Pisa, Lucca and Venice

Friday:

This was a long and adventurous weekend. On Friday, with school, I was fortunate enough to have traveled to Pisa and Lucca. Pisa is a very small town and people only really go there to visit the Leaning Tower. Of course, my friends and I took basic pictures in front but it was also interesting to view and understand how it all works. I recommend watching this video to learn more. It was also beautiful to see the marble structure up against the blue sky. Furthermore, we explored the Pisa Cathedral and the Battistero di San Giovanni. The architecture was amazing. My art history teacher was explaining everything to us which made it so much more interesting.

The next stop was Lucca. Definitely a city I would not have visited without going with school but well worth it. We ate at a Dal Puccini in the beautiful Piazza dell' Anfiteatro. Shanley and I shared a pizza and a salad. We also ordered wine for the table. Never a good idea for lunch. I was ultimately ready for bed at that point. Then went to Gelateria Veneta where I got the flavor tiramisu. We walked around and discovered water traveling through the city. It was beautiful. And the best part was there were no tourists, except really us. Then, we walked to the walls and saw the views of hills that surround the city. So fortunate that the school takes us on these excursions.

Saturday:

Taylor, Shanley, Alex, Troy and I woke up early to take a train to Venice to meet up with Tony, Andrew, Sam and Will. We had a transfer at Bologna and ended up on a commuter train the rest of the way. We visited Venice during Carnival which made it so hectic. Carnival is a two-week celebration that happens before the start of Lent. Many people dress up in costumes and masks for the weeks. For this reason, everyone was coming, we had to stand the whole train ride. Although busy, it was so fun being there during this once in a lifetime opportunity. We toured the streets and took a gondola ride. It was a flat 100 euros including a detour to the Grand Canal. It was Kevin, Noah, Katie, Shanley and I on the boat. We drank some wine and loved it! Well worth it! Then, we made our way to the Piazza San Marco and saw the beautiful church and pier. Such beautiful architecture. We then made our way to the Airbnb on the other side of Venice near the Santa Maria della Salute. There is only one bridge connecting the two sides which were somewhat annoying for walking purposes. We then walked to the Corner Pub near us and grabbed a calzone with ham and cheese. We also grabbed fritoles which are only around during Carnival time! It is a round pastry with white cream inside. Shortly after Andrew, Shanley and Taylor and I walked to the end of the island and took pictures of the sunset near the Santa Maria della Salute. Then, we went to Al Giglio’s for dinner. The prices were somewhat reasonable for the location we were in. I ordered pesto gnocchi! Then we walked to Corner Pub for a Spritz drink. Very tart! A spritz is a classic Venetian aperitif, it's a mix of white wine, Aperol (sweeter) and Select (bitterer) and a squirt of seltz or Sparkling mineral water. After drinks off galavanting, we went! The streets were packed with many drunk people in masks!

Sunday:

Woke up at a reasonable hour to make our 11:30 boat tour. I ordered a cappuccino and a croissant at the corner pub then quickly started making our way to the pier. After walking through crowds of people we missed our 11:30 tour due to people traffic. We ended up figuring out a sufficient plan in order for us to move to the 12:30 tour and where we could still make our train. After asking people a million questions we realized that after the tour they would boat us to the train station! Somehow crazy things have a way of working out. This tour cost 20 euros and was well worth it! The fact that they took us to the train after was even more amazing.

As for the boat tour we stopped at three islands: Murano Burano, Torcello. At Murano, we watched glass making. It was a really cool experience! The professionals make it look easy. I purchased a cork holder. Next, was Burano. This island is home to colored house and famous for lace. I purchased two lace ornaments! Also, bought a rotolo (a rolled sandwich) and caffe gelato, of course! Then we made our way to Torcello where I really should have ate! It was a very small island but the food was seafood which looked amazing. Then, we traveled back to the mainland and off to the train we went! We had a 5:42 train to Bologna and will make it home to Florence around 10:30!

Tips for Traveling to Venice: