We’re ready about 8:30 to have breakfast in the B&B with Marco. I emailed back and forth several times with Marco to set up the reservation so it is fun to meet him. He is a tall, reserved fellow who definitely has this B&B business under control. The operation is obviously well managed and the rooms are clean.
We head up to the third floor for breakfast. Marco asks if we would like orange juice but I think the adjoining table has grapefruit. We discover the orange juice is made from blood oranges. Yum! There is a bowl of cornflakes accompanied with cappuchino, marmalade-filled croissants, a slice of ham and cheese. Plenty of fuel for the morning.
Frari Church – part 1 – We have enough time to visit Frari Church using our San Marco pass before heading over to San Marco square. Unfortunately, they are not open for tours as a funeral has been held. We are in time to see the casket covered in pink roses carried out to a waiting boat hearse. Attendees are gathered in the square comforting each other. I spot a 40-ish man with red eyes receiving lots of hugs and a young woman in her 20s. Oh, dear. I’m guessing his wife and her mother might have passed away. And here they are, sharing their grief with the tourists – me snapping documentary photos and a group of students who are sketching the church. A sad thing to witness.
Secret Itineraries - We have just enough time to check in at the Doges Palace to pick up our ticket for a tour we booked online called, “Secret Itineraries.” It’s a behind-the-scenes look at the Doges Palace and some of the accompanying gossip. It is all very interesting and we see the jail cell where the intrepid Casanova spent time and escaped from. After 90 minutes, we are released to wander about the primary rooms of the palace gazing once again on magnificent ceilings and walls adorned with paintings by Titian and some of his colleagues, framed in gaudy gilt and rococo. Lots of marble and granite everywhere. It is truly magnificent and overwhelming. The art, goodness, the art. Most of it is from the Renaissance period so there the paintings are filled with people, angels, wars, and allegories that, well, you had to be there at the time to “get it.”
Lunch by the water – We’re hungry and it is high time to refuel. After crossing the Rialto Bridge to the other side of the water, we decide to grab a spot at one of the touristy restaurants. They advertised pizza but only handed us the “expensive” menus. When I asked for pizza, they begrudgingly brought that menu over. We shared a salad and pizza accompanied by nice white wine and views of gondolas and boats jostling for space to pass under the Rialto. Obviously, we paid a premium for our spot as the bill was about $50E. We’ve got to bring down the price on these meals!
Ca’ Rezzonico – OMG! Look at the time! We’ve got two more places to see that are included in our San Marco Pass and only about two hours of time until they close. We trot off the alleyways to find Ca’ Rezzonico (Ca’ stands for casa = really big house just short of a palace variety). We steer ourselves wrong multiple times down deadends and over wrong bridges, but finally get there. Wouldn’t you know? It’s another grand palace filled with tons of art and murals and gold stuff. The best part is on the top floor where there is an actual art gallery but best of all, a peekaboo view at a picture perfect scene. Now that’s exciting! But, no time to linger longer. One more sight to see.
Frari Church – part 2 – We hoof it off to Frari Church, which is actually in the B&B neighborhood so we don’t take quite as many wrong turns. The church is fabulous. Really different. We have Rick Steves’ podcasts to listen to so these provide a lot of historical facts and explanations about the art – which makes the whole experience more memorable. The church is typical Catholic with lots of ornate tombs lining the walls; they are glorious pieces of art but I have to question how the grandeur of these tombs fits with the St. Francis of Assisi’s beliefs about simplicity. They seem a wee bit self serving to me. The piece de resistance is a spectacular work by Titian – The Assumption of Mary. Actually, the entire church is really quite wonderful and its simplicity makes it grand. It is tabbed the Franciscan “Church of the Brothers” and was built as a place for commoners to gather and worship. I light a candle and said a blessing for all those who have come before me and all those who will come after me – may their journeys be a testament to the glory of all that is kind, good, and righteous.
The Grand Canal Tour – Another Rick Steves’ must is to take the Grand Canal tour from top to bottom – for which he provides a wonderful narration. We fast track it to the ferrovia (train station) and the first vaporetto stop. After buying a 12-hour pass (I have another adventure in mind), we leap onto the vaporetto and another dream comes true! We get to sit on the very front of the boat on the left side; the optimum spot according the Steves. Indeed, I am in seventh heaven with my trusty camera. There’s a thingy in my way on the boat so I decide to stand up for a better view. Uh oh. Busted. The captain raps on the window at me and there, in plain sight is the sign that says not to stand up. On Steves tape, he jokes about standing up to see what the captain will do – but says, no, better not. Unfortunately, I did stood up before that part on the tape. I took so many photos I ran out of card space and had to switch to another 8 gig. It was a heavenly ride. The weather was stunning. Not too hot, clear blue sky and, at this time of day, the sun is getting lower and casting a golden glow on the buildings.
The Burano Adventure – I convince Bob to maximize our vaporetto pass and grab a boat to Murano because a buddy has insisted it is just a stunning place to visit and to do so late in the day when everything else is closed. Bob is not convinced that this is a good use of time and that the sun is setting faster than the boat will get us there. As we get to Murano, on the boat hops a young man who I ask about getting off at the Faro vaporetto stop. Young man says in perfect English, “Why go to Murano when Burano is the best place to go.” Well, Rick Steves likes it better there, too. I’m game but Bob is very worried about vaporetto schedules and getting stuck out there all night. But, the young fellow and I confirm schedules that the boats run 24 hours and no problem. But hmmmm, as we head on the LN boat to Burano, the sun is truly setting and this boat isn’t exactly speedy.
We get to Burano and Bob confirms schedules. We either get the next boat in 10 minutes or 30 minutes or 60 minutes. We speed walk into the doll-like town where houses are small and painted brilliant colors. Oh, my! Beautiful! Even in the low light I manage to catch a few snaps. And there is definitely a wild cat population on Burano so that adds to my delight. But, boy oh boy, the sidewalks have rolled up and there is hardly a peep to be heard. And it’s getting dark. We get back in time to wait for the 30-minute boat and the night descends into black. Oh, geeze. Finally, the boat comes and it’s now about 9:30. Back to the Faro stop where we have to wait for the 51 boat – we’ve been told by the burly, barely English-speaking guy who throws the rope from the boat to the dock. And wait, and worry. At last it comes and it’s now about 10:45. It’s seems like a long ride back to the San Marco square stop, especially because the route this boat takes is around a different side of Venice - which, of course, has us worried about where we’ll end up. We’re very glad to get off that boat.
Walking through San Marco Square we see some of the night action and the “dueling” orchestras, but the crowds are definitely thin and people have headed off to bed. By this time, not many restaurants are open and Bob has definitely lost his appetite for dinner. We get back to the B&B by 11:30. Dinner is 3 pieces of cheese, 2 crackers, and a baggie of dried fruit we snagged at the Sky Lounge (be prepared is our motto and it’s good to have a stock of food for emergencies like this). Bob can drop off to sleep immediately, but I have to read myself to sleep. And it wasn’t very good at that. I was really regretting the unfortunate end to our last day in Venice.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Vicarious thrill!!!!!
ReplyDelete