Venice - March 13, 2011
Venice – March 13, 2011: Our last day in Venice (well, really it’s tomorrow, but that’s just to fly out). Some of our group went back to Burano, but others (Jeff and me included) went around to a neighborhood we hadn’t seen (not frequented much by tourists) (Canareggio) and then into the old Jewish ghetto. Iain joined us as well.
Stewart had asked each of us to pick a story to tell with our photos today (besides others we wanted to take). I chose shoes/boots/people walking, standing, getting around by foot. So, there is a collection on Flickr showing my story.
We got off the boat and walked along a canal and took pictures per usual plus those for our “story.” Then into the ghetto. This was a very moving experience. Just being there caused me to cry. But we did learn that that word “ghetto” originated in Venice … was a mispronunciation of the word for metal foundry. And we learned that the Jews were protected in Venice … that the people were first and foremost Venetians in their loyalty.
We took the tour of the ghetto and saw three different synagogues. The guide took us through the history of the area through WWII. Now, only a few Jews live there with the rest dispersed throughout Venice, Lido, etc. There are some bas-reliefs showing the Holocaust. They are hard to look at since they display torture and death.
Here is a link to the synagogues.
Next, we walked all the way back to near the Rialto bridge, where we got on a boat going the wrong direction. We were supposed to meet the rest of our group in St. Marks piazza at a certain time. Taking the boat the wrong direction meant going all the way around Venice, which takes about 45 minutes.
At St. Marks, we toured the Doge’s Palace (including walking through the Bridge of Sighs), into St. Marks itself where we saw the original four horses (since the ones on the outside are copies) and viewed the inside of the cathedral. Jeff and I went up onto the balcony over the square for views and pix.
The whole day had been overcast, but it didn’t start raining until about 3:00 or so. When we were finished with St. Marks, we took the vaporetto back to Lido, worked on some pix, packed, and met the gang around 7:00 to go to Gran Viale one more time. Nice dinner, per usual.
We actually got to bed a little after 10:00, which was about three hours earlier than usual. Up at 6:00 the next morning, water taxi to the airport, then nine-hour flight to JFK, five-hour layover, and two hours to St. Louis. Got to bed around 24 hours after I had gotten up.
A fabulous adventure with wonderful people, who now are my friends. What a treat!
Stewart had asked each of us to pick a story to tell with our photos today (besides others we wanted to take). I chose shoes/boots/people walking, standing, getting around by foot. So, there is a collection on Flickr showing my story.
We got off the boat and walked along a canal and took pictures per usual plus those for our “story.” Then into the ghetto. This was a very moving experience. Just being there caused me to cry. But we did learn that that word “ghetto” originated in Venice … was a mispronunciation of the word for metal foundry. And we learned that the Jews were protected in Venice … that the people were first and foremost Venetians in their loyalty.
We took the tour of the ghetto and saw three different synagogues. The guide took us through the history of the area through WWII. Now, only a few Jews live there with the rest dispersed throughout Venice, Lido, etc. There are some bas-reliefs showing the Holocaust. They are hard to look at since they display torture and death.
Here is a link to the synagogues.
Next, we walked all the way back to near the Rialto bridge, where we got on a boat going the wrong direction. We were supposed to meet the rest of our group in St. Marks piazza at a certain time. Taking the boat the wrong direction meant going all the way around Venice, which takes about 45 minutes.
At St. Marks, we toured the Doge’s Palace (including walking through the Bridge of Sighs), into St. Marks itself where we saw the original four horses (since the ones on the outside are copies) and viewed the inside of the cathedral. Jeff and I went up onto the balcony over the square for views and pix.
The whole day had been overcast, but it didn’t start raining until about 3:00 or so. When we were finished with St. Marks, we took the vaporetto back to Lido, worked on some pix, packed, and met the gang around 7:00 to go to Gran Viale one more time. Nice dinner, per usual.
We actually got to bed a little after 10:00, which was about three hours earlier than usual. Up at 6:00 the next morning, water taxi to the airport, then nine-hour flight to JFK, five-hour layover, and two hours to St. Louis. Got to bed around 24 hours after I had gotten up.
A fabulous adventure with wonderful people, who now are my friends. What a treat!
posted by Bud Hirsch at 10:18 PM
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