Venice

Holly writes:
Day 36

After last  night's adventures on the water we slept in a little late.  It took us two hours to get ready as you do on holiday. We walked back to St Marks Basilica to be greeted with a rush of tourists and a looooong line which we were about to join. The line squiggled inside a colourful church on the outside , and big and grand on the inside.  We climbed up the steep steps and surveyed the square from up high.

The restaurants down on the square were only differentiated from each other by the colour of their chairs. One would have the same style except blue, the next red.  At least one restaurant had a band playing on their matching stages.

A tower rose from the middle of the square high into the sky. Although we didn't climb it today there is a matching one on an island which is tomorrows 's destination.   St Mark's Square is beautiful and matching square because the buildings are all from stone and in the same style and the restaurants are all the same as well. We climbed back down to find that a mass was going on Italian.

We wandered back out to join another line. This one moved much slower. We explored the Palace Of Doges (dukes). My favourite place was the bridge of sighs. It was the prisoners last glimpse of freedom. They would get taken to the palace to be prosecuted, and as they were going over bridge to the prison there is one window to look out. For most of them that was the only outside world glimpse, possibly for the rest of their life.

After lunch at the apartment we did some Italian language studying and umed and aaah about a museum. Once we got there we (especially Mum) loved the old ballrooms, statues and chandeliers. We hunted out a good gelato shop, but here is a secret -It wasn't that good-. but I got peach and we sat on the side of the canal with our icecream. Some people (namely Emma) got iceream all over themselves.

A brilliant first sightseeing day in Venice

Arriverderci
Holly