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| The Grand Canal at dusk--Venice, Italy, February 26, 2012 |
The girls had a break from school at the end of February, so we decided to take advantage of it by driving to Venice for a couple of days. Even though we had just missed the high Carnival parade and parties, there were still signs of all the festivies that had recently occurred, such as confetti in the streets and parade stands in the square. Of course, there were also plenty of ornate, colorful and not-entirely-uncreepy masks all around the city as well. With our family, though, we mostly wandered through the city, rode vaporettos (water buses), and let the kids spend their saved-up allowance on kitschy souvenirs. Venice has so many picturesque views, little streets, and shops that you can spend hours just getting lost and taking in the city. We even ventured out a bit to the small island of Murano to see the local glass artisans and shop for glass jewelry. The kids loved all of it...until they got tired of walking.
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| St. Mark's square |
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| By the Bridge of Sighs |
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| The front steps of St. Mark's Cathedral |
As I mentioned, the girls loved all the sightseeing, until they got tired of walking. Maisy was a great sport but finally wore down by mid-afternoon Saturday, and a stroller just wasn't feasible with the bridges, steps, and cobblestone. Jason caught me in a moment of frustration with Maisy, who refused to walk or cooperate anymore. Jase is such a good Dad that he finally ended up just carrying her for an hour while she took a much-needed break.
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| "That's it, Mom. I'm done!!" |
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| "I won't even smile for pictures anymore!" |
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| She was much better after a nap. And Dad was MVP for sure. |
No trip to anywhere in Italy is complete without indulging in gelato. My girls always have such a tough time deciding what flavor to get. Below, the girls pose with their friend Tess who joined us on the trip. (She is the same girl who spent Halloween with us in London.) She makes our holidays so much fun! Here's a trip milestone as well: we didn't eat ONCE at McDonald's with the kids.
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The touristy gondolas were everywhere; we were too cheap,
so we passed. We just took vaporettos only. |
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This was a huge candy shop with an incredible display.
I wish you could see the prices and selection better. |
Though we didn't love paying 1.50 Euro everytime we needed a restroom (EACH!!), we did love the melancholy feeling of this old, beautiful place. It feels like a city forgotten in time, and even though we had been there years before, we wanted our kids to experience it firsthand. They couldn't believe that there were so many bridges, boats, birds, and "secret" doors or windows just above the waterline. If we had to rate the success of the trip, we would give it 3 scoops of gelato (out of a possible 3), consisting of stracciatella, pistache, and tiramisu. Ciao Venezia!
