The train ride of from Milan to Venice was a quick two hours. It wasn't terribly scenic (especially compared to the ride from Zurich to Milan, which is probably the most stunningly beautiful train route on the planet), but it was a sunny, clear day, and we could see the Alps in the distance. We passed by a lot of beautiful vineyards that stretched for miles. It was also nice to have all four of our seats facing a private table in the train, so we could talk and laugh and eat together.
Our first evening in Venice, after checking into the apartment, we made our way through the island's ancient, cramped streets and walked over the Rialto bridge all the way down to Piazza San Marco. It was gorgeous -- St. Mark's cathedral, the doge's palace, the waterfront -- but vying for standing space with other tourists was a drag. We walked along the waterfront facing Lido and the entrance to the Grand Canal and then decided to find dinner. Luckily, the entire island has wifi access (not free, but nice to have the option), so I was able to pull up HappyCow on my tablet and then use the built-in GPS to get us from San Marco to our restaurant of choice, La Zuccha. While not a 100% vegetarian restaurant, they had several vegan options and a boatload of vegetarian options as well. Good food, good wine, good company -- what more could you ask for?
On Wednesday the 13th, we went to the Rialto Market, which has existed in Venice in the same location since 1097. I can't even really comprehend that. This market has existed for almost 1000 years, and it sits right on the Grand Canal and is a five-minute walk from the apartment. Phil and Alexis found a health food store just a stone's throw away from the market, and we were able to pick up some soymilk, soy yogurt, bread, cereal/muesli, chips, chocolate, and a few other items.
Venice gets really freaking hot in the afternoon, so all the locals take a siesta from 2-4 pm. We decided to do the same. Feeling a little overwhelmed by the blatant, mass tourism on the island (my traveling companions are jumping in here with "it feels like Disney!" and "the tourists are in your FACE!"), we consulted the "hidden Venice" part of my guidebook and decided to check out two large city parks, the Giardini Papodopoli and the Parco di Cannaregio. It's hard to describe how reassuring it feels to have your feet on solid earth and be surrounded by trees filled with crickets and chirping birds on an island where you feel like everything is simultaneously floating and sinking.
On Thursday, we went back to the Rialto Market to get more fresh food. We explored the island a bit more and stumbled upon Ponte delle Tette (you'll have to look that one up, and beware: not safe for work!) and the old red light district. Walking along Rio Tera di Carampane, where "courtesans" could be found from the 1420s on, we found the narrowest street we have ever seen, Calle de la Rafineria, apparently where a sugar refinery used to be located in the 1700s. I took a video of the street, which I'll post probably after I get back to the States. Later that afternoon, we went back to Giardino Papdopoli and relaxed in the shade a bit before going back to the apartment to fix dinner.
Sometimes I wonder how the city of Venice is able to feed so many thousands of tourists every day. I was really thankful that we had an apartment with a full kitchen so that we could make our own food when we wanted.
Our last day in Venice, we checked out of the apartment, donned our camper's backpacks, and headed over to Frary's/Caffe Frari for lunch. We got to talking to the owner, and when she heard that Alexis and Phil hail from the twin cities, she ran into the back room and pulled out an American yearbook. Her dad, a Venice native, spent a year abroad in St. Paul in 1959-60. His yearbook was full of signatures and messages from people recalling the fun times they had pulling pranks and from his many lady friends telling him how they felt about the "tall, handsome Italian man" who had shown up at their school that year. It was fascinating to get a glimpse into someone's life like that. She shared with us how the Venetian government doesn't repair any buildings or try to preserve the local culture because all they care about is tourist dollars. Over 80,000 tourists visit the island every day, yet there are fewer than 60,000 residents left. It's really pretty sad. We're just glad we got to see Venice before it gets worse, and that we were fortunate enough to be staying in a non-touristy residential area.
Anyway, this lady, a frequent traveler herself, was so sweet that, after we told her about our predicament (having to carry around our heavy bags after checking out of the apartment), she offered to let us leave them in a locked closet in their back room. We of course kept our important docs with us, but we took her up in the offer and left our bags there for a few hours while we walked around and went to the Venice history museum in Piazza San Marco. Then we picked up our bags around 7:00 pm and headed to the train station for our overnight train to Vienna.
If you're planning on going to Venice in the summer, I would recommend that you bring sunscreen and bug spray. The mosquitoes in Venice are huge, famished, and waiting to attack in drones. And holy hell, it is hot and humid on the island -- it's like south Florida, but only a third of the shops and restaurants have air conditioning. Luckily our apartment had AC, because I'm not sure we could have survived otherwise. Venice was great, but we're glad to be in Vienna now with some cooler weather!
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