I realized that I don’t know much about Italian history. I don’t know anything after the Romans (and I don’t know that well either) but it was interesting to learn about some of it. I didn’t realize how powerful the city of Venice was in its heyday.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
The walled city of Urbino
So the first stop was to the town of Ancona. My friend and I took a tour to the walled city of Urbino, and 1.5 hours each way. It was an interesting drive. We got away from the tourist part of town and got to see some of the country side. It was a very nice change. The town was very pretty and we went into the castle and then to a viewing platform to get panoramic shots of the city.
I realized that I don’t know much about Italian history. I don’t know anything after the Romans (and I don’t know that well either) but it was interesting to learn about some of it. I didn’t realize how powerful the city of Venice was in its heyday.
I realized that I don’t know much about Italian history. I don’t know anything after the Romans (and I don’t know that well either) but it was interesting to learn about some of it. I didn’t realize how powerful the city of Venice was in its heyday.
Venice really doesn't have any cars!
Ok, I have known for years that Venice doesn’t have any roads in the city it is all canals. I knew this, but really, the only motorized form of transportation for the city are the motor boats. It was weird to not see a car for a few days. Also another form of protection for the city was that there isn’t a straight street anywhere.
So maybe I should start telling you what happened from the beginning. I arrived, with my friend, in Venice at about 2 in the afternoon after flying all night. We didn’t get a lot of sleep but we were functioning. The hotel we stayed at was right off of St. Marcos Square so we just had to get there. So, we got on the water bus, at 13€ each, and started the bus ride through the city. It was a great way to get there because of the route it took and I learned something, I get seasick on small boats. (Not a good thing to find out when confronted with no cars!) So we made it to St. Mark’s square and then proceeded to try and find the hotel. The first problem was that I didn’t know exactly where it was and after walking around for a bit we found it. By the way, St. Mark’s square is crazy busy at any time of day, well, at 730 am it was fine.
So, by the time we got there is was about 5 or so in the evening and we thought it might be best to look for dinner. We wanted pizza. So we asked the front desk where THEY would go for pizza not where the tourists go. We walked that way and crossed the Rialto Bridge. This is one of the major bridges across the Grand Canal and I didn’t realize it was a big deal until I saw all the postcards of it later. We looked for a place and we found a place right on the Grand Canal for pizza. I had ham(J) and mushrooms on mine and it tastes better if you fold it in half. The pizza is a very thin crust and I would have taken a picture of it but then I would have had to stop eating it.
So after our expensive dinner, my portion was about 16€ or $24, we went walking in town. And then it got dark so we figured we should figure out where we were. Finding ourselves on the map took about 10 minutes. Then we walked back to the hotel. It wasn’t very far but since the streets are rather confusing it took about an hour and a half to find our way back. We also found out that businesses close at about 730pm on a Friday night. (There aren’t many locals left in Venice so people leave the town to go home.) We got back to the hotel, cleaned up, and crashed into bed so we could have the fullest day possible the next morning.
The next morning we got up, got European breakfast, and started walking around the city. Took lots and lots of pictures and then found a yarn shop (YAY!) and then went back to the restaurant for another pizza. We got back to our hotel about 1:30 pm, got the bags, and then went to get the boat to take us to the boat.
It was very easy to get on the boat, we dropped out bags off, got our boarding number and waited until with was called. We had to go through about 4,000 security checks before we got on the boat but it worked out ok. Our cabin was much larger than I thought it was going to be. It wasn’t large but we had room for our suitcases, carry-ons, and all the other stuff we carry around. I was pleasantly pleased with the size, especially for the price we paid. The ship was big and confusing. I finally figured out my way around the 6th day which didn’t do me a whole lot of good.
I don't know what this building is, but it was a pretty picture that I took from the cruise ship as we left Venice.
The tide was a little high the day our cruise left which meant that seating at some cafes was limited.
These carts are how things are transported throughout Venice, talk about some strong arms!
Rialto Bridge, with really good pizza off to the left with the red awning.
St. Mark's Square is a major tourist destination in the city, hence all the people.
So maybe I should start telling you what happened from the beginning. I arrived, with my friend, in Venice at about 2 in the afternoon after flying all night. We didn’t get a lot of sleep but we were functioning. The hotel we stayed at was right off of St. Marcos Square so we just had to get there. So, we got on the water bus, at 13€ each, and started the bus ride through the city. It was a great way to get there because of the route it took and I learned something, I get seasick on small boats. (Not a good thing to find out when confronted with no cars!) So we made it to St. Mark’s square and then proceeded to try and find the hotel. The first problem was that I didn’t know exactly where it was and after walking around for a bit we found it. By the way, St. Mark’s square is crazy busy at any time of day, well, at 730 am it was fine.
