our only full day in venice, we got up, had breakfast and let jj sleep in. when we finally got going, it was 10:30. i had to mail some gifts we got for the cousins, to the US. we walked to the post office along the water. i bought a box to use and as i was building it and packing my things, the post office computer broke and the lady started shooing people out of the office. she told them to come back in an hour, i didn’t understand what was going on exactly, but an old man came in and she was trying to explain it to him, he made some comment and she made some strange gesture with her hands waving up and down her body. i really wish i knew what she said. then an old lady came in, insisting on something. the post office lady was nice, never lost her temper. just tried to explain things over and over. i finished packing my box and by the time i figured how to close it, the computer was back up, so i got to send my package fine. it just took a 45 minutes...
we walked inland and back towards our b&b so we could go to the peggy guggenheim museum. apparently this is the best collection of 20th century art in italy. she had jackson pollacks, miros, kandinsky, jean arp, salvador dali, yves tanguy, joseph cornell, really everybody... we had a lovely lunch there in the museum cafe. then we walked towards the center. we decided to head to st mark’s square. we went at the wrong time- it was packed to the gills with tourists and it was exactly the bad impression of venice that p had had from his first trip here. we quickly walked through and headed inland. i would like to go back there in the early morning, when it is more empty. we finally found a less crowded spot and decided to splurge on the gondola ride. some gondola facts: there used to be 4000 gondolas in venice. now there are 400. it used to be the only form of transportation. there was a big battle between the gondoliers and the “vaporetti” which are the boat buses, and motor boat taxis. the boat buses cost 6.50. the gondolier ride cost 80 euros (for 1-6 people). now it is relegated to be more of an amusement park ride, than transportation. it is very strictly regulated. our gondolier said he is only allowed to work 3 days out of 5. he is a third generation gondolier and his son is studying now to be one too. they have to go to school for 2 years. aside from learning to row the boat, they need to learn enough of 4 other languages – english, german, dutch and french. it takes 5 years to pay off your gondola, but the gondola will last 20 years. the canals are 6 feet deep.
we have really enjoyed our stay here. i wanted to start our last dinner in venice at a recommended bar. we followed the directions of the book and went down a tiny little alley – about 4 feet wide, thinking, this couldn’t be right. it turned right and then left and then suddenly opened onto a cute little plaza right on the grand canal. the bar had slightly expensive drinks, but piles of free food. help yourself. good value, though the food was just ok. afterwards, we went to another recommended place for dinner. jj had a plate of pasta and p and i, having eaten a lot at the previous bar, just shared an antipasti plate. too bad we were full, since the food looked quite good.
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