City of Bridges
May 11, 2013 15:30

Today, almost all of our group went on a day trip to Venice with FlorenceForFun. Looking back on it, I'm glad that we ended up having a somewhat structured trip – as I've learned it's difficult to plan things yourself and account for unexpected events. And as the size of the group increases, the occurrence of these unexpected events certainly increases.

At any rate, FlorenceForFun provided us with bus transportation, a private boat ride through the Grand Canal, a glass blowing demonstration and walking tour. Additionally, we had a seafood lunch and went on a gondola ride.

The Grand Canal Venice May 11, 2013 10:00
Upon arriving in Venice we were taken on a private boat ride down the Grand Canal and into the heart of the city, Piazza San Marco. Although I had seen pictures of Venice prior to this trip, experiencing a city practically built on water is truly incredible.  There really isn't any other way to get around than by boat. For public transportation, you take water taxis. Even on the larger islands (for example...
Glassblowing Venice May 11, 2013 12:00
After the boat ride through the Grand Canal, we were given a glass blowing demonstration. A couple of years ago, there was a Chihuly exhibit over at Phipps Conservatory. The exhibition was really cool, but I honestly could not comprehend how those intricate models were created. Well, today I got a small taste of what happens. It's crazy. Or maybe just the glassmaker that gave us a demo was crazy. I don't...
Fresh Seafood Venice May 11, 2013 13:00
I figured since I probably wouldn't be in Venice again for a while, I better get some seafood. We ended up just picking the first restaurant we found, Restaurant Pizza Da Celio, and it was great. We shared some calamari for an appetizer before our meal. I ended up having a seafood pasta. Everything was really fresh. All-in-all, it was definitely worth it.
Gondola Ride Venice May 11, 2013 14:30
After lunch, we went on a gondola ride. The ride was fantastic. So relaxing. We even got a bottle of champagne to share between the five of us on the gondola.