The second day, we were up before the sun came up to head to Venice!  In one word: Italian Disney World.  Ok, 3 words.

 Since Venice is complete tourism (really, I’ve heard its e m p t y at night) and the touristy part is on an island, it is very, very expensive to stay there for the night.  For that reason (coupled with the fact that it’s small!), we decided to just go for the day and leave our suitcases at the train station while we explored.  We headed to the train after breakfast and packing up…

^Sleepy eyes!!

We slept a bit on the train and woke up when we arrived in Venice…or so we thought.  When we were getting off, I mentioned that it was strange that not everyone was getting off, but we got off anyway, and sure enough, we weren’t in Venice (St. Lucia), we were at the station before!  So that was the first dilemma of our mostly smooth trip!  We had to figure out how to get from that station onto the island!  Luckily, it was a super easy fix, since you can buy an inexpensive (1.25 Euro) ticket for the 15 minute ride onto the island.  Pheeewwww.  The second (not really) dilemma came when we saw that everyone and their mother wanted to leave their bags at the train station and the only (yes, singular, ONLY ONE) man working at the station previously held a job at the DMV.  Or he should consider getting one.  The line moved sloooowly, but we entertained ourselves with bocadillos (luckily we had them, we were starving!) and finally (FINALLY!) got through the line.  I would still do it again, since it made it possible to go for the day, but something to keep in mind!  With empty hands, we were off!!

I think the best way to see Venice is to wander.  Get lost.  Go down small alleys.  Stop for coffee.  Take pictures.  EXPLORE!                             

That last picture is proof that there is at least one non-tourist living on the island!

Be sure to stop for gelato and inexpensive sandwiches that you can eat on the various cathedral steps you’ll find.    

By the end, we were wiped, but we all that winding leads to getting lost.  TIP:  Leave yourself enough time to find your way back to the train!  Google maps won’t work well and you WILL get lost.  It’s better to get to the train early than to panic.  

And when in doubt, follow these signs to find the train:

By the end of the day, we had eaten more than 8 sandwiches, walked over 27,000 steps, and (I had) fallen in love with Venice.  With that being said, I think one day is the perfect amount of time to experience the magic of the city (and not go broke 😉 ).  We grabbed our bags, waited for the train, bought two more sandwiches (hey carbs….) and headed off to FLORENCE!

Coming soon!