So, by the time we got there is was about 5 or so in the evening and we thought it might be best to look for dinner. We wanted pizza. So we asked the front desk where THEY would go for pizza not where the tourists go. We walked that way and crossed the Rialto Bridge. This is one of the major bridges across the Grand Canal and I didn’t realize it was a big deal until I saw all the postcards of it later. We looked for a place and we found a place right on the Grand Canal for pizza. I had ham(J) and mushrooms on mine and it tastes better if you fold it in half. The pizza is a very thin crust and I would have taken a picture of it but then I would have had to stop eating it.
So after our expensive dinner, my portion was about 16€ or $24, we went walking in town. And then it got dark so we figured we should figure out where we were. Finding ourselves on the map took about 10 minutes. Then we walked back to the hotel. It wasn’t very far but since the streets are rather confusing it took about an hour and a half to find our way back. We also found out that businesses close at about 730pm on a Friday night. (There aren’t many locals left in Venice so people leave the town to go home.) We got back to the hotel, cleaned up, and crashed into bed so we could have the fullest day possible the next morning.
The next morning we got up, got European breakfast, and started walking around the city. Took lots and lots of pictures and then found a yarn shop (YAY!) and then went back to the restaurant for another pizza. We got back to our hotel about 1:30 pm, got the bags, and then went to get the boat to take us to the boat.
It was very easy to get on the boat, we dropped out bags off, got our boarding number and waited until with was called. We had to go through about 4,000 security checks before we got on the boat but it worked out ok. Our cabin was much larger than I thought it was going to be. It wasn’t large but we had room for our suitcases, carry-ons, and all the other stuff we carry around. I was pleasantly pleased with the size, especially for the price we paid. The ship was big and confusing. I finally figured out my way around the 6th day which didn’t do me a whole lot of good.
I don't know what this building is, but it was a pretty picture that I took from the cruise ship as we left Venice.
The tide was a little high the day our cruise left which meant that seating at some cafes was limited.
These carts are how things are transported throughout Venice, talk about some strong arms!
Rialto Bridge, with really good pizza off to the left with the red awning.
St. Mark's Square is a major tourist destination in the city, hence all the people.Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Mid-October Update
So, pictures of my last trip are being close to getting done. I just need to go through and actually write the blog entries and pick the pictures that are best.
It has been 3 work weeks since I've been back and I'm ready for Christmas. Mostly, I'm ready to see my family and this week has been difficult. I know that I only have 2 months and 1 day to wait and then I'll be on my way to the States but it seems like a long time.
Work has been busy in the last 3 weeks. I've been grading a mountain of papers, prepping labs, and trying to get unused glassware ready to move to the other building. The last thing hasn't happened but I have great hopes that today it will start. We, as in Chemistry people, want to have the extras moved out of our current location by the time I leave for Christmas Break.
I've been knitting in the last few weeks. I'm trying to get Mom's blanket done BEFORE I get home, we will see if that happens. It is a simple pattern but small needles and skinny yarn make for a LONG project. Only 3 more balls of yarn to knit into it and then it is done. I'm also making another hat for my brother-in-law. I'm using some yarn that I bought in Italy that is different shades of green. I must say, that it is very manly so I hope he likes it.
I am trying to do my budget for the next year so I'm trying to pick out the places that I want to visit next summer. I am leaning toward visiting Austria, Hungary, and Estonia. I am not certain that I'll pick those yet, too many choices and not enough vacation time or vacation budget.
Hope all is going well with you!
It has been 3 work weeks since I've been back and I'm ready for Christmas. Mostly, I'm ready to see my family and this week has been difficult. I know that I only have 2 months and 1 day to wait and then I'll be on my way to the States but it seems like a long time.
Work has been busy in the last 3 weeks. I've been grading a mountain of papers, prepping labs, and trying to get unused glassware ready to move to the other building. The last thing hasn't happened but I have great hopes that today it will start. We, as in Chemistry people, want to have the extras moved out of our current location by the time I leave for Christmas Break.
I've been knitting in the last few weeks. I'm trying to get Mom's blanket done BEFORE I get home, we will see if that happens. It is a simple pattern but small needles and skinny yarn make for a LONG project. Only 3 more balls of yarn to knit into it and then it is done. I'm also making another hat for my brother-in-law. I'm using some yarn that I bought in Italy that is different shades of green. I must say, that it is very manly so I hope he likes it.
I am trying to do my budget for the next year so I'm trying to pick out the places that I want to visit next summer. I am leaning toward visiting Austria, Hungary, and Estonia. I am not certain that I'll pick those yet, too many choices and not enough vacation time or vacation budget.
Hope all is going well with you!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)