After the dissapointment of having the previous weeks trip cancelled due to a National strike in Italy we finally arrived at Liverpool airport on Saturday morning of the 3rd December,whilst waiting in the queue we got talking to a couple and their daughter who had also had their flight from the Isle of Man to Liverpool cancelled the previous day.
During our talk it transpired that they were on their way home to Corfu via Venice and the ferry on the following monday,they live near the hotel Magdelena(think that was it) on the road to Paleokastritsa which runs from Corfu town...maybe some of you living out there know who we mean.
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The flight to Venice Treviso airport left a bit late although the flight was stright forward enough and landed with no hiccups,for those of you who have been to Treviso airport there is no need to tell you how small the place is! having only hand luggage with us we went through passport control to purchase our return bus tickets which were 9 euros each...a word of caution d'ont do what i did and forget to change your money because they will not accept sterling to buy them...doh.
The journey to Venice was fairly pleasant through countryside that reminded us of Belgium with similar style houses although the sky over Venice was very grey and dark.
The bus pulled into the Pizzale Roma, the main bus,car parking and Vaperetto terminus with the Rail station just over the canal... our hotel the Arlecchino was about one minutes walk from here and just off the Grande canal.
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The room we were given 1B on the 3rd floor was something of a mystery to find due to the layout of the building needless to say one of the maids had to show us where it was,a new corridor had been created into what appeared to have been another hotel with a door that would normally be not acceptable in the uk due to its width..we had previously seen it and thought it was a cupboard..lol.
The room turned out to be very nice and comfortable with its own bathroom although it did lack a kettle but we had travelled prepared for that,having put our clothes and other stuff in the requisite places we decided to head of out with cameras in tow to see what Venice had to offer.
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A short walk lead us onto the Grand canal and over the bridge to the train station where we thought we would try to locate the hotel we should have stayed in the week previous needless to say we missed the small and narrow alleyway entrance up to that particular hotel. As we walked along we noticed what appeared to be tables in the centre of the streets but not knowing why or what they were there for and large numbers of people well dressed but wearing the Green style farmers wellingtons!...there was also people walking around with what appeared to be Yellow plastic bags around their feet? all very strange or so it appeared....eventually we arrived at the Rialto bridge which is a large imposing structure that contains shops,we could see the mist beginging to roll in along the canal despite the fact that it was only about 4pm.
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We decided to head back to the hotel along the opposite side of the canal through the narrow alleys and streets following the name signs to the various areas..we were heading for the Piazzle Roma.
After a warm drink and a warm up of feet we heade out again around 6pm ish and decided to head for St Marks square...on the way we passed an area lit with Christmas lights under which were cabin style stalls selling various items. We eventually arrived at the square which was also lit with various lights and Decorations, the temperature had begun to drop and so we decided it was time for food and headed back to the hotel.
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Well we were in Italy and with Kerry not having a liking for things Pasta the next best thing was it had to be a Pizza so we found a place close to the hotel and headed in.
Breakfast the following morning consisted of Cereal, bread rolls,meat,cheese,croisants,youghurt,orange and of course tea and coffee...having filled up we were raring to go once again but first had to head to the Co op near the Vaparetto stop to buy a Hairbrush! yes we had both forgot to bring one..lol..after a trip back to the hotel we had decided to buy a 24 hour ticket for the water bus or Vaparetto which allows you to get on and off as many times as you wish and in any direction and on any route, well worth the 21 euros for 2 people.
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We headed back to St Marks square or San Marco to find the answer to our questions from the previous day..ok those of you who have seen it know what im about to say...yes it was flooded! (something that happens between mid Sept and the end of April the following year)and the tables we saw were actually the walkways for when it floods, in Venice its called Alto-Acuqua or High Tide.
We then realised the reason for the wellies and the Yellow plastic covers people were wearing,strange having been there the night before with no water and here we were now having to cross the square on tables..lol.
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We made good use of the bus tickets and travelled over to Lido where after a 15 minute walk we reached the Beach from where we looked out into the distance knowing Corfu was out that way.
Sunday evening was just as busy if not more so than the previous night and around every corner was a shop of some sort selling everything from food to clothes,the Venetian people it seems think nothing to sitting outside even in the cold talking and having their favourite drink..something that seems alien to us in the uk.
All to soon it was Monday morning and time to go home,we would recomend a visit to Venice to anyone who has not already been and would also recomend a stay at the Arlecchino hotel due to its position being a short walk to not just the bus station but the main Vaparetto stops and the rail station,all in all an enjoyable few days despite the cold.
