day 2 in venice!

one of the things we'd been told about venice (from my pal mckenzi) that it's fun just to wander around. it's an island, so you can't get too terribly lost, and it's not very big. we were really looking forward to not having an agenda, and we couldn't have asked for better weather, or smaller crowds, i think. it was fabulous. 

first there was this very patriotic house...

and a few gondolas... did you know that all the gondolas in venice are painted black, in a nod to a long followed sumptuary law? but they are also all different. 

ryan asked for a piece of this pizza (it has a little bit of cheese, but not too much), and they asked him if he wanted the whole thing. so he said "sure", of course, because why wouldn't you?

that is the pizza of me, and my neighbor. it was a little crowded. this was one of the best pizzas i've had, ever, but it was the worst one in venice. still amazing. i'm just saying. 

and we had some prosecco and a HUGE beer with lunch. 

interior gondola

avatar masks for carnival!!! YES

this is my signature lemon and cherry gelato. it is to die for. plus, it's one euro per scoop. you can't beat that. 

we walked to the southeastern tip of venice, to the more "local" part of the island, so we could see how real venetians live. it's supposed to be less crowded than the more central parts of venice, and it is. 

that is some serious algae. 

a wetro stop. 

ryan liked this statue. i wished there wasn't a fence right in front of it. and i wonder why there is one? were people getting up to ride the lion? i feel that a hidden, electric fence would be more aesthetically pleasing. and less ethically pleasing, i suppose...

ah, close up. she's pretty cool. 

i am leaning over just like the tree in the background. that's my new venetian skirt. pretty awesome. 

the water in venice, due to CENTURIES of pollution, has this pearly, opaque quality to it. it's also a very bright, pale turquoise. it's actually pretty, but i wouldn't want to touch it. 

park at the tip of venezia. 

and of course, when in italy, you must get shots of people's laundry drying... right??

another fountain/statue

this is the bridge of sighs. there is scaffolding all over, but this bridge connected the old prison to the interrogation rooms of the doge. they call it the bridge of sighs because prisoners would often catch their last glimpse of freedom and venice here, and sigh quietly before being returned to prison. there's also a legend that if you ride a gondola under the bridge and kiss your love there at sunset, you will be granted ever lasting joy and bliss. we didn't do that. so if everything falls apart, blame the bridge. 

24 hour clock. nice. 

chocolate shop decked out for easter. you could fit an infant in that egg. 

and just a few edible easter eggs....

another canal, another bridge. 

signature photo, haha! 

we went to a little trattoria that we found after a long stroll. i got this italian cheese sampler for an appetizer, and it was delicious, but there was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much cheese for one person. 

ryan got the mixed, marinated seafood appetizer. 

also wine, of course, because it's so much cheaper than water! 

close up calamari. ewwwww

pasta with mushrooms, truffles and alfredo. delizioso! 

ryan got the prix-fixe meal, which came with spaghetti bologanase, and he said it was fine. 

grilled veggie contorini. i became addicted to grilled zucchini while in venice, and have been eating it all summer. it's not the same here. 

salad. it doesn't look like much, but there's about 9 types of lettuce and aged balsamic, and it's so good. 

ryan's meal. he was a little sad about it; i'm not going to lie. and it looks a little sad, doesn't it? i mean, when he compared it to his seafood, it made him sad, lol. 

even though ryan looks goofy, i love this photo. 

we walked through semi-lit alleys and listened to church bells and the lapping of water in the canals to our little room, full and tired from our 9 mile day!