Venice – Day 4

12pm
I had a cappuccino and cream-filled croissant at a bar near the supermarket. I got to read the paper while there and read an article about how important theme songs are to shows on tv. It was great because they mentioned so many of the shows I always thought had great theme songs (i.e. Veronica Mars, Gilmore Girls, the OC).

I tried to buy a SIM card for my Vodafone but they needed my passport, pssh. So instead, I found the new Telecom building and sought out their free internet cafe – score! I got to check mail, etc for a whole half hour!

I saw the Bavalo Staircase, but it was all closed off for some reason. At this very second, I am doing an audiotour in La Fenice, a fancy opera house. The auditorium is gorgeous, with a Rococo style to it – lots of fancy gold framework around scenes painted on the walls. The ceiling has several concentric circles of varying shades to give the illusion of a dome. The box seats above are awesome – on either side of the box are huge mirrors that give the illusion of a gallery stretching across the theater, like there’s a long row of boxes rather than just this one. So cool! And so decorative.

5:10pm
I’m currently surrounded by lots of mothers relaxing with their kids. In fact, a family is squeezed right next to me on a bench, literally. Lots of loud kids playing around, adults resting in the shade. God it’s hot today. I feel gross!

Ew, the lady next to me is smoking. Is it too rude to cough and/or get up and move?

I’ll try to hold out and… not breathe or something.

Ok, I lied – I left the bench to drink from the square water fountain, but kids were busy there filling water balloons. Aw.

 
 
8:45pm
I finally made my way into St. Mark’s Basilica around 2:30 with no wait; earlier in the day, the line had been massive. There are signs everywhere saying no photos and lots of people in tank tops were being turned away. I made my way in and walked around with my jaw permanently dropped. This church is stunning, inside and out. There are mosaics covering nearly the whole thing, and gold is definitely the most prominent color. I bought a ticket to the gallery, which was nice because it had some mosaics you could look at closely. But the best thing about it is that it gives you access to the walkway above the church that goes around and outside, facing the square. Nice view, but it was too hot and sunny to stay out too long. So I went back in and stared down at the church interior from above. I even sneakily took a few pictures of this glorious scene. Others did too, since no one was around. Seriously though… sensational! So unbelievably beautiful. I’m not one for art, but this building makes me happy.

Dinner was on the Zattere – on the open water, facing the mainland. I watched the hazy sunset, read Bill Bryson, and indulged in a sausage/pepper/ricotta pizza. Wow I love cheese.