Italy November 2005 - Day 3 - Venice and Florence

Venice and Florence

Sunday morning dawned cold, rainy and windy. In short - miserable. We did a little bit of shopping, but we weren't really sure where to go in the rain. Luckily we had two umbrellas so that made things easier. Navigating Venice's narrow "streets" are tricky in good weather, navigating them in a sea of umbrellas was decidedly un-fun.



We finally opted to go to Palazzo Ducale (Doge's Palace). In the days of the Venetian Republic (before the unification of Italy) the Doge was the head of the state - elected for life. He lived in the lap of luxury in the Piazza San Marco in a beautiful palace built in the 14th and 15th centuries. The palace is an incredible piece of architecture in itself, but it is truly magnificent inside with the chambers painted with some incredible works of art. We almost didn't go, but it was an incredible site.





After we left the palace, the weather was even worse than before, but we decided to brave the gusty winds for a view from the top of the Campanile (Bell Tower) also in the Piazza San Marco, built in 16th century. After briefly waiting in line to get in the elevator (it wasn't built in the 16th century), we headed to the top. Between the rain, gusty wind, and then the ringing bells (they rang the bells while we were up there) it was decidedly unpleasant, but the view was incredible and made up for it. I snapped several pictures before we headed back down.



We had very limited time before we had to eat lunch and head for the train station so we decided to check out Museo Correr, also in the piazza. This ended up being a good choice, although I wish we had more time as we didn't get to see the entire museum before we had to go. The museum starts with a history of Venice both in painting, sculpture and artifacts, before moving on to a nice collection of ancient Greek sculpture and artifacts. It also houses a collection of fine art, however, we didn't have time to see it and departed halfway though the Greek collection.

We left Museo Correr and grabbed some pizza and hot chocolate at a cafe before getting in some last minute shopping. We bought an ornament for our Christmas tree (Santa riding a gondola) and I purchased another gift. We grabbed our luggage from the hotel (we had checked out earlier) and took a water bus to the train station, arriving far too early. There were only seats outside and though it was covered, it was cold. I went to a hot beverage vending machine and tried to buy something, but it ate my money and wouldn't give me a hot drink. It was irritating as I watch two Italians just before me purchase espressos from it. I eventually gave up as it was time to get on the train.



It rained most of the way to Florence, clearing just before we arrived. We walked to our hotel which took about 20-25 minutes and the streets were just a little wet and the skies looked to be clearing.
Once again, I managed to pick a great location for our hotel. The hotel was just a few blocks from the Piazza San Marco (a popular name, I'm noticing) and about a 5-10 minute walk north of the Duomo. The hotel is lovely with a marble floor and marble bathroom and beautifully painted rooms. Our room has a nice terrace with a wonderful view of Florence with the dome of the Duomo as the centerpiece. This hotel is by far, much nicer than the one in Venice and in just as good a location for much less money. Venice is so expensive!

After we checked in and freshened up, we headed out for a little shopping. I immediately found a skirt that I wanted and also a gift. After our little shopping venture, we found a nice little restaurant and had a wonderful dinner with some good, but cheap house wine (chianti).



After dinner, we strolled around the streets and ate some gelato before heading back to the hotel and turning in early for the night to get an early start in the morning.

Click here for Day 4.