Visiting Venice

Venice is beautiful but exhausting. The best way to get around is on foot. The vaporettos and gondolas ply the Grand Canal and will take you close, but you will still walk down narrow alleys and over numerous bridges to reach your next destination. 

St. Mark's Basilica is undoubtedly the most beautiful church I have visited on this trip. The mosaics that cover the ceilings and the marble covering the floors and walls are incredible. No photography is allowed within the church or the museum area where the original four horses are displayed, so I took a few outside only. 

Venice is the city of Tintoretto and Titian and the birth of the republican form of government. This form was considered democratic, but essentially meant government by the aristocracy. 

The election of the Doge, the head of the government, was designed to avoid corruption and influence by any one group of the aristocracy. It supposedly worked well until Napoleon conquered Venice. 

Venice today is supported by tourism. The challenges facing the city are unsustainable tourism, that is, the visitor spending only a few hours visiting St. Mark's Square; the increased flooding of the city due to climate change; and the decreased population because of the high cost of living in Venice. 

We had our last gelato in Venice this afternoon. And it was terrific!