Today was the second day of my trip to Venice, or La Serenissima as it was formerly known when the city was the capitol of the Venetian Republic. This is the view from the foot of the Piazza San Marco out toward the island of San Giorgio Maggiore. Today I wandered all over the Santa Croce and San Polo neighborhoods, and then went back to San Marco twice -- once during the day to see more people in costumes and once at night to see the Carnevale wrap-up festivities.
The wrap up just turned out to be a big dance party with a DJ and since it was raining and I don't dance, I didn't stick around long. The Carnevale schedule said it was going to be a surprise closing party and I was hoping someone like U2 would play a concert in the Piazza San Marco, but no dice.
San Polo and Santa Croce were pretty cool. It's mostly a residential area so it was quiet and peaceful (incidentally, I think 'La Serenissima' might mean 'the most serene,' but don't quote me on that one). Clothes dryers must be a precious commodity in Venice because nearly everywhere you look you see laundry hanging on the line to dry. Still, I guess it's a small price to pay for getting to live in such a beautiful place.
Navigating your way around Venice means accepting that your map only tells you part of the story and realizing that a fair amount of backtracking and/or getting lost is a given. Still, I managed to hit all the spots I wanted to see today -- the Ca Pesaro ( a modern art museum whose collection included a work by my favorite artist, Gustav Klimt), the Palazzo Mocenigo (an aristocratic mansion decorated and furnished as it would have been in the 1700s), and the Frari church (kinda like a big, gothic Astrodome for God).
Tomorrow, it's back to San Marco to hit all the major touristy stuff there and a gondola tour with a serenade!
(Taken with my Nikon D80)
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