I can't say that we got a good
night of sleep. Unfortunately the bed was as hard as a rock and and the blanket
as thin as a sheet. We both had a pretty sleepless night. On a brighter note
the breakfast as absolutely fantastic. They had asked us what time we wanted to
eat and we had told them 9am. So around 9:10 we went out to the
patio and they had a huge box set up for us. We went through it and set
everything on the table. It was all still very warm. We had eggs, cheese,
yogurt, a whole basket of assorted baked goods, cereal, milk, OJ, meat and then
some warm cakes. It was all so very delicious. It was made better by the
charming atmosphere the B&B offered with the quiet countryside view. What a
lovely way to start the day. There was one thing I had never had before but
LOVED. It was like a sweet corn muffin on the bottom and on the top there was a
think layer of almost a maple syrup like paste. It was like a really delicious
pancake. Oh my word it was so good and I wish I could have eaten it all but I
was already to full when I discovered it. After breakfast we got our things
together, packed up the car and checked out. Again the owner was kind enough to
allow us to leave our car there. When we asked how to use the bus system she
told us to walk in one direction till we saw the bus stop and then take bus 23.
Then to get off at a certain place. I was a little nervous about our journey
but I was determined to go see the famous balcony of Juliet. So when the bus
came we got on blindly. I had taken a picture of the city bus stops for that
line on my phone and used that to help me navigate what direction we were
going. Although I quickly figured out that not all stops were listed and that
we would have to guess when we came to the street she told us to get off at.
Luckily, I was able to use the map she had given us of Verona to find street
names and make a good guess that we had come to the right place. After getting
off the bus we had another mini freak out when Mike couldn't remember where he
had put his money belt. He thought it was in my book bag but it was not. We had
to hope it was in his book bag and carry on. Thankfully, there were signs for
"casa di Guilet" and we followed those to find the famous balcony. On
our way we passed through the coolest market selling the best looking food and
sweetest smelling fruit cups I'd ever seen. We both wished we were hungry
enough to get something, but we were still stuffed. Once we got to Juliet's
house I took some pictures, went and stood on the balcony and rubbed the
statues breast for continued good luck in love. I was a little put off that it
was all made up to attract tourist and had nothing to do with the real Juliet,
but I knew that going in I guess. It just bothered me even more to be there and
know it was all fake and a way to make money. Anyways, after that we headed
back to catch the bus. We looked at some street vendor stands as we walked and
enjoyed the atmosphere. When we got to the bus stop I was a little apprehensive
about getting back. I knew it would take us outside the main city center and if
we got stuck it would be hard to find a taxi. When I got on the bus I asked the
driver if he stopped at the bus stop where we got on, as it was not listed on
the list of bus stops. He didn't speak English but he seemed confused by the
name. He was very kind though and stopped the bus and looked at my picture. Then
he got out his book of what seemed to be city bus stops. This whole process
took about 3 min. Which, while on a crowded city bus with everyone's eyes on
you felt like an eternity. The bus driver tried speaking to me in Italian, but
the only words I understood were the ones he spoke in English, "I don't
understand you." I was about to get off and go get a taxi but thankfully a
nice gentleman on the bus who spoke English asked Mike where he was
trying to go. Mike explained the situation and he told us we were on the right
bus. Another women who understood English but could not speak it nodded and
agreed that we would stop where we needed. I finally gave up and hoped for the
best. Mike was encouraging on the way back and said he recognized a lot of the
landmarks. As we got closer I finally knew where we were and we got off at the
right stop. I have to admit that we never paid for either of our bus rides. The
bus system was confusing and all in Italian. I tried to give the driver cash to
cover our fair but he waved his hand and gestured not to worry about it. I was
very glad we had two very kind, sympathetic bus driver. I once again thought of
how hard it must be for people who don't speak English to live in America.
Thankfully we found Mikes money belt in his book bag, got the GPS set up and
headed out of town. Once we were on the freeway I had to turn off the GPS and
use my pictures from the iPad to get us to the airport.
It was a lot easier
this time since there were so many signs for the airport. (airoporto) We
stopped at the gas station across the street from the car drop off to fill up
the tank. No gas stations will take our cards because they aren't European and
don't have the chip inside them. So we had to pay cash. It took us forever to
figure out how to do it. A kind young man who worked there came and helped us
figure it out. You had to put how much money you wanted to spend in gas then it
would pump that amount of gas. We were able to guess and check and get a full
tank of gas without wasting any money. When we went to check the car in we told
them about the nightmare we had had with the GPS. They apologized and sent us
to the main desk inside the airport where we could get a refund. That was nice
because it saved us almost $100. Sweet!! We also were able to pickup our
tickets for the water boat that would take us to Venice. We walked to the dock
and got there at the perfect time as the boat we needed was docked and ready to
board. The only downside was the horrible heat and humidity and the windows only
provided minimal relief. It was a long 1 hour and 15 min boat ride in that
heat. We listened to more of our book which helped to pass the time. When we
arrived at San Zacharria we used the map to make our best guess at finding the
hotel. I had forgotten there would be bridges and we would have to carry our
suitcases up them. Mike was a champ and carried mine since it was so heavy and
I took his. When we finally found the hotel I breathed a sigh of relief. Our
room was lovely, the bathroom was gorgeous. It was even decorated with a very
accurate picture of a women completely naked.... Completely. Lol. Mike quickly
covered it with the window curtains. Lol. He does not care for all the naked
art work. We had booked a tour for that evening and left the hotel to find the
meeting place. We were able to walk past Saint Marco square and watch the
people and massive amount of birds who wanted to be feed. It was really hard to
figure out if we were going in the right direction because of the way the city
is laid out. When we finally found it I was again relieved. This trip has been
a lot of fun but at times stressful when getting where we need to be. I think
next time we may go with a tour group and see how we like that feel. Maybe if I
had someone else figuring out how to get places for me I would enjoy myself
more. We had dinner at a bar right in front of the meeting place for the tour.
The food was good but I think it was because we hadn't eaten a meal since
breakfast and it was now 6:30. The tour started at 7:00. The first part was a
walking tour of Venice. We didn't really know what to expect for this part and
it was just ok. A lot of walking and a lot of history. None of which I was to
interested in, maybe I shouldn't admit that out loud but not all history intrigues
me, especially when my 11.5 weeks pregnant self has to excerpt physical energy.
I did enjoy seeing parts of Venice I may not have seen otherwise. Especially
those more residential parts. After the walking tour it was time for our
gondola ride. I was excited when Mike and I got the best seat on the boat for a
couple. I saw a few other couples who didn't really get to sit next to each
other. Even though we shared the boat with three other girls it was still very
romantic. The sun was setting as we glided in and out of small canals. We past
restaurants full of people eating and I felt like we were in a parade with how
many eyes were on us. It was a lot of fun and truly very romantic. After the
ride we walked back to the hotel. We stopped a few times for some food. Twice
for a slushy which is my new favorite. Then for a small pizza for Mike. It was
so romantic to just walk through the streets of Venice, holding hands and people
watch. Surely, it was a night I won't forget.
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