Galileo Padova Padua

... of “La Traviata” at Musica a Palazzo!

[WARNING: The rest of this journal entry is all about the opera, and how moved I was by this particular performance we saw on our last night in Venice…]

I am an opera lover from way back, and although I don’t always know all the history behind the music or the lyrics, I enjoy it just the same. To me, it is passionate, dramatic theater – telling a fervent story through music, which can ...

... the shocking rainbow of colors adorning all the different shops and houses that line the island’s streets and canals (if they were this vibrant after sunset – imagine what they must be like in the middle of a sunny day!). The brightly-colored buildings made for a really unique and spectacular setting.

While in Burano, we did walk to the Chiesa di San Martino Vescovo, which contained, in its entryway, a large gold statue of Pope ...

... br>
I took the chance this time to purchase a bottle of brandy in Toronto and stored it in my carry-on. Oops! Upon arriving in Paris we were required to clear customs to connect to Venice and we only had 1 hour to drink the brandy or relinquish it to their customs department. As time allowed, we exited customs and checked the carry-on into luggage wrapping the brandy with a sweater and hoping for the best.

... find where we could get a ticket for Wednesday for the ferry to Greece but we didn't have any luck. We got off the ferry at St. Mark's square but didn't go the right way and ended up getting lost in all the back streets. It was great. We actually ended up shopping for most of the day. It was much cooler in the back streets and some of the shops were air conditioned. I bought a new dress and some souvenirs and we also visited a longerie shop. I ...

... is definitely the best time to visit, even if the weather is cooler. Fewer crowds make for a more pleasant experience while walking the narrow streets and bridges.

Sailing out of the city on a giant 150 ft. Windstar yacht towards Slovenia & Croatia was absolutely beautiful. We saw million dollar yachts along the main canal, St. Marks Square & the frilly exterior of Doges Palace, and the tall bell towers of the city's most important churches.

We took the toll road north from Florence towards Venice. When we got to Bologna we somehow managed to take the wrong turn and started heading towards Milan. The first exit we came to was 15 km later, a quick illegal u-turn later and 15 km back and we were on the right road again...but not for long. We somehow missed another turnoff to Venice and ended up heading this time for Ancona, towards the south east, instead of heading northeast. We found an alternate route via ...

... has a lot of Eastern influence and gold in the architecture. It also contains the remains of St. Mark (Mark the Apostle ...

... found a little restaraunt... Boy did we have a dinner. 3 bottles of wine, and 3 courses a person! We were there for about 3 hours. Heaven. What a way to enjoy friends... over great food, conversation, wine and without any rushing. I wish we did more of that in America. Then we drunkenly found our way back home, and resting for another day in Venice. St. Marco is on the plan tomorrow, and I'm sure more eats and sights! Until next time!

... to settle in northern Italy and as we trudged home from our sojourns around the old streets of Verona, or our saunters along the banks of the river, that fire was a welcoming sight. I developed a new skill of jockeying for position which saw me nicely ensconced with a glass of wine nicely to the side of the fire, where I stayed for most of the night. My travelling companion made the mistake of sitting at a table, hoping to catch up on some reading but fell victim ...

Today we got up and headed into Venice. We walked around all day- checking out the town and shopping. We ate "nice" for lunch of course, I had lasagna again. It was €9. Of course there was a service charge of €1.50/person. After, we continued to walk around. We kept seeing the same stores over and over. So we decided to follow the signs to the Rialto Bridge. When we got there, there was an open market with tons of shops there. We ...