DAY 9

Sunday 29th June 2008 8.33am Innsbruck

We have just passed into Italy via the Brenner Pass. This motorway winds along the valley between the mountains. Bridges with impossibly high supports allow us to cross ravines and the road is skilfully engineered to hang out beside the mountain and then straight through the mountains via tunnels. Brenner was where Hitler met Mussolini in 1940.

Breakfast at the hotel Graur Baer in Innsbruck was crowded with lots of different tour groups. There was a huge group of teenage Americans who were there for a dance competition. Michael spoke to a young African American girl and found out they were from Louisiana.

29/6/08 9.47am

The valley between the Dolomites is covered with grape vines. The vines are supported on a y-shaped frame in rows. Fruit trees are also grown in compact orchards. The valley is surrounded by the towering white cliffs that soar up to disappear in fluffy white clouds. There seem to be many case with caravans on the road this morning going in both directions and they all carry at least two bicycles. The air in the valley is not clear but hazy even though it is a sunny day.

29/6/08 10.58am

Que casino! Our roadside stop was our first experience of typical Italian chaos. They don’t line up here. You pay first and get a ticket then go to another service area then bustle in to try to get what you think you’ve paid for. Michael ordered “Duo cappuccino maxi perforvino.” Anyway the cappuccinos were topped with at least 4 centimetres of whipped cream and had bits of real chocolate sprinkled on top. Blah! I didn’t know what to say to order some food and to buy water was a different section of the shop.

29/6/08 11.44am

Travelling between Verona and Venezia there is still a lot of industry amongst the vineyards and farms. Classic Italian villas are spread throughout this region with tall dark Cyprus trees completing the scene, however this whole valley has far too many electricity towers and wires criss-crossing the landscape. This detracts from an otherwise classic vision.

29/6/08 12.55pm

Lunch was at a roadside stop. This one spans the motorway and is accessible from both sides. Again we had to see what we wanted to order, then order and pay at the cash desk amongst the crowd, then crush again at the food counter to collect our food. The inside of the cafe and shop was hot, crowded and messy and had no ambiance unlike our lunch stop yesterday in Austria. Although it was a roadside stop it was well organised and had plenty of healthy food to choose from. The location was beside a rushing river and we could sit at tables under umbrellas on a leafy terrace.

29/6/08 10.55pm Venice

Another unbelievable day today! The bus took us across the causeway that links the island of Venice with the mainland. It really is an under-developed hotch-potch of an area. With a city of such fame you would expect some better gateway. Anyway we were divided into groups of six and when we piled into gondolas. They supplied champagne and a singer and an accordion player. The goldala drivers wore the classic striped tops and black pants. We meandered along the small canals while the Italians sang. It was very hot. We all unloaded at the Grand Canal after a brief chorus of a well known Italian song to the amusement of other tourists passing in other boats.

Our guide took us through the lanes and found some quiet alleyways away from the tourist hordes. Finally we arrived at Saint Marcs square which really is a spectacular sight. The piazza is lined with incredible majestic buildings of columns, arches, statues and shaded walkways. The number of tourists here was mind-blowing. There must have been tour groups from every country on Earth. Jacqui and Trevor bought peach champagne (Bellini) and a beer at the world famous restaurant Florian and it cost them €44.00! We bought two gelatis for €4.00 and wandered along looking at the gift shops marvelling at the beautiful coloured glass ornaments and jewellery. We came out on the walkway near the main lagoon where the water was crazy with water taxis, gondolas, speed boats, cruise liners, and more. We photographed the Bridge of Sighs next to the Doges Palace.

We met back up with our group in the sweltering heat. I don’t know how Deborah manages to count us all successfully in the huge moving crowds.

We hopped aboard two water taxis beautifully finished in teak wood and we cruise back to our original starting point where our bus is waiting. We are driven to the Hotel Novotel in Mestre on the mainland near Venice. It is an industrial looking design and very new and inside it is ultra modern. We make a bee-line for the pool, then after a swim we have a drink by the pool. Before dinner we wash some clothes and hang them near our window hoping they will dry.

Dinner in the restaurant was lovely fresh spaghetti in a tomato sauce, then chicken with mushrooms and potatoes and broccoli, then fruit tart with cream for dessert. I check out the internet and discovered that Greg had played his first AFL game for this year. Power played the Dogs in Darwin and lost.

After dinner we sat in the hotel bar with Trevor and Jacqui. I tried a campari and soda but didn’t like it much. On a TV nearby was the final of the European Cup between Spain and Germany. Spain won 1 – 0.