When you arrived in the Venice airport you have to take a 5 Euro, 20 minute bus ride to get to the edge of the island you arrived on. From there you take a 45 minute boat ride to Lido (which is where we were staying) or a 35 minute boat ride to Saint Marc (the main piazza where all of the Carnival festivities were held.) The plane trip was only 45 minutes long, so all in all it wasn't to bad of a trip. Except of course the fact that Conner and I were completely unaware of the rules for the size of carry on's. After a few sneaky moves, some running and arguing we both were able to avoid the 45 Euro fee...THANK GOD.
Our hotel was cheap and fabulous and nearly 600 degrees, cooling down was not an option. Considering how cold and wet it was outside though no one was complaining. We checked in at around 12 but couldn't go into the rooms until 2pm. Therefore we had two hours to waste in a torrential downpour. Not as hard as you would think though. We found a Chinese ran burger joint, interesting but delicious. We ate, walked around and visited Saint Marcs for some serious Masking.
I was able to find a beautiful one for my wall at home. I'm beginning to envision a "abroad" shelf I plan to create with photos from Venice, next to photos from Florence, and obviously Rome! The Mask is held up my a golden stick with red tassels swirling around it and fringing at the bottom. The face area covers the eyes and moves up in a swirling motion to about 3 1/2 inches above my head, its wild. Its covered in gold gems, glitter, red fabric and all kinds of knick knacks, not so much for wearing definitely for decoration.
When we finally made it back to the hotel we settled in, got ready, took a nice 3 hour nap, grabbed a nice authentic Venician dinner (spritz, wine, thin turkey*, bread sticks, pasta) then off we went to brave the rain. We made it SM but since Carnival didn't start till Saturday we had the night to roam. We walked about 20 minutes crossing bridges, running through alleys, and escaping into restaurants to dry off for a few minutes. We finally met up with another group of UW students and enjoyed a fun night of Spritz. In case you didn't know, spritz are the official drinks of Carnival and they taste awful! They are a mix between a gin and tonic and a grapefruit soda, add some lemon juice and your getting pretty close to what it is. Needless to say one is enough.
The next morning rolled on similarly. A late lunch full of pizza's and wine and then the festivities began. The city was alive with thousands of people that seemed to have arrived overnight. Costumes so intricate that you could barely see where one piece ended and the other began. Wigs, glitter, masks, pirates, pilgrims, witches, popes, gamblers, cards, queens, kings and even the oh so common "carnival crazy" which was something between a witch and a queen of glitter. The masks made you feel invisible, like you were someone else and could get away with anything. I wasn't scared to laugh out loud at the stupid plays being shown on the center stage in the piazza and have people think I was an annoying American, they had no idea who I was or where I came from. I was a stranger in my body and it was a little fun, but two days were enough.
The following day was sunny and a sad day to leave. Carnival had really just began. The sun was high, the water was at peace and the rain had finally stopped...but we were on our way home to Roma. I wasn't sad, but I wish I could have stayed a bit longer. It was a magical place and I can imagine myself returning one day.
Now I must prepare myself for Barcelona!!!! I leave tomorrow night and return two days later, I can't explain the excitement I have. Of all the places I have visited so far, I have heard the best things about Barcelona. I love you all soooo much, Dad I am counting down the days till I get to see you and don't forget to pack light...you may be taking a lot more home with you ;). See you all in my blog in a few more days with stories from Spain!
No comments:
Post a Comment