Venice

Venice was never on the top ten list of places in the world I wanted to visit. It seemed too touristy and crowded, too cliche. But we were looking for something to do on the long Pentecost holiday weekend in Germany, and we just happened to come across cheap tickets to Venice. The plane ride is only an hour long, so... oh heck, why not?
I was prepared to find a bunch of pushy, theatrical, Italian salespeople on top of thousands of wealthy northern Europeans and Asian tourists with big cameras, fanny packs, and sun hats - a kind of Disney World atmosphere. As usual, all of my expectations turned out to be misled. Most of the tourists were Italians. The restaurateurs and shop keepers were reserved and pleasant to interact with. Though there were a lot of people there, we managed to spend much of our time walking down empty alleys between buildings that led to little plazas where five or six streets converged. There was a peacefulness I didn't expect to find, and sometimes even an eerie emptiness. Luckily Alfredo knew where we were at all times. His sense of direction was uncanny as we navigated through winding streets that changed names every block, and many of which dead ended abruptly in to water or brick walls. According to the guide book, even locals get turned around regularly.
Highlights of the trip included a three-hour lunch at a great restaurant just north of Saint Mark's Square. Four delicious courses and one bottle of wine later, we went happily on our way, stumbling around the sunny, narrow streets. Of course, Alfredo still had no problem navigating.
Highlight #2: attending mass at Saint Mark's Basilica. It was beautiful (the mass and the basilica). Unfortunately photography is prohibited inside, but my camera "accidentally" turned itself on while resting casually in my lap, so I have a movie of the basilica ceiling with a beautiful chorus in the background... (see it here in our trip photos)
Highlight #3: getting up at the crack of dawn to enjoy a sunrise breakfast on the other side of the island. It was a glorious morning, and we took a boat down the grand canal. The photos show just how excited Alfredo was to be awake at that time of day, though he later admitted that it was nice.
The entire trip was fabulous. And now we've been home for barely long enough to digest that experience before we head off to explore the Norwegian fjords...tonight!