Water, weather and wandering

Apparently, I should have also included in my 'tally' email the number of Italians who have hit on me. On my final day in Firenze, it was two (one random guy in the area where I was sheltering from torrential rain, one the chef at the place I had lunch). On my first day in Venezia, according to Lisa it was three; I say one and a half. The guy on the train was just making conversation, and the guy who asked us for coffee was hitting on us both. The waiter who brought me a free coffee with a heart drawn in the foam, I accept was attempting a pick up.

Anyway, when I'm not being hit on in Venezia, I am wandering aimlessly. The Venetian labyrinth can be challenging, as streets suddenly hit a canal, or make unexpected turns, meaning neither your direction or arrival time are guaranteed. I have decided to view this as representative of the slow pace of Venetian life, which highlights people watching as a major pastime. For example, in Teatro La Fenice (recently rebuilt in replica after a tragic fire in 1996), the most expensive boxes primarily face the audience, rather than the stage, as the REAL reason one goes to the opera in Venice is to see and be seen. Other Venetian arts, such as amazing glass blowing (mostly done on Murano Island, following fires caused by the practice) and theatrical arts (Carnavale, puppeteering, playing music on wine glasses) all capitalise on the flexibility of Venetian time. You can relax and wander in Venice. If you do anything else, you are CLEARLY a tourist.

The again, most of us ARE tourists in Venice. Only 68,000 actually live in Venice nowadays, compared to 250,000 of 100 years ago, and 70% of the economy depends on tourist trade. Tourist outnumber pigeons, impressive if you've ever seen the vast swarms of birds in Piazza San Marco. And yet, Venice has the worst tourist office I've come across... go figure.

Any 'direction' I've had in Venice has been towards food, churches and glass stores. If one, theoretically, liked Venetian glass, I, I mean THEY could spend a lot of time and money wandering the numerous stores that dot every street. Churches are almost as prolific, many houses artworks by Titian, Tintoretto, Rubens and Veronese.

But the cream on the Catholic cake is clearly the Basilica San Marco. Demonstrating Venezia's early links with the East, it is designed in the style of Greek Catholic churches; in fact a facsimile of the now demolished Church of the Twelve Apostles in Istanbul. St Mark's houses the body of St Mark, stolen by two wily Venetian merchants who smuggled it through Muslim areas under layers of pork! The facade of the church is amazing enough; between the facade and the floor, 60 different types of coloured marble have been used, and four (replica, the originals are inside, protected from weather) horses crowning the church date back over 200 years. But the truly stupendous aspect of the Basilica is inside; every wall and ceiling inch is covered in glass and gold leaf mosaic. This building is enormous, so the scale of this project is stunning. Aside from this, though, my personal favourite is the floor. You may know that, wooden support by wooden support, Venice is sinking. This is evident in the floor of the Basilica, which undulates, resembling a petrification of the lagoon outside. Only sometimes the lagoon isn't just outside; it likes to come inside too. Strong winds frequently cause acqua alta, high water, when the canals overreach their boundaries and join the pedestrians on the streets.

That's another nice thing about Venice; streets are only for pedestrians. There are NO CARS, which is so peaceful. Venice is traversed by foot, or by boat. Add peacefulness to the lapping of the water, always nearby, and you'll relax a little just at the thought. If you're not relaxed enough, try a Venetian beverage. Prosecco is a sparkling white Venetian wine; bellini combines prosecco and peach syrup; sprizze is prosecco, bitters and soda; and sgroppino is prosecco, vodka and lemon sorbet. Delicious!

While several things have happened which could have made Venice pretty stressful, such as mistakes with our hotel booking meaning we only had one bed, and thus having to change hotels; or the torrential rain on our first night herding us back to the safety of our hotel (which sported rude, racist staff and broken facilities), this hasn't resonated through my Venetian experience. It's clear why Venice is such a tourist hub, and has been for hundreds of years; the unique beauty of this place, cushioned in a culture perhaps more tourist orientated, but still fairly well preserved, makes it an absolute must.

Prior to choosing Venice as a destination, I had read an amazing book set in Venice, 'The City of Falling Angels'. Walking around, many things felt familiar. I'm fairly certain I also encountered some of the (local) characters featured i the book, which was exciting. Venice has this fairy tale vibe about it; it really feels like extraordinary tings can happen here. In fact, crossing a bridge I bumped into someone I had met in Milan. I've waded through main public squares, I've had random meetings, I've heard glasses sing symphonies, seen wooden puppets come to life, and I've had two of the most brilliant travel days doing nothing but wandering. Who says life can't be a fairy tale?