Venice: That's Amore!

Benvenuti a Venezia! While A&M was on their spring break, our program took us on a week-long trip to Venice. As much as I loved the Capri's beautiful coast and the neighboring islands, I have never seen a place as unique and amazing as Venice.

When they say that Venice surrounded by water, they really mean it is SURROUNDED by water. And since we didn't stay on what is proper Venice but one of the Venetian islands called Lido, the only way to really get around is by boats, which after my first experience, I was naturally very frightened, but I actually got used to the feeling and am glad for it. There is something about the waters that really do make Venice the romantic city that it is known for.

Bellinis and hot wine while we stroll the Rialto Market. (Taken from Cece)

The many views of San Marco!

We all visited the San Lorenzo and Rialto which had giant markets filled with souvenirs, the most prominent being masks. So many masks! I didn't invest in a Venetian mask, but my friends bought gorgeous handmade masks that are to die for. We also visited the Doge's Palace, the Basilica of Venice (both of these toured by a tiny old woman who would grab your attention by shouting "YOO-HOO!" or "thaaaaat's a ques-tionnnn!") and the Guggenheim museum (which was incredibly refreshing - I have been going to a lot of churches and not enough art museums). We also bought tickets to see a Vivaldi's The Four Seasons' concert. They were completely amazing and the cellist was so filled with character, vigor and passion that it was just as amazing to watch him as it was to listen to it all.

My girls and the cellist and violinist, respectfully.

One of the most unforgetable events was when my friends and I went on our first gondola ride. When people think of Venice, one of the ideas I'm sure that pops up is romantic gondola rides down skinny waterways of the town. Well, we did exactly that, except no one played "that's amore" or other cheesy songs.

Asides from Venice, we also took day trips to Vicenza, which houses the Teatro Olympico, which is the first building that was built strictly to be a permanent theater, and Verona, where the famous Juilet house and statue are.

Vicenza's beautiful streets. Seriously I couldn't believe how wide and lovely the streets looked, especially when it began to drizzle.

I don't think I can really describe this theater. Honestly, I didn't understand what was the hype or why it was such an important theater in history, but unless you see it for yourself, you can't see the magnitude of how elaborate and impressive this stage is. It was designed to cater for the first performance of Sophocles' Oedipus The King. The background you see behind the arches is completely 3-dimensional and utilizes force perspective to create the linear perspective that we perceive. So incredibly amazing. And to top that, there was a surprise LIGHT SHOW during our visit that played contemporary rock music. I'll try to upload the video but internet here is not quick enough to upload large files.

Then there was Verona.

We first visited the Coliseum in Verona (yes, Rome isn't the only place with one!), which is the best preserved Colosseum in Italy. It was definitely impressive. I hope to see the inside of Roma's coliseum so that I can make a comparison as to which is the "better" of the two. Then we walked to Juliet's house and her famous balcony and statue. It is supposed to be good luck to touch Juliet's right boob with your left hand (or something like that) and watching everyone touch her boob or do other weird, hilarious photo shoots was very entertaining. 

"I touched the boob!"

The only negative thing I can say about Venice is how crowded its streets are. It is literally a tourist town, with about 22 MILLION tourists every year filling up the town. You can't really experience Venice until you find a part of town that no one goes to (such as local neighborhoods) and just listen to the silence that fills the air. It was so refreshing.

As much as I was afraid of Venice (I knew we had to use the water transportation system and because of my awful experience before, I didn't think I would make it through the first night), I was even more in love with it. Just strolling down San Lorenzo or the Rialto, and getting so far lost was just as fun (or even more) as when we had a game plan.

Until next time!

"A realist, in Venice, would become a romantic by mere faithfulness to what he saw before him."- Arthur Symons