That Bites

So for those of you who have traveled with me before, you know that if there area bugs around to bite me, I attract them. I hear it has something to do with having an abundance of Vitamin B in your system (Brian, could you look into this please?). In any case, the mosquitoes have indeed found me here in Italy too.

In fact, I intended to mention this over a week ago when I got my first bite. They're like normal mosquito bites only the itching is significantly more intense. And for some reason, even if you don't touch them or scratch them, they still itch. And they take longer to go away - so that's no fun.

Especially when I woke up the other morning in Venice with 10 bites on my left cheek, three on my forehead, four on my right cheek, two on each arm, three on my left thigh, two on my right calf, three on my left foot and one on the bottom of my right foot.

Evidently there was a mosquito in the room.


It's a little hard to see in the photo - but I promise, none of those are zits. ALL bites.

Venice - Beach Day!!

I guess I'll have to see the sights tomorrow instead...

Venice - Hands Down: Best Dinner Yet

So last night I opted for an expensive, -whatever-I-want meal instead of the pub crawl because my feet were killing me.  I was too tired to try and pick a place so I decided to find a Rick Steves' recommendation instead.  

Excellent idea.

I actually found the joint (yay me!!!) and ordered completely in italiano (woo hoo!!!)  I have no idea what it is called in English, but it's basically black pasta.  I know, it sounds terrible, right?  But it's so not.  It's black because it is colored with squid ink (I know!  Sounds terrible, but it's SO not!) and really, it looks kind of like noodles in tar.  But BOY! was it delicious!

Now, before you commend me on trying something this new and brave, I had actually previewed a similar dish way back in Cinque Terre when we first met our friends from Florida.  We had swapped tastes: black pasta for anchovies.  So I knew it would be good.  But this particular plate was amazing.  

Plus, this time around it came with squid in it.  And I'm usually a calamari fan, but this was the stinking best squid I've ever had.  And the great thing was, I wasn't starving going into the meal, so I know it was legitmately delicious.  

I paired my meal with a local cab sav and finished it all off with some lemon-y cake-y thing.  Ohhh, sooo goooood.  All of it.  I'm quite sad I didn't have my camera with me so I could document the deliciousness for you all.  Perhaps I'll just have to have it again....

Venice – Room with a View

Unfortunately last night was not as easy breezy as I had planned it. Instead of a simply night posting my blog and the most delicious pizza ever, I was sad to discover that a) the internet in the hostel was down – so I was going to have to go searching and b) my favorite pizza joint wasn’t open – I needed a new plan for dinner.

So I hopped back on the vaporetto toward St. Mark’s and started hunting for internet. I had seen about a ba-jillion of them while I was wandering all day, so I figured it wouldn’t be too hard. 

While I was looking I quickly found my new residence for tomorrow, so I tried to take note of the direct and speedy way I had gotten there. But it seemed, the more I searched for internet – the more elusive it was.

Eventually I did find it (which you may have guessed, seeing as I posted last night), but I was semi-grumpy by the time I was done. Next was dinner – I just ate at the first place that would take me, and though it was good – it wasn’t as good as the night before.

I had felt pretty scraggly the day before (we’re getting very close to laundry time folks) so I decided today to make a real effort to look cute. I pinned my hair half up, put on a cute sweater (to be “local” – it’s not near cold enough for a sweater yet), and tied a scarf around my waist – my small attempt to appear somewhat not blatantly American.

I left the hostel feeling good and confident that I would find this new place in a snap. I had done it the night before, right? Well the rule of thumb tends to be: if you are looking for it, 45 minutes. If you’re not: 10 minutes. I quickly spotted not only the internet place I had used last night, but several other options. My new home? I wasn’t timing, but it was a half hour at least.

