The Real Venice.

Captain's Log: 07 June 2010

Today was a good day for traversing Venice. It was slightly warm, but there was a wonderful breeze that kept me cool throughout the day. I finally got a good night's sleep thanks to Tylenol PM. I woke up this morning, however, and could barely feel my extremities. That is what I get for taking drugs I guess. When will I learn to say no? Never.

Today, much like the previous ones, was filled with walking and the occasional detour. I got remarkably better at finding my way back to the hostel and way more proficient at getting to the tourist attractions. Today, I happened upon a church that you could walk in for FREE--my kind of exhibit. I really enjoyed looking at how ornate and extravagant the inside was whereas the exterior was less than stellar. I think most of Venice is like that, with the exception of St. Marco's Basilica. I got the chance to walk into an older looking building and the stonework inside was exceptional. The stones on the floor were carved, the arches in the doorways were elegantly ornate, and the walls had the ruins of what looked to be old plaster. It looked real and authentic. Most of Venice that I have seen has been kitsch and touristy. I understand that as a tourist I like touristy things, but as a partaker of the atmosphere of Venice I have been disappointed. I saw the bridge of sighs today. It was fairly cool, I think it would have been better if it wasn’t wall to wall covered by advertisements. I may sound harsh, but it is tiresome. Surrounded by a town that has such rich history and on all sides I am accosted by gondola drivers and shops that hold clothes miles above my price range affects me.


I did bite the bullet and go to see the history of Venice play. It was actually very nice. They explained the history of Venice in an engaging way. It was over the top, but still kind of funny. It turns out that Venice is a city with a long history of immorality and whorish behavior. Masks were the primary tool of tools. Men and women would wear them so that the public wouldn’t know that they were gambling and sleeping around. Casanova made his debut in Venice sleeping with thousands of women according to him. Lord Bryan/t (?) slept with 200 women in 200 consecutive days, by his account. Casinos and the lottery sprung up in Venice and many more debaucheries. Pretty fun history lesson, well in my book it is. So after this little play, it is no surprise that Venice has gussied itself up and taken to selling cheap pleasures to all who come. All this said, tonight, I got to see the real Venice—or parts of it.


Tonight, I decided I would stay up later than 8 and go across the street to the restaurant there. I asked for a table and they told me 5-10 minutes. So, I took a seat on the ground feet from the restaurant. Families dined outside, locals and travelers intermixed. I saw what appeared to be a local family dining out. They had three children, a girl and two younger boys. They finished their meal and took to running up and down the street. The youngest boy was so sweet. Although I couldn’t quite understand what he was saying, I assume he was telling his siblings to race him. His sister let him win, and his older brother did a couple of times. With each victory he would smile and each defeat turn sad and angry. Kids aren’t much different across cultures I guess. He could be beaming and laughing and seconds later, with the intervention of his parents, he would be crying. Then off to the races again laughing as he ran. At one point, he decided he would come and rest his head on me knee. It was darling. His parents looked over and called him back and it looked like they were apologizing to me, but I just smiled. The language barrier meant little at that point. The 5-10 minutes turned to 20 and I continued watching. The parents let their kids continue to run as they finished their wine. An English couple to my left finished their main course and requested some café. I watched at least 3 different couples walk their dogs down the street. The waiters and waitresses grouped in the doorway and chatted and laughed while they looked around for people to serve. It was real. It wasn’t manufactured or packaged. It was real life in the real Venice. Today was lovely and calm. Tomorrow should prove interesting. I need to take three separate trains and have no idea how to use them. Adventure always be welcome on the decks of Captain Nate’s life though. Till’ the morrow then!


End Transmission.