Meag: This morning we had a glorious sleep-in in a private room. This has not happened since we left home. It rained almost all day but we didn’t let his dampen our spirits after waking up with no new bug bites. I spent some time this morning making a list of things we wanted to see and do in Venice, so we started this morning by combining a visit to Rialto bridge and market with getting some food.

Everything is nearby, and everything is beautiful. Google maps may say you need ten minutes to get somewhere, but in reality you need about 25 minutes to include all the picture pit stops. And of course a few of those 25 minutes would be dedicated to going the wrong way or ending up at a dead-end. I have never been this turned around in my whole life! These streets make no sense and seem completely random. They end in steps down to the water when you think it will be a bridge, or sometimes at a locked gate with no way around other than backwards. We’ve had a few people tell us we need to spend time just getting lost in Venice. Well I’m here to say that we do not in fact need to set aside a certain time to do this on purpose, because it happens almost as soon as we step out the door.

But along with this ability to get lost within five minutes of stepping outside comes picturesque alleys and canals every which way we look. The buildings vary in colour from light creams to rich pinks, punctuated by green shutters and overflowing flower pots. The turquoise water from the canal comes right up to the lip of the top step in some places. And the bridges have wrought iron railings in so many different patterns. The city is enchanting.

Sav: I was going to talk about how beautiful Venice is but I honestly don’t need to after that, Meaghan hit the nail on the head. I am so in love with this city! The one recommendation I would have is that it needs something other than pasta and pizza… Maybe it’s because I’ve been in Italy for a couple of weeks now, but DO PEOPLE EAT PIZZA FOR BREAKFAST HERE!? There is literally no. Other. Option. Pizza for breakfast sounds wonderful, but after like 10 days of it it gets a bit old.

So we ate pizza for breakfast. After this we strolled down the alley and Meaghan spotted a giant pile of mini squids in a window with the sign €2.50 on them…. Oh no. We have this trip rule that if anything costs under €4 we HAVE to do it.* Well. Meaghan took full advantage of this rule to get me to try this ‘delicassy.’

Fact. Calamari does not taste the same when you are chewing a hunk of the squids visible body.

I gleefully pulled out my camera to video Meaghan taking a bite and having the same reaction as me, BUT SHE LIKED IT! You can just hear the disappointment and confusion in my voice as I realize she’s enjoying slurping up this thing. Didn’t we dissect those in school? Shudder.

M: We did, and it was tasty! Savanna was not impressed but I would eat it again, regardless of the €4 rule.

We wandered around the market and across the Rialto bridge. This is by far the busiest place we’ve come across here in Venice. Most of the side streets we’ve been exploring have been fairly empty. Today the bridge was full of poncho-wearing, umbrella-toting tourists, which made navigating the area without having our eyes poked out a little challenging. Savanna had her own fun with an umbrella today. Within about five minutes of her buying one this morning, it was broken. Umbrellas: 2, Savanna: 0.

We hit up San Marco Basilica for a bit this afternoon as we wanted to check it out from the inside and it was a nice reprieve from the rain. It was strangely dark inside, but the ceilings appeared to be absolutely covered in gold mosaic. We could tell immediately though that there was something a little different about this basilica; it was practically screaming Byzantine influence. Another thing screaming for attention was the floor. The tiles were beautiful as one would expect in a basilica like this, but it was more so the unevenness that drew our attention.

S: Just so you all know, I had no idea this basilica was ‘screaming Byzantine influence’ – I just thought it was kinda dark and intricate. But the floor. Meaghan was right in saying it was screaming for attention. It was all different patterns, some illusionary, some mandala style and some regular – all in hues of black, white and burgundy. The really big shocker though was that the floor seemed to be almost undulating. Not in motion but as if the ground was a set of low rolling waves, frozen in time and covered in mosaic. It’s easy to forget Venice is built on water when you have such stable ground underneath your feet, but this basilica sure reminded us quickly.

Earlier Meaghan mentioned that water comes right up to the steps in some areas, but she didn’t mean that waves roll in here and there and you look down at them. The water in some streets is literally lapping over the tiles so much that you avoid whole sections of it. Stairways that used to lead down to a boat landing are now completely covered in water that is threatening to overtake the main part of the street. Stools are placed in front of doorways, landings are raised and gates in some areas have been permanently erected to close off flooded areas.

We walked home after the basilica, taking in views and going in the occasional shop on the way. We had some administrative duties to take care of, and a call home to make!

M: I had yet to call Whitehorse since we left home and upon realizing today is a Saturday I figured I should make a quick call! I don’t know what we would do without wifi.

We capped off our relaxing and rainy day by sharing three kinds of pasta and some tiramisu at a wine bar. It was all delicious and unlike Savanna I am not sick of pasta at all. I think my body is probably 80% pasta at this point and I couldn’t be happier about that. The other 20% is probably made up of dessert. You know you’re having a good trip when you’re getting ready for bed and you say, “How many desserts did I have today?” And the answer is, “Oh, ONLY two!”

S&M

*EXCLUDING SHOTS