I was so hot by the time I was all checked in, I decided gelato was my best bet for breakfast. I found that no problem and pointed to a pastel, sunshine yellow flavor and asked for one scoop. I asked the man serving me, “Que cosa?” What is it? And he said, “Creama,” which I’m pretty sure means cream…so I’m not really sure if I asked what I thought I asked. So I have no idea what flavor it was (I’m simply terrible at identifying things by taste) and can only tell you it was indeed creamy, and delicious. I think my best guess is some kind of vanilla?? (Which would explain why I liked it so much…)

After that I tried to get in the tourist mood (I haven’t seen a single “thing” yet!) and headed for St. Mark’s. The line wasn’t too long, so I got right in. Again, not allowed to take pictures (which – shockingly – does not deter people. I mean, we’re in CHURCH! Talk about an ironic time to disobey the rules…) but the ceilings were all domed and inlaid with gold mosaics – it was pretty impressive.

Unlike all the other churches I have seen though, St. Mark’s was roped off so that you could only follow one path – you weren’t free to roam around and enjoy the art at your own pace and in your own order. 

This obviously irritated me, as I’ve had nothing but two weeks of uninterrupted “be the boss of me, do whatever I want,” but I tried to make the best of it. Unfortunately we were packed in there like cattle and I kept bumping into people and they were bumping into me. I felt like I couldn’t actually appreciate what I was seeing because between the herds of people and uneven floors, I was going to fall down. Additionally they were charging to get into the optional rooms and suddenly it was too much for me. Something about paying for stuff in church seems wrong to me (Jesus and the money-changers? Anyone heard that one?) and I wasn’t enjoying getting shoved around, so I left. I had been in there all of 15 minutes.

I sat down on a make-shift bench and struck up a conversation with this older woman sitting next to me. She was part of a tour group with some friends/family and soon I was surrounded by older women. But they spoke English and they were nice to me, so I soaked up the opportunity for conversation. Soon they were on their way and I was left without an agenda. I reminded myself this was supposed to be a trip about having fun and enjoying Italy, not a trip of “shoulds” so I decided to wander around closer to the Rialto Bridge and see what I could see.

I found where the “market” was and enjoyed the view from the bridge. Ironically, even though everything is more expensive in Venice, this has been where I am most tempted to shop. I didn’t end up buying anything (though I did come close) other than a cup of huge pineapple wedges for 1 EU. Abby, I thought of you the whole time 

After that I found my way back to my new room and “moved in.” (My things were in storage previous – they’d been cleaning.) The new place is highly superior to the hostel and is well worth the extra 3 EU a night (not even taking into account the lack of vaporetto to get there). In fact, I was so happy with my room change, I took a nap. A huge, 4-hour, nap. Now I’m feeling MUCH better.

Tonight – the pub crawl. Either that, or I’m ordering a really expensive dinner and will not feel bad about it. I slept right through lunch and now I’m starving!! Perhaps tomorrow I will finally feel like touring Venice. Or maybe I’ll just go to the beach instead. We’ll see.

Venice is A Maze…(ing)

I managed to find my way to the hostel last night and even took my very first vaporetto ride. These are Venice’s answer to “public transit” when your city’s main street is a canal. They work exactly like the subway or a bus would, only it’s a boat. The crappy thing is – they’re expensive. At 6EU a pop – you’d better really want to get where you’re going. It’s somewhat possible to avoid using them, but that requires more time spending winding through the tiny and confusing streets of Venice.

Unfortunately for me, the hostel is on an adjacent island, so the vaporetto is a must (a fact that would have been good to know earlier, but oh well). But I decide to make the most of it and buy a 24 hour pass so that I can visit all the adjacent islands for one low price.

And that’s what I did today. Well, technically first I took the #2 vaporetto to San Marco (the main part of town) and gave myself a few hours to wander around and (hopefully) get my bearings a bit. Let me tell you – it is NOT hard to get lost here. In fact, I pretty much spent the whole day lost. Here’s a freebie for you: if you don’t like not knowing at least approximately where you are at all times and if inefficiency bothers you – do NOT come to Venice under any circumstances. Despite the views and the fact that the city is literally on the water, it won’t be worth it.

Amidst my wandering I decided to try and locate (sans a real map) the other “hostel” in Venice. I had read that this other option was closer to St. Mark’s, so it would allow me to avoid the spendy vaporetto in the future. After about (I kid you not) two hours, I finally found it. And they even have bed available for tomorrow – yay!! With this news, I confirmed my plan with myself to island hop for the rest of the day. That way by the time by 24 hours is up – I’ll be safely tucked away on the “main land.”

