Happy New Year?
Trip Start
Nov 08, 2004
1
24
48
Trip End
Aug 10, 2005
Venice,
Italy
Thursday, December 30, 2004
This time, I decided not to pay for reservations, since the last time I rode a train in France everyone ignored their assigned seats and just sat anywhere they pleased. I saved 12€, but I had to change seats 3 times, since Italians apparently honor their seat assignments in first class. This time there was at least cart service, but it wasn't free...
Venice 01
The guy who runs the hostel I'd been staying at in Nice offered to give me a ride to the bus station, and on the way he told me to be sure and check the scenery between Genoa and Milan (where I had to change trains). I did my best, but I fell asleep shortly after the train crossed over into Italy. When I awoke, imagine my surprise when I looked out the window and saw a foot of snow on the ground! For a second I thought maybe I took the wrong train, or maybe I'd overslept and ended up in Switzerland. The next stop had an Italian-sounding name, and I looked it up in my guide book, and all was okay - we were in the mountains outside Milan. After a while the snow faded and turned to green fields, which was reassuring - I've been hoping for somewhere in southern Europe to be warm!
When we finally arrived in Venice (actually Mestre, about 10 km from Venice on the mainland), the stop caught me by surprise and I had to rush to get myself together and off the train before it moved on. The train from Milan to Venice was a new experience - it was like those ones in the movies, with six seats inside a little cabin, and I ended sharing it with an Italian woman whose mouth didn't stop moving for about three hours. Naturally, it was freezing cold outside, and naturally I got lost trying to find the hotel. I ended up walking all the way back to the train station and paying a taxi for 10€ for a 700 meter trip. I'm seriously considering buying a giant rolling suitcase that I can put my pack into - the saving on taxis alone will probably make up for the expense, and I've yet to say to myself, "Gee, I'm glad I'm carrying all this weight on my back instead of rolling it along in a suitcase."
The hostel is actually another hotel, like the one in Faro but not as nice
Venice 02
. From my experience in Nice, I think from now on I'm going to focus on "community rooms" as a priority in my travels. I met some very cool people in Nice, and got some very useful info from them - turns out every traveler's favorite topic of conversation is traveling! There is a TV in the room, but the only English language channel is CNN, and all they talk about is the tsunami in Asia. There are supposedly a bunch of English language movie channels, but can't find them...Today I woke up early enough for breakfast, and it was a nice spread - cereal, juice, coffee, fruit and all kinds of bread & pastries. I wanted to get into Venice and check things out - see if the scene will be cool for New Year's Eve tomorrow night.
Venice is a stunning sight and a real mystery. According to my guide book, it's composed of 118 land masses in a lagoon, and it's been sinking since the days of Atilla the Hun. The city was once the most powerful in Europe (a claim that many cities in Europe can make), but eventually had to resort to tourism to prevent it from sinking into obscurity (and the sea!). The mystery is how they did it (and why). Every building is made of solid stone, and every "street" (the wide ones are more like alleys, and the narrow ones are too narrow to spread your arms) is made is cobbled
Venice 03
. What made someone think they could build a city out in this lagoon? And what kind of bravado did it take to make it the wealthiest city in Europe for centuries?Things were a little rocky at first, but I took it as proof of my increasing fearlessness when traveling. I began the day by asking at the hotel what bus I needed to take. He said to take one that said "Venizia" on the front (duh?!) and one that says "Mirano" to get back. I forgot to ask how late they run, or where to get off on the way back, but I figured I'd figure it out when the time came.
On the ride into the city I figured I'd just get off wherever I felt like it. Turns out the buses all stop at the train station, so that's where I disembarked (on the way back, it seems that they all stop in the same places, too). I left the guide book at home, figuring I'd just wander around - so far, that's been the best way I've found for navigating (my experience in Madrid with the map proved that one). I did study a map before leaving, and knew that I wanted to go to Piazza San Marco, the main square, at the opposite end of the island from the train station. There are lots of signs, and Venice is small, so it's hard to get lost.
One of the first things I saw was a fruit and veggie market, and as always I was mysteriously hungry right after breakfast (I often think I should skip that meal, since it rarely seems to "work" for me). I decided an apple would really hit the spot, so I went to a random stand and handed one apple to the guy behind the stand. He shook his head, saying, "No, by the kilo." Now, a kilo is 2.2 pounds, and Venice is a tourist city (recall the whole sinking thing)
Venice 04
. What tourist needs 6 or 8 apples? I put the apple back (my tummy grumbled as I did it) and moved on. My next mission was to buy some cigarettes - in France, they're 5€ a pack, the most expensive I've seen since the UK. I went into the closest tobacco shop and saw a pack for 3.60€. "Salem's," I said. "No, Salem's, poste," the guy replied. Apparently, the shop had cigarettes, but was only selling post cards at the moment. Does no one in Venice want my money?I had read in my guide book that Venice is in real financial trouble - the place is so expensive that tourists stay on the mainland (like me) and only spend minimal amounts in the city before leaving. The city even considered charging admission at one point! I was beginning to see why this was the case - no one wanted to take my money!
