Absolut Venice

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail”-Ralph Waldo Emerson

The two extra days in the city before the program began were certainly a good idea. It was great to get acclimated and to understand how to make it as a foreigner in Venice looking for food, or water, or other such necessities. The trip from the airport to Venezia was a simple bus ride, but the trip from the bus stop to the hostel was more daunting. Melodie and I lugged several bags and suit cases down a couple of miles and over two very large (and step ridden) bridges. It was challenging, but the strangers were kind and helped Melodie with her second bag over both bridges when I did not have an extra hand to do so.

We made it to the hostel, or I should say the main building of the hostel. We walked in, with all of our luggage and up another flight of stairs to meet Franco, the man who ran the place. He was a fairly sleazy businessman who did not care much for travelers' concerns and tried to charm his way through problems. We fortunately did not encounter any of this personally. We did find however that we were being moved to one of the other houses that the hostel has and we were given two choices, one very far away in another section of the city and one much closer. We chose the closer. We lugged our bags back down the stairs and went around a couple of blocks until we got to the new place. As we got in we saw a couple of guys working on the air conditioning but were reassured by Franco that the place was great. Fortunately, it really was pretty good. The guy who ran it was a middle aged, traveled Italian man who fixed any problems that came up. We explored the city a bit, but were exhausted and went to sleep early that night to prepare for our adventures the next morning.

I woke up early, too excited to stay asleep. I was awoken by the church bells nearby and the sounds of the gulls-not a bad way to wake up. I greeted our neighbors next door who were just preparing to leave. They were very interesting. Three americans, two who work in Texas and one who is a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania studying immunology. Apparently she was working with a strain of 1930s swine flu before the current out break so we had a great discussion. After that we got people ready and headed out.

The city is incredible, filled with hundreds of little alleys and streets, and thousands of different sounds and smells and sights. There are numerous courtyards and squares where children run around laughing and playing and people sit and chat. There are no cars to ruin the ambience, only the boats in the canals and the gondolas that take tourists through the city-the embodiment of Venetian culture. There were a few great stereotypical moments such as the accordian player outside at the restaurant near our hostel, and even though it should seem cliche, it was truly enjoyable. We went shopping at the supermarket, grabbed paninis from little shops, which are increcibly cheap, and the best pastries that I have ever had, only 1.50 euro each.

So far though there have been two especially memorable moments of our adventures. In one of the squares there is a large statue of a lion with wings, the standard of Vencie and we took pictures of it and admired the work that went into it. There were images of it all over the city, but this statue was by far the most regal. The other moment was our trip to Piazza San Marco. It was around 10:00 when we headed out on mostly empty streets to make our way to the square. As we entered I was awestruck by the large open space surrounded by incredible buildings. Outside one of the restaurants in the square a band played and we walked the square to the sounds of strings and romantic music. Again, perhaps a little cliche, but powerful nonetheless. The buildings were lined with lights and the square, while sparsely populated, was still very much alive with a people sitting down sipping their wine to the music, while others danced freely.

And now we have made our way out to Monselice, an incredible town that I have yet to explore, but soon that will be amended and there will be much more to share and reflect upon.