...That's what you get for waking up in Venice!
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| Sun rising over Saint Mark's Basin |
On Friday I boarded the night train with some friends from the program, arriving in Venice at 5:30 AM on Saturday, ready for a full day of celebration. We came just in time to ring in Carnevale, which officially started on Saturday. The Carnevale season started throughout Italy several weeks ago, but the actual celebration started in Venice on Saturday, February 26, and ends on Mardi Gras. During Carnevale in Venice, people dress up in extravagant costumes with elaborate masks and parade through the streets throwing confetti and attend masquerade balls and parties. Venice is already dazzling, but with the excitement of Carnevale all around, the atmosphere is incredible!
However, unlike New York, this city sleeps. When we arrived at 5:30 AM, the city was so dark and eerily quiet. Nobody was around, except for the occasional workers sweeping up confetti from the celebration the night before. Although the usually chaotic St. Mark's Square was oddly quiet, it was great to sit by the Grand Canal and watch the sunrise. We sat right by the water, in front of the gondola docks and waited for the sun to come up, watching as the dark night turned into shades of blue, then purple, pink, and finally the sun came out and lit up St. Mark's Basilica. Although I loved the excitement of the Carnevale celebration, the tranquility of the sunrise was a beautiful and relaxing way to start my marathon day.
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| View of San Marco from the ferry |
After a long coffee break, we began exploring. There's not an overwhelming amount of things to do in Venice, but there's so much to see because everything is so beautiful. Each water-lined ally was more beautiful than the next, and the city is an incredible (and sometimes frustrating) confetti-filled labyrinth of waterways, bridges, alleys, and tiny piazzas. We crossed over the Academia Bridge and stood in the sun at the tip next to the beautiful Santa Maria della Salute church and watched the boats ride through St. Mark's Basin, in awe of the gorgeous Venetian panorama.
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| The island of Burano |
By noon, the Carnevale kickoff was in full swing, with music, costumes, and parades throughout the streets. Katie, my best friend from home who is studying in Seville, Spain this semester, was in Venice for the weekend as well, and despite the absolute chaos in St. Mark's Square, we somehow managed to meet up! After navigating our way through the crowd, we ended up at the water's edge and got our ferry passes to go island-hopping. We went to Murano and Burano, two tiny islands off of San Marco, only about 15 minutes by boat from St. Mark's Square. The boat ride was beautiful. We enjoyed sitting out in the sun and watching the beautiful Venetian coastline and sparkling water. Murano is known for its glass art, so we got to see an incredible glass-blowing demonstration and marveled at the amazing creations in the stores. We then traveled to Burano, which is breathtakingly beautiful. The tiny island is like San Marco shrunk into a mile radius, except the houses are painted in crazy bright colors. It reminded me of the Bahamas, except these houses were bolder and brighter, and no two houses had the same color. A tiny canal ran through the town, and the residents in the colorful houses had brightly-colored boats to match. We just sat on the dock under the sun for awhile, with our feet hanging over the clear, sparkling water. Burano is truly a tiny piece of paradise.
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| Wine fountain in Piazza San Marco |
As the sun went down, we decided to head back toward the mainland and get ready for the official Carnevale kickoff. After a delicious pasta dinner at a little trattoria, we put on the masks we bought and headed with the crowds to Saint Mark's for the kickoff concert. The piazza was absolutely wild! Everyone was wearing crazy masks and costumes, and running around chanting, singing, screaming, and laughing. It was absolute chaos, but it I loved the sheer excitement! My marathon day in Venice was one of my favorite days in Italy so far! I was completely exhausted the next day but the great experience was definitely worth it, and coming home covered head to toe in confetti and glitter made it even better!
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