Arrivederci Venice

Well the holiday has come to an end and I'm back in Ireland after spending hours travelling - first dragging the bags from the hotel, then wandering about on the water bus, waiting in line to pass through security in the airport (where the woman in front of me turned and said 'You have beautiful eyes') on the airport and then getting back to the car in Dublin. It was late when we got home, but our trip went smoothly. I feel as if we never left Ireland at all and just spent a really long day at the airport. Our last morning in Venice was good, if wet. I fed the pigeons again and our favourite restaurant once more tried to ply us with free drink to thank us for our patronage. Pity neither the Mater or I drink alcohol. Anyway, now that I am home again I can up load my photos of the city on the lagoon, so here they are.

Our view from the hotel. We were on the fourth floor but our room number was 301! This photo was taken on our first day when it was lashing with rain, but of course it doesn't show up on the camera! I would have to have added milk to the rain so you could see it - like in Singing in the Rain. As I didn't do this, you have to take my word for it.
Here is St. Mark's Square on Tuesday when it flooded. The water is partly the rain and partly the high tide, but it is all wet. As you can see people have shed shoes and rolled up trousers to get through the deluge. Some people even had to lug luggage (just saw the connection there!) from the water bus (or vaperetto) terminus all the way through the wet to get to their hotels. Venice is a beautiful city, but I was so cold and wet on Tuesday that I don't think I would have enjoyed the trip so much if the bad weather had kept up. Also, it is very hard trying to hold an umbrella for two while walking down the narrow venetian streets. A mack in a sack will be with me on all future trips.
Here is the Mater outside St. Mark's on Wednesday. That funny thing she appears to be wearing on her head is in fact a street vendors stall in the background.
Here I am striking a pose in the piazza.
Wednesday turned out to be really warm and sunny. St. Mark's Square still flooded at high tide, but it actually was quite nice paddling through it to get to the gondola. This pic was taken from the gondola (aka scary form of transport) as we pulled out of the gondola station. The Mater beside the stone lions that guard St. Mark's Basilica.

The Mater again posing in front of one of the massive doors into St. Marks. Note the beautiful decoration over the door.One of the many beautiful views in the city. This is just one of the little canals that wind through Venice. I took this photo from a bridge on the way to Rialto. Note the gondola.A view of the Grand Canal from Rialto. Think of this as Venice's high street. I would have liked to have spent more time exploring the Rialto market and the streets along the Grand Canal. Here I am feeding the pigeons for the second time. I look very worried, I don't know why. It certainly wasn't because of the birds. It is a pity I didn't get a picture of the pigeons sitting on my shoulder (I so felt like Long John Silver) or when I had them in both hands. There were too girls taking pictures of me with them so maybe I should have asked them for a copy? There were street vendors selling bread to feed the pigeons (think Mary Poppins' bird lady in Italian) and there was a man (he looked like he was in a kilt but I think it was just tartan trousers) sitting on the ground covered in pigeons. He had two birds clasped in his hands and he was throwing them at his friends. This was all in the rain. It is a hard life for a venetian pigeon.

What's Your Superpower?

Today I discovered what my super power was. Everyone has one. Some people can climb walls like a spider or balance on narrow ledges like Lara Croft. Some people can cook beautiful meals and bewitch people with their food. Mine is being able to find my way around places. Ok, so it isn't a very flashy super power, but it is mine. I never realised that it was my super power before because I thought everyone had that ability, but being here in Venice has made me realise that it is a gift only some people pocess. I've heard so many people complaining about how Venice is a maze and not knowing where they are, and I always know where I am and how to get back to places and where I am in relation to the hotel. It used to come in handy when playing computer games too. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I am fabulous at reading maps or that I can give brilliant directions. I'm just good at knowing where I am, so the next time I see someone leaping effortlessly from a boat or singing beautifully I can smile because I know I can do something that they probably can't.

I fed the pigeons in St. Marks Square today. That has been the highlight of Venice for me. I kept some bread from breakfast this morning and as soon as I produced it in the square the pigeons flocked over. I held out my hand and they flew up and perched on it to eat the bread. One big pigeon claimed my hand, pushing the other pigeons off and strutting around on my arm and chest while I reached into the bag to extract more crumbs. He also sat on my shoulder for a while and cooed. I felt like a pirate, it was magic! The majority of the pigeons clustered around my feet and pecked my toes. At one time I had a pigeon in each hand. I loved it. Their feet are warm and rough and their beaks are tickly. I asked the Mater to take a photo of me festooned with birds, but it was very sunny and she isn't used to my camera so none of them came out. I'll just have to feed them again tomorrow. Yeah! I think I'll save two rolls from breakfast.

