Venice, Chioggia, Mantova, and the Whitworths!!
What a great week! A busy week, but a great week. So many things to share!! Most importantly, Abby, Gwen and Amber are in Italy now. This will be the best month ever!
L to R: Scott, Gwen, Me, and Abby :)
Warning: This will be a lengthy blog, with LOTS of photos. Prepare yourself. :)
Monday, Sept. 25th: I rode the train to Venice with our friends, Scott and Jen Anderson (from Idaho Falls). We weren't sure if things would be open on a Monday, because Italy tends to close a lot of things on Mondays. But, after some online research, we felt good about things still being open in Venice, so off we went.
Walking into the Vicenza train station, after Scott dropped us off on his way to work.
In the map below: (click to enlarge photo)
Santa Lucia Train Station (circled in blue)
Rialto Bridge (circled in red)
St. Mark's Square (circled in purple)
When Jake and Hannah came to visit us in May, we walked around almost the entire fish-shaped Venice in 6 hours. The only area we didn't explore was the lower left portion, where the mouth of the fish would be. This time, with the Andersons, we walked a more direct route to these two areas (Rialto Bridge & St. Mark's) and then back to the train station.
So what else did we do in our 5 hours that day?
We browsed . . .
We took photos of the gondoliers and their passengers . . .
Video of the mini orchestra that rotates around the square: (35 seconds)
In the half-dozen or so times that I've been to Venice, there is always a very long line of people waiting to get into the Doge Palace and Basilica. We've either been too pressed for time to get into that long line, or there is someone in our group who does not have the patience to stand and wait. So even though I have always wanted to go in, I've never actually been inside. Until this day.
Jen and Scott suggested that we at least get in the line and try, with the idea that "let's just see how long it takes us to move forward to the corner of the building up there . . ." With their patience and willingness to see it through, we did it! It took about 45 minutes to get from the back of the line to the entrance, which went by pretty fast. And it was only 3 euros to enter!
My 13th great grandfather was Nicholas Lanier (I believe that because he was French, it would have been pronounced more like "lan-yer" or "la-nyey"). He married Lucretia (or Lucreece) Bassano. The Bassanos were musicians, both in playing the instruments and also in making them.
Jeronimo Bassano was Lucretia Bassano's grandfather, and my 15th great grandfather. He was born in approximately 1481 in or near Bassano del Grappa. Here is a little blurb from Wikipedia:
"Jeronimo Bassano was an Italian musician in the Republic of Venice who is notable as the patriarch of a family of musicians: five of his sons, Anthony, Alvise, Jasper, John (Giovanni), and Baptista Bassano, moved from Venice to England to serve in the court of King Henry VIII. They performed as a recorder consort.
"Jacomo Bassano was his only son to keep his primary residence in Venice. Jeronimo Bassano never moved, and he was listed in Venice as a "Maestro of the trumpets and shawms." He is believed to be the maternal grandfather of composer Giovanni Bassano.[1]
"Jeronimo was the son of Baptista "Piva" of Bassano del Grappa, a town 35 miles from Venice. Baptista was a musician who played the piva, a small bagpipe. He was the son of Andrea de Crespano, who was from the village of Crespano, about nine miles east of Bassano. Andrea, Baptista, and Jeronimo were all described as musicians and musical instrument makers.[2]
"At the beginning of the 16th century, Jeronimo moved from Bassano to Venice, where he was described as "Maestro Hieronimo", a piffero player to the Doge of Venice between 1506 and 1512."
The Bassanos were famous for many generations as they performed for royalty and in many other notable settings. Jeronimo's son, Anthony, was Lucretia's father, and my 14th great grandfather. And let me also add, that Doge means "Duke" or "chief magistrate". It is pronounced like "dozh", or like the last part of the word "garage". (I have been accidentally pronouncing it "doh-jee" this whole time . . . )
Back to our tour . . .
I tried to capture different elements of the Palace and Basilica, with a variety of textures and aesthetics, because I don't know to what extent I'll be able to go inside again. It just depends on who I'm with and what the circumstances allow for.
All of the gold that you see in the photos below are made up of tiny little gold mosaic tiles. Unbelievable.
The mosaic tiles on the floor were masterful, and you had to remember to look down almost as often as you look up.
Upstairs, it was sort of a museum with art that had been uncovered, discovered, and recovered in some form or another over the years. I will share a few of my favorites here, but I will also include a link to the entire photo album from the Doge Palace, if you have more time and want to see more.
Link to photo album:
John the Baptist, as he receives the "vestments from the angel" . . . (14th century mosaic)
This was the most joyful thing I saw during the entire day, hands down.
Other notable items included these beautiful old tapestries, depicting several scenes leading up to the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ and His subsequent Resurrection. Ten in all, they were woven from wool in the 15th century.
Approx. 2nd century AD
That concluded our tour of the Basilica and Doge Palace. Our heads were spinning and our tummies were growling at this point, ha ha. We walked briefly out to the water's edge so they could see the beauty of the marina area, before we went in search of food.
