Oct 19.2009 - Venice, Italy

DKP : Overnight in Venice is quite civilized actually. There is a lot of city to see in so little time and quite a long way to come to see it. Having done the Gondola ride in 2005 (Carnival Liberty Inaugural), we opted for strolling this time.

I love this about Europe, the built in excercise :-) Venice is even better because of the bridges up and over the canals. I also love how the Adriatic Sea laps at the edge of the streets, yet the Venezians just set up their outdoor shops and food markets all the same, right at the water's edge.

Venice is definitely all about the tourism and seems to always be packed with visitors from all over the world. It's also a fun city, expensive, but fun. The architecture and design has it's own unique Venezian flair; a lot of scrolling lines and fleur d' lis like accents. Even the stores along the tourist routes feature items that, although "touristy", are of much higher grade than the typical offerings of ash trays and toothpick holders; which we are actually in the market for due to a recent sad development ;-)

My favorite part of the day, was typical for me actually... sitting out in the sunshine at a pub with a cold local beer... Sandy with her drink (anything BUT beer) just chatting about life. So far this trip has been far less demanding than the South American adventure and while we may trade information packed tours for time... it feels worth it right now.

Forever in search of the perfect blend of intrinsic music, excellent local flavors, unique colorful design and chilll time... Venice did not dissappoint.