Walked to Rialto this morning. What a fantasic bridge and what a great view of the Grand Canal. It is some sight. There are loads of shops on the bridge and (for those in the know) it reminded me of a smaller version of Citybridge. I liked the thought of maybe bumping into Hans or Luxur.

Found a shop I would like to take home to Ireland with me. It was full of leather notebooks and other beautiful writing things. I asked the shop keeper if he would ship to Ireland and he said normally no but he would for me (whether he remembers me is another thing) then he said that the Mater and me were Irish angels and gave us free book marks! I was chuffed.

Found a golden lion pendant in another jewellery shop. The shops in Venice are fab - if you are a millionaire. I've been looking for a lion pendant for ages and haven't found any so I was pleased when I saw this one. It was perfect. About the size of a two euro coin with a lions head in relief. 18 carat gold. Venice is the place of the lion, they are everywhere. I expected it to be expensive but not quite as dear as it turned out to be. Five hundred and eighty euro, so no lion pendant for me. Ah well, I'll just have to keep looking.

That's about all for my last full day in Venice. Weather was lovely again today and no flooding of St. Mark's Square, which is a change.

Just One Gondola

The man at the hotel reception told us this morning that he had 2 guests interested in a Gondola ride this afternoon and asked if we would like to join them. Having no sense between us, we agreed. Our companions turned out to be a couple of Australians and were very pleasant. We paddled through the high tide that had flooded St. Mark's Square and trudged down to the Gondolier stand. Thankfully it was dry, warm and sunny today. What a difference it made! The sea was very choppy and I found it really hard to get into the Gondola. It rocked a lot in the water and at times I felt it was going to tip over. Things wouldn't have been so bad if one of the men from Oz hadn't said 'Only one in five capsizes' as we got into the boat. The trip was well worth it and we got a lovely view of Venice, but I was absolutely terrified and very shaken when it was time to get out of the boat (I needed a lot of help getting out. The Australians guys helped me on the dock while the Gondolier shouted at me to get out 'Now lady, now'). I was going to suggest we go to Murano tomorrow but I don't think I'll be up to another boat til Friday. The Mater managed very well and she isn't as spry as I am. We browsed the shops in the afternoon and chilled out in St. Mark's Square for a while. Saw a very large seagull snacking on a pigeon and some pigeons snacking on little girls (or the food they had in their hands). Watched a man proposing to his girlfriend (I knew he was proposing because he went down on one knee). I think she said yes because she cried and hugged him. Saw a newly married couple getting their wedding photos taken. There was an orchestra in the square playing some lovely chamber music. Saw lots of lovely dogs and some nuns eating ice cream.

Sightseeing in the rain

Venice is a lovely city. I don't have any pictures to post because a) it was so wet today I didn't take many pics and b) I don't have my camera connection to the laptop with me. We were served breakfast in our room this morning, which was lovely. Not so lovely was the fact that it was cold and extremely wet. It was raining, but not just some drizzling weakling rain but true heavy rain. We left the hotel and headed out to St. Mark's Square. We had an umbrella from the hotel but I hadn't even brought a cardigan with me! I took my rain coat and cardigans to Madeira and didn't need them once (apart from the Sunday when it was so cold and we had left them in the hotel!) so I deliberately didn't them to Venice and boy do I need them! The square was probably very empty - for St. Mark's square - but there was a very large cue for the church. The Mater and I got totally soaked while we waited. The church was partially flooded so we had to walk over raised wooden boards. The church was magnificent. They had a treasury with some truly amazing chalices and artifacts from as far back as the 1st century (and some things even older). When we finally left the church we found the square was knee deep in water! I couldn't believe it had flooded. We waded into a side street (where it was only ankle deep) and got something to eat in a little restaurant near the hotel. I hoped the weather would clear up in the afternoon, but it continued to rain all day with only short relief from the showers. Apparently it is to continue wet for the rest of the week. It is so disappointing.

