Venice ...Deja Vu

"Venice is not a City;  It’s a feeling, an emotion. It’s a cool sprinkle of rain on a very hot day or your first sip of a cold drink when you’ve just finished some hard physical exertion."

I put quotation marks around that statement because it was lifted straight from my first Blog about Venice, almost 9 years ago! We arrived yesterday afternoon and at the risk of sounding repetitive, I have to say;

  I love Venice!. 

I don't think I could live here. It is crowded, noisy, messy, and there's no grass, trees, or flowers, (unless you're looking at Murano glass flowers.). But it is unique! The streets are a maze and there are canals everywhere. Walking around with a destination in mind is a nightmare and whenever you think you are heading in the direction you want to be going, a canal pops up

and blocks you, and you have to walk several blocks to find a bridge,

and by the time you do, you are again completely lost and have to reorient yourself to get heading back in the direction you hope to be going. The street names do not match anything on the tourist maps and even when they do, they seem to change names every block or two anyway! It is a constant challenge to find anything, which believe it or not, only adds to the charm. The people visiting,( I'm not sure if anyone actually lives here!) all walk along in a daze, bumping into each other, and you, because they are as lost as you, but nobody seems to care. It's Venice and if you don't find the shop

or restaurant

you're looking for you just stop at another one that catches your eye because it's all interesting.

 It is a city unlike any other you will ever visit and everybody should see it at least once.

   A few other shots that seem to shout Venice

This last shot again means so much to me because it is a Murano Glass copy of one of my favourite Van Gogh paintings.

 " Café Terrace at Place de Nuit"

I saw it and was commenting to Joani how much he has invaded modern culture! When we were in China we saw a Van Gogh painting done as a silk embroidery piece and now we see a different one in Murano glass. If anyone has $2000 to spare, and is wondering what to get me for my birthday, this work of art is sitting in a shop on the Rialto bridge.

Wistfully wishing I was a rich man in Venice

Garry