Venice Carnival

This morning I got up around 7:30 am and had never been more excited about it. Today was the carnival! The five of us that were not going on the school trip booked a day trip to Venice through Bus2Alps. We were prepared with our carnival masks, confetti and two bottles of wine each. After stopping at the ATM and getting a chicken panini for breakfast, we were off. The bus ride was not as long as I thought it would be; just under three hours. The drive started ascending through the higher elevations, north of Florence. It wasn't pleasing to be going up through the mountains with all the snow, but once we came back down it was nice. Once we got to the final stretch, crossing a long bridge with endless water on both sides; we knew we were there. Immediately after getting dropped off the bus, we were spit into market stands with masks and souvenirs. There was not a stand in Venice that did not sell carnival masks. I saw a souvenir I liked and easily bargained from 5 to 4 Euros. Besides dinner and beer that is the only purchase I made. I really wanted to get a Venice sailor hat as we were leaving but couldn't find the few stands that sold them again.

We got to see most of Venice by walking through the city in pursuit of San Marco square. San Marco square is where all the festivities would take place for the day and is also where everything else seems to be. We ventured around for awhile and took some photos of the architecture in the square as well as the view from the docks across the Tronchetto. Eventually we got some dinner at a ristorante that seemed to be filled with mostly Italians. I didn't feel like we belonged there at all. Some people were dressed nicely; others at least decently. But the important thing was that a waiter invited us in (obviously wanting our business), the prices were actually reasonable (its tough to find a place without an additional cover fee), and the food was good. I ordered my "go-to" pasta- the gnocchi with meat sauce. I didn't bother buying a drink since it costs 2 Euros just for water and I still had a bottle of wine in my bag anyway. That was the other reason we were happy to eat there- they let us bring our wine inside as long as it was concealed in a bag. We were not allowed to drink it unless we sat outside, and it was kind of chilly so we decided taking a seat indoors. The waiter who seated us told us there was no cover charge, unlike other places around; we only needed to pay a tip. After thinking about this, we realized he was just trying to get some money out of us. Almost everything in Italy lists more expensive prices because taxes and tips are included. Knowing that we were Americans he knew there was a good chance to tricking us into an extra tip. This must be why they say "foreigners don't know how to tip" in America. Because they don't have to.

As the night got later, more absurd and elaborate costumes started appearing. Earlier in the day we got a picture with a man hilariously (but poorly) dressed as Pamela Anderson from Baywatch. We made sure to get our Borat remarks in. "Hello CJ...very nice...how much." After seeing all this, I think Carnival is more comparable to our Halloween. There were a lot of kids dressed in cute little costumes on their parents shoulders. One kid even threw a handful of confetti at one of my friends with the assistance of his father.

The night was not nearly as crazy as I thought it was going to be. Some people were saying that the actual carnival did not really start until the next day though, so that would explain it. We basically just hung out in the square. In Italy, bathrooms are know as toilettes or more commonly as water closets. It is tough to find a public bathroom that you can use unless you pay or pretend you are buying something. I had to go to the bathroom and got denied from a nearby bar. I think this is completely ridiculous so I found my own bagno. There are a lot of small alleys in Venice that are uninhabited even by the crowds of tourists. Once our night was over (unlike Florence, everything dies down much earlier) it was still well before midnight and we were ready to board the water bus. We decided the water bus was our best option because that late at night when it is dark and we are not in the best state of mind we needed to make sure we could get back on time. We got back very early, before our bus was even there. It was very cold by now and I was freezing my butt off. The water bus was really fun to ride, but it was sooo cold. I passed out on the bus and woke up once we got back to Florence. By the time we got home it was just before 5 am.