... and then there was gelato

So this breakfast thing is kinda great, I made it to breakfast today (two days in a row is a PB for me) or maybe it's just breakfast in Italy where all food is amazing (it's the rule). 

Yesterday we saw Basilica San Marco which was the chapel for the Doge (chief politician) of Venice, we figured if that was his chapel his home must be worth seeing too. Plus I already had a ticket because I went to the museum with the library in it yesterday and the ticket got me into both places. So the Doge's palace was our first stop today, this is the entry way so we were expecting big things. 

yep pretty specky

we saw an exhibition called "treasures of the Mughals and Maharajas" which was mostly shiny sparkly things and very pleasurable to behold, the boys gave up on this pretty quick.

yesterday we saw this view of the Bridge of Sighs

today we were inside looking out.

The Bride of Sighs connects the interrogation rooms of the Doge's Palace to the New Prison (Prigioni Nuove). Criminals, or possibly just citizens would be tried and convicted by official in the Palace, sometimes pretty swiftly it seems, ans then be taken across this bridge to their incarceration/death. The stark contrast between the opulence of the palace and the austerity of the Bridge is like a smack in the face. My companions are looking out at the Grand Canal, as the condemned must have done, but you can't really see much.

The prison area is a maze and huge, lots of tiny cells but the cells and I imagine the conditions would have been unbearable. There is a gallery of prisoner graffiti which ranges from the pornographic to the poetic and the penmanship was so elegant, I wish I could have read what they were writing. Judging by the many portraits of women I'd guess they were writing farewells and dreaming of days spent with their loved ones, these crudely drawn portraits were so poignant to me. Whatever they'd done, if they were truly criminal of not these people were trying to hold on to their memories.

We headed to the Peggy Guggenheim Gallery, and changed our minds on the way there. We elected instead to meander. It seems like a very Venetian thing to wander all the little lanes, crossing quaint bridges and discovering what was around the next corner as you go - all part of the charm of Venice. 

 and then there was gelato 

for lunch

all.the.happiness

this is what the boys prefer to shopping, and Wendy & I are okay with that.

We'd walked about 8 kms by this time of the day, and so is was such a delight to sit in the gently rocking gondola as it glided quietly through the canals. It may be touristy (we do in fact fit that description) but it is also a lovely way to see the buildings you'd otherwise not get to see and the gondoliers are both knowledgeable and proud of their tradition. If you're visiting Venice and can afford it, don't be put off by the cliche - go for a ride in a gondola. I guarantee you will be pleasantly surprised.

and then there was a sucessful 5 o'clock staff meeting