Venice 11/10/12

We were allowed a slight sleep in today – 7am wake up call, 8am breakfast and 9am departure! I did wake up with a shocker of a cold so not feeling wonderful, however, I am determined it will not stop me having a good time. I was also unaware of what time Michael got to bed last night. As I was unwell, he headed down to the laundry in the hotel to put through a load of washing for us.  The washing machine worked really well, however the dryer to hours to dry – literally! Apparently he returned to our room at 3am, so between the two of us we were feeling a little ordinary today.

After breakfast we headed off in our coach to board our private motorboat which too us to the main city of Venice again which is a much different place by day. Many more tourists today and a vastly different atmosphere. Doges Palace is a masterpiece of Gothic Architecture. Its building and sculpture decoration date from various periods and overlooks St Mark’s square. The square is the heart of Venice and was described by Napoleon as the most beautiful dining room in Europe. St Marks Basilica stands at the Head of the Square and boasts lavish mosaics, the 3 famous bronze horses stolen from Constantinople and the magnificent Pala D’oro!

Our first experience today was one that I had been waiting for with much anticipation – A gondola ride through centuries-old canals, under famous arched bridges and past lavish palaces and quaint piazzas. We were divided up into small groups and we shared our gondola with Sue, Claudia and Margaret. Our Gondolier was wonderful, skilfully manoeuvring the gondola along the canals, and in his broken English giving information about sights we saw along the way. Each gondola was given a bottle of Champagne to share, but Claudia and Margaret were the only two up for a drink at 10am in the morning. Our group spanned over 4 gondolas, and in one of them was a musician playing the accordion and a local troubadour serenading us all. It was a truly wonderful experience, one we will treasure always.

It was over all too quickly, and we had to meet up with the rest of the group for our tour of the nearby Maruno glass factory where we saw a demonstration of how the pieces are made, then onto the show room to view the end results.

Once everyone had done the shopping they may have wanted, we had a few hours to explore this gorgeous city. We were joined by Sue and together the three of us set off to the shops selling what we wanted. Venice is traditionally known for glass ware and beautiful masks, and there is no shortage of shops selling both the real stuff and cheap copies of them. One shop in particular had the most amazing masks we had ever seen as well as costumes that could be hired if need be – simply stunning! As you would expect, photos were not allowed inside but we did capture one from the street.

Sue wanted to look at a watch in the Cartier shop so we thought we would duck in and see how outrageously expensive it would be. The front door was locked; the staff unlock it to let you in, then again when you leave. I did see a watch I liked, just a mere €2,785.00!! Clearly we just looked and not bought. We wandered back to St Mark’s square and decided to head away from the main area and towards the other end of the city. We found a café selling bread rolls, so grabbed a couple and found a nearby step to sit on and enjoy watching the world pass by. Pinching ourselves that we were in Venice having lunch!

At 2.50 Michael and I went our separate ways for 3 hours as I wanted to do the next optional tour and he didn’t. So Michael walked to the East end of the island to a large public park where he wandered, watching the birds, the people, the statues and generally enjoyed the serenity of some alone time away from the group!

Sue and I went in another motorboat across the lagoon to the picturesque fishing village of Burano with its gaily painted houses. We visited one of the shops where a local lace maker demonstrated the art of lace making. A quick coffee followed by shopping and the time on this unforgettable island was finished.

Back to the main island where we collected the rest of our group – and my hubby – and back in the motorboat to head back to the coach. Exhausted, we both bided our time till our dinner at 7.45pm – Michael sorted his computer, photos and other electrical stuff he was doing, while I had a quick bath to try and warm up. Dinner was down in the restaurant tonight, and we both agreed it wasn’t the best one we have so far. We were both too tired to really enjoy it, so back up to our room for what will hopefully be a better night sleep.