Our second heavy-coach day had us leaving Florence, bound for Venice. We had been admonished that travel could be dodgy because of a truck exploding which had occurred on the highway before Bologna. Thankfully there was no impact on our travel, but we did have a bird’s eye view of the roadway crater which was caused by the blast. One of our new friends had a social media video of the crash and it was stunning.
Before Venice, we stopped for lunch in Ferrara, a sleepier town than any other we had seen, and one which was quite dependent on bicycles for travel. To reach the main plazas, we passed by a castle once owned and occupied by the Borgias. This was our first castle with a still visible moat, serviced by genuine cobblestone roadways!
One of the squares was dominated by the statute of Girolano Savonarola: a Renaissance era Dominican monk who was quite the town zealot. The unflattering statue makes him look like the Emperor from Star Wars; alas, the rigorous calls for puritanical “renewal” were not well received, and he left this world literally at the end of his rope.
Medieval architecture, filled with modern conveniences. Our arrival was actually too early for lunch, and too late for breakfast. Amit the cycling locals, we found a small pizzeria and ducked in for a quick bite.
All in all, there were few tourists, and a lot of bikes and dogs. Friendly enough, but not attuned to the pace of travelers on a deadline. Nonetheless, with all refueled, it was time for the last leg to Venice.
The initial impression, as we are told we are five minutes away, is shock and disbelief. Our approach looked like a flat, borderline ugly port city (think San Pedro in the late 1960’s. The coach parks in a flat lot, adjacent to a small waterway and dock area.
Unbeknownst to us, the sensory delights were huddled just out of view. First came a ride on a flat barge like boat, over to a docking station, followed by a short walk past the train station. From there, we took the short walk to our hotel, checked in, and then returned to the docks for a water taxi ride and tour, narrated by our tour director.
At the end of the taxi ride, our director ushered us toward Basilica de San Marco, for a quick glimpse of tomorrow’s destination. From there it was a short sweltering walk to our Gondola boat ride. May not have been romantic - the tour groups were broken up into gondola groups, but the initial exploration of the narrow watery inlets and bi-ways proved incredibly special and picturesque.
Hydration, so important in this superheated space!!!
Road weary and sea-sated, we ventured out for dinner, but not very far from our hotel we found Gino’s, right across the walkway from our hotel Hotel Principe. We end the evening relatively early, mindful of the treasures to come on our next full day in Venice.