VENICE IN THE RAIN.
Yup, while praying that the 10 day forecast was wrong, WE4
awoke to the gentle patter of a soft falling rain outside Via Milano 15.
The plan was to meet our Guide Nadia at P.le Roma, rain or
shine at 10AM so after a light breakfast of the deli and fruit bought last
night at PAM sMini-Mart, they trudged off to the bus stop, umbrellas aloft and
parkas cinched. There was plenty of cover
at the bus stop and within 7 minutes they were on the way to meet Nadia, who at
the stroke of 10AM texts “Where Are You?
Rather than to try texting while standing on a bumpy bus,
auto-correct such as it is - no telling what message she would get - he called
her instead. Of course she doesn’t
answer, the call is dropped and WHAM she calls back,
“Where are you?”
“On the bus 3 minutes out”
Was the response.
The bus pulls into the slot for 4L and Chucky immediately
spots Nadia and on stepping off the bus he gets Baci-Baci, Hug-Hug and all
sorts of friendly sounds from Nadia as he makes introductions all around. DL gets the same Baci-Baci, Hug-Hug, and they
trudge off in the mild drizzl to the closest fondamenta and across the bridge
into Venice proper.
Nadia begins to take them on a wild romp up alleys, along
canals stopping every so often to point out or highlight important details,
such as the composition of the alleys, ornamentation, balconies, terraces,
hidden gardens, Chimneys, the methodology of the buildings construction, and on
and on. All the while, the rain is off
and on ‘till Noon, with intermittent patches of blue sky and sun.
Stopping at the Hotel Al Sol, a “Locali Storici
D’Italia” {Historical Place of Italy} and after showing them around a true
19th Century Villa that was converted into a First Class Hotel, she
found a quite spot near the garden to make a very thorough presentation of the
History of Venice. From the Marauding
Hordes that drove the early settlers from the mainland to inhabit the conglomeration
of islands in the marshy water off the coast, eventually expanding them, [she
shows graphics of how the foundations of the islands bases were expanded to
increase the size and to build on that foundation].
The Tempelshifs were impressed with the depth of the information she
was imparting as she embellished each tidbit with more examples, allegory and
such.
Then it was
time to continue the walking part of the tour and it was more alleys, example
of this and reason for that, with a stop in a local pasticceria to treat WE4 to
a pastry and a café. DL SWEARS that the
Italians make the BEST café and who’s to argue?
While in
this cozy little shop Nadia explains that it’s not just a bakery but a meeting
place where everyone stands around the counter or side-bars drinking café and
socializing, which Donna and Dragon Chic have already started to do with some
travelers from Sweden.
And they
were off again, winding in and out of various CAMPO’s, {Small communities, each
with their own well, where everyone still gathers to discuss “Whatever” and
share with each other, and those who may be in need}. Each Campo has it’s own
bell tower used in the past to keep watch over the Campo and communicate host
of information via the ringing of the bells.
The tone and rhythm of the bells could denote certain things such as
deaths, fires, pirates coming, Maria had a Baby {we made that last one up}.
Nadia also explains
why all the alleys wind around following the flow of the canals which are
actually rivers, rather than in a grid, as a deterrent against roaming bandits
and pirates being able to go straight to a particular spot and thus be at the
mercy of the defenders.
Nadia told
Chucky that due to the rainy start, she would stay a little longer, and leave
them at San Marco after taking them to the Giudecca to visit the Bauer Palladio a former
orphanage that has been converted to a 5 Star hotel and Spa under the Bauer
Hotels flag. Once at the Palladio, an
elaborate tour commenced throughout this elaborate property ending in a speed
boat ride [they run a boat with document exchanges to the Bauer Venezia across
the Grand Canal every half hour] right next to San Marco.
Once there,
Nadia gives brief rundown of the days
activities and begs her leave to meet friend and take her mother to the doctors.
Yes, even
Italian Tour Guides have mothers.`
Since WE4
have already done St. Marks, they decide on a little lunch before heading over
to Murano for a little tchotchke shopping.
We'll cover
that little excursion and the Night’s Dinner Drama in Part II of See
Venice Like a Native.
Ciao 4 Now
Uncle Chuck & The
Happy to see Nadia again,
Dragon Lady
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