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Gondolas, Gondolas, Gondolas
We woke up early this morning to catch the sunrise over St Mark's Square. The Square was only minutes walk from our hotel. It was quite a serene morning as most of the people who work in Venice, actually live on the mainland and thus the island was still quite deserted when we walked around.
What is Venice without gondolas ?
1. Venetian Gondolas The Venetian waterfront was aglow in the morning sun as the locals started to arrive in the morning ferries.
2. The warm glow of the morning sun. 3. The locals arrive by the ferry-load from the mainland. 4. A shadow of our former selves :)
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Piazza San Marco (St Mark's Square)
St Mark's Square was a real collage of images, shapes and sounds. I had seen photos of the Square prior to this trip, but reality was so different. I didn't know what to make of it at first. There was a real mix of architecture in the square but these somehow came together in some weird symmetry of shapes.
I think I will just let the photos tell the story ...
6. There were holes spread out all through the Square through which the sea water seeped as the morning progressed.
7. The Campanile towering above the square. 8. The very unique architecture around the square.
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St Mark's Basilica
I have to be honest - I'm not a big fan of the design of St Mark's Basilica. It is a real mish mash of styles but I guess this reflected the history of this city and the cultures that have touched and shaped it over the centuries.
The present Basilica is actually the third church to be built on this site. The original church was built in the year 828 to house the body of St Mark who was allegedly "stolen" from Alexandria by two Venetian merchants. Over the centuries the Basilica was embellished by artefacts looted from other parts of the world.
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Pigeons
The quintessential pigeons of St Mark's Square are as symbolic to Venice as the omnipresent gondolas. We had a lot of fun playing around and feeding the pigeons in the square. You would think, statistically speaking, given the number of pigeons in the square, that there would've been a pretty good chance that we would get pooped on. But surprisingly, we managed to get away unscathed.
10. Nila got on well with the birds. 11. Jimmy "The Birdman" Shieh. 12. Nila and Hsin Hsin generally disturbing the peace around the square.
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Views from the Campanile
Thankfully there was a lift that we could take to get up to the top of the Campanile. It would have been a killer climb otherwise ! The entry price was quite steep but the views from the top were worth it.
The Campanile has had an interesting role to play in Venetian. It was originally used as a lighthouse and bell tower (whose five bells were used to signal various events) and later as a prison. Galileo was one of the distinguished visitors to the tower where he demonstrated one of his inventions - the telescope. The present tower was rebuilt in 1912 after the original collapsed.
13. St Mark's Square 14. The Santa Maria della Salute church in the background. 15. Look at the size of that cruise ship ! 16. The symmetry of the Square. 17. A small ornament on the gate by the entrance to the Campanile. 18. The busy Venetian waterfront. 19. The Domes of St Mark's Basilica. 20. One thing we noticed were the predominantly red roofs in Italy compared to the grey roofs of Austria - example.
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The Palazzo Ducale was the Venetian seat of power as it encompassed the Doge's Palace, law courts, government offices and the prison.
The tour was very extensive but unfortunately photography was forbidden inside the building which was a real shame. There were some amazing ceiling frescoes and in one of the rooms, there were two enormous 18th century globes.
We were in a hurry as we had a lot planned for today. We found out that the tour was one way only and it took us deeper and deeper into the bowels of the prison below the main building. A cool part of the tour was that we got to actually cross the Bridge of Sighs.
21. Inside the Bridge of Sighs. 22. The view from the Bridge of Sighs.
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The Colours of Venice
Venice is quite a happy and colourful place.
23. Venetian Colours
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Rialto Bridge
Having toured the major sightss at St Mark's Square, we moved away from this famous square and followed Jimmy on a walking tour of Venice towards another famoust sight - the Rialto Bridge. This bridge was built in the 1500s and when completed, was the first pedestrian bridge to span the Grand Canal. Today, it forms the hub of the Rialto Market - a lively area where all manner of Venetian handicrafts are hawked to defenceless tourists held in awe by the vast display of glassware and masks.
24. Rialto Bridge 25. Rialto Market
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Gondola Ride
The girls managed to find a relatively affordable gondolier to give us all a ride around the canals. For some reason, they were quite keen on choosing this particular gondolier ... :)
26. Hsin Hsin and Stelia thorougly enjoying the star treatment on the gondola. 27. Oliver the gondolier - wonder why the girls were so keen on him ?
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Some Random Photos
28. Grocery delivery Venice style ! 29. An original edition of Alice in Wonderland in an antique bookshop we passed. 30. Carnavale masks for sale at the Rialto Markets.
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We really packed Venice into one day ! Most of the people with whom we spoke to prior to the trip recommended to spend no more than a day in Venice. I think that assessment was more or less correct. It is possible to stretch it to two days and to see more of the museums and art galleries and even to go out to the islands to visit the glasswork factories. We did manage to squeeze the essence of Venice into one long day of walking and queuing. We're off to Florence tomorrow !