Venice

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31. Venice

A visit to the Accademia was first on the list this morning; this museum has some beautiful paintings from Venice when it was at the height of its power. Access is limited. When I arrived around 9:00, there was no line, but leaving around 10:30 I noticed a lengthy one had formed. The Guggenheim just down the street, which I visited next, should institute a similar policy; I found it very cramped and much too crowded with tourists. It does house some impressive twentieth-century art in Peggy Guggenheim's canal-side mansion, but it's sometimes quite unpleasant jostling for a view. Outside on the balcony is a sculpture of an extremely excited boy riding a horse; I overheard someone say that part of this statue is detachable for occasions where modesty is required.

The weather had finally cleared, so I decided to have another go at lounging on the beach. In Venice, that means the Lido, where Death in Venice was set. This seemed horribly appropriate, because I was feeling a bit alone in Venice, and I was quite sure that things were leading up to some sort of Thomas Mann anti-climax. Which is to say, I would admire some cute young thing prancing around for a while (from my advanced age of 32) and then expire pathetically on the shore where no one would much notice. It was a long trip out — all the way to the last vaporetto stop, and then another twenty minutes west on bus route B. I went a little too far; you should go not all the way to the last stop, but get out at the last little village where you see that many of the shops are signed with the name Alberoni. Then it's a walk along the street going south, with a fenced golf course on the right, and a right turn at the sand or along trails through the dunes. I went for a quick swim in the cool Adriatic, which made the third sea of the trip (after the North and Mediterranean).

I stopped for an early dinner just to the east of San Marco. Venetian cuisine has some interesting dishes, like pasta with cuttlefish in black ink. But I found the quality at Rick Steves' recommendations to be quite mediocre, so next time I'd try to seek out the Rough Guide places. It's really so touristy here — like Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco — that it's very difficult to find good food at a reasonable price. Italian food in general actually left me a little underwhelmed. I think it's possible to find Italian food which is nearly as good in California, and I expected it to be better here. Compared with the food in France, Italian food is also very simple, typically just a few ingredients. When the ingredients are good (as they usually are in Italy), that's no bad thing, but it can get boring after a while. The French richness and complexity makes it easier to feel you're getting your money's worth, as well, because it seems that a lot of labor had to go into creating the dishes.

The concert at the Scuola started at 21:00 — evening schedules are later than back home, with almost no one in restaurants before 20:00. The performers were an excellent young group, seemingly led by a cellist who conducted using his entire body (and flowing hair) in an entertainingly dramatic fashion while playing. They almost seemed to be trying too hard, so that the difficult music came across as somewhat mechanical at times. The room itself was far more dramatic still — walls and ceiling completely covered by grandiose Tintoretto paintings. Handheld mirrors were available for inspecting the ceilings at intermission. I chatted with a couple seated next to me who had flown in from Hannover just for the weekend. Must be nice to live in a place where you can spend your weekends almost anywhere in Europe!

Jonathan's Travel Blog :: Europe

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31. Venice

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