ITALY, Day 4, July 11, 2011
We started our day at the Lido Venezia with breakkfast, then caught a water boat to Venice itself, and approachiing it from that angle found the general atmosphere to be very impressive and grand...that is, until we started noticing the thousands of tourists that were milling around all about us. As the day was hot but breezy at first, we hoped that the breeziness would prevail. We walked to the Doge's Palace, the first site on our itinerary. It was far more than the residence of the doges of Venice. It was the home of all of Venice's governing councils, many of its courts, a sizable number of its civil servants, and even its prison.
The government of Venice was administered through an intricate system designed to limmit the power of any individual. However, for the last 500 years of the republic's existence, only those families listed in the register of noble births and marriages, known as the Libro d'Oro or Golden Book were entitled to play a part in the system. At the head of the network was the doge, the one politician to sit on all the major councils of state and the only one elected for life. He could be immensely influential in policy and appointments, and restrictions were accordingly impossed on his actions to reduce the possibility of his abusing that power. His letters were read by censors, and he was not permitted to receive foreign delegations alone. The privileges of the job far outweighed the inconveniences, though, and men campaigned for years to increase their chances of election.
The Palazzo Ducale has been rebuilt many times since its foundation in the first years of the 9th c. The principal entrance to the palazzo, the Porte della Carta, is one of the most ornate Gothic works in the city. We, however, did not get to enter by that doorway, but another one that leads into a courtyard. We saw the Anticolegio, the room in which ambassadors had to wait before being admitted to see the Doge and his cabinet--one of the richest rooms in the palazzo as far as paintings were concerned. Tintoretto and Veronese paintings were featured. Several other council rooms were open as well, all sumptuously appointed. On the way out we saw the exterior of the Basilica San Marco, the most exotic of Europe's cathedrals. John Ruskin saw it as a "treasure-heap...a confusion of delight." According to the legend of St. Mark's annunciation, the Evangelist was moored in the lagoon, on his way to Rome, when an angel appeared and told him that his body would rest there. The angel's salute, which was "Pax tibi, Marce evangelista meus"--is the text cut into the book that the Lion of St. Mark is always shown holding. The founders of Venice, having persuaded themselvess of the sacred ordination of their city, went about fulfilling the angelic prophecy, and in 828 the body of St. Mark was stolen from Alexandria and brought to Venice.
St. Mark's Square, by the time we entered it, was swarming with humanity. We were led to a little side street and taken to a glassblowing factory, where we watched a "maestro" at work, who partially completed a beautiful flask. We were then shown flasks, necklaces, chandeliers, glasses, carafes, and all kinds of unique, one-of-a-kind objets d'art which filled room after room of the atelier, each watched by a young man who was spying on the clients and watching our every move. The owner of the shop, who obviously found Nancy attractive, took us to rooms that were locked to the usual trade, and he even allowed me to take pictures, which was generally not allowed. I didn't buy anything, since most of it was outside my price range, and Nancy I broke away from the rest of the crowd and started walking towards the Rialto Bridge, stopping frequently along the way to check on the type of glass that we had seen at the glassblowing place. I was able to locate a lovely glass pendant in shades of orange and yellow, and a present for Alexandra's birthday as well--none of which set me back an arm or a leg. At one point we stopped by a church at which there was a temporary lull of people. Next to the church there was a little restaurant whose outside tables weren't terribly occupied, so we decided to have lunch there--we shared a perfectly fine pizza as well as a tomato and mozzarella salad, and of course Fantas were in order, as by that time the temperatures had soared into the 90s.
After a delightful lunch, we went to the Rialto bridge vaporetto stop and boarded a water taxi, the workhorse used on the Canal Grande. The water taxi called on almost every stop of the canal, and it was wonderful to get a feel of this grande dame of a city from the perspective of gliding by it on the water. We got out at the Giardinetta stop at San Marco Square, then roamed the gardens, and Nancy got a gelato while I waited in line to enter the Cathedral of San Marco. San Marco is the most opulent of any cathedra, containing a 12th c. patterned marble floow, plates of eastern stone on the lower walls, and 4,000 square meters of mosaics covering every other inch of wall and vaulting.
We departed the cathedral at around 3:00, and then found ourselves an outdoor cafe in the shade, enjoying a cold drink, a nectarine and a banana while waiting for everyone to show up. Then we left with the water taxi and made our way back to the Lido. After a few minutes of freshening up, two fellow travelers joined us for more walking to find a good restaurant for dinner on our own. We stopped on the way to admire and photograph a fabulous Art Nouveau hotel, the Grande Albergo Ausonia and Hungaria, a tremendous and gorgeous example of the style, the building material seemingly imbued with shell to give it a translucent effect, and its pale yellow and mint greens stood out gloriously in the setting sun. We found a restaurant, and I had a good vegetable soup. The others, however, were disappointed in their mixed grill fish plates, and our rather surly waiter didn't help friendly relations. We walked home, packed, and literally fell to bed, sleeping dreamlessly until our alarm time of 6:oo a.m. Bye!
