Italy: Venice

Venice was a big change compared to the beginning of our trip.  The difference- Venice is an island with no automobiles, only tourists, boats, and gondolas.  That and instead of an AirBnb this time we had a hotel.  Luckily our hotel was very close to the Rialto Bridge, which served as a landmark for our location.  Knowing where you are or even where you are going without (even with!) a map is pretty difficult considering there are so many "roads." I say roads lightly because they are so small they are more like alleyways.

Gondolas!

St. Mark's Square

Alleyways, canals, and bridges, then add many many tourists, and you get one very small, crowded and busy island. Tim and I weren't too crazy about it, but we had to explore! We got lost, shopped around some, then got hungry and stopped for dinner in a not very crowded ristorante.  Afterwards, we decided we should try to find our way back to the hotel before it became too dark.  When we found our hotel we decided it was too early, and our hotel had a bar/small bistro on the first floor, so we sat there and ordered a bottle of wine and some chocolate cake while we talked about life. 

Sunset view from a dock

After the bottle we were pleasantly buzzed so we went up to our room, found an Italian dating show and fell asleep.  

The next day was our trip to 3 islands close to Venice: Murano, Burano, and Torcello. Murano is known for it's glass making, Burano is known for the colored houses and lace making, and Torcello is known for its many cathedrals/churches.

on the boat!

The glass blowing demonstrator

End result/final art masterpiece

Burano

Torcello garden

These tours are almost better told by pictures.  The sights were just as beautiful as all the other Italians cities. So colorful and blooming with gardens and quaint shops. It was a lot of fun to go on a formal tour again to learn about different things on the islands as well as to get out on the water for a bit too (a bit cooler with a good breeze)! We only had about an hour on each island, but it was a good change of pace and fun to explore different areas. 

When we came back to Venice we went to a cafe to eat some dessert and get some coffee while the sun set.  After walking around in the dark exploring and shopping, we headed back to the hotel to pack (since it was our last day), and ended up watching It's Complicated with Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin. A calm and relaxing evening after a busy day and a wonderful vacation.

Last stop: the journey home (because it's never a simple affair).