In the immortal words of Indiana Jones, I share my deepest emotions upon the subject of The Most Serene Republic of Venice, "Ah, Venice." It is literally the most relaxing/ relaxed city I have ever been in. The weird thing about Venice is how it translates onto the silver screen, it's very photogenic. Don't get me wrong, the city is absolutely spectacular and everyone should see it once, but it looks so much more majestic and regal in films like Casino Royale or The Italian Job.
But back to the topic of Indiana Jones, My roommate and I had the pleasure of finding the church/library from The Last Crusade. How amazing is that. Its cleaner and the Campo di San Barnaba is much less crowded, but the church is actually converted into a library. We knew we wanted to find it weeks before we actually got to Venice, and we were happily surprised when we found out that it was right behind our hotel!
There are a few curiosities about Venezia. There are absolutely no cars, bikes, or vespas. There are no guardrails on any of the roads, so don't text and walk or you will find yourself swimming in a canal. That would definitely not happen in America, too many liabilities. Also, there are almost no native Venetians, people there are either tourists or business owners. If you go to Venice in the winter, bring tall boots, the campo's and piazza's will flood at high tide. They do have sidewalks on stilts for that reason (not a joke), but if you stay on those you could be walking for ten minutes before you make it to the other side of the piazza. One of the fun things is that because there are no cars or bikes of anything, there are really tiny and windy alley, but you can find some of the best shops and restaurants in there. Two things that can be interpreted as con's: first, pigeons. You would not believe the number of pigeons in that city. Second, they're not lying when they say it smells weird. I went in January, I can't imagine what it would smell like in certain parts of the city in the summer heat. No. Gross.
There is no shortage of tourists or of tourist shops. We went to Venice and saw the opening night of Carnevale, nothing too special as it was the first night, but masks are a necessity. Shop around for masks, you can find them at really good prices, I bought one to wear that was 2.50 euro, then one to keep that is hand painted and says "Venezia" on it for about 15 euro. Don't buy from the first shop you see, shop around and find the best one, the shops that don't allow you to take photos of the masks are usually the best. Do not buy anything in the Piazza San Marco. Don't do it.
I can say with all honesty that I liked Venice more than any other place I have ever been-- except Rome.
