Venezia Carnivale! what an adventure that was.
So after drinking to much at the Birreria on Wednesday night, I had class 8:45-6 on Thursday. Then came home with enough time to pack, laundry, e-mail. With about 3 hours of sleep, it was off to Venice to catch at 7:00 a.m. train. off to a great start.
Good news, the whole crew made it. 5 of which were boys, so I was impressed! 3 hours later because we pay for the cheap train lol..we arrived. Venice was my first stop when I backpacked through Europe 4 years ago, so it had a special place in my heart. It was just like I remembered it. This time arriving in the sunny midday to see the boats and WATER was so exciting. We checked into our two story hostel, just for us, which was really cool. Then sightseeing the whole day. Off to Doge's Palace, the Basilica di San Marco, and a water taxi ride around the island and down the Grand Canal.
It was a perfect boat ride as the sun set on such a wonderful fake world. It just seems like this place shouldn't exist. Like a Fantasia, or Atlantis. The canals snaked their way through cracks of buildings, under bridges, and in between boats. It was such an exciting atmosphere. The buildings were all heavily leaning and the architectural design was just amazing.
Surprising, there were only small signs of Carnivale on Friday. Tents and stages were being set up, but nothing crazy. We went to dinner at a quiet seafood place. The owner who had three adorable dogs all joined us for dinner. We returned to the hostel, played mind games while we laughed on wine, and then set out around midnight to discover any stirrings of Carnivale. Nothing! lol. But it was so much fun cruising through the empty streets of Venice at night. quiet, beautiful hidden passageways. It was like we were in a giant puzzle. There were some masked figures. Two white masked figures with capes ascended over the bridge in front of us, I jumped on Moses practically. Everyone had a good laugh, but they were freaky! so quiet, and just to see those things, they said nothing and just bowed passed us.
The next morning, Tourism cascaded over Venice. Thousands and thousands of people had poured in overnight and we could barely walk though the street. We left our baggage at the train station because we couldn't book the hostel for Saturday night, so we opted to take the 5 am train instead. haha...
We ran through the afternoon streets again all the way to the main Piazza San Marco. It was a circus. Thousands of people, crowding over the most elaborate costumes. it was like thousands of paparazzi. The costumes of some of the people were unbelievable, my pictures will only do them justice. The colors were so bright and so many. High hats and huge skirts, frilly sleeves and glittery jackets. I truly had a hard time looking at everything. Even seeing the thousands of tourists in masks was amazing. One of the most visually appealing moments ever.
We spent the rest of the afternoon taking a water taxi to Murano, and island of the coast of Venice famous for their hand blown glass. It was a beautiful small island with amazing glass shops. Afterwards, the fun started. We couldn't leave our bags at the station for much longer and we need a place to keep them/possibly stay overnight for a later train. At the advice of some friends, we opted to book a campsite, one I stayed at when I backpacked. It was such a nice camper from years ago I was certain it would be a great choice, Then, we arrived, and we realized we booked a tent. A TENT. lol we had quite a laugh. a cold, zipper, 2 cot tent. HAHA. So we made the best of it, put on our masks, and pregamed in the tent. We locked up our stuff and headed back to the island. The night was young.
There were concerts in many of the small piazzas with drunk people everywhere. SO much fun! noises and colors! We had our bottles of wine in hand so we were ready! We finally reached the Main Piazza in time for an huge Italian concert. They had a great stage set up with a great light display. This band must have been popular because these people were going nuts. We joined a huge conga line and jumped all the way though the crowd, to the front stage! What a happy atmosphere. People were just enjoying life, so much life. Couples dancing together, just looking at each other enjoying it so much. People just happy. Old, young, drunk and in crazy costumes. It was just everyone enjoying themselves and their loved ones and friends. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.
Well we partied until 12:00...lol When everything ended! Come on Venice! We ran to a bar till 1am ish because it was freezing. But then that had to come to an end. I'm not sure about the traditions of Venice, but ending at 12a.m should not be one of them. We were homeless and had to kill 4 hours in the cold. So what else? We huddled in a 7-formation on the corner of a bus stop eating chicken sandwiches. It was so cold. We looked so pathetic. But, extremely funny and memorable. 2am turned to 4am and we headed to the train station, it was open Thank God. Then at 5 a.m. the train looked as if it were going to open. People ran! The train was locked, but that didn't stop people from jumping through the windows to get in the warm cabins. Pretty soon, we were in.
Back to Milan at 8:30am. Back to the dorms at 9:30. Sleep at 11 a.m. whoa...
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