A Day in Venice

First off we want to wish Grandma Diney a Happy 69th Birthday!!!! We wish you were with us Mom.  We took the train to Venice yesterday!  Getting there was easy.  When we got off the train there were mobs of people and it was hot!  Thankful attitudes slipped away.  Uh oh, here we go again.  Something we are quickly realizing: keep the horses fed, watered and cool! We hopped a boat to Piazza San Marco (St. Mark's Square) and for the first time noticed many Americans.  There is something comforting about hearing our familiar language.

Little did I know this would be the first of many pictures I would take of buildings.  I was captivated by the character their age held. 

I had concern about Venice.  Many had talked of how smelly and dirty it was.  I only noticed a funky smell two or three times for just a moment.  I think it's easy to quickly use the words, "dirty" and "old" interchangeably.  Of course it wasn't pristine but it wasn't dirty.  The city dates back to the 10th century.  It was more  than what I could have imagined.

We escaped the heat of the sun by slithering into the cracks and crevices of the city. Venice is also known as the City of Bridges, City of Masks, City of Water and City of Canals.  I think it should also be known as the City of Crowds.  When we got off the boat we stayed tight and kept our hands on our satchels.  Dennis led the way and I stayed back watching for any sticky fingers.   I did see one guy eyeing Ireland's satchel and then he spoke in another language to a buddy and his eyes also darted to it so I quickly became a barrier between the men and Ireland.  The code word Indi came up with if we felt like we were going to have an incident was "bubblegum."  If anybody said it we clutched our bags.  I hoped for the thieves sake we wouldn't have an incident.  They wouldn't want the  wrath of Mama Bear laid on them.  Dynamite comes in small packages!

We found our first round of gelato and a spot of shade shortly after we got off the boat and made our way through the crowds.  A full belly and quenched thirst can make for a more open mind.  We sat on some steps and people watched while Raleigh and the girls enjoyed the pigeons.

Annie and the girls got triple dips of gelato and Dennis and I splurged on a can of coke hoping for left over bites of cone.  It was so delightful to watch the girls and Raleigh with the pigeons.  It's kind of funny that we're in this famous city and can't get past the amusement of feeding the pigeons.  Touring with children causes you to pause and find peace in the midst of thousands of people.  They're intrigued by certain details of the city while the rest of us may only see the big picture.  Traveling with different ages is an education in life and it helps us to slow down.  I was so thankful that the hecticness of the city just disappeared while taking in the pigeons. 

I love my husband so much!  He is truly the love of my life.  He is a gentle man and takes good care of us.  It is magical to be on this journey with  him and our family and for that I am so thankful.  He was in Venice 30 years ago.  I bet he didn't think he'd be back 30 years later with 4 kids!

After the pigeon scene we tried to go through St. Mark's Basilica but we couldn't go in with our back packs.  We headed off the main tourist streets and ducked in and out of some allies.  Some were quaint and narrow others were wider with shops on both sides.  If we stopped to look at the racks outside of the shops the owner would come out and stand right next to us watching our every hand movement.

The whimsical walk ways drew us in like flies on honey.  It would be so easy to get lost in the maze-like city but everything was very well marked.  We were taking the day to work our way back to the train station so we were following names painted on the buildings.  Actually Dennis was keeping us on track and we were busy searching out peculiar buildings.

Details of San Marco Basilica

Happy to find more steps to perch on while we sipped some water.  Notice Raleigh is no longer sight seeing.





The girls asked if people really lived in Venice.  By the looks it seemed to just be tourists and shopkeepers but if you look closely there was evidence.

This lady was tending to her flower boxes.  Right below her is a restaurant.

Laundry has to be done, even in one of Europe's most beautiful cities

This lady kneeled at the steps entering a beautiful cathedral begging for money.  The rash girls couldn't dig through their purses quick enough to generously drop their money into her cup along with every down trodden elderly person that was on their knees.  Funny, how my mind goes to our needs before sharing and the minds of my young daughters are not for their own wants but for the obvious needs of others.  In the not so distant past we memorized Philippians 2:3-4  ³ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ⁴ not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.  Hmm.....they so quickly put it into practice without any hesitation, actually with much excitement.  I have much to learn.

We had a great supper on the steps of a beautiful building -- pizza, calzones and more gelato! Raleigh chased the pigeons and people commented and took pictures of him and the girls.  I suppose it was all the red hair.  I only saw two red-heads outside of our family all day and no twins.  Since I walked behind the family I would hear the comments on the red hair and blue eyes and the peole would stop, turn and stare.  It was quite comical.

Raleigh would run back and forth, back and forth saying hello and ciao (chow) to the people passing by.  He was quite the ham and entertained many.

We made it back to the station and relaxed on the street and watched the gondoliers and gazed at the details of the buildings as the sun began to set.  None of us were in a hurry to leave this grand city--calm and content, we all simply enjoyed watching the people as the city transformed from day into evening.  It was a blessed day in Venice!