Day 1 - Venice Take II

Hello everyone! We're home safe and sound. We got in on Wednesday and have been fighting some wierd jet lag and sleep deprivation for the last few days... but we're home. As you are all obviously aware, Keith and I went off the map after our first posting in Venice. It was so so so difficult to update the blog while we were away, way more difficult than we anticipated so I decided we'd just do it properly when we got home. So we're terribly sorry for leaving you in the dark, but now we can properly share our adventures of our trip.

France and Italy were amazing. We loved every day of our trip and we would go back to every spot in a heartbeat. The number of moments that took our breath away and the countless experiences that we kept thinking "We'll remember this forever" made it all it was. Looking back on the pictures now that we're home... all I can say is "Wow!! We were there!!". You sometimes forget how remarkable the places you visit are while you're there... because you're there... but coming home and seeing your adventures unfold in images is quite rewarding.

So without further adieu... here's Day 1 - Venice Take II

We had a pretty long flight to get to Venice from Calgary. We left at 7pm, but we got to the Calgary airport WAY WAY WAY too early and had to amuse ourselves:

8 hours later, 1 poor night sleep and some relatively good airplane food, we arrived at the Gatwick airport and waited 6 hours to board our next flight to Venice. There I managed to find the world's largest chocolate bars... and no I did not buy them :) I was saving myself for italian gelato.

Finally after almost 16 hours of travelling we arrived in Venice at 8 pm at night. Navigating the maze of alleyways to get to our bed and breakfast, we miraculously arrived without getting lost at the Corte Gherardi. And when I say 'miraculously' I am not exagerating. We literally had to follow the most zig-zaggiest route from where the boat taxi from the airport dropped us off to the B&B. To add to the confusion, not all the alleys are marked, and those that were marked, about a a third of them were on our map. So indeed, it was a miracle. Our room was so cool - the home was a renovated church from the 12th century and all the rooms were decorated very modernly in a very minimalist style. The family we stayed with were incredibly sweet and welcoming, and were relieved to find the room so comfortable and clean. Thank you tripadvisor!

We couldn't go straight to bed when we arrived, so we went out and explored our neighbourhood. It was quiet, and peaceful and little restaurants and little enoteca (wine bars) were nestled into every corner, piazza and alley they would fit. We stumbled upon our own little osteria where we ordered a platter of salumi, cheese and grilled veggies, then a delicious caprese salad for me and lasagna for Keith. The food was excellent and the atmosphere... very venecian (complete with an accordion player and all).

Here is a picture of the Rialto bridge (the famous bridge first bridge to cross the grand canal) from that evening and the nightime view of the canal. It was so quiet that night... a complete 180 from what we would experience the next morning. It was nice to finally have arrived and start our European extravaganza.