Venice to Dubrovnik

We ran around Venice all day. We purposely got ourselves lost and wandered into where the Venetians really live, which is very different from where the tourists are. There are little local shops where everyone is very friendly and it’s very homey. The amazing thing about the Venetian lagoon and it’s over 100 islands is that everything needed for life has to be either brought in or taken out by boat. Today we saw garbage trucks, ambulances, police, fire and postal services, all by boat. It just amazes me. Nothing happens that does not involve water. We again made use of our vaporetto passes and took many vaporettos. Saint Mark’s Square was inundated with toursits from all over the world and just as many pidgeons. There were large groups of tourists from Asia scurrying around snapping incessant photos. It seems as though the whole world was there. The back streets and alleys were quieter. It was warm and overcast which gave the back streets a mysterious quality which was fascinating and eerie at the same time. I loved it. We went to the Jewish Ghetto which was the first ever. The word ghetto is Italian. The streets were narrow and claustrophobic and the buildings were and still are the tallest in Venice. There is a central piazza with a Holocaust memorial, and old age home which still has residents, five synagogues and kosher restaurants and bakeries and a hotel. It seems that the area is now thriving and people of many cultures live there. I was glad to see that. As many times as I have been to Venice, I always find something new to see and something to impress me. It is a marvelous place with It’s own special ambience and I hope a way is found to stop the place from sinking and to save those most extraordinary and magnificent palaces and residences. After many years of decline, the population is once again on the rise. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and hopefully someone will figure out a way to save it.
After returning to the ship and watching from the deck as we sailed down the Grand Canal (a most magnificent experience on it’s own) we relaxed for the rest of the afternoon. This trip is pretty frenetic. We are in perpetual motion and we needed a break for a few hours. The cruise is very port-intensive and we are off in a million directions everyday. Tomorrow it’s an early arrival into Dubrovnik. It’s raining right now and the Adriatic Sea is a little rough but all is well and no one is seasick. The waves are banging against the side of the ship and we nearly got blown away on our after dinner stroll on the promenade deck. The weather is supposed to clear tomorrow and be perfect for touring. We have never been to Dubrovnik, another World Heritage Site. I am eagerly awaiting this port stop.