Florence and Venice

Trip Start Apr 12, 2008
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Trip End Jul 20, 2008


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Flag of Italy  , Veneto,
Tuesday, June 24, 2008

We only ended up 2 nights in Florence after a host pulled out at the last minute. And still the incredible heat.  Linda, our hotel was in the same street - Nazionale - as we stayed before.  Some time was taken up with sorting the credit card fiasco dating back to Peru.  Getting a police statement was time consuming. The "helpful" British Embassy (theres NO Australian Embassy in Florence!) charged us $72 to witness a signature!  Are u kidding!  The British clerk had a hissy fit at the conclusion of our experience, because of our honest comment in his visitors book re extortion, unhelpfulness and disrespect.   I did manage to get into some shops briefly as well.  But the heat was prohibitive.  The sunsets at night over the River Arno were stunning, along with the full orchestra on the riverbank.
PS later had a win . . the Credit Union covered our credit card loss from the ATM rip-off in Peru. . yay!

3 nights in Venice - and the heatwave continues!  An air-conditioned room was a great reprieve.  The usual rip-offs with food and prices generally was a bit disconcerting. Spent a day riding the canals on the Vaporetto, including the "lovely) (NOT) Lido where we swam, then wondered why we did. . . dirty, warm, no toilets, showers, change rooms. . . yuk!  San Margherita Piazza was a gem to find. .  a student stronghold where we could get affordable drinks (discovered the Spritzer) without needing a 2nd mortgage on the house!
On to Como. . .
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