of the group was waking up for our group walking tour of Venice. Our local guide was Venetian and was so enthusiastic about sharing her experience and her home with the group! She went over some of the daily activities and some of the history behind the area, it was very interesting! We went to a mask-making demonstration held by one of the local mask makers. Our guide handled the translation from Italian, but we were able to pick up quite a bit from just his hand gestures! After the mask-making demonstration, the group went to Saint Mark's Basillica, just a few minutes before they turned the lights on! (All about the Rick Steves Timing) The mosaics really glow with the lights and the craftsmanship is something else.
After Saint Mark's, the group set out for their free afternoon. We found a spot off the main trail to grab something to eat and went back to the hotel for a quick nap! Which worked out perfect for us, the city was filling up and we caught up on sleep a tad before meeting back up later for our gondola ride! After a nap we went over the Rialto and stopped by a recommended shop for some Morano jewelry. This was a lovely little shop that was priced very reasonably! Nicole picked up a few things for herself and for her Mom while we were there. They even made something specific for her right on the spot! From there, we wound through the alleys back to Basilica die Frari, it was 3euro each to enter, but it did have some great things to see.
Nicole and I were on our own for dinner this night, we were feeling like pizza and found a place while we were roaming the city, Ristorante Piccolo Martini The service was nice and the food was excellent! I ate pizza like an Italian [knife and fork], but it sure is a slow process! After dinner we had a little time to kill before our optional group Gondola ride. We went over to Saint Mark's Square, just as the tide was coming in! Our local guide was telling us how this area can get so high people cross it on top of tables! Luckily we didn't have to do much other than jump over puddles while we were there, but it would have been interesting to see it at "high tide".
As we walked the shoreline Nicole was wanting a picture with a Gondolier! Needless to say, she jumped right in at first sight and chatted with them for a minute before getting her picture.
As we walked the shoreline Nicole was wanting a picture with a Gondolier! Needless to say, she jumped right in at first sight and chatted with them for a minute before getting her picture.