I thought we left for Venice pretty late yesterday morning. Well, we left at noon today. I definitely need to learn how to work with non-early-birds!
Since we have done most of the touristy things, we decided to do some things that the locals might do. For example, we went to the Rialto Market to buy some fresh fruits. By the time we arrived, most shops had closed (around 1 PM), but we managed to still buy some strawberries!
We ate some light lunch and headed towards south of Venice, where the beautiful cathedral we saw from the gondola the other day was located. I think the name was Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute. When we walked in, the organ was playing as well, which made the experience so much better.
But alas, some people had to go to the bathroom really badly, and when you are in a touristy place, it is hard to find one! So once we used the bathroom and reached the center of Venice, we decided to walk to the restaurant we reserved for dinner. Along the way, we stopped by some souvenir shops, food markets, and local churches (once again, like the locals). There was a Vivaldi concert that was being held at a local church, and only if we knew about it beforehand, we would have bought the tickets - what a bummer!
We finally reached our restaurant (which our Airbnb host actually recommended to us). Just like she told us, there was great live music playing which lured a lot of local Venetians to come. The food was amazing (not to mention the portion), but the price was quite reasonable too! What a hidden gem inside a city like Venice.
This was our first time seeing Venice at night. And I think I finally understand why Venice is regarded as a romantic city. It is hard to not fall in love here! On our way back to our Airbnb, however, Karen and I found a Chinese/Korean restaurant. So after eating a huge meal for dinner, we ordered some more at that restaurant (spicy tofu mix) and ate it when we got back. Korean food is too good!
What a fantastic spring break it has been, from Pisa to Cinque Terre and of course, Venice. The ability to travel and do much more than just study during my senior year makes me very happy and grateful that I chose SYA Italy.
