Loading...Our first morning, Saturday, February 16, 2008 started with breakfast at our hotel Al Campaniel. Despite my disappointment that the croissants were marmalade filled, we were adequately loaded with carbohydrates and set on our way.
Except for this day, we had planned little for this trip, as far as what we were going to do each day. We knew what we wanted to see, but we didn’t have much of a plan. Eric wanted to walk up to the Rialto Bridge and check out the markets. He then wanted to hop on a vaporetto and chug down the Grand Canal to St. Mark’s Square. It’s fun to get in your major monuments early when traveling. It helps make you feel like you’ve arrived.
The streets leading up to the market are narrow and lined with shops selling glass, postcards and dried pasta–three of Venice’s largest exports I’m sure. Venice is easy to navigate, there are two directions: Per Rialto or Per San Marco. Yellow signs stuck to the sides of buildings point you and thousands of your closest friends in the right direction.
The markets were still quiet, even though it was 10 a.m. by the time we reached them. Next to the Erberia (vegetables and fruit) is the Pesceria (fish) where I didn’t take any pictures. There were also some butcher shops including one with a large painted horse head on the window. I didn’t take pictures of those either, at the time it felt disrespectful. Not sure what the horse would say about that.
After that we boarded the vaporetto and stood on the middle deck and I took pictures. The palazzos are all beautiful in their own way, grand and decaying or renovated and smoothly stuccoed. I could have taken a picture of each and every one, and probably did.
We then arrived at Saint Mark’s and entered through the two columns. More on Saint Mark’s tomorrow.
The best way to view the pictures (in my opinion) is to click on the first one which opens a larger view, then click next in that new window. This way you can also read the captions.
