Saturday, March 31, 2012

Venice to Rome

We took the train from Venice to Rome which was a 5 1/2 hour ride through the country side passing areas such as Modena, Bologna, Florence and Assisi.

Leaving Venice

We took the Water Bus from our hotel in Venice to the train station on Day four of our trip. The Water Buses are both easy and inexpensive and the best direct route to the train. Everywhere you look, you see dogs on leashes with their owners including on public transportation. Imagine my surprise when I sat directly in front of one dog with a muzzle and another dog growling in my direction. That was my clue to push my luggage in front of me to avoid any of my toes ending up as dinner.
There was some sort of protest at the train station.
Sadly, I cannot for the love of God read this sign.
The train ride to Rome from Venice was five and one half hours long so we opt for first class. As a matter of fact, we took a total of three trains while traveling in Italy and had seating in first class each time.

Us in Venice

Beautiful Venice

Every Day Life in Venice

Canals in Venice

Before I start my writings on Venice, I have to just mention that I should be reading something to do with those classes I am taking or perhaps do the taxes. At least I paid the bills, so that counts as something. Right? Anyway, Venice was our first stop in Italy. It is located in the Northern part of Italy off the Adriatic Sea. Some of the things, I noticed about Venice.
  • People are rude
  • Americans do not feel welcomed
  • It was once under Austria rule before handed over to Italy
  • Canals smell like raw sewage even in the Spring
  • Heard the canals smell really horrible in the month of July
  • Buildings are beautiful
  • Beautiful clothes, shoes and gold

We stayed at the San Marco Hotel for two nights. The room was fine, however small as most European rooms are. The first two nights, I was suddenly awoken by my sister who was yelling about my mother's snoring keeping her awake. By the time, we got to Rome, sister had her own room, while mother and I shared a room. There is no way to control the temperature in the room, therefore, we kept the window open and as far as I could tell, no where in Italy had climate control rooms and/or screens. While in Venice, I noticed some areas were poor as well as rich. The neighborhoods were separated by alley ways and canals with small bridges one could cross. It is better to exchange American money for Euros or risk being ripped off. We learned this the first day. By day number ten, we were experts on the Euro. San Marco is not a hotel I would recommend nor is Venice a place I would return to. It was wonderful to experience life in Venice, but once is enough for me.