Sunday, May 11
We were so excited to go to Italy! And the trip has gone so well to to this point that we were so happy we decided to do this crazy thing. To get to Venice we had to go from Brig to Milan, and then we needed to buy a ticket from Milan to Venice. We found out after we were already on our train that it was going all the way to Venice, but we couldn't stay on because we didn't have tickets. :( So when we reached Milan we ran like crazy to buy tickets before the train left. This was our first time buying tickets (I had pre-ordered a few and we also had the Swiss Pass) so we weren't really sure what to do. There were all of these booths that said they sold tickets but they only took credit card, and American credit cards don't work in Europe. So, our train was leaving in fifteen minutes and we were just running around trying to figure out what to do. We stood in line forever for customer service and then the guy says that some of the booths do take cash, you just have to look for a symbol on the side. What symbol?! So we ran back and found some machines with a red euro sign, bought our tickets, and then hopped back on the train. We made it! Funny thing was that it was our same train!
The train ride was beautiful, but I couldn't see much of it. Rusty and I got separated on this one and I sat on the aisle next to a girl that never spoke and he sat next to a really rude Romanian man. But, he had a window seat and kept telling me afterwards how beautiful the country around Milan is. There was a funny Italian lady on the train that talked and laughed really loud in a high pitched voice. Everyone had noticed her and we were all kind of glad that she was getting off, but when she did and the door shut we could still hear her! The whole train stared out the windows at her and then just started laughing haha.
Venice was getting close and when our train went out over the bridge to the city I got so excited! I had always wanted to see Venice; it is so incredibly unique. We arrived at the train station and bought our tickets to La Spezia for the next day so we could avoid what happened earlier. Then we took the city bus (which is really a boat!!!) to the Rialto Bridge stop because that is the closest one to the apartment where we are staying. We got to the apartment pretty easily thanks to their directions with pictures and only got off track once or twice. :) Venice is an absolute maze! If there hadn't been pictures we would probably still be wandering out there! When we got there we met Giovanni, our host, and the other couple staying in the second room in the apartment. They were middle aged and were travelling Europe for four months! What was crazy is that they were moving every couple days just like us. I don't know how they didn't get exhausted! We dropped our bags off and then headed out to explore. People say that you need to just get lost in Venice when you visit and not have anything planned. That was great news for us because we were lost 98% of the time. The streets are all tiny and are all called Calle Something (or not named at all), they don't ever match up, and lots of them will just dead end on a canal! Haha! We didn't mind though. :)
There wasn't much of a to do list for us here; just wander, get lost, see the Rialto Bridge, San Marco's square, gondola ride, and maybe the Rialto Market. Which actually is a lot because we were only there for a day haha. We wandered around a little more and found ourselves in a tiny alley right next to a pizza place. So we got our first Italian pizza!! That old couple told us not to be very excited because the pizza in Venice is gross, but we were still excited and after trying it I don't know what they were talking about. We LOVED it! I got a veggie one with all kinds of things on it. It was so huge I had to fold it in half to eat it. Rusty was so happy he got a second one, and by the end of the night we had bought one more haha. We also had our first gelato!
Then we wandered and found San Marco's square. Sadly there was scaffolding all over it so you can't see it clearly but it is a beautiful building. We did find a few different angles so you could kind of see it. While we were at the square a man came up holding out a rose. I got confused and reached for it, then remembered that's bad because he is selling them so I pulled back, but then I felt bad and reached out again. Then we were in trouble. Rusty asked how much and the guy wanted everything he had in his pocket, which made me really mad so I tried to give it back. But then he shoved two more roses in my hands! At this point I was just really confused and frustrated. Rusty said, "I only have this much" and held out two Euros. Then the guy took the other two roses back and stormed off! Stupid man haha. So then I carried around this rose which was actually like a mark of shame because I couldn't outsmart the con guy. As we were walking I would see other tourist women holding them and we would just kind of smile and then look down haha. Rusty said he had been wanting to buy me a flower but not that way ha. Oh well.
Close to San Marco's is the edge of the island where all of the gondolas are. We sat here for a while and watched ships going around and people walking. Then we started on our way home. We walked through neighborhoods and saw kids playing soccer and moms hanging up laundry. We even saw a little boy and his grandpa catch a crab out of one of the canals! It was so wonderful just to meander through the streets and see the people and the city. As we made our way back to our apartment we wanted to see the Rialto one more time. We got there and took some pictures and waked on it for a little when it stated thundering and getting dark. So we went quickly back and snuggled into our bed with the window open to watch our first thunder storm of the year. The view from our window was beautiful: rooftops of Italian homes and the domes of San Marco.
Monday, May 12
Today we woke up and got ready to go! We had everything packed up and Giovanni was nice and let us keep it by the door until we were leaving in our train later that afternoon. It was fun to wander around before the tourists all showed up for the day and just be with the locals. We wandered, ate some gelato that was delicious-apparently I just had a bad place the first time- and then stated looking for a place to take a gondola ride. People all have mixed feelings about a gondola in Venice. Some say they are just an expensive tourist trap, but this is something I have wanted to do for forever! And once I sat down in one and started winding through those romantic and charming canals holding Rusty's hand, I knew I made the right decision. Rusty was pretty happy to see Venice from that point of view, but mostly he is just really nice and goes along with some of these things he would never do haha. So that was definitely a highlight of the entire trip!