There are so many beautiful people walking around Venice, many of them just naturally wanting to look good, but many with plans for a few strategic photo ops as well.
Looking south from the Doge Palace and harbor . . .
Success! Pizza and calzones . . . yum!
L to R: Scott A., Scott H., Me, and Jen
After dinner, we hopped on the bus to go walk around downtown for a little bit. We ran into our good friend, Nell Zeitzman, who joined our evening stroll. She was a wealth of knowledge and filled in a lot of background info for us, as to what we were seeing. She even took us over to the San Michele Bridge of Vicenza, which was just a short walk from the main Piazza. First, we walked across it, and then she brought us around the block so we could see the beautiful bridge from afar, along with its reflection in the canal below. How lovely.
We basically did a repeat of what Scott and I did last Saturday in Chioggia: Go on a boat tour, visit the Ponte Vigo Bridge, walk around, and find some lunch before heading to Sottomarina and hitting the beach. The one thing we added that was new this time was visiting the fish market, which was lively and fun.
On a quiet Monday morning, there were only about 6 of us tourists that wanted the boat tour at 10:00 a.m., so they put us on their smaller boat, which was still fun.
It was sunny and warm and gorgeous at 10 a.m. If anyone needs some stress relief, this is your place. Come on over and I'll take you to Chioggia. (kee-YOH-ja)
After the cruise, it was time for some pictures on the Ponte Vigo Bridge . . .
Video #2 inside the fish market: (31 seconds)
Next time I come to the fish market, I plan to bring my new insulated lunch box with a few gel-filled freezer bricks to keep the items fresh until I get home. I love seafood so much, and I need to learn how to work with it and make meals out of some of the exotic fish varieties. Not so much of the eel though . . . no thanks.
We found a great place for lunch on the main street, Corso del Popolo. It was called, Al Ciketo. (Al chee-KETT-toh) The prices were very reasonable and they had some nice seafood options.
After lunch, we drove over to Sottomarina, adjacent to Chioggia and connected by a bridge. We went to the same beach where Scott and I went last Saturday, at the northern tip of the island.
A lady was slowly wading in the water close to the beach, bending over occasionally to pick something up that was white in color. I went out to investigate, and found that there were several white clams right there in the shallows. I also found a larger shell to bring home.
I gently sloshed my way over to the lady, who looked incredibly tan for someone her age (maybe 60s?), so that I could ask her if she wanted the 3 clams that I found. She was very grateful as she accepted my little gift. She added them to her bag on the beach, which was quite full already. (maybe a gallon of clams or so)
I asked her in my limited Italian if these were "per la cocina", which means "for the kitchen". (la cocina = la koh-CHEE-nah) She said, yes, and that they were delicious over spaghetti!! How fun.
All too soon, it was time to leave the beach and start the drive home. We were in a little bit of a time crunch because I wanted to take Jen and Scott to see one more thing before they left in the morning, and the last showing was at 4:30 p.m. in Vicenza.
We got home with just enough minutes to freshen up, hang up some laundry to dry, and drive across town with my Scott, after he got home from work. He dropped us off at the Olympic Theater (Teatro Olimpico) while he looked for a place to park. As we bought our tickets, we learned that my Scott could get in for free with his military ID card. It's only for the service member, and not for any other family members, but that's okay. It was just 9 euros (each) for the rest of us.
The Olympic Theater was built in 1580 by Andrea Palladio. He designed it and then it ended up being his last great work. He died before it was completed, so another architect finished up what Palladio began.
It is the oldest continuously used stage set in the world.
I first toured the Olympic Theater last November, as part of my Benvenuti Class (Welcome to Italy), meant for spouses and family members of the soldier that has been assigned to Vicenza. I will provide a link to the blog post from November 2022, since it provides greater details about the theater, and also so I don't just repeat things that I've already shared. :)
The reason why I wanted to squeeze in this special tour with the Andersons is because they are HUGELY into theater and musicals as a family. They often audition with their kids for local productions, and their daughter is now a drama teacher for a local high school. Scott A. even recently designed and crafted a large stage set for the high school's Little Theater.
They marveled in awe to see the theater in person before they left Vicenza. We had the pleasure of seeing the 10-minute lights and sound show together, which showcases all of their lighting combinations and capabilities throughout the massive theater. Very impressive.
For dinner, we ordered through GLOVO, the European version of Door Dash. The young adults that do all the deliveries typically travel by E-bike or electric scooters so they can zip around town faster. We ordered from a Kebab place across town, and it arrived in about 30 minutes. We ate upstairs on the roof and then played card games up there until bedtime.
Wednesday, Sept. 27th: Scott drove them to the train station at 7:00 a.m. so they could make it over to Cinque Terre by lunchtime. Their friends from Boise were already there, and now they will all travel together for the rest of their Italian tour. They will be seeing Sorrento (way down south), the island of Capri, Naples, and Rome, before they fly back to the States. They began their trip in Amsterdam for a few days before they flew into Venice and spent some time with us here. Scott A. served his mission in Amsterdam many years ago, so he was happy to go back for a visit.
