Venezia

We arrived at Venice airport after a good flight and we called the man from the B&B we booked on Jo's mobile. Unfortunately he spoke too quickly and Jo could barely make out what he was saying! She managed to understand that it was cheaper to get a 3 day transport pass so we did this, but I was a bit staggered to see it would cost us 25euro each!!

We hopped on the bus to take us to the Piazzale Roma and from here we managed to follow the internet instructions to get on the Waterbus No.1 to take us to the B&B. I wasn't so upset at the price of the 3 day ticket now as I found out it was 5euro per 1 hour trip. We arrived at our B&B after Jo managed to find the right street and settled in. The room was small but cosy and clean and we were happy to be there.


Our first afternoon was spent mainly wandering around trying to orientate ourselves. The first thing you notice about Venice is how wonderful it is to not see any cars. It gives the place a much nicer atmosphere and you can walk around without fear of being knocked over by some Italian on a scooter! The weather was great and later in the afternoon we found a nice bar in a small piazza and we enjoyed 2 glasses (each!) of some fantastic Pinot Nero. Mmmmm. For dinner we went around the corner to a Pizza place and we had a great pizza (I had a calzone). Although the waitress was rude, the pizza was worth it.

The next day we deciced to make the most of our 3 day transport pass and we got the Waterbus to Lido, an island about 45 mintues away. Jo took some excellent pictures as we went down the Gran Canal before hitting more open water to the island. It was a gloriously hot day (about 31c) and lots of tourists and Italians alike were at the Lido beach. We had some lunch (we packed rolls) on the beach and then took a walk along the sand and had a paddle to cool off our feet as the sand was boiling! There were lots of huts along the beach for rent and they looked very relaxing as you could go for a swim and then go back to your hut to cool off in the shade.


We wandered around the island and there are some beautiful hotels and houses. It would be a great place to stay for a few days if we had the time (and money!). We got the Waterbus back to Giardini and took a stroll through the desserted streets, over bridges and canals back towards San Marco square. It was so beautiful in these side streets away from the touristy crowds. We took some good pictures of washing on the line high above the street. We got back into the hustle and bustle and looked in a few shops at the great clothes, sunglasses and bags that are on offer everywhere. There are African men everywhere selling fake bags, belts and sunglasses too and they fold up all their merchandise into a sheet everytime they see the Police, wait until they leave then open their sheet again! Bizarre!

We found another square to sample some red wine (also very good) and found another place for dinner. This time I sampled the pasta, Jo had pizza and we shared. Yummo.

We managed to watch the England vs Trindad and Tobago game in a very Italian bar called the Fiddlers Elbow (ok, ok it was Irish). We sat next to an English guy and an American couple and we all shared equal frustration at the England team that couldn't seem to get anything on target until the 82nd minute. Then Gerrard finished it off in superb style, wish he could've done it earlier.