Venice - City of Bridges

Well, folks... We're back from our fabulous summer vacation! We had such a wonderful time and we saw so many amazing things! Each place had a certain charm and a uniqueness about it which made it that much more special (i.e. Amsterdam's bikes, Venice's canals and bridges, and Paris's Eiffel Tower and shopping districts)... I actually think I'm still in awe about the fact that we managed to visit Amsterdam, Venice, and Paris (three cities which I've always wanted to see) all in the time span of three weeks... Plus, we even found time to visit one of our favorite places (Lago di Garda) to partake in some outdoor adventures! That's just one of the many things I love about Europe... Everything is so close! :)

Now that we've been back for a few days, I figured it's time to get my butt in gear and get the pictures posted for all of you to see. :) However, with so many pictures to post, I've decided that I'll split the trip up into a few different blog entries, so as not to bombard you with too many pictures at one time! :) So, let's begin with Venice - The City of Bridges...

Venice is such a charming place to visit! We were able to spend two days exploring the city, and I have to admit that I absolutely fell in love with it! :) From its many canals to its hundreds of bridges to the many gondolas floating around the city to its quaint little side streets that oftentimes lead to nowhere to the beautiful Murano glass found there... There was literally a surprise around every corner! :)

Our first day in the city was actually quite interesting. We decided that we would take the first day to get acquainted with the city instead of running around trying to see all of the sights... Well, let's just say that Venice, with all of its bridges, canals, and dead end streets, is rather difficult to navigate! At first, we didn't really mind the fact that we were lost in the city... We simply strolled hand-in-hand through the quiet side streets while soaking up the atmosphere, and of course, taking pictures. :) However, by the time nightfall was upon us, we had managed to get ourselves so twisted and turned around that we almost missed our train back to the hotel (being that we couldn't find the train station, no matter how many times we consulted our "trusty" map)... Yikes! The only reason we ended up finding it is because we started questioning everyone in sight... And, go figure, it was one of the first times in all of our traveling abroad, that we couldn't manage to find an English speaker (or even a German speaker for that matter!)... All we came across were people who spoke Italian and French (and some random guy who was speaking his own special language! :))... We finally found a desk clerk at a hotel that spoke English, and when we asked him how to get to the train station, he looked at us in amusement, pointed to the bridge in front of the hotel, and told us to cross it... And, wouldn't you know it, after all of that panicked running around we had just done, the bridge led us directly into the train station... Nice! :)

We managed to get our bearings by the second day though, and the rest of the trip went quite smoothly. Although, I have to admit, some of my favorite memories of Venice are of those quaint little side streets we wandered down while we were lost... They were removed from all of the hustle and bustle of the tourist areas and you were able to get a feel for the actual city... Being able to see that side of Venice, definitely made getting lost worth it! :)

So, without further ado, here's a glimpse into the charming city of Venice... Enjoy! :)

This was one of our first views of Venice as we stepped out of the train station... I was completely awestruck! It literally looks exactly the way it's always portrayed in pictures... only even more beautiful! :)

Look how narrow some of the side streets are! :)

Santa Maria della Salute... We came around the corner and this was what greeted us... Stunning!!

Venice at night...

You see the boat moorings everywhere (Actually, I kept calling them "peppermint sticks" while Brian referred to them as "the barber shop poles"... :)) Can you see where the water level has increased? There used to be a small staircase leading to the doorway... We read that the city is sinking at a rate of 2 1/2 inches a decade... So, in reality, Venice may not exist at some point in the future... So sad... :(

We spent an evening in Piazza San Marco and enjoyed the music...

The Rialto Bridge...

(I'm told by Brian that this is much more impressive than the replica they have in Vegas! :))

Standing on one of the many bridges in Venice... It's a picture perfect view wherever you are in that city! :)

The view from the Rialto Bridge... Gorgeous!!

San Marco's Cathedral...

The Astronomical Clock...

Look at all of the tourists!! This is a typical scene from any large city in Europe during the summer... Lots and lots of people!!

Brian and I amongst the crowds of tourists... Oh joy! We actually asked a random American tourist to take a picture with San Marco's Cathedral as the background... This is what he managed to take a picture of... Somehow, instead of having the cathedral as the backdrop, we now have a whole bunch of tourists as the background... Isn't that just lovely?!

Down one of the many side streets... This is such a typical Italian scene... I love it! :)

This is when we decided to get away from all of the tourist areas and wander around through all of the quiet little side streets... We found some pretty little canals and buildings along the way... :)

For some reason, I really liked this house! :)

A typical scene from Venice...

There were so many gondolas!! We actually contemplated taking a ride in one... However, we found out that it would cost us $60 for a half hour ride... Yikes!! We opted for a nice dinner instead! :)

So pretty!

The doors were so old and worn... Which makes the city that much more charming. :)

Notice how crooked that tower is?? :)

A view from the Ponte dell' Accademia...

My adorable hubby! :)

We came across this scene and couldn't quite figure it out... This statue is located on the Dogana da Mar and during the day it's guarded by an armed guard, and it's encased at night... The statue is of a naked boy holding a frog... Considering how much effort they go to to keep this statue safe, it must be a pretty big deal... Either way, I still don't get it! :)

Being that we opted out of taking a ride in a gondola... We decided to pose for pictures by them instead... :)

Inside the Santa Maria della Salute...

This was one of the very few cathedrals we were able to go into... First of all, there were very few tourists so we didn't have a huge line to wait in. Secondly, Brian was able to take pictures in this cathedral, unlike the others. And finally, the dress code was less strict here... I was allowed in even though I was wearing shorts. (Just an FYI... Italy is very strict about dress codes when visiting their cathedrals. Shorts, bare arms and shoulders, and skirts above the knee are strictly prohibited!)

We saw so many doors like this... The water level rises every year and it typically floods parts of the city every winter/spring... Houses closer to the canals have to deal with it on a yearly basis, resulting in alot of water damage. As a result of the increasing water level, we noticed that many of the houses in the city have the first floor boarded up and they are no longer in use.

I can honestly say, I simply love the Italian vibe... I think I'm Italian at heart! :)

A Venetian sunset...