We capped off our time in Italy with four nights in Venice thanks to our friend Deron. With his sons, Nicholas and Alexander, Deron had rented an apartment there for a week as part of their European vacation and graciously invited us to stay with them. As soon as our train from Bologna crossed the Laguna Veneto and arrived on the island, we knew we had arrived in a magical and unique city. We are tremendously grateful to Deron and his sons for allowing us to crash the end of their month-long adventure.
The afternoon we arrived we joined Deron, Nicholas, and Alexander in exploring Venice on foot. It was the second day of the Festa del Redentore (Feast of the Redeemer), which celebrates the end of the plague in 1576. As part of the festivities, a floating bridge had been erected for only 24 hours connecting the Dorsoduro district of the main island to the Redentore church on the island of La Giudecca. We ventured across, visited the church, explored the island, and admired the views back toward Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s square) before heading back to the apartment to watch the Women’s World Cup final (what a frustrating loss!).
On our subsequent days in Venice we visited the island of Murano, known for its glassblowing (where we barely resisted the urge to buy an extremely fragile souvenir); toured the Canale Grande and the outskirts of the city by vaporetto; explored the Basilica di San Marco while huddled with Deron around an iPod listening to Rick Steves’ free audio tour; learned about Venetian history and art at the Museo Correr; explored the private chambers and dungeon’s of Venice’s Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s palace); and happily sampled the local cuisine (pizza, pasta, pastries, and a Venetian specialty – the Spritz: aperol, white wine, and sparkling water).
We took advantage of the apartment, too, making coffee and breakfast in the mornings, cooking a big dinner one night, and spending most evenings at the kitchen table drinking beer and playing cards. While we thoroughly enjoyed our time here, even four days wasn’t enough to see all of Venice and we left a lot of museums and neighborhoods unseen (and gelato uneaten)! We look forward to going back but are indebted to Deron and his sons for helping us make Venice one of the stops on our around the world trip!
Click the photo below for our Venice photo album.
The afternoon we arrived we joined Deron, Nicholas, and Alexander in exploring Venice on foot. It was the second day of the Festa del Redentore (Feast of the Redeemer), which celebrates the end of the plague in 1576. As part of the festivities, a floating bridge had been erected for only 24 hours connecting the Dorsoduro district of the main island to the Redentore church on the island of La Giudecca. We ventured across, visited the church, explored the island, and admired the views back toward Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s square) before heading back to the apartment to watch the Women’s World Cup final (what a frustrating loss!).
On our subsequent days in Venice we visited the island of Murano, known for its glassblowing (where we barely resisted the urge to buy an extremely fragile souvenir); toured the Canale Grande and the outskirts of the city by vaporetto; explored the Basilica di San Marco while huddled with Deron around an iPod listening to Rick Steves’ free audio tour; learned about Venetian history and art at the Museo Correr; explored the private chambers and dungeon’s of Venice’s Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s palace); and happily sampled the local cuisine (pizza, pasta, pastries, and a Venetian specialty – the Spritz: aperol, white wine, and sparkling water).
We took advantage of the apartment, too, making coffee and breakfast in the mornings, cooking a big dinner one night, and spending most evenings at the kitchen table drinking beer and playing cards. While we thoroughly enjoyed our time here, even four days wasn’t enough to see all of Venice and we left a lot of museums and neighborhoods unseen (and gelato uneaten)! We look forward to going back but are indebted to Deron and his sons for helping us make Venice one of the stops on our around the world trip!
Click the photo below for our Venice photo album.
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