Italy 2023

#7, Last Days in Venice

I enjoyed my early morning jaunts around Venice, the relaxed pace, yet bustling activity and no cars. Every day we would jokingly exclaim “another church!” as there are a LOT of them in Italy. Walking across canal bridges and people watching was fun for me. It still amazes me that there were so many tourists at this time of year, as the locals said it is busier in the summer, when it also hotter. I can hardly imagine how uncomfortable that would be. 

Saturday 3/25, after Mark and I had been out and about, we met Pat at the same restaurant near Rialto Bridge. Savoring my spaghetti with meat sauce, we started to notice more activity on the Grand Canal as police boats and then ambulance boats raced by. Overhead nearby, we heard helicopters and then through the throngs of people along the canal and just outside the cafe a brigade of police marched by in full riot gear including helmets and shields. There must have been a major incident nearby, but what and was there any danger to us?

Taking the vaporetto back we met John near our hotel for drinks, we then heard helicopters hovering nearby but not in sight. Again, what was going on in Venice? Later in our hotel a notice was posted about a civil disturbance and that everyone was encouraged to avoid the area as a curfew was also in place in the area affected. It must have been something  significant, but we wouldn’t know what. 

A little more shopping, finding the exact tablecloth John had seen before and getting to the shop just as he was closing. We wandered more into the Greek area and stopped for a late afternoon cocktail, this time I tried a Hugo Spritz. It was refreshing.

Having turned much cooler, Mark and I returned to the room before heading out later to meet Pat and John for dinner. We returned to the room later after wandering the side alleyways admiring the brightly lit window displays. 

Later on, or early the next morning, I found that part of the hullabaloo the day before may have revolved around a young man who had entered a private home, climbed to the upper (3rd or 4th floor) and in collusion with others, jumped into the Grand Canal. Below, his conspirators had a towel for the jumper and quickly ran off. Police were on the lookout for the hooligans explaining how dangerous that stunt was with boat traffic below in the canal and how it could have been a deadly outcome. 

I never heard anymore about it.

The following day, Sunday 3/26 we all went by vaporetto to the train station to change Pat and John’s tickets and for Mark and I to familiarize ourselves with the station and change the departure time on our tickets. We were on different trains with slightly different departure times for the next leg of our trip, to Florence. It was good to get a feel of the train station and where to board the trains. It made the next day much easier on us.

After dinner that evening, it was raining and we walked through St. Mark’s Square for one last time where the brightly lit St. Mark’s Basilica cast its reflected image upon the rain slick pavement.

Remembering Venice with great admiration, I’ll always be grateful that I was able to travel there with friends and to share our time together. The history, culture and architecture came alive for me. The canals, gondolas, gondoliers, vaporettos, cafes, narrow alleyways, the bridges, ancient buildings, shutters on windows, flower boxes on windows, churches and church bells ringing out throughout the day, the opulence of palaces and churches, food, ambience and the slower pace without vehicles on the streets contributed to it being a calming and very charming city. And the outer islands of Murano and Burano both having their distinct qualities were pleasant surprises. Venice has left a special place in my heart.

On to Florence.

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