My Summer 2010 Tour Part II : Venice and Rome

Previous Tale: My Smmer 2010 Tour

At some point of time, Swiss were known for their precision and punctuality. No more, at least not their railways. I got into a train at Lucerne and changed it at Arth Goldau for Milan. However, it was delayed in the way by half an hour as a result I missed my train for Santa Lucia Station, Venice. I had to take the next train but without any reserved seat. So I had to leave seats on two occasions when someone with reservation showed up. I felt bad as I had paid a hefty sum of US$.134 for enjoying a ride on Eurostar.

At long last, I reached Venice and headed straight for “Information”. The lady at the counter helped me find a hotel. But she charged two Euros for her assistance while hotel charged 75 Euro per night. I felt like being robbed openly and squarely. However, there was a plus point; the hotel was located at a small distance.

I did not write “walking distance” as I am used to walk 2 to 3 km to reach a hotel in a bid to save money. To cope with such a situation, I keep my luggage restricted to one wheeled-bag and that too hardly 8 kg by weight. On the other hand, my friend Michael moves with 20 kgs backpack and then complains of shoulder pain, stiff neck, backache and lost sleep – You asked for it, Mike

Next day, I set out to see Piazza San Marco, also known as St. Mark's Square. It was like a magnet to the tourists in the same way as are Times Square, Piccadilly Circus or Eiffel Tower.

Venice was small and safe, there being hardly any chance of getting lost or robbed. Further, there were no cars and one could indulge in jaywalking. From the hotel, I got into a narrow street flanked by shops, cafes and bars. Soon I found an arrow with words “San Marco” on the corner of a building and that made life easy.

On my way, I walked through the Jewish Ghetto, created in 1516 when all Jews in Venice were moved there. As per history books, all gates of the Ghetto would be closed at night and armed guards on boats would patrol the surrounding canals. Next notable place was Fondamenta Misercordia looking like a food street. Soon I passed by an old church, San Marziale and peeped in. It was quite a dark inside and probably empty. But I could smell flowers as there were tons of them at the feet of “Wooden Madonna with a boy in her lap and a smile on her face”.

Continuing the walk, I came across an inevitable American fast food chain, McDonald. It was filled to the brim perhaps because of free Wi-Fi. But I believed in “when in Rome, do as the Romans do” and hurriedly crossed the place lest the smell of french-fries should attract me. The narrow street turned into a boulevard when I entered Strada Nova or New Street, constructed after demolishing a large number of houses and palaces. That was surprising as it happened in a city where main thoroughfares were formed by water.

Many times, I crossed a canal to go to the next street. There was more than 150 of them ranging from the Grand Canal to tiny canals barely accessible to small boats. The small canals were lined with old houses, often decked with flowers.

It was time to sit down and eat something. I tasted a simple and light pasta dish, Spaghetti and Clams with freshly grated cheese, green salad and crusty bread for only five Euros. After some time, I resumed the walk and came across a very beautiful church, Santa Maria dei Miracoli. It was tucked into residential buildings. Popularly know, as the "Marble Church", it was built “to house a miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary.”

Maybe I took a wrong turn as yellow signs of “San Marco” disappeared. Surely, I had stepped into a side alley. It was normal rather exception as no matter how “adept you are at reading maps, you will get lost in Venice.” I asked a passerby about Rialto Bridge. He pointed out in the opposite direction. I took a 180 degree turned and continued walking. Shortly, a grand bridge was in sight shining in the bright sun. As per guide books, “several architects and artists were considered for the design including Michelangelo. The honor went to Anthony da Ponte, affectionately known as Anthony of the Bridge”

Once on the bridge, I devoted some time in studying Gondolas sailing below in the Grand Canal. Hand-made from a variety of wood, they were composed of hundreds of pieces. An amazing information passed on by other tourists was that “the left side of the gondola is made longer than the right side to counterbalance the weight of the gondolier. Moreover all gondolas are painted with seven layers of black lacquer, as per law.”

