Venice

June 28, 2021

If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard the expression “trip of a lifetime” … well, you know. I had never been to Venice and I honestly thought it could just be one of those places that I avoid the rest of my life. If any city exemplifies over-tourism, it is Venice. You’ve seen the photos of hordes of people in Piazza San Marco, and huge cruise ships parked right near the lagoon.

But as soon as Italy opened up to EU residents [with negative Covid test and QR code] we booked our flights. How could we possibly miss this opportunity? It’s an easy Malaga-Madrid-Venice flight [around 300€ rt each] and we had a long layover in Madrid – the perfect chance to loiter in the Iberia VIP Lounge long enough to have 2 free meals and steal a few little ponies of wine.

Once in Venice, getting a water taxi from VCE airport to the hotel [130€] took a while to figure out since the place was pretty deserted. We checked into the newly remodeled St. Regis Venice [320k Marriott points for 5 nights.] The hotel is right on the end of the Grand Canal, a short 10 minute walk to the Piazza San Marco.

We had a cocktail on the terrace and went to bed. Next morning, after a stroll, we were greeted with this:

Never mind that this looks like a scene from a post-apocalypse movie, those are not zombies in the background. The first couple of days were pretty much like this but it started to pick up on Friday and the weekend was quite healthy. The best part is that we could walk into almost any restaurant we wanted without a reservation [Al Timon, Osteria Enoteca San Marco] and all the museums had plenty of availability [most are requiring advance booking online now.] The locals were extremely welcoming and friendly. Covid hit Venice with a punch and they are eager for visitors to return.

I don’t need to tell you it’s an absolutely gorgeous city. We spent our time wandering, getting lost. We hit a few museums/ galleries [Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Gallerie dell’Accademia, Palazzo Cavalli-Franchetti] and drank lots of spritzes all over the city. We did not take any gondola rides, but not from a lack of gondoliers. Mostly, the poor guys were all dressed up with nowhere to go because we spent our cash on cocktails and Italian food. Since I was clearly the last person on earth to have visited the city, we got a lot of great recommendations, some of which we actually listened to.

I also became obsessed with all the ways in which the Venetians function in daily life on water. There are no cars, obviously, but everything seems to continue: garbage collection, restaurant supplies, hotel linens, construction materials, it all comes and goes in small boats, through narrow channels, under low bridges built centuries ago.

I don’t know if we’ll ever make it back, but for the sake of the Venetians, I wish them a very busy summer season, cruise ships and all.