Venezia

Last weekend Nate, Landon, Catherine, Erin and I all went to Venice for a great weekend that only left us a little damp. To get to Venice from Naples it is an easy 55 minute flight and from there you take a boat ride into the main island.  Nate and Lando on the AliLaguna boat:

View from the boat:

We arrived safe and sound to an awesome apartment Catherine found in a great part of town, near the Rialto bridge. Unfortunately, it did rain off and  on on Friday so we stayed somewhat near our apartment and at one point it was very obvious that I was under-prepared for rain (kind of hard when you can only bring so many prego clothes, and you are slowly growing out of them), so I got to purchase my very first pair of galoshes :)

Friday we had an AWESOME dinner at Osteria Mascarone which included: a seafood antipasti (for Nate and Catherine), a grilled veggie antipasti (for Erin and I), and a scrumptious clam pasta. It was so good! I'm always amazed at how simple but delicious the dishes are here. I can't imagine it had anything more than oil, Italian Parsley, garlic and salt/pepper, but it was soooo good. It just goes to show fresh ingredients go a long way.

Saturday we were pleasantly surprised with a dry day. YES! We headed out and did some site-seeing, some shopping (had to get myself some murano glass jewelry) and had more delicious food.

Nate and I at Piazza San Marco, or St. Mark's Square:

The Bridge of Sighs. Named because it's the last sight convicts would see of Venice before taken to prison:

The girls of the trip- Catherine, Erin, and me:

I don't think pictures can really do Venice justice. It really is one of a kind. While there isn't much to it in terms of major sites and attractions, we were all happy "getting lost in the city" (to quote Rick Steves):

Sunday was unfortunately the most rainy of the days, but like I said, we were lucky to have a dry Saturday. We traveled more of the town and when we were good and cold, it was time to head out. The view from a rainy Rialto Bridge:

Trying to stay dry, Nate and Lando:

Galoshes!!!

Other honorable mentions about the weekend include- the food (mmmmm... vegetarian pizza):

The self-proclaimed "Most Beautiful Book Shop in the World." The guy who worked there obviously had a sense of humor. He loved to tell people to check out the fire escape (door opening to the canal), and could speak at least 4 different languages. I loved it!

Also, all over Venice you would find statues of lions. It almost seems like every town we visit has an animal or mythical creature that is the mascot of sorts. For Venice, it was the lion, and I liked them. They weren't attractive, but I think that's why I liked them:

Finally the weirdest part of the trip was when Landon became an attraction in St. Mark's Square. One tourist had seen him and was showing him the pigeons (gross), and then asked if he could take a picture of Landon. Before we knew it, Landon was celebrity status.... totally awkward and funny at the same time:

Like I said, Venice really is one of a kind. There is not a ton to do, but if you can take it easy and enjoy your your surroundings, you'll love it. We did :)