Piazza San Marco was the main square of Venice. Napoleon called the Piazza San Marco "the finest drawing room in Europe." It is surrounded by the Bay, the Basilica of St. Mark, the soaring Bell-Tower and a line of restaurants and shopping arcades. Of these, the Basilica was most attractive and there was always a long queue of tourists and faithful. It has a most precious alter covered with 3,000 precious stones and enamel icons inlaid in gold.

After visiting the Basilica, I joined another long queue before the Bell Tower. The line moved very slowly for no apparent reason. When I got into building, I observed that there was an elevator to take the visitors to the viewing platform. However, the elevator was small which caused a long wait. The tower was 98.6 meter high and gave spectacular views of the city completely different from what I got by walking in the narrow streets and along canals.

I wish I had enough money to enjoy a Gondola ride along the back canals passing under the bridges through narrow channels dominated by palaces and churches. I did the next best by riding the waterbus (vaporetti). Paying Euro six, I got into it to admire all the mansions and buildings that overlooked the Grand Canal and the lagoon.

While moving in the streets, I found Hotel Cavena located near the Rialto Bridge. Luckily, I got a room overlooking a canal occasionally crossed by Gondolas. I could hear the ‘hail and holler’ by the Gondolier warning others on turning and crisscrossing. The room rent was much lower at Euro 50.

I stayed at Venice for 3-4 days and enjoyed every moment of it. On 28th June, 2010, I board Eurostar for Rome. The fare was 72 Euro.

Monday, the 28th of June, 2010

The train reached Rome at about 5 p.m. I got out the station and boarded a bus for San Silvestro Square. I was in luck as I was able to get a room in a hotel with the same name nestled on a quiet street for Euro 70 per night. The room was small but location was great just a short walk away from famous Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, the Pantheon and Piazza Navona and Piazza Di Spagna.

Next day, I started my stroll from San Silvestro Church which boasted the head of Saint John the Baptist as a relic.

Nearby was “The Piazza di Spagna”, which was visually very pleasing. It was long and triangular combining “The Spanish Steps”, an “Obelisk” and a beautiful “French Church”. The square was very popular and thronged with hundreds of photographers.

The Spanish Steps led to the Frech Church (Trinita dei Monti) and were reputed to the longest and widest staircases in Europe. These consisted of 138 steps with a steep slope and were usually occupied by a large number of tourists who treated them as a meeting point.

The Obelisk was said to a copy of the Egyptian obelisk as the ancient Romans loved Egyptian culture.

Just below the Spanish Steps was famous Fontana della Barcaccia or “Fountain of the Old Boat”. It had fresh-water and many people were gulping from it for health and prosperity.

A 3-hour walk made me hungry. I started walking away tfrom he Spagna Square to go to the back streets for a moderate café. An Italian Fast Food Joint with name of “Flunch” appealed to me and I bought a fresh sandwich for 5-Euro. In the process, I saw signposts for Trevi Fountain and after eating headed towards that direction.

Soon I entered into narrow cobbled streets filled with restaurants, ice-cream shops and throngs of people. As I got closer, I found more crowd. It was the most famous fountain in the world and featured in many films particularly “La Dolce Vita” where Anita Ekberg bathe in the fountain. Nowadays, it was guarded by the police (Carabinieri) and no one dared to reconstruct the scene. However, many tourists were tossing coins as they believed that “they would return to Rome” pushed by an invisible force.

In the evening I explored area around “The Piazza Navone”. Though liveliest with many cafes, bars and night clubs, it was very expensive – an orange juice for seven Euros.

A major attraction was a fountain featuring four figures, each representing a river from a different continent - the Nile, Ganges, Danube and Rio della Plata. The statues were “at the base of a rock supporting an obelisk, originally located at the Massenzio Circus.”

I spent next two days in visiting Vatican City, Coliseum, Pantheon and many other famous landmarks.

On the last day in Rome, I headed for Civitavecchia, about 40 miles, to catch a ferry to Barcelona, Spain.

I have included pictures of some the places in a power point presentation. Please hit the play button and wait for a while, it would be worth it.

Next Tale: My Summer 2010 tour: Spain