Sunrise behind Doge's Palace

Venice was amazing, beautiful, relaxing, and just really really cool. We left Rome late at night, and got into Venice at 5:30. Yes, a.m. Which turned out to be a great decision, because we were able to see the sunrise over Venice. And since Venice is a huge tourist trap, being there in the wee early hours of the morning gave us a glimpse of its beauty before being invaded by humans. After finding the square with Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica, we sat for a while and just enjoyed the beauty of the sea and the old buildings and the sunrise. And then found somewhere to get hot chocolate and croissants at like 8 for breakfast. We were starving at that point, obviously. But nobody else was up yet, so we had the outside café all to ourselves (well, we shared with the pigeons).

After our hostel opened and we could drop our bags off, we headed out again to tour St. Mark’s Basilica before the afternoon, hoping to beat the crowds. Fail. I doubt there’s such a thing as beating the crowds in Venice. But still, we got to see it, and it was just magnificent. Especially the golden altarpiece and the ceilings, which were painted gold or had gold mosaic or something gold. And the bones of St. Mark were under the altar (supposedly, obviously). So after facing the crowds, we decided it was time to wander the streets a bit, since the best part of being in Venice was getting lost with all the canals and bridges and old houses surrounding you.

But we were also starving, so we cut our wanderings a bit short in search of good fish. Which was also a fail. Guess our trying to find something fast and cheapish gave us that quality of fish too. So to counteract our disappointment and tiredness we grabbed a seat on the steps on the Grand Canal and took a good hour, two hour nap. And were still a bit lazy afterwards and so decided wandering again was our best option. We found so many Venetian mask shops, and some cannoli (yum), and even some people walking around wearing costumes. It WAS Halloween, so it wasn’t just because they were crazy Venetians. Maybe.

St. Mark's Basilica

We headed back to the hostel a bit early, since we had been up since like five, and relaxed for a few hours before our free dinner with the rest of the people staying at the hostel. Which was a great chance to meet everyone from around the world and share travel stories (and the free food might’ve been the best part. I mean, I’m a student traveling. I appreciate ANYTHING that’s free). And then the staff of our hostel took us out on the city for a few hours, and though Venice at night was also super cool, it just can’t beat the sunrise.

Venice, though, is totally worth a trip. It was amazing, relaxing, and just beautiful. Even if it is a bit touristy. So to see all my pictures, follow this link: https://picasaweb.google.com/100454144518688283131/Venizia

On the Grand Canal