I grumbled again and made my way to Piazza San Marco, deciding I'd wander there - there are plenty of signs, so I figured I couldn't get lost. I was right, but on the way I managed to find my way to lots of little out-of-the-way streets and alleyways, which was kind of the point.
My favorite moment of the day was when I stumbled upon the Piazza - it appeared all of a sudden, a huge sprawling mass of granite and marble. In Las Vegas, there's a hotel/casino called the Venetian, which is based on the city of Venice. When I visited that place, I was impressed with the accomplishment - it felt like a small city inside a huge building. I've heard that the casino captures the essence to Venice, and I was curious to see of that was true (the New York, New York hotel & casino in Vegas captures the feel of NYC, so it was possible that the Venetian did the same for Venice)
Venice 05
.The Piazza looked oddly familiar, and it was because I'd seen parts of it in Vegas. The comparison ended there. The Piazza was amazing after wandering through narrow, shady streets and canals where the buildings seem to be floating. Here were huge, heavy-looking buildings in an immense plaza. Here were thousands to pigeons surrounding the tourists. Here were people sitting at small tables, sipping espresso and watching the rest of us. Beautiful!
I spent a long time in the Piazza - I went onto the Basilica San Marco, a very impressive but pretty small church with amazing gold-tiled mosaics on the ceiling. I've found that churches freak me out a little - I feel weird viewing a church as a tourist attraction instead of a sacred place of prayer and communion with God. This one freaked me out like all the others that I've visited, but it was pretty (and free - as a general rule, I won't pay money to go into a church).
I went back into the Piazza and decided to sit and enjoy a coffee and watch the crowd. I sat down and was given a menu by a waiter in a tuxedo - a bad sign. Sure enough, the prices warranted the tux - a coffee was 7.70€, a beer was 8€, water was €6. How often does one get to sit in a Venetian Piazza sipping caffe latte? I decide to splurge, and ended up sitting of about 90 minutes watching people feeding the pigeons.
After that relaxing few hours, I decided to go the next big plaza - Piazzale Roma. It's to the north, near the bus station, and I'd seen a bunch of signs on my way to south
Venice 06
. Again, I decided to wander, this time searching for lunch.The signs were everywhere, so I felt free to stop and get a few pints when I saw a nice-looking pub. This is always an adventure in Europe - the first time in a restaurant or bar. Each country has a different protocol for how to order and how to pay. Turns out that here, you're supposed to order, then consume, then pay when you're done. In America, this would lead to lots of "dine and dash," but I guess Italians are more trusting. I stood at the bar like a dork after getting my beer, finally asking, "How much?" and paying before I realized that wasn't the right way to do it. I figured it out, though, and on the next one I didn't pay right away. That lead to a dilemma - when I leave, will the bartender remember that I had already paid and only charge for one drink? I noticed other non-Italians doing the same thing I did, and then I stopped worrying. In the end, I paid and told the bartender I only had one, and it all worked out in the end...
I left the bar in search of Piazzale Roma. I followed the signs, and ended up at the bus station. I was starving by now, so I headed back for a place I had seen earlier. I don't like back-tracking (walking past the same places I've already been), but I was getting desperate - ever been so hungry it hurts? It was getting on toward sunset, and since every place in Europe has bizarre hours, everything I had seen earlier was closed. I remembered a Kebab place near the bar, so I went back there. FYI, the Kebab is the traveler's best friend - it's like a burrito but made with lamb or veal or pork - for 3€ or 4€ you can fill your belly. I found the Kebab and ate, then followed some more signs, determined to get the Piazalle Roma
Venice 07
.I still couldn't find it, and now I was getting angry. By now it had been 3 or 4 hours since I'd left San Marco, and I hadn't found this huge plaza. It was dark now, but only around 6:00. I wanted to find the place as a matter of pride now, but my dogs were tired and I was right near the bus station. I finally gave up, deciding to leave Roma for Friday.
So, now I sit in the room, updating my log and wondering what I'll do for tomorrow's holiday. I'm guessing that San Marco will be the place to be, but I have to make sure that the buses run all night long so I don't get stranded in the freezing cold - it's near 0 degrees C. here...