Greetings from Venice

Hi everyone, greetings from Venice. As it turns out, the hotel has (limited) internet access. We arrived in Italy this evening. The flight was good and much shorter than I thought it would be. The Mater found it very tiring and was exhausted and near the end of her tether as we walked down to the dock to get the vaperetto into the city. It didn't help that we arrived just as it pulled out from the dock. It costs €12 on the vapertto but we decided not to wait for the next one and went with a water taxi instead, which cost €105. The water taxis are little speed boats and while they are expensive, the drivers are very nice. Three Italian men helped the Mater and me into the taxi. The water was very choppy and was the biggest challenge to my boat phobia to date. I couldn't have got into it if I hadn't already made such big steps with the Monster in New Zealand and Madeira. The first view of Venice all lit up in the dusk was truly magnificant. You see the pictures of the city and you never believe that it really looks like that, but it does. As we reached the city and moved through the canals I was reminded of Tomb Raider and the hours I spent guiding Lara Croft through the narrow canals in a speed boat before jumping out and shooting down some men and dogs! The taxi took us to Campo Della Guerra, which is a dock just a few metres from the Hotel San Zulian's door, however because it was high tide there was a massive jump from the boat down to the dock. He checked with us that this was too big a leap and then took us to another dock that we could actually disembark from and gave us directions to the hotel. We were pulling our bags over the beautiful little bridges and down the narrow streets when a man stopped to see if he could help us with our bags. He had a beer can in his hand and at first I was afraid he was looking for money, but he was not at all pushy and I think he was a genuine good samaratin. I thanked him and said we were fine, but he persisted and because he couldn't speak English, he asked a Gondolier (and yes, they really do wear those stripey shirts and hats!) to give us directions and made sure we were ok getting to the hotel. The hotel is nice, basic but clean and comfortable and a very short from good restaurants and St. Mark's Square. We left our bags and got something to eat. I don't think the Mater likes her first taste of Venice, but I know how hard it is to enjoy things when you are really tired. Things will be better in the morning.

BYE BYE

Oh, by the way, I'm away off out of the country again today, taking my mum on holidays to Venice. It was a Christmas present to her from all the family and I got a sweet deal in being chosen to accompany her. I'm really looking forward to it as I've never been to Venice before and Italy is lovely. I'll take the trusty laptop with me to do some writing if possible, but I don't know if there will be Internet access in the hotel so blogging may be sporadic. I'll be back Friday (late Friday) and if I don't see you before then (to quote Truman) Good Afternoon, Good Evening and Good Night!

I'm Back

Hi all, I'm back in sunny Ireland. Our plane arrived in Gatwick last night at about 10.30. We had a long wait in Gatwick airport and the Monster and I passed the time with making lists (the 32 counties, the 12 apostles, things like that) and then watched Dawn of the Dead (the remake) on the Monster's laptop (which I love and want to steal). Valpot very kindly picked us up at the airport and drove the Monster home. I picked up my car and drove back to Blackrock and arrived home about 1am, then with saying hello to Janna and settling in, I didn't get to bed until 3am so I am tired today! Went for a long walk on the beach with Janna in the evening. It was really warm and sunny and the beach was very sandy (unusual for Blackrock beach which is usually very wet). There were loads of people out on the beach with their kids. Janna and I walked down to the sea and paddled for ages. The sea looked horrible - there were big foaming lumps washing into shore as if someone had put washing up powder in the water - but felt wonderful. I will probably die of some mysterious illness in the next few days for paddling in it. If Dr House sees me, tell him about the polluted water, ok? When we crossed the river it got very deep and Janna was afraid to come after me, so she kept running up and down with the ball in her mouth looking anxious. On the other side the sand was very mucky and as I climbed out of the water I started sinking. I kept on thinking it would level out, but when I sank to my knees I began to wonder if I would continue sinking all the way to my neck. Fighting back panic and an uncontrollable urge to laugh (possibly because it reminded me of a similar instance with Hoofpot and I when I was a child) I said a quick prayer and managed to pull myself out. There were loads of people about and I had my phone with me so I wouldn't have been stuck for help, but the indignity of being pulled out of the mud forced me to try and extricate myself. It was a nice walk, despite the adventures, and possibly a bit much for Janna who collapsed as soon as we got home. I even thought it would have been nice to go swimming in the sea today - what has come over me?

More Photos of Funchal

We spent the day in Funchal today, here are some more photos of what the Monster and I got up to. This is the Marina in Funchal. This was the view from our favourite restaurant on the pier. The town was very busy today - probably because it was Saturday. It was a surprise though because there were other people in our restaurant when we got there! It was a shock, much like the shock when we went down to the hotel gym and pool this morning and found other people there. The Monster and I were outraged! The problem with the restaurant having other people meant that we got a new waiter - a rather bored, surly young man with poor English. However, our very sweet young female waitress happened to be there also and remembered our order and made sure we got the usual.
The Monster striking a pose on the walkway boardering the marina.
This is a restaurant where the tables are on little boats. We never ate there, but I like the concept. Right next door is another restaurant, which is a boat that plays Beatles songs all the time.
We decided to take the cable car that runs from Funchal to the top of Madeira. This is the Monster in the cable car as we zoomed over Funchal. Notice all the red roofs.
At the top of Madeira (or at the cable car anyway) there is a palace and tropical gardens. I don't have the literature with me at the mo, so don't ask me to explain any more than that. This is a thousand year old olive tree in a bed of lavendar that lives in the palace tropical gardens. It also has a granite stone imbedded in its trunk, which it must have grown around as a young tree. Whether it still produces olives, I don't know. Fascinating all the same.There was an exhibit of Africian art at the palace Tropical gardens. Here are some of the birds and animals. They were carved from wood. I really like them.

