The European Nomad: Venice Part 1

Last night/this morning was a total disaster. I took an overnight train from Rome to Venice, and man...I hate those things! I had a bed this time, but it wasn't even worth the extra cost. There were four beds to a cabin, and I had a top bunk which is smaller than the bottom and just scary-I was afraid of falling off all night. There was no where to put my bag so it was at my feet, forcing me to sleep in a tight fetal position. The guy below me was fine, but the other two people were a teenage couple and they made out the whole night. It was SO awkward.

I arrived at the Venezia Mestre station at 5:30 am. Mestre is on mainland Italy...Venice is an island five minutes away. Both church and my hotel were on the mainland so I got off there...I planned on washing my hair in the station sink and getting ready in the bathroom there. When I arrived, I found porta potties. Great. I looked so nappy! The lds website said Sacrament meeting started at 10:50, and I couldn't check into my hotel until noon so I was stuck for about four hours with no where to go and nothing to do. Train stations are roofed, usually, but they have no walls so it's really cold. I found the indoor waiting area and say down amongst the ten or so homeless people camped out on the floor as well as a group of drunk, high dudes. Yes, at 5:30 am. The smell in that room was unbearable so I went out in the cold, found a bench, and used my backpack as a pillow for about an hour. I used my little scarf as a blanket but it was freezing. I had a homesick day yesterday and the train ride and train station experience were not helping. I was feeling so low, and I was the most scared I have been on the trip. The crowd hanging out at the station did not look like a good one, and they made me really nervous. The police showed up at about 7, thank goodness. The crowd dispersed and more and more tourists started showing up. McDonald's opened and I was able to sit in the warm sitting area for a while. I got in trouble for falling asleep with my head on the table though :/

I brushed my teeth with water from my water bottle and headed to my hotel to see if I could drop off my bag. She let me leave it, thank goodness, because that thing is getting heavy!! I'm going to have to send a package home soon.

I headed to church, 4 miles away, looking real nice and crusty. My hair hadn't even been combed as i could not get to it without unloading my backpack Supposedly there was a bus I could have taken, but I don't do buses so I walked the whole way. It was a long walk, but I found it fine. It took about 50 minutes, so I arrived at 10:35. I caught the end of the last talk and then the closing song...dang it. It started at 9:30, not 10:50!! Someone email them and complain. I was so sad. :(. It was fun to try and sing Italian though and see the ward. There were English speaking missionaries and then a couple from Utah and their daughter and her husband from Illinois. I heard then speaking English so I talked to them for a minute. They had translation thingies and everything. I really missed out on a good experience. I totally could have been there too...I was just collecting stench in a train station. Next time I will go super early..lesson learned.

I did take the bus back because it was a really long walk there. I talked to a kid at the bus stop about which bus to take and decided to go all the way to the main island of Venice. I was not worried since I knew that was the last stop the bus would make.

I got on a vaporetto for a Grand Canal Cruise. A vaporetto is the bus of Venice only way more awesome. I sat in the very front on the edge of my seat, looking like a total nerd. The Grand Canal is Venice's main street and the water was a kit choppier than I was expecting. It is like 150 feet across. There are taxi boats, gondolas, police boats, UPS boats, ambulances, fire boats, etc. They all share the canal. There are no lines, obviously, but they share it in relatively good peace! I saw one stoplight just outside the fire station.

All the famous palaces line the canal. The side facing the canal is very pretty and ornate and the rest of the building is just normal. The famous Rialto Bridge was packed with people. The couples lounging in Gondola's were like celebrities as the cheap vaporetto risers snapped their picture as they floated by. A gondola ride runs at €80 for 45 minutes, and the price goes wayy up from that at night. The vaporetto costs €6,50 for 75 minutes. Haha. Unless you're a hopeless romantic, and rich, the vaporetto does a good job at giving you the canal experience.

I got off by St Mark's Square and squeezed my way through the millions of tourists to see the Bridge of Sighs. It's high up above the water and connects Doge's Palace with the prison. Supposedly, a would be prisoner would be led over the bridge on his way to prison, take one last look at Venice, and sigh. If lovers kiss under it at sunset while riding in a gondola they will be assured eternal love. That's Venice for you!

It's carnavale time so St Mark's Square was covered with people in costumes and masks, music, confetti, and pigeons. This square is nearly two football fields long and is surrounded by the offices of the republic...old and new. The Clock Tower has little bronze men that swing clappers each hour. I learned that a worker got pushed off by one accidentally and fell to his death back in the 17th century! Besides killer robots, it has digital clock capabilities with flipping numbers. So fun!

I didn't get to go in St Mark's Basilica because it is Sunday and was only open for two hours and it was so crowded I thought I was going to die. These two guys asked me to take their picture, and then one of them asked to take one with me. I said sure and took one, but as he was walking away I frantically checked all my pockets to see if he had tricked me and stolen anything. He hadn't, and I think he saw me checking and laughed at me. :/ I'm paranoid!! I will blog about the basilica tomorrow after I go inside.

The campanile is the tall bell tower on the square. I heard about some sort of measuring system for flooding that is on the side of the tower, but there was construction so I couldn't see anything. I guess St Mark's Square is the first thing to flood so they use the measurements as some kind of warning system for the rest of the city. I do not think many people actually live in Venice...maybe like 50 or 60 thousand is all. It's such an expensive place to live, and such a hassle! You could never raise kids there. They'd drown. During my wanderings, I came across many stairs that led straight into the water. No gate, no fence...just like a swimming pool.

At this point, I had had enough of the crowd. The costumes and make up made it better than typical tourists crowds, but I'd heard that Venice'a back streets were where it's at so I took to them. When I came to a fork, I chose the path with no one on it. Sometimes I was led to water as I said before, other times I was lead to a bridge, and other times I was led to a dead end. It was quiet and peaceful, and I saw so many beautiful, picturesque things. Venice is definitely in my top 3 favorite cities of the trip. Right now I think my gavorites have been Bruges, Florence, and Venice with Rothenberg coming in close behind.

I semi splurged at say down for some lasagne. It was delicious. The Italian food has not disappointed!!

I was really tired after my terrible night's sleep on the stupid train so I headed back to my hotel early. I tried a cannolo on the way...It was a little nutella filled pastry I liked it. What's not to like about that? Haha. I unpacked first thing...the less I have to live out of a backpack the better. I rested for a long while (it was much needed), and then I went to find a grocery store and make my train reservations to my next locale:Prague!

I was supposed to be going to Vienna for a workaway, but I was not feeling excited about it so I'm skipping it and will stay with the family in France longer. They have dogs. I like dogs. And France. I'm ready to get to France and England...my two best languages. Just so you know, Venice is not a good gateway into anywhere in Eastern Europe. I will be on bus/trains for 14 1/2 hours on Tuesday. They do offer an overnight train, but I have time and do not want to do those stupid things unless I have to.

I only found a gas station type of grocery store so I had yogurt and crackers for dinner. Yum. It's so cold outside that I can put my yogurt by the window and it will stay cold enough til morning :)

I forgot to say that I have a private room like the one in Monterosso. My, how I love it. This one even has a TV and I have been watching music videos (the only thing in English). It's better than the silence.

More Venice tomorrow! I can't wait!