THURSDAY, JANUARY 21ST
Still laughing from the specifics of last night, we got ready to take Venice by storm. While there are not necessarily a ton of "must see" items like we had in Rome or Florence, we knew that St. Mark's square and Basilica were two things that could not be missed. And a personal goal for Brandon, one that I am truly disgusted with, to have the pigeons flock to him like the crazy woman in Central Park from Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. I so wish I were kidding, but who am I to crush his highly attainable dream?!
Still laughing from the specifics of last night, we got ready to take Venice by storm. While there are not necessarily a ton of "must see" items like we had in Rome or Florence, we knew that St. Mark's square and Basilica were two things that could not be missed. And a personal goal for Brandon, one that I am truly disgusted with, to have the pigeons flock to him like the crazy woman in Central Park from Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. I so wish I were kidding, but who am I to crush his highly attainable dream?!
The Basilica Di San Marco is beautiful. It is ornate and more flamboyant than any other basilica we have seen in Italy. With more gold and brighter colors visible, it almost looks like something you would find - or what I'm stereotyping in my head to find - in Russia. It just felt much more like a palace presence to me than a true place of worship. I guess one of certain beliefs would argue that they are one in the same though, right?!
We took position in the seats of an outdoor cafe, placed conveniently in front of the basilica and in the most heavily trafficked area of the square. Fully aware of just how touristy we were being, we ordered our drinks and soaked up the surrounding views with no shame whatsoever. Because it was so early in the morning, I ordered a cafe latte. Brandon had some other plans in mind as he plowed full steam ahead with an Italian spritz in addition to his coffee. I guess he needed some liquid courage in preparation for his pigeon encounter. I cannot say I blame him, birds are basically flying rats - terrifying!
After observing the successes and failures of our fellow tourists, I think Brandon was feeling good about his abilities to charm his flying friends. We paid the asinine bill of our 9 euro each coffees, and approached the square's center where Brandon was hopeful to become the main pigeon attraction. What I feel necessary to note here is that, unlike many of the other tourists, Brandon had no food to offer the birds. He was relying on the expertise of his past 15 minute research alone. Ready for greatness, he removed his coat and entered the feathered crowd. While not quite as successful as the others around him - ya know, no food to keep them interested and all - he did manage to draw some attention to himself by getting a couple of pigeons to land on his arm and hover around him. I stand by this being a disgusting and terrifying practice, and I think Brandon's facial expressions in the moment support my opinions...
With that nonsense out of the way, we entered St. Mark's cathedral where we were warned countless times to take NO photos - no cameras, no cell phones or any other form of photographic device, under no circumstances acceptable. At the risk of sounding racist, how does this rule never seem to apply to Asians?! I saw a number of people being scolded, but not a single time was it directed towards the man next to me, who took endless selfies and photos with flash. Truly amazing. I was feeling ballsy by witnessing his rebellion and decided I'd try it, just once. I am one for subtlety, so was not reprimanded in any way. The inside of the basilica is as magnificent as it appears outside, but it did not take us too long to make our way through the interior.
Venice is definitely the coldest location of our entire trip, but the sun was shining without a cloud in the sky today. We walked around the surrounding areas of St. Mark's, taking in the structures and breathtaking views of the water. As we were capturing some shots of our own, Brandon noticed an elderly Asian woman participating in what can only be described as a personal photo shoot with her husband. We watched as she posed and repositioned herself in various ways. What is lost in translation of Brandon's recreation below is that this glamour shot queen was seated immediately to his right, in the same position, taking the exact same shot. Brandon felt strongly that she knew what she was doing, and this was bound to result in one of the best photos of the trip. He is not wrong...
