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Day 11: Rialto (market), Gondola ride, Grand Canal to Lido, Concert at S. Teodoro

I had a bout of diarrhea this morning but felt better by breakfast, after which we all went to the Rialto area. This was a lot of fun seeing the beautiful vegetable and fruit stands, the fish market, even a place that sold horse meat.

Some videos: Fish Market (13sec), Vegetable Market (6 sec), Loading Produce on Boats (12 sec)

Gondola Ride


gondolas, Salute in background

gondola dock, S. Tomá

traghetto at gondola dock

Mocenigo, across from dock

We walked from our hotel to the Gondola dock, rio di san Tomá - in operation since 1354. Across the little rio from the boat launch is Palazzo Persico (the reddish building to the right of the gondola dock pictures above). Across the Canal is Palazzo Mocenigo and Ca' Mocenigo Vecchio. Behind my head is the Ca' Mocenigo Vecchio; the Mocenigo family produced seven Doges. Next to that (behind Karen's hat) is the Palazzo Mocenigo; built in the 18th century, Lord Byron lived here 1818-9 while he was writing Don Juan. He shared his apartment with two monkeys, a bear, two parrots, and a fox, and had 14 servants, a butler, and a gondolier at his service.

In the gondola with Karen and Edward: Colleen Ehrenberg, Anne Julian, Sally Salzer, Peggy Salzer. The gondoliere is Alex, who spoke excellent English and had a great sense of humor, was charming and very handsome. As I was taking pictures of him -- e.g., the photo here labeled "Alex, il gondoliere" -- I joked that I was talent scouting for Roberto Benigni. Alex's grandfather and father had both been gondolieri on this same gondola.


gathering outside Messner

departure

Karen and Edward

Alex, il gondoliere

a "back street"

Vivaldi's house

Palazzo Madonnetta

la cara mia ed il gondoliere

Vaporetto Ride: Piazzalle Roma to Lido

A small sample of the many Palazzi along the Grand Canal (p. 204-5, Knopf Guide)

The afternoon was free, so we rode the vaporetto back to the Piazzlle Roma. Along the way Karen checked out all the palazzi and churches along the Grand Canal, listed in a very convenient map (pp. 188-217 of Knopf Guide to Venice). We took the vaporetto from there the full length of the Canal out to the Lido. It was cool and overcast out on the open water and we got a little chilly. Didn't help that a sudden turn, coupled with the arrival of that liner's wake, got me covered with Canal water splashed over the front right side. I survived, without the recommended trip to the ospedale.


San Giorgio Maggiore

"small" liner, tourboat

return to Salute

salute, Salute

Opera at Scuole Grande di San Teodoro

We rested until dinner time, then went to a concert at the Scuola Grande di San Teodoro, near the Ponte Rialto. This was an evening of baroque opera pieces with I Musici Veneziani, a 9-piece string, harpsicord, flute, oboe & clarinet group and two singers in 18th c. costume. We were in a fine old room with paintings on the ceiling and gold lamps - not sconces, more like candelabras attached to the walls.

Our vaporetto returning to Salute was jammed, with even more people boarding at every stop and few departing. But we made it back relatively unsquished and un-pickpocketed.

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