Venice

We woke up nice and early to leave Roma and head towards Venezia (mainly known as Venice). The 4 hours on the train went by pretty well actually. I bought the cutest glass brooch, you can't see it well because I suck but it's got my favourites! Stars and moon! When we got to Venice I was overwhelmed by its beauty. It is gorgeous. It owns Pisa and Rome, and everyone else agrees too because this place is also a complete tourist town. The streets are designed and stocked for us, waiting for us to consume souvenirs. We checked in at the hotel. Venice is so expensive so I found this lovely Kosher joint in the Jewish Quarter which was recently renovated, and the cheapest. Though it's definitely not cheap in my standards - but compared to the rest of Venice, yes. This one Italian old mate decided to YELL AT ME FOR AGES really rudely about not taking a photo of him and to leave him alone.. and everyone just stared at me and I was super embarrassed and angry - because I wasn't even taking a photo of him, I was taking a photo of the skywriting up above… he was no where near my shot!! Who did he think he was? We headed out and ate lunch then shopped around. There is lots of Murano Venetian glass and masks. Many Indians and Asians have flocked here to make money too, they go anywhere for a dime aye! I reckon they're a huge part of the souvenir industry haha! The transport in Venice is all about walking - apart from the boat that trudges through the big canals and the gondolas that do scenic routes its pretty much using your two feet. So after shopping about we walked all the way to San Marco, which was a decent hike of over 2km. Then we joined a walking and gondola tour. That was boring but good to see and learn. The gondola was fun. It seems so fragile rocking in the waves but once you're in there, you can tell that the rower has complete control. After the ride, we settled at a cafe and listened to people play lively music while we devoured in desserts. Then off we went, on the boat then shopped around again, absorbing all the beautiful sceneries. Venice is gorgeous, nothing like it. I wonder how they even built their houses back then. You can see that the salinity and humidity makes a lot of touch ups and renovations necessary to the facades though. Today was tiring. We stopped by a restaurant near home and I got to have lasagne. I'm pooped, my feet hurt. I really could come back to Venice again, maybe with a bit more time next time. There's just a really ethereal & mystical feel to the place. Today was our second day in Venice. I booked 3 seats in a boat that travelled to Murano, Burano & Torcello then took us back to San Marco. It was a very beautiful but tiring journey. Even though the places in Venice aren't far off from each other, I think there are super strict speed limits on the boats because it took about 40 minutes to the first island, Murano. Murano is famous for its glass factories. I think they've been in place since the 11th century or something but we all know Venice for its glass, so its a huge part of their industry. Holy mackerel, some of the crazy things they can do out of glass is insane. The furnace was also super hot so I don't know how they work all day in those conditions. My mum's the cutest We looked around at all the crazy glasswork, then popped back onto the boat. Next destination? BURANO! Burano is a fisherman's town, and they're well known for their iridescent, multicoloured block homes. They're so cute! They're also well known for their lace works. Many many ladies spend ages just sewing, weaving, crocheting lace to sell. Our last stop was at Torcello, which was the first island that the mainlanders popped over to settle in. Funnily enough, its become the one that looks most untouched. Most of it going towards people's HUGE backyards, probably a bit of farming and church yards. After about 50 minutes we got back to Venice and had lunch. I must've been dehydrated because I sculled 2 bottles of water and ate 2 dishes. Now we're just relaxing back in the hotel's lounge area. Going to have our last Italian dinner then head off to Mestre, back in the mainland to catch the night train to Munich. Italian boys are pretty upfront aye? They upfront go and say, "CIAO BELLA" then start puckering their lips making a smacking sound at me or my sister. Its pretty gross & off putting.