Treviso, Venice and Parma...Oh how I love Italy. Even the outrageous summer crowds cannot hide Italy's beautiful spirit. And the crowds were really overwhelming in Venice. What were we thinking going to Venice in mid-August??? In spite of it all, Mike, Nathan and Celia enjoyed a quick glance at one of my favorite cities in Europe. We all swore to return in the Fall when the crowds have left.
Before we stopped for lunch in Venice, we went window shopping through the narrow winding alleys. Celia loved the romantic masks of the Carnival...Nathan was fascinated by the models of the medieval soldiers...Mike and Mary were entranced by the Murano glass and the incredible chandeliers. We had lunch in a quiet and very tasty restaurant on a teeny alley near Piazzo San Marco. After lunch, the previously somewhat quiet side streets were packed to the brim. When we finally made our way to the Piazza, we discovered that at least two-thirds of it was covered in water due to the high tides. All of the masses of people were squeezed into the tiny areas left. The church was closed to tourists due to the almost four inches of water lapping at the stairs. This turned a bearable crowd into complete chaos bordering on hysteria...God forbid they get their feet wet! We quickly agreed to skeedaddle out of there to return in a more calm time period! Even the vapretto ride was markedly more chaotic than the mornings water taxi in. We all breathed a sigh of relief when we hit the autostrada out of there!