A view of the tropical gardensAnd another, with a nice red bridge And the Monster showing off in the tropical gardensThey also had an exhibition of geodes and crystals and semi-precious stones. I would have taken more pictures but the lighting was poor and they didn't show up very well. They are amazing though, the forms they can take, and they are so sparkly and pretty. I likes gems.

Funchal

Here are some pics I took of the Monster in Funchal, Madeira's capital. This is a statue of some mermaid creature that resides on the seafront in Funchal. They have a huge marina with a long boardwalk and it is very picturesque. There are loads of little covered bars and eateries dotted along the marina - even a restaurant where the tables are on little boats! The majority of the dishes are fish or meat but there is the occassional italian influence. There were also lots of men fishing from the boardwalk. We watched for a while to see if they caught anything, but no, they didn't (not when we were around anyway).
This is one of the orange flowered trees that can be found on the narrow cobbled streets of Funchal. I don't know what it's called, but it is very pretty. You can see the covered tables of various restaurants in the background. Madeira has been settled for 500 years and once was an important port for ships going to the new world. A lot of Funchal seems to date back to those days as the streets are very narrow, cobbled and wander up and down the mountain in natural fashion. Trees and interesting buildings are dotted along the road.

This is a picture of the blue trees we saw in Funchal. This street led to a main shopping street and was lined by these trees in flower, as well as towers of flowers in bloom. It was lovely to look at. Again, I don't know what this tree is called. Apparently spring (May) is the best time to see Funchal as it is in bloom.

London

Here are some pictures I took of the Monster in London over the weekend.

On the Thames cruise with the houses of parliment and Big Ben in the background. Never knew before that Big Ben (the name is for the bell, not the clock tower) was named after the man who worked on putting the bell into the clocktower. His name was Ben and he was small and round and was (I guess) 'Little Ben' while the workmen knicknamed the bell Big Ben.
The London Eye, as seen from the Thames. Think of it as a giant, very slow Ferris wheel. It cost 75 million pounds to make and is sponsered by British Airways.
Tower Bridge. In the olden days, people could ascend the towers and walk across the upper walkway to cross from one side of the river to the other when the bridge was raised to allow ships through. However, the walkway was home to theives and prostitutes so most people waited the three minutes that it took for the bridge to raise and lower rather than run the gauntlet of the upper walkway. It is now used as a museum.
The Gerkin (big building in the background). A modern marvel of glass and metal, it is now an iconic part of the London skyscape.Westminister as seen from the London Eye.
The Monster at the Apex of the London Eye (the 'flight' on the eye was a bit of a let down. The cruise was much more exciting)Taking pictures of each other on the Gatwick Express, on our way back to the hotel after a long day. The public transport system in London is fantastic. The underground and the trains to and from Gatwick airport are brilliant. We were a little confused by the tube system at first, but once we figured out how it worked, we were flying. It was fantastic (if crowded, hot and a little scary - those escalators are not for the faint hearted!)

I loved London. The buzz, the people, the places. There was so much to see and do, I wish I had a few more days. It was so cool seeing places I had heard so much about - especially Westminister and along the Thames. They are places I have grown up seeing on the tv so I feel like I know them really well and seeing them in the flesh, so to speak, gave them an unreal quality. Went to the Mousetrap on Satruday night. We were a little late because our plane was over an hour delayed and had to enter the stalls through this tiny little door and then down these funny little stairs, so it worked to our advantage in a way. The theatre - St Martin's theatre on West Street - was really lovely and old fashioned with boxes and curtains and everything. Really enjoyed the play and then had a nice meal at a nearby restaurant. Very good price as well. I couldn't believe how many people were in London, especially around Covent Garden. The street was wall to wall thick with mankind. Everytime I went on the underground I thought of Neverwhere and London below. I'm sure some of the tunnels are quite ancient. It is so hot below ground. I didn't look down at the tracks to see how far the fall was because I was sure if I knew, I wouldn't be able to get on the trains. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. London is certainly a place I want to revisit.

Going on Holidays

Hi all. I'm going on holidays with the Monster tomorrow. We're off to London for two nights and then flying to Madera for a week on Monday. I'm really looking forward to getting away. I've never been to Madera or London before and I'm really excited about going on the London Eye and doing all the fun touristy things you can get up to when you are away. I'm going to take a break from writing over the weekend, but I hope to do some while in Madera and I also hope to update the blog while away, but I may not be able to get on line, so don't be surprised if my blogging is sporadic or non existent.

So, ta-ta for now and I hope everyone has a good weekend and a good week. I'll be back on the 12th with lots of news and photos.

BYE!

The King

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