Venezia Vacation

Yes, marshmallows and pie for breakfast!

Last night we slept with no alarm set!  Ahhh…  We got up and went to breakfast, and found that they had champagne (or possibly Prosecco?) included.  But, as we were going to church next, we thought that seemed a bit wrong.  But breakfast was good, include the sweets section featuring various marshmallows!

Very Venetian View!

We jumped the Hilton shuttle boat and headed to Marco Square, and wandered a bit making our way to St. Mark’s for Mass.  The church was spectacularly beautiful!!  It was clear the blended influences of the Roman and Eastern histories (true of much of Venice).  We took two seats near the front.  The altar was set way back behind a sort of screen, and the pillars blocked part of the view.  But under the altar was a sarcophagus purported to hold the remains of St. Mark the Apostle.  During Mass, a couple was seemingly celebrating a wedding anniversary, and the Priest gave them a blessing.  After Mass, we explored the church a bit before the scowling guy setting up fences and gates suggested it was time to go.

Typical canal scene.

The Doge's Palace and a bit of Theresa.

The symbols of Venezia on the pillars.

Venice's flag.

A Loooooooooooooong building!

No.  Just...no.

A corner of San Marco (St. Mark) church.

The entrance to San Marco for Mass (tourist around the corner)

The nave of San Marco.

Stairs to the crypt.

The Altar, with St. Mark's sarcophagus below it.

The "screen" between the nave and apse.

Another typical canal.

We meandered the island and took the suggestion to “get lost”.  Turning down some random narrow alleys lead us deeper into the heart of Venice, where we found some more authentic spots, and fewer people.  The sun was hot and the air muggy, but the buildings are spaced just enough that breezes are ducted between and provide a nice relief, especially in the shade.

They don't like pennies over here either!

Doggone tourists!!

A quiet alley.

Someone's apartment over the alley!

The door in the far building is at the water line!!

Our little lunch spot.

We found a little spot that had Cicchetti (little bites, sort of like Spanish tapas).  We had heard this was a “thing to do”, and found a table in the perfect spot.  Open table on each side, and shade, and a view of the canal.  (Then some guys plopped down right next to us and our idea of videoing some things sort of blew away!)  We ordered a sampling of 5, and a beer (Sardinian), and some sparkling water.  They brought a bowl of snacks, which were sort of like dry puffs of tasteless nothingness that turned to paste in your mouth.  We ate few, while envying the guys next to us who got a bowl of potato chips. 

These are awful!!!

Bill with some 'cicchetti' and a beer!

Layers of Venice.

The scene was near perfect.  Gondolas streamed by almost silently to one side, and a trickle of people on the other (enough to keep it interesting and not so many as to be annoying).  The flavors of prosciutto, cheese, or tuna, atop Italian bread, were complimented with the bubbles of an amber beer.  The ancient building techniques showed through the thin or missing stucco, revealing ancient bricks, and post and lintel windows and doors.  And “Gangsta Paradise” was just audible from a nearby radio softly setting a discordant mood.  Ahhhh the magic!

Very old wall, door, and window!

Very old building and a beautiful picture frame!

The ceiling in part of the hotel.

After our little bit of magic, we meandered back toward the dock to catch our boat home.  At the hotel, we stopped to check on our keys.  Long story, we did get an upgrade, but not until today, so we had packed up before leaving and got the “Junior Suite” upon return.  It is nice.  It has almost no more working space than the last room, but since it is a suite, one of us can go in another entire room to have coinciding conference calls (as this is a WORKING trip for 5 days).

Happy Hour? 

We headed down to the Exec Lounge for some munchies and drinks.  The hot foods, like yesterday, included a sort of bite sized treat, and a soup that belies the imagination…or imagination belies the cook.  How is it possible to make food so devoid of flavor?  But there was plenty of cheese, beer, and Theresa’s new favorite, Aperol Spritzers (with extra Prosecco just to be sure)!!

After they threw us out of the lounge (because it closes at 7PM), we sat out at the water to dialogue, and then headed up to the pool deck on the top of the building.  They were having a special party with a DJ tonight, and as a hotel guest you didn't need a reservation, so we popped out to see the sights.  It’s a pretty amazing view from on top of the 8^th floor!  But the prices match the lofty view, and many people were dressed to the nines, so we took our humbly clad bodies back to our room!

A view from the pool deck.

Good Night!!