Venice

Headed 8 hours on the train to Venice. Venice was once a flourishing trade center between Western Europe and the rest of the world (especially the Byzantine Empire and the Islamic world, which is evident by its Byzantine-inspired architecture). I ended up getting off at the wrong train station, and I had no clue until I had already found a hotel room. That’s fine because I was told hotels are expensive in Venice anyway. I dumped off my bags and immediately headed for St. Mark’s Square. The only way to get there is to get on a ferry that winds its way through the Grand Canal until it finally reaches St. Mark’s about 20 minutes later. It was already getting late and the sun was beginning to set.

It’s Friday and the city is very crowded. I walked around the square, took some pictures and did some window shopping. I was getting pretty hungry and decided to look for a place to eat. Hard Rock Café? Tempting, but seems so wrong to do in Italy. I finally found a small café that appealed to me. I decided to get an appetizer to start with: Shrimp Cocktail. I was a little surprised when my order arrived: a goblet of tiny shrimp smothered in what tasted like 1000 island dressing. Not bad….different.
The next day I headed back to the square as I wanted to go inside St. Mark’s and do a tour of the Doges Palace and see the Bridge of Sighs.

When I got to the cathedral I was sure to be dressed properly. Long dress (no shorts): check. Long-sleeved shirt (no bare shoulders): check. When it was just about my turn to go inside, there was a crabby old man turning people away with backpacks but wouldn’t tell anyone where to go. I finally figured out where to go and when I came back there was a very angry Irish woman with a press pass trying to take pictures of the guy turning some people away with bags, and letting some through. “This is no way to treat people,” she said. She also said that she heard they are trying to keep “day trippers’ out of Venice. I finally went through the Cathedral and made it up to the top and had my picture taken at the balcony overlooking the square. It was worth it.Next was the palace of the Doges. The word "Doge" is derived from Latin which loosely means "Duke." The Doge was the leader and chief magistrate of the Most Serene Republic of Venice for over a thousand years. Doges of Venice were elected for life by the city-state's aristocracy. Commonly the person selected as Doge was the shrewdest elder in the city. When a person was convicted of a crime, they were taken immediately to the dungeons of the palace, crossing the Bridge of Sighs, named for the sighs the prisoners would make. Possibly one of the prison's most famous residents was Casanova, who was party to a great many blasphemies, seductions, fights and public controversey. He reportedly escaped from the Doges' prisons and lived in exile for eighteen years.

After I went to the palace, I stopped to get some pizza and my daily dose of gelato (stracciatella or chocolate chip). I was looking for somewhere to sit and there was a small, non-working fountain where a lot of other people were sitting. I had a seat and focused on my pizza. Next thing I knoew I had the carabineri standing over me saying (in English, "It is forbidden to sit here." I looked around and everyone else had been shooed away and I was the only one left sitting. I didn't answer, just stood up and walked away while someone tisked at me. I wasn't sure if they were tisking because a vile American had dared sit by a stupid, broken fountain, or if they were tisking at the fact that the stupid police actually made me stand up. Either way, I decided I had enough of Venice and headed out first thing the next morning.