Day 16 : Did someone say Venice?

So we finally made it to Venice. Our overnight train was… well…. it was something. We were in a 6 person compartment and there were only 5 of us most of the time, but the 3 New Zealand boys we were sharing the compartment with were not very short boys. Therefore, being the generous Canadian girls that we are, we had to let them have the extra room. To say the least, I got a bunch off school work done, simply because I was unable to sleep and I don't think an overnight train without booking a bed is something I ever need to relive. However the 3 boys were very nice people and I'm glad to have met them. Once again, as per the norm, I can only remember two of the 3 names, Tim (who looked like Joel) and Gollum. Pretty sure you all know why that's one that stuck.

We made it to the hostel very easily. It was just over a giant bridge right outside of the main train station and then down a tiny little road. Perfect location, about a 30 second walk from the Grand Canal. Once we had both showered we went back to the bridge to meet our other friend Becca who was to be joining us for part of the trip. In true Canadian style we brought out our giant Canada flag and waived it around at every passing water taxi, alas, we could not find Becca. Come to find out there is more than one bridge in Venice, go figure.

We did eventually find her, or rather, she found us and we headed back to the hostel to plan our attack on the city.

We decided on the classic, walk around the city for a bit and try and find some cool sites. Well we wandered for a bit and then found Chiesa di Santa Maria della Salute. A beautiful building/church where Becca and Chirstie were eventually kicked out for not having covered their shoulders. After being kicked out of church we decided to try something a little less intense and headed for the other side of the canal where we saw a bunch of gondolas gathering.

Our walk there was absolutely beautiful. Venice is a wonderful city. I know everyone has said how dirty it is, and if I feel in the canal I would most definitely go straight to a doctor, but it's absolutely beautiful. A sinking city build on water, could there be anything more poetic? I'm sure there could, but it was pretty nonetheless.

Since we were in Venice there was only one main thing we all wanted to do. Take a gondola ride. It was quite an amazing thing. The gondoliers actually have to go to school for two years to learn how to pilot a gondola. We also learned that every house has 2 doors, a door that goes to the street and one that leads to the waterway. This also means that most people don't live on the first floor of their house, as it is more like a basement and typically houses their boat. Pretty interesting stuff. We also learned that Venice is no longer sinking. The government has put a system in place that has effectively stopped the city from sinking. Not sure how, but I'm pretty glad that Venice will be around for a few more years.

We finished off the night with great pizza, pasta and salad at at little place on the corner of the main street running along the Grand Canal. Pretty sure the waiter thought we were insane as we inhaled all the food within 15 minutes of it being brought to us. That's what too many days of walking around from 8 until 8 will do to you. Also, backpacking really makes you feel like it is a horrible thing to waste food. Even if we're both so full we will try and cram as much breads into our bodies as we possibly can. I'm pretty sure it is the only thing keeping us running at this point.

Great first day with Becca! She's keeping up to us pretty well, especially because we've had about 2 weeks to adjust to this new travelling lifestyle.