It's like NYC but with canals - October 1, 2015

I feel awful even though I know I shouldn't. Venice was on Lou's wish list. It's been a big disappointment for him. He's heard people sing love songs about Venice and he's just not feeling the love. Why, you might ask?

• He doesn't like cities that rely on public transportation.
• He doesn't love crowds.
• It's too touristy.
• The streets aren't marked.
• It's difficult to figure out how to get from here to there.

Our morning started in Mestre at Villa Barbarich. We got directions from that hotel to our hotel in Venice. Elisa, the front des clerk, gave us excellent directions. In a little over an hour we were at Carnival Palace Hotel in the Cannaregio neighborhood of Venice. I picked this boutique hotel because it was in a quiet neighborhood and also because of its proximity to the Jewish ghetto which I was anxious to revisit. (I was first here in 1978 as part of my European backpacking trip.)

We dropped off our overnight bag and immediately headed for the Jewish Museum. We browsed the exhibits while waiting for the synagogue tour. There were some beautiful artifacts.

The tour took us to 3 of the five synagogues in Venice. Two were Ashkenazi and one was the Levatine synagogue. Rather than incorrectly conveying what I learned, here is the website of the museum. http://www.museoebraico.it/english/ghetto.html

The Jews were forced to live in the ghetto for over 300 years. Such a small area for so many people to be locked in! But with over 500 Jews at present, it's a Jewish community that refuses to die. I would highly recommend that anyone, Jewish or not, visit this area.

We walked through Cannaregio and passed several produce stands. Lou was in all his glory.

Look at the size of the figs! And sweet! Why don't our figs grow and taste like these?

Happy Sukkot!

Our next stop was Piazza San Marco. Unfortunately, we got on the vaporetto (water bus) going in the wrong direction so rather than viewing the Grand Canal, we took the long route past the Port of Venice. I hadn't realized the port is so close to the island city.

Crowds and construction highlighted our time in the piazza.

Walking from there to the Rialto Bridge, we stopped at a high-priced trattoria for late lunch/early dinner. Very touristy and over-priced but the food was good. (Tomorrow we hope to eat at a neighborhood place in Cannaregio.) I think Lou's biggest disappointment was the Rialto Bridge. He imagined some photos we could take there. Half the bridge was covered in scaffolding and it appeared that the outer portion of the bridge was completely closed off. I wished there was a way for me to make it up to Lou but of course I couldn't.

Deflated,we decided to take the vaporetto back to the Casino and from there walk back to our hotel. Luckily we have unlimited transit passes because after several minutes other Americans that we were talking to suggested we were at the wrong vaporetto stop. At that point it just seemed easier to walk back to the hotel.

One of the many bridges we passed while walking back to the hotel

Once we were in Cannaregio, we stopped for dessert. Then back to the hotel for an early night.

Tomorrow we'll visit Murano and Burano. Until then, ciao!