While they headed off to Cinque Terre on the train, I got ready for a field trip with my "Wednesdays in Italy" ladies group. We went to a new place where none of us has ever been before: Mantova. On a map, it is seen as either Mantua or Mantova, sort of like the nearby city of Padova (also seen as Padua).
Mantova is roughly 1 hour SW of Vicenza. It has a long history, dating back to approximately 2,000 BC. For the history buffs out there, check it out on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantua
Our purpose in coming to Mantua/Mantova was to visit the Palazzo Ducale, or Duke's Palace. It is situated next to 3 man-made lakes, which are quite large. You can see the massive Palace in the photo below. (click photo to enlarge)
Video of the first main room we saw: (16 seconds)
I was drawn to these early 16th century shoes on display in another room. Somebody's ancestors wore these shoes, and I'm sure there are some fascinating stories they could tell.
Every hallway, every room, every alcove was just exquisite.
This is where we learned that in the courtyard below, a British film crew was preparing the set for a scene in an upcoming movie. Several of us had our noses pressed up against the Palace windows to watch them and/or record what they were doing, ha ha.
The Apartment of the Empress, created in 1778 for Beatrice, the wife of Ferdinando of Austria . . .
L to R: Caroline, Katie in the back, Me in the front, Andrea, and Rachel
On the way out of the Palace, there was a long hallway of quotes - basically reviews - from famous visitors to this place over the centuries. I liked this one. "This is a wonderful city, it would be worth traveling a thousand miles to see it." (Torquato Tasso, 1586)
Next door to the main entrance of the Palace is an Archaelogical Museum. I was pretty overloaded already from everything in the Palace, but 3 things jumped out at me.
1) A fascinating explanation of funeral practices in Mantua/Mantova. (click to enlarge photo to read)
2) Found in a local grave: A necklace and pendant w/ a cameo depicting the Goddess Minerva. (second half of the third century AD)
(More info in the photo below - click to enlarge)
Finally, we made it outside into the fresh air to clear our PACKED heads, ha ha. Maybe you need a break, too. Let's just take a little walk together across the piazza and into old town Mantova.
Video of an artisan preparing some ravioli with a dollop of squash inside each one: (18 seconds)
I laughed out loud when I read this little bit . . .
What a day!! What a whirlwind THREE days. I'm so grateful for the opportuity I had to see and do all that I saw and did. I am sure learning a LOT!! If I could go back and start college all over again, I think I would choose to be a history major. :)
Thursday and Friday: Not much happened, and THANK GOODNESS, ha ha. I washed the bedding, worked on my blog, went to the gym, worked on my blog, did some menu planning, worked on my blog, watched America's Got Talent with Scott, slept, and worked on my blog . . .
Scott also put together a cute nightstand table for the girls' room upstairs while I worked on my blog on Friday.
Saturday, September 30th: Guess who finally arrived!!
Video of our guests pulling into the courtyard: (37 seconds)
I had to wait back at home while Scott picked them up in Venice, because they needed enough space in the car to put all their stuff, ha ha. I kept busy by cleaning and getting a few last minute groceries . . . They landed at about 11 a.m., about an hour behind schedule. There was a delay as they tried to leave Toronto the night before.
Turns out, Gwen got the most sleep on the flight over to Italy. Abby slept a little here and there, and Amber got even less. Amber took a nap after they all got settled, and Scott and I entertained the girls while she rested and recovered a bit. We took it easy for the rest of the day: we went on a 2 minute walk to a park that we can see from our kitchen window, we made quesadillas for dinner, we watched a session of general conference, and then we waited for hours (literally) for the girls to settle down to sleep. They were so wound up and hyper that it took until after 10 p.m. for them to quiet down . . .
Sunday, October 1st: We headed up the mountain to visit Asiago after a good, hearty breakfast. Asiago is one hour from our house, but it was also the LAST DAY of the season to visit the Gnome Village. The Gnome Village has a giant playground near the entrance, which ALMOST makes it too hard for the children to stop playing in order to start on the trail into the forest to find the gnomes.
Two very cute gnomes named Gwen and Abby . . .
Video of Abby, who found a cool waterfall next to another gnome house: (17 seconds)
Video of us shimmying through two giant rocks to get to the clearing on the other side: (17 seconds)
Video of the love and intricate details that went into this village: (32 seconds)
Next stop in Asiago: Parco Millepini and some pizza from next door. Amber says that the pizza in Italy is A-okay!!
We got home in good time, made all the fixins for a Spud Bar, and had Nell and her husband Mike over to dinner. Nell brought a homemade cake with a mascarpone creamy topping and fresh fruit for a garnish. We watched another session of General Conference after dinner, and even now - at almost 10 p.m., I am waiting for the girls to settle down upstairs and go to sleep . . .
They keep trying to sneak downstairs to grab their shoes so they can go out on the roof, but alas, I have foiled their plans every single time. Amber is fast asleep, so I am the the last guard on duty . . .
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