Ca' Vivaldi Venice

Day 7, Florence

If Rome and Venice were “aerobic sightseeing,” Florence was a triathlon! Three world-class museums (plus lunch,, Rick Steeves’ “Renaissance Walk” and two harrowing bus rides in and out of town) all in about nine hours!

We started the day with a bus ride into the city center of Venice. (Even though we have a rental car, the city center is what is called locally a “no go zone’” This is a ...

Day Six, Venice to Florence:
Today was a travel day for us: getting out of Venice, picking up a rental care, making our way to Florence by way of Padua.
How we hated to leave Venice! We agree that a month here would just scratch the surface. Around every corner is a new piazza and a new adventure. We will be back!
Michele was intent on seeing the Calatrava bridge before we left Venice. For ...

... they no longer swarm the tourists. But it you still have to watch out for the Pigeon Poop! The Basillica was another feast for the eyes - and ears! As we approached the central altar, imagine our surprise as the “theme” from Phantom of the Opera suddenly blasted from the organ!
Next, we toured the Peggy Guggenheim Museum. This wealthy American woman, who lived in an palatial home on the Grand Canal, had two great loves: her dogs and modern art. After her death, her ...

The two weeks after finals were very interesting and fun… Katy, Steve, Kelsa and I took a night train to Venice to start our trip. The train was not as nearly as bad as the one we took to Paris… at first, Katy, Kelsa and I were in a 6 person seating compartment with 2 other people serving in the military in Germany, but Katy and I quickly realized that the train was almost empty, so we took ...

... window shopping and a small unsuccessful Birky hunt. Witek and I ate at a pizza restaurant near our bus so that we would be sure we wouldn’t miss it. When it came time to go back to the bus we left the restaurant but were soon called back seeing as someone (ok, maybe me) had left the Nikon sitting under her chair! Whoops! Close call!

In Verona Dee took us for a short walking tour which finished at Juliet’s house. It is a tradition to write a note to your loved one and stick ...

... of 'how can australians butcher other languages'.

The first night in Venice-o we arrived at the hotel quite late and checked in. We met the owner 'Mario'... go figure... when in italy... we had dinner at the hotel before moving onto a fairly intense evening of 'spoons' (a card game for the uninitiated). Now for anyone who has played spoons before will know it can get a little rowdy, so you can imagine what it would have been like ...

... across the Grand Canal to the Punta della Dogana to see the Church of Santa Marie de Salute. Another amazing church inside. The mass was going on, so we were limited to where we could go, the marble floors had beautiful designs and were uneven due to the many years of the land the church was built on moving with the water up and down. Back across to the main land and out for dinner. We then went back to St. Mark's Square to wait for ...

... of the town! tuesday morning we went to the academina, which was very good... well laid out... and in the afternoon made the decision to go to the lido.. the beach... which was good.. though we ran before the storm clouds came. wednesday before we left we went to the peggy guggenheim exhibition, which was good too, all modern art, but very interesting and different from other things we´ve seen. then we had to leave to get our train to vienna!!

... centrepieces of museums. Santi Giovannie e Paolo was a giant, old church covered in tombs of doge with a beautiful stained glass window (there's surprisingly few considering the fame of Venetian glass). Santa Maria della Fava was a small parish church that looked very nice but turned out to be in the middle of a service when i noisily pushed the door open. San Salvador was a very beautiful church with Titians in ...

... and stands in a meadow full of wildflowers. Although beautiful on the outside, no one can be prepared for the extraodinary interior. The church is full of gilt and pastel-coloured paintings on every surface. Rococco is a style that goes beyond baroque is and chock-full of curlicues and extreme decorations. This church is a perfect example. It is a stunningly beautiful creation. Breathtaking. I'd imagine, though, that it would take one's mind off the morning's sermon. There ...