VeneziaIndiana Jones! Marco Polo!The last time I was in Venice I was but a callow youngster, and I only got to spend part of a day there. This time I had a lot of time to get lost and explore.
On the first full day I went straight to San Marco to revisit the basilica. The water was a little high in the morning, extending a few feet past the entrance, but the staff had already set out the walkways, and that was the only experience with acqua alta that I had the whole time. The basilica was, just as I recalled, full of gold and mosaics. This time I also visited the Treasury, made up of items brought to Venice after the Crusades. There are lots of relics (some of the more gruesome relics I’ve seen, including bits of jaw with teeth attached) and reliquaries and chalices.
After the basilica I went next door to the Doge’s Palace and had a look there. The basilica was originally the doge's chapel, if you can believe that. The doge was more of a figurehead in the Venetian Republic, rather than having real power, but the position was still important. The palace has the largest painting on canvas in the world, and other opulent and extravagant decorations. My favorite was the hall with the maps. The palace was also the site of the justice system, so the prisons are connected to and underneath it, and you can pass through the famous Bridge of Sighs, just as prisoners used to do. The admission to the palace was actually a ticket to all of the museums on the Piazza San Marco, so I went in them, too.
It was a beautiful day, so I decided to see how far I could walk around the perimeter of Venice. Eventually I got to Sant’Elena, one of the islands furthest to the east that you can reach on foot. There’s a big park on the island, and in the park is a free public toilet that was nicer than a few toilets I paid to use. Listen, a nice, free toilet is nothing to scoff at. It didn’t seem like I could walk along the northern shore, so I had to cut back into the “interior,” where I went into the church where Vivaldi was baptized.
Vaguely heading back towards the hostel, I came across a square called “Il Milion.” That got my attention, since it was one of Marco Polo’s nicknames 
when he returned from the East. And then I saw it: a plaque high on a building that said something about being the site of Marco Polo’s house. Or something, you know I don’t speak Italian. Then I found a restaurant nearby called “Osteria al Milion” and decided that I couldn’t not eat dinner there, so I lurked around until it opened and then had veal liver sautéed with onions. That was the first time I’d eaten dinner in a real restaurant by myself. 
On our second and last full day in Venice I did some errands and discovered that T-Mobile doesn’t exist in Italy. Keep that in mind. Then, around 11:15, I bought a 24-hour transportation pass. I was planning to ride the vaporetti (water buses) a lot, and, at €6.50 for a one-way trip, I wouldn’t have to take too many rides to make the €18 24-hour pass worth it. The first stop I planned was the “floating cemetery.” San Michele is an island, walled all around, where dead Venetians are buried. Nowadays people can only lease plots for a period of 12 years. There are some famous residents, too: Igor Stravinsky is in the Orthodox section, and Ezra Pound is in the Protestant section.
From San Michele I took the vaporetto to the next stop, which was the island of Murano. I did some window-shopping, and bought a few souvenirs, and went in a church with cool glass chandeliers. I rode the vaporetto the rest of the way around Murano, then took another boat to San Giorgio. The Chiesa San Giorgio Maggiore, named for my favorite saint, claims to have the best views of the lagoon from its bell tower. I second that claim; see below for proof. There just can’t be better views anywhere else. It was magnificent, especially as I was there a little before sunset. I headed back to what I think of as the “big island,” the one with St Mark’s, and then walked up to the Accademia Bridge and back down to Santa Maria della Salute before riding the vaporetto most of the way back to the hostel. 
when he returned from the East. And then I saw it: a plaque high on a building that said something about being the site of Marco Polo’s house. Or something, you know I don’t speak Italian. Then I found a restaurant nearby called “Osteria al Milion” and decided that I couldn’t not eat dinner there, so I lurked around until it opened and then had veal liver sautéed with onions. That was the first time I’d eaten dinner in a real restaurant by myself. On our second and last full day in Venice I did some errands and discovered that T-Mobile doesn’t exist in Italy. Keep that in mind. Then, around 11:15, I bought a 24-hour transportation pass. I was planning to ride the vaporetti (water buses) a lot, and, at €6.50 for a one-way trip, I wouldn’t have to take too many rides to make the €18 24-hour pass worth it. The first stop I planned was the “floating cemetery.” San Michele is an island, walled all around, where dead Venetians are buried. Nowadays people can only lease plots for a period of 12 years. There are some famous residents, too: Igor Stravinsky is in the Orthodox section, and Ezra Pound is in the Protestant section.
From San Michele I took the vaporetto to the next stop, which was the island of Murano. I did some window-shopping, and bought a few souvenirs, and went in a church with cool glass chandeliers. I rode the vaporetto the rest of the way around Murano, then took another boat to San Giorgio. The Chiesa San Giorgio Maggiore, named for my favorite saint, claims to have the best views of the lagoon from its bell tower. I second that claim; see below for proof. There just can’t be better views anywhere else. It was magnificent, especially as I was there a little before sunset. I headed back to what I think of as the “big island,” the one with St Mark’s, and then walked up to the Accademia Bridge and back down to Santa Maria della Salute before riding the vaporetto most of the way back to the hostel.
First image from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, all rights to Lucas, Spielberg, etc., no copyright infringement intended.
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