There are three other islands of note: Murano (where the famous Venetian glass is made), Burano, and Torcello. I missed the vaporetto to the third island (Torcello), so I only toured two today – but that was really all I had in me anyway. The islands themselves are not much to brag about, but tourists are given ample opportunity to buy both glass and lace items (their two specialties). I did my fair share of shopping and then was happy to come home.

I’m starting to reach the point where I am craving a bit of normalcy; a bit of sameness and routine. I had figured that I would be able to establish that a bit in the bigger cities (as I will naturally be staying longer), but I don’t know if that will be the case for Venice.

Perhaps it’s because at this moment my feet hurt, I stink, and I’m hungry – but the city is exhausting. It truly is an elaborate labyrinth built to keep you in – I wasn’t pulling your leg. The buildings are quite tall, and the streets between them are quite narrow, so all you can ever see is concrete walls on either side of you (not pictured). There are technically signs everywhere, helping you “navigate” but…they are really more like guidelines. It seems in reality, there are equally as many right turns as there are wrong. Sometimes the signs even read San Marco with an arrow pointing in both directions. Instead of feeling enthusiastic that no matter what I do – I am going the right way, I usually feel a little despondent: as in, the choice is futile. Whether I choose right or left, I am not actually affecting when I will arrive at my destination.

Tomorrow I will swap housing accommodations and either spend the day hitting the main sights – or doing nothing. I have yet to decide how the day will be best spent. For tonight, I was hoping to meet some friends (and possible) do a pub crawl, but despite the several floors of beds, each with several rooms with 16 beds in them….I can’t find anyone to hang out with (that speaks English). So instead I will hit up my new favorite pizza joint next door and try to rest up for tomorrow.

Sunday Morning Contemplation

It had occurred to me that Michelangelo’s unfinished Pietá was a good metaphor for a believer striving to be like Christ. Each of his children is a work of art that he painstakingly and lovingly shapes into exactly what he wants. Some develop quickly and take form easily before requiring refinement, while others are tougher to initially sculpt, but then require less refinement. And in the end, we are each a totally different work and we each have a different form and function.

I was actually quite pleased with myself for coming up with this pictorial allegory. I began to wonder, if my life was a piece of art sculpted by God, what would it look like? ….and then I had the humbling realization that I was looking at this from a completely egocentric point of view.. While it’s true - this is a beautiful way to think about it – the focus of the thought is all about me. What is my purpose? What does my statue look like? What is God trying to do in me?

Then I remembered something I had read in 1 Samuel last week: God desires obedience over sacrifice. All God really wants from me, is to just be with him. Everything else is secondary – what I do for him, what I do in this life, where I go, who I meet – none of it is important in the context of eternity. The question is, did I give God my sacrifices and then go on my merry way? Or did I actually stop, listen, and hear what he has to say?

Padova: Secondo Giorno

After all the fun and companionship from the night before, I woke up well-rested and ready get in my daily walking. I said good-bye to Cesaria and headed straight for the bar/gelateria for my cappuccino.

Since it was Sunday, I had my own little “worship” service with Third Day pumping out of my ipod and some reflective prayer time while I enjoyed my foamy goodness. (Really, this is how I should start every day – it bodes quite well.)

Once I was good and ready, I pulled out my city map (in which I had already marked all the free places my shiny, new Padova card would get me into) and plotted out a course. The biggest obstacle for the day was going to be the Scrovegni Chapel. Like the Last Supper only a few people were allowed in at a time, for a limited time, and you were supposed to reserve ahead.

Of course, I had not reserved ahead. But this was a little less popular than the Last Supper and since it’s October, tourism is beginning to wane, so I thought I’d head there first see what I could get, and then work my day around any available time.

Luck was on my side again as the first time slot was only an hour and a half away. There is also an entire museum and multimedia room to learn about the Chapel on-site, so that was more then enough to help me kill the time. I happily paid the 1 EU booking fee and was on my way.

Like all of the really good sights in Italy, I was not allowed to take any pictures – but the frescos were absolutely beautiful and (so I learned) quite ahead of their time. They covered all four walls as well as the ceiling, and like the Sistine Chapel, it tells the life story of Jesus, culminating with the Last Judgment. However, the Scrovegni Chapel begins with the story with Joachim and Anne (Mary’s parents) as well as the life story of Mary. Definitely worth the one euro I paid.

