I've spent my day touring churches, as I typically do. I woke up to church bells and was very thankful for the goodnight's sleep that I got. After a shower and breakfast, I picked a church and headed on my way. It was lovely, but I think I am starting to get "churched out" after 3 months of the world's most beautiful churches. This church had a lot of really great art, including a work by Donatello, work by Titian, and Titian's tomb. Obviously I don't know very much about art, so I don't fully appreciate the subtleties in the different Italian paintings of religious iconography.
I ended up eating lunch at a trattoria that had been recommended by the receptionist at my hotel. I had lasagna with fish, mostly because I had no idea what to expect. It was good! The sauce was a creamy-bechamel that has seafood infused throughout (think creamy chowder), rather than big chunks. From there, I walked past the Peggy Guggenheim collection and along the water. At there end there was a beautiful view of a variety of islands, St Mark's square, and San Giorgio - a monastic compound taking up almost the entirely of an island.
I hopped on the water bus and went to San Giorgio. The church was ok, but there was a belltower with incredible views. Unfortunately, it was required to take the elevator - I didn't get to climb the stairs like normal. Next to the monastery is the Venice Sailing Club (I think) and I oggled the sailboats for awhile. If I won a billion dollars, it would be very tempting to live on a sailboat here.
I left the tranquility of San Giorgio and took the water bus to St Marks Square: tourist central. I did a bit of shopping, saw a minor church, and then went to the San Zachary church. This place was quite interesting - while other churches have paintings on the walls, this church has huge oil paintings completely filling the walls. They also have an old crypt, which is half-filled with water.
Strangely, the highlight of my day was seeing a big jellyfish in a canal. I feel quite bad for it - I'm not sure that jellyfish would want to be in the canals of Venice. It was eye-opening for me to realize that these canals must be salt-water since the Adriatic Sea is right there. These aren't like the canals back in Milan...
With my time in Europe nearing an end, I am going into gift-purchasing mode. Today, I bought a suitcase-worth of gifts (and they weren't all for me...). Given that I was already worried about how I was getting things home, I also bought a suitcase. I need it to just get things back to Milan, but I had planned for some time to buy a European-sized suitcase. I may have some ridiculous baggage fees in my future, and I'm still not sure I will have enough space!
I'm back at the hotel, letting my cell phone charge and enjoying a pot of tea. The breakfast room also doubles as a coffee/tea room in the afternoon. While espresso isn't available, I can sit and have tea and pastries. I will head back out soon to wander the city more. Most churches are going be closed, so I don't know how many more I will see. I do want to see St Marks, which is incredibly impressive from the outside. Unfortunately, it is in an ocean of tourists. If I can't get in today, I will make it a priority to go tomorrow. Otherwise, I do just want to wander and let myself get lost. It was a pain to navigate the alleys when I had a lot of shopping (and a suitcase...) but it is a pleasure when unburdened. The challenge will not be to do much more shopping! There are so many interesting shops here (masks, jewelry, art, glass, paper, leather goods...) and I haven't yet made it to the recommended bookstore. I can't buy much more before I need a second suitcase just to get back to Milan!
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