Day 23: Getting to Venice

My train from Salzburg to Venice was pretty early, but I wasn't complaining because it was absolutely beautiful and I was so so so excited to get to Italy! It was a 2 hour train ride to another city in Austria, then a 4 hour bus ride to get to Venice. I tried to blog and journal but I kept getting distracted by the amazing scenery...





And the breathtaking scenery just kept coming once I got to Venice. It's unlike any place I've ever seen. Well, so are a lot of the places I've been to on this trip, but Venice is just enchanting in a different way. The way the sun hits the canals and the pastel buildings, the shops full of fancy masks, the streets lined with gelaterias and pizzerias... It's just such an interesting and unique place.





I was starving from a day of travel with no breakfast or lunch, so I stopped for a little pizza on my way to the hostel...





Then I thought it wouldn't be right if I didn't greet Italy properly... So I had to get some gelato. Luckily I stumbled onto a place called Alaska, run by a guy who is famous for being the "maestro of gelato." He sells lots of strange flavors, all using fresh ingredients and no food coloring. I tried watermelon and mint together, and it was an awesome combo!


I checked into my hostel, L'Imbarcadero, and liked it so much that I completely forgot to take photos. But it was in a perfect location, right by the Grand Canal, and was run by a really great couple- Alex and Meghan. They made me feel so at home! Free breakfast in the mornings, dinner and wine for €4 at night (seriously unbeatable, and delicious), and nice comfy little areas to chill with a book (or iPad). Really loved it there. In my room, I met Taylor, a girl from California who was just finishing up a 3 month trip. Venice was her last stop and she only had 2 days left. We were both exhausted from traveling all day, so we took naps and then went to navigate through the canal maze of Venice. One of the first things we ran into was a big Communist festival in one of the city squares. It was actually pretty funny- the band on stage looked like it was comprised of 4 really angry Justin Biebers. So we stood there for awhile and observed/giggled.


We bought a couple of slices of pizza and sat along the Grand Canal for the next couple of hours, just talking about travel and our lives back home. Venice is beautiful during the day, but it's really great at night. Very romantic with the lights glittering on the water and the gondolas passing by. Can't wait to bring Justin here someday!


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