Exploring Italy by Train

The next day promised to be the highlight of our trip- a day in Venice. We hopped aboard the train in the early morning and were soon there. Venice’s Stazione Santa Lucia is right on the Grand Canal. We boarded a water bus bound for the Piazza San Marco, the main square. The bus, or vaporetto, worked its way leisurely down the canal making numerous stops along the way. The ride afforded us views of luxurious palaces, countless gondolas, and picturesque side canals. I quickly used up a roll of film. We floated beneath the famous Ponte di Rialto and the lesser known Ponte dell’Accademia, before pulling up to the San Marco stop.

The Piazza San Marco is an incredible and impressive sight. It is surrounded by the Basilica and arcaded buildings housing two elegant outdoor cafes across the square from one another, each with an orchestra playing. The center of the square was mobbed with flocks of pigeons and picture-taking tourists. Very few people were actually sitting in the cafes, and one look at the prices on the menus explained why! We took an elevator to the top of the Basilica’s bell tower, from where we had magnificent views of the city and canals.

After exploring the side streets and canals for the morning, we found ourselves at the Rialto bridge around Noon. There were several restaurants in the area, and we chose one tucked into an alcove alongside the bridge. Serenading gondoliers floated past us as we dined, making it a very romantic experience. The rest of our day was spent getting pleasurably lost in the labyrinth of small canals, tiny bridges, and narrow alleys. We returned to Padua in the early evening, exhausted but thrilled to have seen such a magnificent place.

  1 :: 2 :: 3 :: 4 :: 5 :: 6 :: 7 :: 8 :: 9 :: 10     

About Us :: Team Margaux :: FAQs :: Sitemap :: Privacy Policy :: Terms of use :: Contact Webmaster :: Credits