Day SEVEN and EIGHT: On our way to Venice, and our day in Venice

Day SEVEN: Friday and Day EIGHT: Saturday...Venice, Italy

On Friday morning we boarded the very efficient and comfortable train to Innsbruck, where we
had only a 30 minute wait (during which Willie somehow found the Burger King across the street) until we boarded another train to Venice.  This last leg of the trip was 5 hours, and the train car we were in all had cubbies which sat 6 people and then the door closed.  It was very cozy! The window was very large and the view as we traversed south to Venice was beautiful.  It became clear when we crossed the border to Italy, as suddenly what was pasture in Austria became vineyards in Italy.

Bavarian Austria

Vineyards everywhere when we crossed over the border to Italy

When we arrived at the train station in Venice ("LAST STOP - everybody out!") we walked right over to the nearby water taxis.  We boarded the #1 which took us (and a million other people!) through the Grand Canal and then into the lagoon and over to the island of Lido, where we would officially begin our tour of Italy with Go-Ahead Tours.  After checking in at The Hotel Riviera (directly across from where the water taxi dropped us off - SO convenient!) we went to the restaurant next door and joined the other Go-Ahead tour guests.  We met a very young (71) grandmother Karen, and her grandson Justin from outside Milwaukee, Wisconsin - this was Karen's 5th trip with Go-Ahead Tours! She has been everywhere!  Justin just graduated from college and his grandmother was taking him to Italy to celebrate! We look forward to meeting the other 25 or so fellow travelers.

Every morning for Willie starts with buying a big batch of postcards.
His policy is, you will receive a postcard if you have lived, traveled, or studied in the city we are visiting.

When you see this church, you know you've arrived on Lido Island.

I'll be honest, when I first read in the Go-Ahead Tour paperwork, that we would be staying on the island of Lido and not in the center of Venice, I thought, "Well, this must be a cost-cutting measure".

But actually having been to Venice 3 times before this visit (ps: it had rained every time!) I must say staying on Lido is a MUCH nicer experience than stuffed in the center of Venice.  Lido has lots of restaurants, shops, upscale homes, small canals, tree-lined streets, and an easy, island feel. When we disembarked the first time I had a feeling that the people around me were not tourists but instead were residents of the island, returning home from work.  The concierge at our hotel confirmed this saying, "On Lido everyone knows everyone!".  It sure seems that way as the people outside were greeting each other warmly up and down the street, watching each other's children while they got a gelato after dinner, and just hanging out and chatting it up on the park benches.   

Finally a few noteworthy Lido trivia: Thomas Mann wrote "A Death in Venice" while living on Lido, and the beautiful Hotel des Bains was the site of several scenes of "The English Patient" and Daniel Craig's "Casino Royale".

Tomorrow we tackle Venice - pray the good weather stays!