We are in Karlsruhe Germany on Thursday morning Jan 3 and this is a retrospective of the last few days.
Saturday was our guided tour - nice but much a duplication of our walk the day before. New was inside St Mark's Basilica, a boat ride on the Grand Canal through the heart of Venice and a tour of the Doge's palace which was the center of Venice's governing body and leadership.
Sunday, we walked in the food market along the Grand Canal and later had a little food fiasco in front of a panini shop (Mary Lea's sandwich fell apart as she ate it and I dropped a full, opened plastic Coke bottle which behaves like a bomb on impact).
Monday, a natural history museum (5 star except very little English help) and the Friary (a seriously impressive, dark, cold cathedral - see Erin). Mary Lea and I took the girls to the da Vinci museum (partly to pee but also a cool demo of some of his inventions).
Monday, we went the Murano island which is famous for the glass blowing industry. It was a beautiful day and except for the crowds, (Deb & I almost went West Side Story rumble on this Italian jerk), it was delightful.
As you can tell, too much tourism can affect one's mental health. ;-)
Tuesday, Mary Lea and I walked on our own while the Hayhows toured another island famous for lace production. ML & I went to an art museum (P Guggenheim ) which was too crowded to see much. We enjoyed (and urged the Hayhows to visit) a music museum that emphasized the violin and its construction.
Fortunately, the stores were closed or I would have bought Mary Lea a pair of these.
Yesterday, we returned via train. There are some beautiful mountain valleys in Northern Italy. We got in late and were in bed around 1AM.
We may do some things but the weather is cold and wet. The main focus is getting us and our gear back to Colorado.
On Sunday, all six of us travel to Frankfurt together but we have separate flights back. Mary Lea & I fly earlier and direct to Denver so we get in earlier. It will be good to have the Hayhows home again - safe, warm and near.
Unless something extraordinary happens, this my last post. Sorry it was so long but it takes time and there hasn't been much to spare.
Ciao!
Gene
As usual, the getting here was a bit of a grind but no serious delays. In fact, we arrived at the apartment about five minutes after the Hayhows who had traveled from near Innsbruck.
The apartment is comfortable and spacious.
Today, Friday (Dec 28) we mainly just walked around. There is a bit of a dilemma here. The city is beautiful and that draws yours eyes outward and upward.
But there is a lot of dog shit to be avoided and that draws your attention back to Earth. We leave our shoes at the door which is the Hayhow's policy anyway and is an easy rule to follow since our gaze has been often at the ground certain that we won't avoid it all.
And it's chilly. Today was clear and cool and the Sun felt good. The 'streets' are narrow and the buildings are all multi-storied creating a city of shadows in December. So while the Sun feels good there is precious little.
The first picture is from our apartment down onto a small canal. Next is a larger one seen on our walk.
Here is a video of traffic on the Grand Canal. This by far the largest canal in Venice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBA1uXqvmqE
This next one is just for the Hell of it.
We go on a private tour tomorrow morning. Should be fun.
That's it for now.
Ciao
Hi everybody! Well, it looks like we're doing one more trip to Europe in 2012. That's THREE!!
- Ireland in April.
- Germany and France in September.
- Now, Venice in December.
Mary Lea and I fly to Frankfurt and then on to Venice tomorrow the 26th.
Then a water bus to the island of Venice to meet the four Hayhows at the apartment we are sharing. They have been in Austria for a week celebrating Christmas and having fun in the mountains.
I don't know if there is anything to do in Venice but we'll look around and I'll let you know if we do something cool. Apparently, its a lot like Miami.
After a week in Venice, we head to Karlsruhe, where Debbie, Reid, Claire and Erin have lived since July. I think we will focus on getting them ready to return home to Colorado. That is scheduled for Sunday Jan 6. We won't fly the same schedule but with some luck we'll all get home the same day.
More later ...
Monday, we went the Murano island which is famous for the glass blowing industry. It was a beautiful day and except for the crowds, (Deb & I almost went West Side Story rumble on this Italian jerk), it was delightful. 
