Venice Italy

Gondolas of Venice

Richard Clark sent us a message saying that the people of Venice just held a funeral for their city that has been killed by tourists… we arrived in town just a few days later.

We chose the last week of the Bienale – Venice’s 6 month-long art fair that is held every 2 years – to visit the city that was going to represent our Italian experience. Call it fatigue: Venetians tired of tourists, G-K’s tired after a fabulous week in Munich, or Brazil feverish and keeping us awake at night, or grey skies. Also, I kept getting the feeling that we were occasionally being ripped off. Good friends of ours love this city and gave us great advice about things to see and do. We really tried to capture their enthusiasm but I think we failed. After four days there, we were all quite happy to get back on the road. Here are our highlights:

1. Pizza shop across the Campo Santa Maria Formosa that we went to on more than one occasion. Nice folks, thin crust, delicious.
2. Art students from Milano there for the Bienale. Sweet, friendly, left us a kind note and Bon Voyage.
3. Kiosk lady in Mestre parking lot (we parked the car on the mainland while in Venice). Super sweet, generous and accurate with advice and directions.
4. Esker got a chance with the map and compass and became a great navigator through the streets (walkways) of Venice.
5. Sal loved what modern art she got to see.

Brazil picked up a leatherbound sketchbook that was even better than the one that got away on her in Paris (learning that indecision can lead to profound regret is a good life lesson, no?).