The government of Venice was administered through an intricate system designed to limmit the power of any individual. However, for the last 500 years of the republic's existence, only those families listed in the register of noble births and marriages, known as the Libro d'Oro or Golden Book were entitled to play a part in the system. At the head of the network was the doge, the one politician to sit on all the major councils of state and the only one elected for life. He could be immensely influential in policy and appointments, and restrictions were accordingly impossed on his actions to reduce the possibility of his abusing that power. His letters were read by censors, and he was not permitted to receive foreign delegations alone. The privileges of the job far outweighed the inconveniences, though, and men campaigned for years to increase their chances of election.
The Palazzo Ducale has been rebuilt many times since its foundation in the first years of the 9th c. The principal entrance to the palazzo, the Porte della Carta, is one of the most ornate Gothic works in the city. We, however, did not get to enter by that doorway, but another one that leads into a courtyard. We saw the Anticolegio, the room in which ambassadors had to wait before being admitted to see the Doge and his cabinet--one of the richest rooms in the palazzo as far as paintings were concerned. Tintoretto and Veronese paintings were featured. Several other council rooms were open as well, all sumptuously appointed. On the way out we saw the exterior of the Basilica San Marco, the most exotic of Europe's cathedrals. John Ruskin saw it as a "treasure-heap...a confusion of delight." According to the legend of St. Mark's annunciation, the Evangelist was moored in the lagoon, on his way to Rome, when an angel appeared and told him that his body would rest there. The angel's salute, which was "Pax tibi, Marce evangelista meus"--is the text cut into the book that the Lion of St. Mark is always shown holding. The founders of Venice, having persuaded themselvess of the sacred ordination of their city, went about fulfilling the angelic prophecy, and in 828 the body of St. Mark was stolen from Alexandria and brought to Venice.
St. Mark's Square, by the time we entered it, was swarming with humanity. We were led to a little side street and taken to a glassblowing factory, where we watched a "maestro" at work, who partially completed a beautiful flask. We were then shown flasks, necklaces, chandeliers, glasses, carafes, and all kinds of unique, one-of-a-kind objets d'art which filled room after room of the atelier, each watched by a young man who was spying on the clients and watching our every move. The owner of the shop, who obviously found Nancy attractive, took us to rooms that were locked to the usual trade, and he even allowed me to take pictures, which was generally not allowed. I didn't buy anything, since most of it was outside my price range, and Nancy I broke away from the rest of the crowd and started walking towards the Rialto Bridge, stopping frequently along the way to check on the type of glass that we had seen at the glassblowing place. I was able to locate a lovely glass pendant in shades of orange and yellow, and a present for Alexandra's birthday as well--none of which set me back an arm or a leg. At one point we stopped by a church at which there was a temporary lull of people. Next to the church there was a little restaurant whose outside tables weren't terribly occupied, so we decided to have lunch there--we shared a perfectly fine pizza as well as a tomato and mozzarella salad, and of course Fantas were in order, as by that time the temperatures had soared into the 90s.
After a delightful lunch, we went to the Rialto bridge vaporetto stop and boarded a water taxi, the workhorse used on the Canal Grande. The water taxi called on almost every stop of the canal, and it was wonderful to get a feel of this grande dame of a city from the perspective of gliding by it on the water. We got out at the Giardinetta stop at San Marco Square, then roamed the gardens, and Nancy got a gelato while I waited in line to enter the Cathedral of San Marco. San Marco is the most opulent of any cathedra, containing a 12th c. patterned marble floow, plates of eastern stone on the lower walls, and 4,000 square meters of mosaics covering every other inch of wall and vaulting.
We departed the cathedral at around 3:00, and then found ourselves an outdoor cafe in the shade, enjoying a cold drink, a nectarine and a banana while waiting for everyone to show up. Then we left with the water taxi and made our way back to the Lido. After a few minutes of freshening up, two fellow travelers joined us for more walking to find a good restaurant for dinner on our own. We stopped on the way to admire and photograph a fabulous Art Nouveau hotel, the Grande Albergo Ausonia and Hungaria, a tremendous and gorgeous example of the style, the building material seemingly imbued with shell to give it a translucent effect, and its pale yellow and mint greens stood out gloriously in the setting sun. We found a restaurant, and I had a good vegetable soup. The others, however, were disappointed in their mixed grill fish plates, and our rather surly waiter didn't help friendly relations. We walked home, packed, and literally fell to bed, sleeping dreamlessly until our alarm time of 6:oo a.m. Bye!
I'm so jealous you and Nancy got to take a gondola through Venice! Something I must do if I get back there ever ... I remember my friends and myself being too nervous to ask to board one when we were there. What a mistake, sounds like an absolutely great way to see Venice!
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