Venice

My first visit outside of Vicenza was to Venice.  Nick and I made the short (1 hour) trip about 1 week after I arrived.  I also recently went back again for a newcomers orientation affiliated with my husbands job.  This orientation allowed me to meet some other American women that are also here because of their husband's work.  We had a wonderful tour guide, Carla (picture below) that grew up in Vicenza and went to college in Venice.  She was a wealth of information.

Both trips to Venice were chilly, rainy and windy.  So the pictures are a bit gray and I'm bundled up.  However, the weather does not cloud or dampen the Venice experience.  The city is unique with the canals being where the streets should be.  The boats coming and going delivering food, retails goods and people.  When Nick and I went we just decided to wander along the Grand Canal to see what we would see.  We found ourselves walking into courtyards that didn't lead anywhere or into dead ends.  It's a great city to get 'lost' in. 

There are numerous sites to see.  Many large churches, the Jewish ghetto, Rialto Bridge and the grand Piazza San Marco.  There is so much to see in a day that it's a bit overwhelming but I have a feeling that Venice will be a place that we visit often.  I can't imagine that any of our visitors will want to skip Venice.  I look forward to going back again and again.  This spring should be a bit sunnier and warmer!

The pictures attached are of the Santa Maria di Nazareth, The Basilica di San Marco, the Santa Maria della Salute (I'm sitting on the steps), the Santa Maria Assunta (which is a Jesuit church) and the Rialto Bridge.  Next to the bridge is a large market where clothes, household goods, jewelry, handbags, fresh meat, vegetables and fresh bread are sold.  By the time we arrived the market was packing up for the day so I guess it's wise to arrive early!

The Jewish ghetto of Venice has an interesting history.  It's a bit different from what most of us might assume a ghetto to be from WWII.  The area was pretty quiet when we walked through but Hanukkah coincides with Christmas this year and a large menorah will be erected in the Campo del Ghetto Nouvo starting this Sunday.  I've been told it's quite a sight so we may have to make a trip back this weekend.

The Basilica di San Marco was built to house the body of St. Mark back in 832.  Apparently St. Mark was buried in Alexandria, Egypt but his body was stolen in 828 by 2 Venetians.  The church was added to over time to become what it is today.  The gold mosaics inside the church were constructed during the medieval period.  Everywhere you will see sculptures of the winged lion, the traditional symbol of St. Mark.  This lion has now become the symbol of city of Venice.

Across the Piazza San Marco and around the corner is Harry's bar, the birthplace of the Bellini Prosecco cocktail.  It was created in the 1930's by Giuseppe Cipriani who named it after Giovanni Bellini, the 15h century Venetian painter.   For my champagne/prosecco/cava/sparkling wine-loving friends...this will be the perfect place to kick off a day in Venice.  :)  Another fun tidbit is that Ernest Hemingway had his own table in the corner of the bar during the winter of 1949/1950 and mentioned Harry's several times in his book 'Over the River and Into the Trees'.

I'm sure I'll write much more about Venice in the future as we take more and more trips to this fascinating city.  I'll discover more and more throughout the next 3 years and I'm very much looking forward to it.