That's what Robert Benchley (father of the author of "Jaws") said when he first arrived in Europe. He was sent by his New York newspaper editor to get rid of him. Well, the place still is flooded but remarkably pleasant. We sailed in at dawn yesterday and could see San Marco without people, a once in a lifetime event. Anyone's lifetime if they get up early enough. The no people part is because the place is always mobbed. The Italian guides invariably suggest that you don't try to clean your hat when the pigeons poop on you (so that "it dries", they say). Actually, it is to get Americans to be walking around with poop on their hats, a little anti-tourist joke. (I am making that part up, by the way--well, kinda).
I've been to "The Venice of Italy" (as distinguished from "The Venice of the Orient" or "The Venice of The Netherlands", etc., places that don't look like the real Venice at all, by the way) four previous times and have enjoyed it more each repeat time. Barbara had never been here and appeared to find it OK. We ventured out at 8 am yesterday and purchased 36 hour Vaporetti (water bus) passes and proceeded to take every route around, through, and around the other way. (I wasn't navigating, in which case we would have been lost.) We got off the boats long enough to walk many kilometers around back canals, through picturesque alleyways, and through the old Jewish Ghetto (where the word, "Ghetto", but not anti-Semitism was invented), and discovered a rebirth of the Jewish life here. There was a couple of kosher restaurants as well as other indications. Helpful signs directed us in many directions simultaneously so that we walked many more kilometers and took a lot more boats before returning to Silver Wind for a beverage while watching the teeming masses on an Italian cruise ship sail out. The Panorama Lounge where we were is on the 8th deck of Silver Wind, and we were below the guest cabins on the Costa ship. Enough of these big ships. They are spoiling the ports for tourism, but Venice will survive that--if not the rising ocean.
We ventured out again after dinner and ended up walking more than is possible here knowing that cell phone dispatch guys in funny outfits could drive up back, and then out again this morning when we visited more neighborhoods, took more vaporetti, and took another couple of GBs of pictures. We sail out in two hours and will arrive at Hvar, Croatia tomorrow at noon.
FYI, Barbara is working on uploading her reports at http://barbara-med1106.blogspot.com and my full reports are at http://cbu-med1106.blogspot.com and clicking on my profile or picture. Thanks for following along. I'll looking forward to hearing from you as we continue this trip back down the Adriatic and round Italy.
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