May 26, 2018

   After breakfast this morning, again, we walked to Saint Mark’s Square, but in 25 minutes through almost empty streets and alleys, as we were more than an hour earlier than yesterday. The temperature was already 18°C.Right at the southern side of the Rialto bridge is the Hard Rock café Venice. We arrived before 9 and got in line for the Basilica of St. Mark opening at 9:35. Standing in line, in the morning shade, we had a good view of the clock tower entrance to Saint Mark’s Square.  It is an interesting building.  At the top is a huge bronze bell with two movable statue that take turns hitting the bell at each quarter of an hour.  Above the arched entrance is a blue circle with gold zodiac signs which is one form of the time.  A ray of the sun symbol points to the hour.  Above the blue circle is a statue and on the left is the Roman Numerals for the hour that flips down to change and on the right side is Arabic numbers the flip down every five minutes.
   There is no admission to enter and there are audio sets available for €3 each to give you more information about the Golden Basilica. The Basilica of St. Mark originally was the private chapel of the Doge of Venice, the elected senior official, usually a duke of the Republic of Venice. It was not until after the fall the Republic of Venice, in 1796 that the chapel was selected to be a cathedral.  The doge, usually an elder statesman, was chosen by a complicated Byzantine process that made the possibility of cheated almost impossible. The Doge’s Palace is next door. 
   No photos are allowed for the walk through the Basilica, so we bought a package of postcards and photographed them.   The interior is covered in golden mosaics on the ceilings and walls. The stone floors have patterns in inlaid marble. The famous altarpiece is called Pala d’Oro was crafted in solid gold with some silver and covered in precious gemstones in 976 by the Byzantine goldsmiths.  It took less then 15 minutes to view the church.  Being near the first in line and already have taken our day packs to the cloakroom, on a nearby street, we were one of the first dozen people into the church, even before the skip the line ticketholders and group tours. 
    We walked a short distance to the entrance of the 9thcentury Doge’s Palace and for €20 each, the same fee as yesterday’s boat tour, we could wander through the magnificent rooms for hours. This was the building from where the Republic of Venice was ruled and its trading regulations, foreign policy and city laws were overseen in many different council chambers and law courts. By the mid 1700s Venice’s merchant fleet was declining and it could no longer defend itself. Then in 1796 Napolean’s French troops invaded northern Italy chasing Austrian troops.  In the secret peace treaty between France and Austria, the former Venice empire was given to Austria, which had long coveted access to the sea.  Over the centuries changes have been made to the structure transforming it from a moated castle to a palace. The artist work is exquisite from painting and frescos to sculptures and the interior architecture.  The interior courtyard contains the Giants' Staircase, guarded by statues of Mars and Neptune which leads to the Golden Staircase leading to the Institutional Rooms and the Doge's Apartment.  Visiting the connecting chambers, your neck gets sore looking up at the high painted ceilings and the large centuries old paintings on the walls.  The paintings are masterpieces and need the large chambers to appreciate the detail of them.  There was extensive damage done to two of the most important Council Chambers in 1577, but it was repaired within five years.  The largest and most impressive chamber, where the Great Council met, was 53 meters by 25 meters, larger than a football field. It was here that the election of the Doge was held.  
   We crossed the 1614 Bridge of Sighs where criminals used to cross from the courts in the palace to the new prison across a small canal to serve their sentence.  The new prison was the first structure in Europe designed to be a prison. After seeing parts of the jail, we crossed back into the Doge’s Palace.  The bridge is wide enough for a wall to separate the traffic to and from the palace, each hallway is at least wide enough for two people. Back in the palace we went through the Chamber of State Advocacies where the Golden Book records are kept.  In the book, which is many books in locked three meter high cabinets, are the legitimate aristocracy’s record of marriages and births since1297.  If a man’s name is not recorded here then he cannot be a council member. Also nearby is the Silver Book of Venetian residents who are eligible to be clerks of the Republic of Venice.  Down a less impressive set of staircases we came to the cafeteria and then the bookstore before exiting over two hours after we entered the palace complex. We had accumulated 11,213 steps or 8.34 km
    We walked back to the hotel and stopped at Ali Baba Pizza and Kebob to buy a beer and Aperaol Sprintz and a ham and mozzarella wrap to share for a take away lunch.  Then we relaxed at the outdoor courtyard of the hotel which is bordered by delicately scented flowers, trees and has a large umbrella covering a seating area and several café tables and chairs (aka the smoking area), but there were no smokers.
   Refreshed we headed out to find the house where the Venetian explorer, Marco Polo lived in the 13thcentury.  It is on a small canal near the Rialto Bridge, off the beaten path, then we ventured through Formosa Square to the Arsenale River to find the Naval Museum, but it was closing in 20 minutes.  On the way back, we stopped at several mini fountains to fill our water bottles.  Along our walks there is always the chiming of the bells on the quarter hours of the numerous churches along the routes.  The high temperature was 27, but the humidity is over 60%. So, we decided to return tomorrow.  We have seen many people walking their dogs and picking up the droppings. We walked back to the hotel on a different route which took us all the way to near the train station about 3.5 kilometers.
    We freshened up and went to the restaurant next door, Trattoria Pizzeria Antico Gafaro for dinner choosing chicken with vegetables or spaghetti with tomato and basil sauce with Prosecco.  We finished with shots of Amoretto.  Later we went for a walk and had some gelati and walked 10 minutes and saw the train station on the other side of the Grand Canal.
   Total steps for the day 27,630 for 20.56 km.


























































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