From there I went to numerous other places including the Palazzo della Ragine (a HUGE hall with the biggest horse I’ve ever seen), Caffé Pedrocchi (a museum/patriotic café – kind of), and Padova’s Baptistry. I have no idea what a “baptistry” is by definition, but it was like one additional silo/dome that was technically connected to the Duomo, but you had to enter it separately.

Anyway, it was only one room with a small altar at the front and every wall and ceiling surface had been covered in a fresco – and they were beeeeaaautiful. It was actually quite like Scrovegni Chapel, only someone less famous had done these 70 years later. It too told the story of Jesus’ life as well as several bible stories and pictures of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John - one in each corner. What was unique about the Baptistry though, was the ceiling: In the perfectly shaped dome was a painting of Jesus surrounded (in perfect proportion all the way around) by at least a hundred saints; row after row, spiraling in. It was crazy – all in detail and perfectly spaced. It was something. The whole thing was remarkable.

From there I tried to find one last sight, but discovered it was closed (or the next showing wasn’t for half hour…? I don’t really know – the sign was in Italian and I couldn’t translate), so I headed back to the hostel to collect my things and head for the train station.

I liked Padova: it was richer in art than I anticipated, I very much enjoyed the piazzas and local market, and I had fun with a new friend. Definitely gets my stamp of approval. Now I just have to make it to Venice and figure out the whole “boat system” thing. I’m a little intimidated, but like everything else on this trip, I’ll just take a deep breath and figure it out.

Padua - Primero giorno

After arriving in my new hostel accommodations and meeting my very cool new roomie from Mozambique (more on her later) I pretty much konked out for the night.

The next morning, my roomie and I were pretty much the last ones out of the hostel and I made my way toward the nearest piazza: Prato della Valle. This is where the tram had dropped me off the night before, so I figured, why not start with the one thing that was "familiar" to me?

This piazza was already unlike most others in that not only was it HUGE, but it had a fountain in the middle and a gi-normus ovular walking path. Additionally it touted two walking paths through the oval. For my math-friendly friends out there, imagine two radii: one spanning the shortest distance across the oval, the other the longest.

Only when I arrived, I was surprised to see the serene square transformed into a huge saturday market. And not just your average fruit and local goods market - oh no. This puppy was 85% clothes and shoes. Fruit, plants and housewares only made a minor appearance.

I decided to do one lap (for posterity's sake) and see what the market was all about. But before I finished my final lap - something caught my eye. As I've mentioned to some of you (and perhaps on the blog - I forget) very fine poncho-y, knit-like, wrap-y things are very in here and I saw one with my name on it. And shocker of all shockers - it was only 5 EU! Unheard of!!

It still took me at least 20 minutes of circling through the stand and eyeing all possible opportunities before I finally got the courage to ask the stand owner to pack it up for me. Bolstered by my success, I decided to make another lap - only this time I would actually be shopping.

After my second lap, I saw several possibilities. However, I wasn't ready to buy just yet. I was getting hungry and my feet were starting to ache, so I decided to rest for a few minutes and then take a lunch break. I grabbed a prosciutto and mozzarella toasted panini and wandered down to the next piazza.

There I found St. Anthony's Basillica, which was on my list of "must-sees" so I popped in. I toured the chapel, the museum and this little room of "relics" which included (brace yourselves) St. Anthony's tongue (no - I am not kidding). Turns out one of the reasons he was famous as a saint was for his Holy Spirit inspired sermons (he also performed miracles and became the patron saint of lost items, among others - but that's another story). Anyway, in 1981 they exhumed his body (not sure why...perhaps to move it??) and discovered that his tongue was still intact!! This was seen as remarkable in itself (and quite fitting as he was said to be speaking God's word....) so the church put his lower jaw, his tongue and his larynx on display.

I saw it. It was gross. (Sorry - again, no pics allowed.)

After that I went back to wandering my market. I just couldn't make up my mind, so I bought a local pear and rested under one of the trees in the center of the piazza. Eventually I hoisted myself up and made my final purchase decisions.