---------
01 Jan 2005
Venice, Italy
So how was my New Year's Eve, you ask? Well, let's start by saying that I was stone cold sober for the whole thing, which is never a good sign on a holiday
Venice 08
!I touched on this in the last entry, but it needs to be reiterated here - Venice's many winding streets and bridges are both beautiful and infuriating. The day started off well enough - I slept in, figuring I'd be out late. I made sure that the buses would be running all night (I was told they would be) and then headed off for Venice. I arrived just after dark and decided to head right for Piazza San Marco, where I figured all the action would be. On the way there, despite the early hour, I looked around for places to eat. Only the pizzerias and snack bard were open, and all of the restaurants had outrageous prices displayed for their holiday dinners - by "outrageous," I mean 100€ per person and up.
I continued on to the Piazza, and when I arrived, the place was nearly empty - not what I expected! I walked around a bit, then decided that I should get myself to an internet café - I hadn't had a chance to make my reservations for Rome, yet, and I arrive there on Sunday. Of course, all of the internet shops were closed due to the holiday, so I looked for a place to eat. Once again, I was turned away, as each place was closing (this was around 7:00). I finally settled on Burger King (unfortunately, this is now one of the staples of my diet) and it at least filled my belly
Venice 09
. I headed again to San Marco, expecting the crowd to begin forming - still nothing.What to do for the next five hours? I went to the one decent pub I had found in Venice, but it was closed for a private party. Here's another European oddity - a "bar" is not like the places we call bars in America. There is nowhere to sit, and people are just as likely to come into the place for coffee or soft drinks as they are for booze. They even bring their children to these little places, which are more like small cafés than bars. There is no "bar" to sit at - you have to sit at a table - and this doesn't really work when you're alone. It's now been almost two months that I've been traveling, and I'm still not used to going into a bar and seeing people order espresso, chug it down, and then leave! To me, a bar is a place where you go to sit and have a few pints (or a few cocktails) and get a buzz going. Not so here! I feel like a booze hound if I order more than one drink...
So, in short (too late!) there was nowhere for my to comfortably tie one on for the holiday, so by around 9:00 I was back in San Marco, and the place was still empty. I decided to just go back to Mestre - there was a bar near the hotel where I could at least have a few drinks and chime in the new year with some other folks. I decided to talk a vaporetto, or water bus, from San Marco at the southern end of Venice to Piazzale Roma (by the way, the elusive Piazzale Roma is the bus station, which is why I couldn't find it before). I checked the baffling schedule posted near the dock, and the "bus" came by every twenty minutes. I waited about an hour without seeing a single boat approach, and then angrily (and tiredly!) set off walking to the opposite end of Venice for the bus station
Venice 10
.Finding my way back wasn't hard - I just had to find the stream of people and walk in the opposite direction. By now (10:30, or so), lots of people were streaming into Venice, all headed towards Piazza San Marco. This gave me pause - maybe it wouldn't be so dead, after all. I turned around and walked back toward the plaza, but then I remembered something I should have thought if earlier - large crowds severely freak me out! Halfway back to the Piazza, I realized that I couldn't handle the crowded street, so how would I manage the packed plaza? I turned around again, deciding that I would follow the signs to the bus station, rather than walking against the traffic of the crowd.
As I've mentioned, Venice is a small city. I had walked from the northern end of it to the southern end, and back, several times with no problem. This time, it took me over 90 minutes to make the 15 minute trip. I was following the signs, and I ended up in dead ends and back alleys over and over again. Here's a travel tip - if you're walking through Venice at night, and you find yourself on a street that isn't brightly lit, you're going the wrong way! About 90% of Venice is residential, and there are just a handful of routes that lead between the tourist areas. These routes are all brightly lit, and I spent a very long time in places that were dark, where I actually felt like I was trespassing! At least it's a safe city to walk around in alone...
By 11:45 I was at the train station, which I knew was near the bus station, but try as I might I could not find the buses. I walked back and forth along the Grand Canal, knowing I was close, but no luck
Venice 11
. Finally the people began cheering, and I looked at my watch - it was midnight, and I was sober and lost in Venice. I finally resorted to asking for directions, and it was a simple matter of crossing to the other side of the Canal and going up the road.I arrived at the bus station a little after midnight, and there was one bus there, with a sign that indicated it was out of service. Normally, the bus station is chock full of buses and taxis, but not this time. I waited around, wondering how I would get home, and a bus to "Mirano" finally showed up. I boarded and made the slow ride back to Mestre. Once I arrived, I went up to my room and watched some TV, then went to bed.
Despite all of this, I think that this year will most likely be one of the best ever - I would really have to try hard to screw it up!
