To Venice or Not to Venice

I had a difficult time deciding on whether or not to go to Venice. I’ve always wanted to see the city but have also read a lot about over tourism damaging the city. After some research and talking to our Airbnb host we decided to go for 2 nights during the week. Kuah did some research and found us a great hotel and also reserved a parking spot in a garage not too far from the hotel.

So we made the drive to Venice. When we got there we came across a huge line waiting to get into a garage. Thanks to Kuah, we had reserved a spot in the garage next door and were able to get right in. The ramps up to our floor were super tight so I was glad it was Kuah driving and not me. As we were only staying for a few nights we just brought our backpacks so it was an easy walk to the hotel.

Over the next few days I would see a lot of people schlepping their suitcases across the city. It made me glad that we had packed light and that we had driven rather than taken the train. Maybe we’re becoming smarter travelers in our old age.

We checked into our room and then got some information from the front desk on good places to eat and where to go for a good Gondola ride. As the weather was nice and we were expecting rain the next few days we decided to start with a gondola ride. I loved that our gondola spent most of the time on the small canals where there were fewer gondolas and the water wasn’t as rough. We were also able to see a lot of delivery gondolas and other work gondolas going about their business. All of the canals make the mundane seem interesting.

After the ride we headed back into Venice for lunch. We sat inside by the window and enjoyed a seafood lunch. Kuah started with a seafood plate appetizer and then went onto gnocchi. I got a fish and vegetable dish. All of the food was fine be it was one of the least wow meals we had in Venice.

After sitting in the car, on the gondola and at lunch we were ready to get some walking in. I especially appreciated the smaller streets and alleyways. As it wasn’t the weekend and it was still May nothing was too crowded. I could see where it might not be so enjoyable to walk around in summer when it gets hot and super crowded.

We started off walking and soon came across a Bansky. The best view of it was from a little bridge over a canal. It was a perfect weather to enjoy all of the amazing architecture and the views of the water. We went in to a few shops along the way. One had a fun gondola chocolate fountain so we had to go in. They were giving away free samples which were fun to try but not delicious enough to buy. We continued on and ended up in St. Mark’s Square.

The thing I love most about cities like Venice is just wandering around them and seeing what you bump into. Unfortunately with my foot injury our wandering had to be a little more planned. Still it was an amazing day and I was so glad that we decided to come.

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