Hello! Today it's a rainy day in Lacoste, so I thought I'd bring it back to sunny Venice! Venice was our last stop of our Italian adventure. Similarly to Florence, we had little to no time to spend here, I really do wish we had more time to explore each place, they're all so beautiful and different, they deserve it! Not just rushing from one tourist attraction to the next...
We arrived in Venice after a disaster of a train journey late at night on Tuesday, we had the full day Wednesday, and then Thursday morning we flew to Marseilles to meet up with the SCAD group to travel together to Lacoste on Friday. So in full, we really only had one day in Venice.
Not enough time. Never enough time.
As far as the train disaster goes, basically we unknowingly bought tickets to Venice for the wrong day, and were trying to leave from the wrong station. To set the scene for you, I spent some time crying on the cold sidewalk with all of our luggage, while Kate was on a hunt for wifi, fending off sketchy men in greasy pizzarias. Euros spinning down the drain after buying more and more and more train tickets we didn't need, it was a disaster.
But we made it. We somehow made it.
Flash forward to the next day, we kicked off our trip by spending the morning in Burano, the most colorful little lace making island.
Burano is as colorful as it is due to the fact that when fisherman would come home late at night, since all the houses looked so similar, they would get lost in the canals not be able to get home! The houses were permanently painted super bright colors to help the fishermen identify which house was theirs.
Now, it's a haven for instagrammers and bloggers alike, to feed their needs for not only getting caught in a web of tourism for photos but also aesthetics.
Only sort of kidding. I was actually so pleasantly surprised by how little people were there that day. Sure, it wasn't empty, but it wasn't the total tourist trap that Venice is.
We knew we had to try a cappuccino while there, and also the famous Burano S shaped cookies, only made in Burano. The first order we got the guy insisted on bringing it out to us at our table, a few minutes later, we were so pleasantly surprised by the beautiful coco dusted cappuccinos and whip cream dolloped cookie platter we received as seen above...
We enjoyed the cookies with whipped cream so much we had to order some more. Catching another waiter to put in our order... He was far less flirty... we received the plate of cookies below... HA! Clearly the second waiter didn't take to us as much as the first one did... lol
I made a big deal about not throwing this water bottle away. There weren't any recycling bins on Burano, so I just decided to hold on to it until we returned to the main island.
After going on and on about how we can't just throw it away to Kate, how we MUST recycle, I slipped up and accidentally dropped it into the water... So much for that.
The rest of the day was spent walking around Venice looking at all of the big attractions, starting with The Bridge of Sighs. So beautiful.
We went inside of Basillica Di Santa Maria which of course, was beautiful. And although the Piazza San Marco, where the Basillica was, was PACKED with people, getting into the actual church wasn't too bad, little to no lines.
We crossed the Rialto Bridge where we took a bunch of photos of strangers, and got strangers to take photos of us, the view was beautiful, but there were just SO many people everywhere. I truly don't know how Venice has not just sunk due to the weight of people... yikes.
We walked around for a while, got some pizza, sat in a café, got charged for sitting in a café, got lost walking down the tiny alleys and through the mazes of streets, it was fun. It was freezing.
That night I knew I couldn't leave Venice without riding in a gondola. It was such a pleasant experience. The lights of the buildings on to the water were so beautiful, it was quiet and so serene. Although way too expensive, I really enjoyed it, especially since I honestly don't see myself returning to Venice.
Unfortunately it was just so touristy, overpriced, and small to the point where I feel like I did all I needed to, and I really don't need to go back! Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it, I just don't need to return any time soon.
The last thing I did before we made our way to the airport was watch the sunrise. I had been awake all night editing my Rome vlog, when I saw it begin to get light outside I grabbed my blanket and made a run to chase the sun.
I sat on some ledge on the edge of the water as I watched the sun rise over the island across the water waking up Venice. This moment will stick with me forever. I sat shivering, meditating, setting my intentions for the day and my next few months of travel. It's moments like this when I'm alone and get to take some time to myself that I really cherish. It was the perfect way to say goodbye to Italy and cap off our travels.
Overall, Italy was fantastic. The food was delicious, the art was stunning, and the sights were unbelievable. Even in the messiest of moments, I loved every second. I'm so grateful for my ability to travel, and cannot wait to see where I venture off to next!
Until then! xo, O
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