The Flying Adventures of DOUG

Not a very original title, I know, but it's about as pithy as I get after 10pm in Slovenia.

We went on our day trip to Venice yesterday. The city is almost unbelievable. Venice has always had a kind of fairytale quality about it for me; a city on the sea with roads of water seems too fantastic. However, I can assure you, inasmuch as my own senses are to be trusted, that Venice is a real and fascinating place.

First impressions are gained by sea, as you can only reach the town by boat or train. Seeing huge churches decked with statues and great domed palaces rising straight from the water's edge is... really cool (Doug's vocabulary rises to the challenge, as usual). When you land on the seaside plaza and wander into piazza di San Marco, it seems open and sunny and beautiful. Then you step into the real streets of Venice, and immediately everything closes in. It would be so easy to get lost there.

We sang Duo Seraphim in San Marco cathedral/church. The inside is cunfused with archways and domes, all totally covered in gold mosaic. The ceiling glitters with it, and there is a lot of ceiling to cover... Venice was once the trading centre to the East, and was very wealthy.

My mission was to find a piece of Venetian glass and a mask. I tripped around with Michael and the Ameliae (Amelia W and Amelia G) for a while, then we split up, and I went on an adventure with Amelia G to the other side of Venice. We caught a water bus right up to the top of the Grande Canal. The bus was full of flirting adolescent Italians, and was really fun. From the bus stop we went looking through the less touristy streets for a fabled shop where they made and sold leather masks. Traditional Veneitan masks are made from papier-maché or porcelain for the great Carnivale that happens every February. We never found the leather shop, but walked right around Venice from one side to the other. I bought fresh coconut from a street vendor, and it was delicious. There were fresh fruit and vege markets on that side of Venice, and cafés full of locals, rather than the tourist infested, rip-off-café side near San Marco.

Eventually I found a mask; it's really cool, and bought a small piece of Venetian glass. So, I'm pretty satisfied. Venice is so strange. It's a city of tiny claustrophobic alleyways between tall buildings, of sinking palaces and garish glass everywhere. I think it's basically just a tourist mecca now, especially at this time of year. Amazing, though. Ah. Queue for internet, impatience is building.