After that we did San Marcos again (staying safely away from street vendors) and then did the Rialto Bridge and found the Rialto Market. The market was full of beautiful fruits and vegetables and seasonings.
After doing the market we knew we needed to start heading back to our apartment to grab our bags so we could have more than enough time to get to the train station with getting lost, and getting home with getting lost haha. We were getting hungry and wanted to try something local. So we wind through funny streets and stumbled upon this little place that had who knows what for sale with only local men smoking cigars and reading newspapers inside. We walked in and they stopped talking and looked at us like, "What are you doing here?" The lady working was really nice and asked what we wanted in Italian, and I just asked if she had a favorite of the antipasti (appetizers). We got four things, all of the things that she suggested, and then took them outside to eat. They were kind of like bruchetta, only the toppings were very different. One of them was really good. It was artichokes, mushrooms, and truffles. Another one had salami with an anchovy (not so good), and another one was some kind of fish that was really fishy tasting and still had its tail on. The fourth one was dogfish. ??? What. That was as adventurous as I had gotten on the trip and it made me feel a little queasy actually haha. I don't do really fishy tastes very well. So we got some pizza and I felt better:)
Then we went and grabbed our bags and made our way to the train station. Surprisingly we didn't get lost... because there were signs everywhere haha. So we went through some busy streets and crossed a lot of bridges. When we were riding the gondola, we asked our driver a little bit about the city because he was born there. He said there are 420 bridges in the city- that's crazy because it's not that big! We also saw a hilarious restaurant called the Wild West where everything on the menu was called something about buffalos and cowboys. Loved it. It has been really interesting to see how Americans and America is perceived here. I have not found it to be as bad as people say, but most people have been very kind and are really interested in America- particularly New York City and Las Vegas haha.
We made it to the train stain in plenty of time, like two hours early, so we walked around some more, saw the Academia Bridge, and then sat on the steps of a big building right on the Grand Canal. Rusty took a little nap and I people watched. Then we went and sat on a dock over the grand canal for another while until it was time to go get a snack for the train (food in the train is crazy! Once I was starving so I got some chips and they were like five bucks. For a little bag!). Before our train we got a mozzarella and tomato sandwich. Yum!
We were so excited to go to Italy! And the trip has gone so well to to this point that we were so happy we decided to do this crazy thing. To get to Venice we had to go from Brig to Milan, and then we needed to buy a ticket from Milan to Venice. We found out after we were already on our train that it was going all the way to Venice, but we couldn't stay on because we didn't have tickets. :( So when we reached Milan we ran like crazy to buy tickets before the train left. This was our first time buying tickets (I had pre-ordered a few and we also had the Swiss Pass) so we weren't really sure what to do. There were all of these booths that said they sold tickets but they only took credit card, and American credit cards don't work in Europe. So, our train was leaving in fifteen minutes and we were just running around trying to figure out what to do. We stood in line forever for customer service and then the guy says that some of the booths do take cash, you just have to look for a symbol on the side. What symbol?! So we ran back and found some machines with a red euro sign, bought our tickets, and then hopped back on the train. We made it! Funny thing was that it was our same train!
The train ride was beautiful, but I couldn't see much of it. Rusty and I got separated on this one and I sat on the aisle next to a girl that never spoke and he sat next to a really rude Romanian man. But, he had a window seat and kept telling me afterwards how beautiful the country around Milan is. There was a funny Italian lady on the train that talked and laughed really loud in a high pitched voice. Everyone had noticed her and we were all kind of glad that she was getting off, but when she did and the door shut we could still hear her! The whole train stared out the windows at her and then just started laughing haha.
Venice was getting close and when our train went out over the bridge to the city I got so excited! I had always wanted to see Venice; it is so incredibly unique. We arrived at the train station and bought our tickets to La Spezia for the next day so we could avoid what happened earlier. Then we took the city bus (which is really a boat!!!) to the Rialto Bridge stop because that is the closest one to the apartment where we are staying. We got to the apartment pretty easily thanks to their directions with pictures and only got off track once or twice. :) Venice is an absolute maze! If there hadn't been pictures we would probably still be wandering out there! When we got there we met Giovanni, our host, and the other couple staying in the second room in the apartment. They were middle aged and were travelling Europe for four months! What was crazy is that they were moving every couple days just like us. I don't know how they didn't get exhausted! We dropped our bags off and then headed out to explore. People say that you need to just get lost in Venice when you visit and not have anything planned. That was great news for us because we were lost 98% of the time. The streets are all tiny and are all called Calle Something (or not named at all), they don't ever match up, and lots of them will just dead end on a canal! Haha! We didn't mind though. :)
There wasn't much of a to do list for us here; just wander, get lost, see the Rialto Bridge, San Marco's square, gondola ride, and maybe the Rialto Market. Which actually is a lot because we were only there for a day haha. We wandered around a little more and found ourselves in a tiny alley right next to a pizza place. So we got our first Italian pizza!! That old couple told us not to be very excited because the pizza in Venice is gross, but we were still excited and after trying it I don't know what they were talking about. We LOVED it! I got a veggie one with all kinds of things on it. It was so huge I had to fold it in half to eat it. Rusty was so happy he got a second one, and by the end of the night we had bought one more haha. We also had our first gelato!