I am happy to report that our hotel is now 2 for 2 in the recommend cuisine department. This place was amazing, truly authentic in every aspect - no menus in English even. Everything was hand written in Italian on a chalk board, which made making our pasta selections both adventurous and mysterious! We both studied our options and decided we were ready to pull the trigger - in truth, I think we both looked for words we recognized and decided to roll with whatever came with it. Brandon chose a gnocchi dish, and myself the seafood tagliatelle. Upon hearing Brandon's selection, our waitress smirked and asked him if he knew what ciuchino meant. When we shamefully answered no, she informed us that he had ordered gnocchi with donkey ragu. Imagine her surprise when we didn't balk at that. It was tender, juicy and tasted like beef. Not at all what I was anticipating! My seafood pasta was equally as unique. I'm not even sure what exactly came in it, but only that it included shrimp and another type of crustacean that was in season at the moment. It was light, yet rich, hearty and with a touch of ocean. I know makes absolutely no sense, but it was just so perfect. Against our better judgment, we skipped dessert - we knew we were likely in for a massive food intake later tonight, but every ounce of my being knows it was probably as stellar as the rest of the meal. I'm kind of kicking myself for being such a pansy....
We had really slacked on the shopping while we've been in Italy, but we had told ourselves prior to arriving that Venice would likely be the spot to get the best of everything - close in proximity to Florence to find some top notch leather, and in the heart of Murano glass country (which is both highly sought after and comes in the form of tiny treasures, easy for traveling with). We knew today was really the last opportunity to find the perfect, pocket sized gifts for our families (ahem, and ourselves.... Like I was leaving Italy without a leather form of something...). When all was said and done, I walked away with a leather backpack purse, Brandon a new leather wallet, and some unique Murano glass pieces as our gifts. I would say we made the best of the available space we have to bring anything back to the States!
By the time we wrapped up the afternoon shopping spree, we were starting to lose daylight and knew we would need to get back and ready for the cicchetti experience quickly. We walked in and dropped off our buys, showered, and were walking out the door in the blink of an eye. We knew how crowded it was the night before, so we made sure to get to Cantinone Gia Schiavi at a decent time to secure position at the bar. The locals were already starting to filter in when we arrived, but we found a perfect spot at the far right end of the bar. From this vantage point, we were able to view the various cicchetti, which are basically a variety of different open face sandwiches - really crostinis, but without the toasted/crunchy element. Because we didn't want to miss out on anything, we pretty much sampled all of them while washing it down with the mini glasses of house wine - un ombra. We were totally embracing the local ways, but ombra, while cheap, does not really satisfy the quantity of wine in which I require in this type of setting. Despite that minor discrepancy, this was truly a regional experience of Venetian culture. Seeing people pop in ever so briefly for a drink (or two) and small bite, the only obvious comparison I can make is to that of happy hour in the U.S. Albeit, a much more controlled/tame version of such.
Because we knew there was a restaurant we wanted to hit up for dinner, we waited as late as we possibly could before making our way to Osteria Enoteca Ai Artisti. This would be the last of the hotel recommended meals, and we had grown accustomed to the exquisite cuisine we had taken part in thus far. To say our expectations were set extremely high would be an understatement...
I do like seafood, but I tend to be particular with it as well. For example, I cannot eat things when I can visibly see their tiny black eyes and insect-like limbs. They are ocean bugs and I can't do it. Even with crab and lobster, while I love the taste, if I can see the full spider-like form of a crab and some sort of scorpion-like thing of a lobster, it's just not going to happen. Knowing Osteria Enoteca Ai Artisti is almost exclusively seafood, I was a little concerned as to what would find its way onto my plate, but we put our trust in the waiter nonetheless. Admittedly, I was not keeping track of each dish like I should have to remember what we had eaten, but I did capture photos of everything, which I hope will do this meal justice.
We were the last of the customers lingering around in the restaurant. We did have a late dinner, but we were also on the verge of overstaying our welcome just to finish the bottle of wine we had ordered as well. We didn't mind that they may have been annoyed - totally worth it!
After having a memorable final dinner in Venice, we were full bellied and happily strolling along when I was stopped in my tracks. There they were, in the same restaurant as the night before, and in the same ridiculous clothes - Bruce and Simone! Bruce was directly in eye sight, so we picked up the pace to pass by the windows and get around the corner before they had a chance to say hello. I'm sure most of this reaction was alcohol induced paranoia, but we were not willing to take any chances.
When we got home, Brandon swears we watched another Wesley Snipes film, but I truly have no recollection of this. I think we discussed it, but ultimately decided it was too late and we needed to sleep. We have a long day of travel tomorrow, and still needed to pack up our belongings in the morning before we check out. What I do remember thinking before we called it a night, "I guess they never made it to Slovenia!"
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