DAY 10

Monday 30th June 2008 8.02am Venice

We have had breakfast in the hotel and are now in our room resting until our bus leaves for Venice at 8.30am. Michael is making good progress reading Cloudstreet. I haven’t even opened my book. Our washed socks are hanging under the window and our underpants are lying on the window sill. The windows are wide open and hopefully these will dry today. The noise from the traffic is quite loud and close. Michael is sending some shirts to be laundered today: six shirts will cost €33.00.

It is warm already outside with blue skies with a few wispy clouds. The distant haze is not quite as thick as yesterday. I am looking forward to going back to Venice today.

30/6/08 8.20pm Venice

We are in our hotel room tired after another full day. It was already hot when we left for Venice this morning. A water taxi took us to Saint Marc’s Square. We threaded our way through the crowds of tourists to a glass factory where we watched a man make a lovely glass jug in a few minutes. The furnace made the room stifling. Then in a show room a man told us about Murano glass. He did an excellent sales pitch and offered some discount while tossing the glasses onto the benchtop proving their durability. It was all so beautiful and very expensive. Our group dispersed to go our own ways. Michael and I found the post office and lined up to buy “quarto francobolli perfovore” and I posted some postcards home. It was about 11am by this time so we found a tiny cafe in a narrow shaded back street and bought two espressos, two waters, and two ham and egg sandwiches, all for €8. It was so hot we sat on a marble step in the shade at Saint Marc’s Square watching the tourists, waiters and pigeons while listening to the small orchestra play at the nearby famous Florian restaurant. The waiters wear elaborate and perfect white jackets and a certain look of disdain on their handsome Italian faces. I think you pay €12 for one espresso if you sit there.

We wandered along side lanes looking in shops at wine, food, clothing, jewellery, art and glassware. We bought two big apricots from a fruit and vegetable shop for €0.64.

We met our group at 1pm and all boarded a water taxi then cruised south towards the lagoon of Venice, past Murano Island where most of the glass is created, then along to Burano Island. Burano is a truly unique and beautiful island where the old homes are coloured in varied bright colours. This was apparently so that in the past the returning fisherman could identify their own houses in the fog. Casanova lived here and we saw and photographed his house. Our guide walked us through some alleys to the Raspo di Uva restaurant where we were booked for lunch. And what a fantastic feast it was! We were all seated at a long table inside a small and brightly decorated shop. The walls were lined with artwork – lots of them coloured sketches of the local area. We began with a whie fish pate that we spread on crusty bread rolls. We drank a chilled light red wine offered in carafes. Next was an exquisite seafood lasagne, then a seafood risotto. Next we were given a fish cutlet and fresh mixed salad and fried calamari and fried prawns. For dessert we had biscotti and almond honey slices with fresh plums and nectarines, then espresso and Amaretto to finish. It was magnificent and the waiters were all charming. We sat with Simon and Annette who are the older Italians from Melbourne. They are charming people and love to help me with the Italian language since I’ve shown an interest.

Feeling full and sleepy we left the restaurant and wandered along the canal looking at the souvenirs in the colourful shops. We bought some things, and then went inside the church there below the slightly leaning tower. It was another old and beautiful church interior but without the queues and crowds of others. Visiting Burano was a really special experience and one that most people who visit Venice would not do. The return journey in the water taxi was sweltering and we all sweated in the heat. We saw the Moses Project where the lagoon meets the Adriatic Sea. This major engineering work is attempting to stop Venice from flooding during the high tides.

Eduardo was waiting for us with a clean and air-conditioned bus when we arrived at the boat taxi point. A swim in the hotel pool was the first thing we did on arrival. Then once we had cooled off we sat around a table at the pool bar drinking white wine with Trevor, Jacqui, Ian and Sharon. Now I sit near our open window with our damp underwear and socks still drying on the window sill.

Clouds have gathered here and there and the day has cooled. It is still light at 8.50pm. I can hear the noise of the traffic and some muffled music from the hotel bar below. Michael is reading and I will have a shower and an early night for a change.