Then we wandered and found San Marco's square. Sadly there was scaffolding all over it so you can't see it clearly but it is a beautiful building. We did find a few different angles so you could kind of see it. While we were at the square a man came up holding out a rose. I got confused and reached for it, then remembered that's bad because he is selling them so I pulled back, but then I felt bad and reached out again. Then we were in trouble. Rusty asked how much and the guy wanted everything he had in his pocket, which made me really mad so I tried to give it back. But then he shoved two more roses in my hands! At this point I was just really confused and frustrated. Rusty said, "I only have this much" and held out two Euros. Then the guy took the other two roses back and stormed off! Stupid man haha. So then I carried around this rose which was actually like a mark of shame because I couldn't outsmart the con guy. As we were walking I would see other tourist women holding them and we would just kind of smile and then look down haha. Rusty said he had been wanting to buy me a flower but not that way ha. Oh well.
St. Mark's Square
Close to San Marco's is the edge of the island where all of the gondolas are. We sat here for a while and watched ships going around and people walking. Then we started on our way home. We walked through neighborhoods and saw kids playing soccer and moms hanging up laundry. We even saw a little boy and his grandpa catch a crab out of one of the canals! It was so wonderful just to meander through the streets and see the people and the city. As we made our way back to our apartment we wanted to see the Rialto one more time. We got there and took some pictures and waked on it for a little when it stated thundering and getting dark. So we went quickly back and snuggled into our bed with the window open to watch our first thunder storm of the year. The view from our window was beautiful: rooftops of Italian homes and the domes of San Marco.
Laundry hanging in the alleys
This lion is the symbol of Venice
The view from our room!
Dome of San Marco!
Today we woke up and got ready to go! We had everything packed up and Giovanni was nice and let us keep it by the door until we were leaving in our train later that afternoon. It was fun to wander around before the tourists all showed up for the day and just be with the locals. We wandered, ate some gelato that was delicious-apparently I just had a bad place the first time- and then stated looking for a place to take a gondola ride. People all have mixed feelings about a gondola in Venice. Some say they are just an expensive tourist trap, but this is something I have wanted to do for forever! And once I sat down in one and started winding through those romantic and charming canals holding Rusty's hand, I knew I made the right decision. Rusty was pretty happy to see Venice from that point of view, but mostly he is just really nice and goes along with some of these things he would never do haha. So that was definitely a highlight of the entire trip!
Top of the Rialto Bridge!
Our gondola :)
Our driver :)
After that we did San Marcos again (staying safely away from street vendors) and then did the Rialto Bridge and found the Rialto Market. The market was full of beautiful fruits and vegetables and seasonings.
The trash man!
The Rialto Market!
After doing the market we knew we needed to start heading back to our apartment to grab our bags so we could have more than enough time to get to the train station with getting lost, and getting home with getting lost haha. We were getting hungry and wanted to try something local. So we wind through funny streets and stumbled upon this little place that had who knows what for sale with only local men smoking cigars and reading newspapers inside. We walked in and they stopped talking and looked at us like, "What are you doing here?" The lady working was really nice and asked what we wanted in Italian, and I just asked if she had a favorite of the antipasti (appetizers). We got four things, all of the things that she suggested, and then took them outside to eat. They were kind of like bruchetta, only the toppings were very different. One of them was really good. It was artichokes, mushrooms, and truffles. Another one had salami with an anchovy (not so good), and another one was some kind of fish that was really fishy tasting and still had its tail on. The fourth one was dogfish. ??? What. That was as adventurous as I had gotten on the trip and it made me feel a little queasy actually haha. I don't do really fishy tastes very well. So we got some pizza and I felt better:)
Then we went and grabbed our bags and made our way to the train station. Surprisingly we didn't get lost... because there were signs everywhere haha. So we went through some busy streets and crossed a lot of bridges. When we were riding the gondola, we asked our driver a little bit about the city because he was born there. He said there are 420 bridges in the city- that's crazy because it's not that big! We also saw a hilarious restaurant called the Wild West where everything on the menu was called something about buffalos and cowboys. Loved it. It has been really interesting to see how Americans and America is perceived here. I have not found it to be as bad as people say, but most people have been very kind and are really interested in America- particularly New York City and Las Vegas haha.
We made it to the train stain in plenty of time, like two hours early, so we walked around some more, saw the Academia Bridge, and then sat on the steps of a big building right on the Grand Canal. Rusty took a little nap and I people watched. Then we went and sat on a dock over the grand canal for another while until it was time to go get a snack for the train (food in the train is crazy! Once I was starving so I got some chips and they were like five bucks. For a little bag!). Before our train we got a mozzarella and tomato sandwich. Yum!
Taxi!!!
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