6.9.96 (Fri)

I am now on the train to Roma. It will arrive there at 12:45 pm. The time now is 8:05 am, i.e. about 4 1/2 hours to go.

I spent the last two days in Venezia. Having settled down in that expensive hotel Bellini, I went out to walk around. I did not really need to read the map because there were signs everywhere pointing to the Bridge Rialto and Piazza San Marco. I spent about 40 minutes, as the guidebook says, to walk from the hotel to San Marco. The streets and lanes were narrow and paved with stones. They were like a maze. It was somewhat amazing that people really lived there. Sometimes the streets smelled. The nearer I was to Rialto, the more crowded the streets became. When I finally reached the bridge, it was full of tourists, so crowded that I could hardly got on and across it. And Piazza San Marco was impossibly crowded too. People and pigeons were everywhere. It was about noon and the sun was getting fierce. It was impossible to take any picture without hundreds of people in it. So I chose to leave.

I returned to the station by ferry and then took a train to Verona. Verona was a normal place, i.e. not surrounded by so much water. There were roads and cars, thank God. And I felt normal there. It was not so infested with tourists so I could breathe and felt easier.

It was amazing that I did not need a map in Verona. In fact I did not even have the simplest map. I followed the guidebook's description and reached the old town. There it was impossible to miss the arena. I got in and climbed the steps to the top and then came back down. Then my thighs had a spasm, probably because of the steep steps. Then I followed crowds of tourists to the Juliet's House. The visitors raved about the statue of Juliet and hastened to take photos of/with it. I took a photo too. Then I just strolled along the streets, went into the shops to look around and then I left the town.

I had dinner at a restaurant near the hotel that night. The food was not good. But the price was not high either.

I left the hotel before 7 am the next morning and headed for San Marco again. The beautiful square, almost empty, was more beautiful in the early morning light. I took many pictures. Then I returned to the hotel to have breakfast. Then again I went to San Marco, by ferry this time. I visited the Cathedral and its treasury, which were not special. The I visited the Ducal Palace beside the Cathedral which was where the Government had been. The palace was quite beautiful. The view on the terrace facing the Canal was great, with the water reflecting the sunshine. The ceiling and walls of most of the rooms in the Palace were filled with paintings in golden frames. I also went through the Bridge of Signs, which has nothing inside. (By the way, I think the one in Cambridge is much more beautiful). I like the courtyard and the terrace of the Ducal Palace most.

The square, by the time I left the palace, was full of tourists. I ate a little and then proceeded to the Correr Museum opposite the Cathedral. The museum was OK. I was amazed by a globe made in the 1680's which had very detailed depiction of China on it. The coastlines and even the name of the places, like Hainan etc, were clearly marked on it. It seems to me that the Italian sailing technology was already quite advance at that time. I also like a set of antique jigsaw I saw in there.

I then had a hot chocolate at a cafe in the square. There was a good jazz performance and simply sitting there was quite a leisure, though I feared that the pigeons' feathers etc might just drop into the drinks. Of course the price for that cup of chocolate was horribly high, i.e. L13,000, about HKD70. But the music and the atmosphere were worth it.

Afterwards I returned to the hotel to wash my face. Then I decided to go to Padova, a nearby town, since there was nothing else to do in Venezia (I had no intention to visit the outlying islands). Padova was not so touristy. People lived and worked there. There were department stores, taller buildings. But since I arrived late, I couldn't get much information. And because it was not touristy, there were no crowds of tourists to follow. So I saw nothing and was lost in the streets. But I still felt quite good to leave Venezia for a while.

On my arrival in Italy, I heard a lady (a tourist) commented that the Italians should drop some zeros from their currency. I agree completely. I have problems in dealing with such huge amounts. Maybe Italians are all arithmetic genius.

It is now 9 am, 3 3/4 hours more to go. In comparison, the interior of German and French trains is better than that of the Italian ones.

Venezia was a beautiful place. But it was too special. I mean I needed to adapt to its uniqueness. And it was too touristy, too crowded. That made me feel uneasy.

I don't like the ferries of Venezia. They were slow and crowded. I preferred to walk. Walking in Venezia without referring to the map was not only possible, but could be quite interesting. Following the road signs I could somehow reach my destinations, which were always the major sights. The good thing about walking like this was that I could always walk on some streets which were new to me. But the bad thing was that I could not find the ways I had walked before or the shops I wanted to return to.