Friday, February 12th, 2010

Today was marvelous! We slept in past our alarm, but that was ok since we hadn’t gotten any sleep the past couple of days, and we were both sick. We had breakfast at the hostel – cereal, bread, jam, etc. We didn’t really have a set plan for today, so we wandered a bit. We were going to take the Vaporetti down the Grand Canal, but it was about €7 for a short one-way trip. So we walked through the city instead. The city is pretty hard to navigate; it’s like a maze. We tried to walk along the Grand Canal, but streets kept taking us away from it. We got pretty lost. It took us about an hour to reach Piazza San Marco. We then went to Gallerie dell’Accademia Venezia. That took such a long time to try and find. We thankfully got a student discount, because I did not think the museum was that impressive. It was kind of a disappointment. All of the art was very similar. I am not a big fan of Christian art. It was also rather small; I think some of the rooms were closed. We eventually found our way back to San Marco. It is a lot of fun to be lost here. I mean, you can’t get too lost here, after all it is an island. Besides, it is very beautiful, and it is exciting to see things you may have missed by following a map.

Took so many pictures today! It is pretty hard not to! We bought our first masks today! Mine is Purple, gold, and pink. Allyson’s is black and gold. So much fun to wear them around Venice! Finally felt like part of Carnival while wearing my mask! We walked around Piazza San Marco some more. We saw a lot of pigeons, but not as many as I saw when I was there in 2006; there were just too many people walking around now!

We went into St. Mark’s Basilica (Basilica di San Marco)! It is so beautiful! We wandered through it, then went back out into the piazza. We spent a long time looking for food, but somehow managed not to find anything that we were interested in. We went and saw the Doge’s Palace (Palazzo Ducale). I think it was a mistake that we did not eat before we went in, because we were starving, so we kind of rushed through the palace. It was beautiful though! I didn’t realize that we would get to walk across the Bridge of Sighs. Allyson and I both sighed. We also got to go down into the dungeon. Very cool! Doge’s Palace was something I didn’t do when I went in 2006. I was surprised by how big it was. It had so many rooms, and a fabulous, large ballroom! So many wonderful works of art. The Palace had more art than the Accademia Gallery.

After the Doge’s Palace we went hunting for food! We pounced on the first sign of food – crepes! I got a nutella and strawberry crepe! It was amazing! I wolfed it down. We kept exploring; keeping an eye out for more food. We each bought a second mask. Mine is one that I had had my eye on for a long time – completely black with lace, and a flower and feathers on the side. Love it! Allyson had her eye on a red and gold one that she got. Yay! We then went to the Rialto Bridge and got pizza. Allyson claims it is the best pizza she has ever eaten, haha but I was not impressed. I guess she liked it so much because it was just the way she would like it – bread, sauce, and no cheese! We found more gelato! Love it!

We went back to Piazza San Marco and people watched some more. We were so cold, but wanted to stay in the Piazza for the drag queen beauty pageant that evening. We found a little café, and sat in it for an hour or so drinking amazing, rich hot chocolate. We also shared a tiramisu that was amazing! Allyson is obsessed with the hot chocolate. I had to drag her away from the table so she wouldn’t lick my cup clean.

We returned to San Marco and waited in the “garden” area until 9pm for the Drag Queen Beauty Pageant. It was fantastic! So hilarious and entertaining! First the MC did a lip-synch rendition of some Italian song. He was very flamboyant! Then his co-host came out to tremendous applause. After welcoming the judges and talking to the audience, they invited all of the Drag Queens to come up on stage and parade through so that we could see them all. Their outfits and costumes were amazing! So elaborate. It was sad though… most of them could walk better in heels than I could! Some of the costumes were slightly disturbing. After the grand parade across the stage, they individually came on stage and walked down the catwalk for everyone to admire them. Let’s just say, this show was not appropriate for young children, or the faint of heart. After, they came on stage and did individual performances. These were so much fun! Everyone lip-synched, but the dancing and costume changes were the best! Loved it! It was so much fun!

As we were leaving, we realized the Piazza had flooded. All around the stage (in the center of the piazza) was covered in water. Just a few inches or so, but it was still too deep to walk through. We had to surge our way through the crowd to find the only dry spots we could cross at. It was pretty crazy. It was pretty late when we left, around 11pm, so we got back to the hostel pretty late. We were cold and exhausted. The trek home was pretty painful. My feet were killing me… Bloody stumps!!! I was feeling very sick as we walked home, and thankfully found a café still open where I bought an overpriced cup of weak tea. Allyson got her favorite hot chocolate, so it helped to make the trek back a little easier. Well we made it back to the hostel… didn’t get that lost! Went to bed really late, around 2am. So tired! Tomorrow’s our last day here :(. I’m going to miss Venice.