May 5 – Day 2: Palazzo Ducale, a looooong walk, and a small downpour.

Our first morning in Venice was spent over some good cappuccino and an apricot torte. This country really makes you value good strong coffee; the Italians have condensed coffee down into it’s best format in a small cup. No venti 20 oz. triple shot extra hot extra dry Starbucks here, no way! Rick says the Italians take breakfast about as seriously as flossing. I could get used to this.

We had reserved an English speaking tour of the Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s Palace) at 9:55 AM so we made our way through the sea of humanity in Piazza San Marco and into the ticket office. This was no ordinary tour — the Secret Itineraries tour takes you through the back rooms and secret passages not accessible to the general public. Our tour guide Nicoletta was a young cutesy Italian woman who had an excellent knowledge of Venetian history. The Doge ruled as a political figurehead over Venice for nearly 600 years (not one Doge, but many). The tour was very fascinating, showing us where decisions were made, torture was conducted, and Casanova was jailed (and subsequently escaped!).

After an on-the-go lunch of piadina (rolled up sandwich), we went for a walk. A long walk. We headed north through Rialto into the Cannaregio sestiere (or province). We’d come this far, we figured we might as well get our train tickets at the train station. The Trenitalia ticket machine was pretty finicky, but after a few tries we managed to get our tickets to the Cinque Terre. On our way back to rest at the E&R, it started to rain. No, to pour. Luckily, we had brought along our travel umbrella to huddle under while walking home. After a short nap, we had dinner at a small trattoria Da Fiore that I had researched online (naturally). The decor was a bit “odds and ends”, but the food was true Venetian. Kirstin had a zuppa di pesce that truly embodied the essence of the sea. I had grilled branzino (sea bass) simply prepared and we split a plate of grilled seasonal veggies. Very simple, very delicious. We finished the night with gelato from supposedly the best place in Venice – Gelateria Nico.

Buona notte, Tom