The floating/sinking city

see all photos »

After sharing a couchette on an overnight train from Nice with a man who snored very, very loudly, we arrived in Venice in the early hours of Sunday morning.  We were greeted with the sight of the Grand Canal (Venice's equivalent to George St).  Following a bleary eyed few hours strolling along the beautiful boardwalk next to Piazza San Marco, we checked into Hotel Caneva.  We highly recommed this place to anyone wanting to do Venice on a budget.  It may have been one star, but it was clean and comfortable.  Our room had a beautiful view down a canal and breakfast was ample!

see all photos »

Over the next few days we took in the main sights.  These included San Marco's Basilica (where the body of St.Mark, the apostle, has been buried since the Venetians stole it back from the middle east) and the Palazzo Ducale (or the Doge's (a figure who was somewhere in between King and Prime Minister of the former Republic of St. Mark) Palace).  On Piazza San Marco we also visited the Museo Correr (where all the former magistrates of the Republic used to work).

see all photos »

We walked along numerous canals and over the famous bridges, including the Rialto (which has shops all the way across it) and the Bridge of Sighs (under which they rowed people to prison)........ you didn't know you were going to get a history lesson when you read this did you?!

We had pizza, pasta, pizza, pasta and more pizza....and hot chocolate thick as mud!