Soon after I headed back to my room and was pleased to find my new roomie was also there. She will be attending school in Padua and is looking for housing - the hostel is just temporary. She had some luck, but nothing for sure just yet. I was feeling brave, so I asked if she wanted to have dinner. Sure! She said - but after a nap. This is my kind of girl!!

We both rested a bit, then headed out in search of a ristorante. Neither of us has anything in mind, but were all about something cheap, so we just wandered. Eventually we decided to try Brek's - which kind of reminds me of Zoopa. You wander around the restaurant with a try in your hand and pick up what looks good. Then, based on what is on your tray, you pay that price. Pretty simple and a quick was to get food. We decided to get two things and share, as well as a half carafe of wine. Even though Portuguese is her native language, Cesaria speaks excellent English and we had quite a good dinner.

After that we stumbled upon a little bar and said I had to try Prosceco - her favorite wine from Italy. We clinked glasses and continued our great conversation. The bar tender (I don't think that's what they call them here, but oh well) gave us a refill for free, woo hoo!

With rosy cheeks (well, for me) and slightly tipsy we headed for Guro (??) supposedly the best gelato in town. I ordered the bacio (which means kiss) and told her my gelato story from Genoa (the dude who took my picture). I made her promise to tell me if I end up plastered on billboards everywhere in a gelato campaign.

From there we headed home, satiated and happy. Tomorrow I will really have to get after seeing the sights. I only knocked one off the list today, not very good progress. But it felt good to have a slow day - and I know my feet appreciated the rest!

After tomorrow - next stop Venice!!

Vicenza - A One Street Wonder

Really, I don't have a lot to share here. Vicenza is the site where famous architect Andrea Palladio made his big break in the art world and ended up designing a slew of buildings in this small town. The main drag is named after him and pr't near every building was designed by him. And coming off an exhausting stay in Verona - I was mostly pooped.

The highlight of the city was his last project (and he actually died before it was finished), the Olympic Theatre. It was quite the hulla-ba-loo in its time. It seats about 800 people, but on opening night, over 2,000 people showed up (and waited over 8 hours for the show to begin). The theatre was to act as not only a place for great tragedies and comedies to be performed, but a sort of hall for the scholars as well.

Anyway, all this to say, it was such a big deal they actually voted on what the first performance would be and it was deemed that Oedipus Rex was the perfect choice. As such, an extremely complex set was built for the theatre that included several different optical illusions. The stage represents the entire town of Thebes and appears to be not only life-sized, but also continuous (as in, you can't quite make out where the streets end). I'm not doing a very good job explaining, but I shot a little video - hopefully that will give you a better idea.

Other than the Olympic Theatre, most of the other sights were nothing to write home about (heh). I did enjoy some particularly good gelato (I added the flavor to the sidebar already) and the hostel was significantly better than the one in Verona. After one night though, I was ready to move on. (My feet were killing me - so much touring in a row!)

So I hopped back on the train for the 16 minute ride to the city of Padua (Padova, in italiano) and will be enjoying two whole days here before I finally make it to Venice. Woo hoo!

*Video wouldn't load - will have to try again later!!

My Dogs are Barking

All I do here is walk and eat. Eat and walk. Walk some more. Sit. Then maybe eat again. And more walking. I know that's what sight-seeing basically is: walking, but sheesh! My feet are really getting the rough end of the deal here. I try to remind myself that walking is the best form of exercise, but it's starting to take a toll on my little guys.

So I have developed a strict habit of steeping my poor tootsies in hot water each night before I go to bed. Now, I know that a bidet is technically for cleaning your, ahem, "self," but it just so happens to work perfectly as a foot bath (and with the toilet only a foot away, it's the perfect place to cop a squat* and soak them bad boys) so I'm taking advantage.

Even with my nocturnal ritual, my feet are looking pretty shabby. I've got calluses and bleeding and stripped skin - this picture is from my second night in Italy (when I started my routine). They don't look near as good now. I'm really going to be looking forward to a quality pedicure by the time I come home.

*And no, I don't mean going #2. Just sitting on the toilet like a stool - I do have limits as to what I will share. :)