Venice Carnavale
People with elaborate masks and period costumes wander the streets, stopping to pose for pictures. In San Marco Piazza, puppet shows and theatre mimes amuse children – and adults. Strains of The Four Seasons by Venetian-born Vivaldi emanate from every corner as decorated gondolas form parades on the canals, their riders serenaded with familiar melodies. It’s February and time once again for Venice Carnavale.
Ten days before Lent, this extravaganza kicks off every year, much like its New Orleans relative, Mardi Gras. Thursday, 19th of February, Kathy, Abbey, Emma, and I were a part of this celebration. With some specific sight-seeing places, such as the Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s Palace) and the Accademia art museum, on my itinerary for Kathy, we made it to only Basilica San Marco, St. Mark’s Church. Too much Carnavale to experience simply by meandering through the streets and piazzi in the San Marco district. The weather was beautiful: sunny and unseasonably warm for February. We needed only a light coat during the day, though nights chilled quickly.
Many towns and cities in Italy celebrate Carnavale, with different themes – Medieval or quirky Halloween-like humor such as the one in Viareggio in Tuscany. Venice’s Carnavale relives the splendor of the 18th century. The costumes are extraordinary, as elaborate as any in a Merchant-Ivory historical film. From feathered hats and powdered wigs to buttoned shoes and spats, the revelers looked as if they had stepped out of French palace before the Revolution of 1789, of course. Rich reds, iridescent blues and purples, deep greens, and the stark black and white – color was everywhere.
Where we would normally gawk at frescoes and Corinthian columns, we now watched for the next costumed passer-byes who would obliging stop for us to take a picture. During the day, the revelers walk throughout the city, or at least one of the six sestieri or districts; at night, those who can afford it, attend one or more of the many events or balls, that cost 350€ to 800€ to attend! On the vaporetto that morning, I had met a woman from England, having flown in just for the day to meet some costumed friends who were attending a mystery ball that night – in masks, of course.
The masks themselves are remarkable. Many are handmade in Italy, and those with hand-painted ceramic faces and jewels are the most costly. We settled for the traditional, affordable ones – after all, colored glass can sparkle just as well! Impossible to describe well, these masks should be viewed to be appreciated. Hint: look at the pictures of Carnavale. [forthcoming]
Our hotel reserved us a spot with a gondola parade in the afternoon. Donning our masks, we met our gondolier on the Grand Canal, near our hotel. Along with about 8 other festively-decorated gondolas, we experienced Venice from the water, and it is indeed a quite different perspective. Many of the canals in the city are narrow, and the gondolier expertly guided us around moored boats and docks, often with an inch gap - just like my navigating the narrow “roads” of Asolo, I thought to myself, remembering the first time I drove them thinking they were one-way alleys until I saw the approaching car. Good thing that mirrors fold in; good thing that gondolas have no mirrors, I thought, as my coat sleeve brushed a rubber-sided dock.
Watermarks from flooding are evident on the buildings, and often steps lead up to the “back door” entrance of a building. We passed under several bridges, waving to the pedestrians above who were either in costume or were tourists taking pictures of those in costume. The narrow canals wind their ways into a larger one, and eventually we were back on the Grand Canal amidst the vaporetti, water taxis, and private boats. Interesting experience being rocked by the waves from a vaporetta when sitting only a few inches above the water in a gondola!
Kathy shopped for gifts to take home and for a charm denoting Italy, eventually finding a gondola one. Then back to the hotel for some rest before dinner. We stayed in Hotel Saturnia & International, about a 5-minute walk from Piazza San Marco – a lovely hotel with distinctive Venetian decor. Normally it would be out of our price range as a 4-star, but it offered a substantial 50% discount for a one-night, non-weekend stay during Carnavale. Glad we grabbed it up! So did the girls as their room had a jacuzzi! I luxuriated in a bath (our apartment has only a shower) before dinner with a glass of Sangiovese Valpolicella. Kath laid on the bed and read (through her eyelids).
That evening we ate dinner in a small restaurant just off Piazza San Marco. Tim, Emma, and I had eaten there on a prior day trip to Venice last fall. Good food, inexpensive, and frequented by locals as well as tourists. One of the best penne all’arrabiatta ever. Penne all’arrabiatta is literally penne with angry sauce; it’s spiced with pepperocini, Italian hot peppers, just a bit different from the chile peppers, but just as hot.
After a delicious breakfast, we leisurely made our way back – down Via XXII Novembre to Piazza Santa Maria Zobenigo, turning down the narrow alley, Campo dell Traghetto to the vaporetti stand and back to Santa Lucia train station for a train to Florence. The vaporetta was packed, many regular locals heading to the Rialto fish market, but also many tourists. A quick glance at the vaporetti headed toward San Marco reassured us that we did Carnavale at the right time. Indeed we later learned that our decision not to return on Sunday from Florence was a good one; the trains that night were so full, people were standing in the aisles, and there weren’t enough trains to accommodate the people.
At 12:47, the Eurostar left, and we arrived at Santa Maria Novella station in Florence at 2:30.
Florence Reprise for Emma’s 12th Birthday
I hadn’t originally planned on taking Kath to Florence, since she was watching the budget after a long trip to Australia to visit Jen. However, when she came, she commented that a friend back home said she should see Florence if possible. No arguments from me, plus Emma remarked that she would love to spend her 12th birthday there, place of her favorite soup! So we worked in the weekend to allow for a half day on Friday and full one on Saturday.
Our budget hotel was on Via Cavour, about a 15-minute walk from the station. Problem was I wasn’t sure when we got to Via Cavour whether the hotel was down toward the city center or up toward Piazza della Liberta. While I walked to a store to ask, Kath and the girls waited at the corner. Before long, two ladies walking by stopped to ask if they needed help. One of the women and Abbey were communicating fairly comfortably in Italian when I walked back – with no directional information. The women, however, knew where the hotel was, but we were stuck on a word. Inglese, I asked? No, non bene, one replied. Okay, I thought; let’s go down the list. Franchese (French)? No, no, no, she emphatically shook her head. Last shot – Tedeschi (German)? Ja, ja, Ich spreche Deutsch, the other woman replied. Ich bin eine Polander (yes, I speak German; I’m from Poland). So while Abbey and the one woman spoke in Italian, the other and I did in German. The directions were perfect; we found the hotel, about 10 minutes from the Duomo.
We unpacked and immediately headed to the Duomo to climb the Dome for some pictures. Kath almost made it to the top, so Abbey took her camera to get her pictures with it. The late afternoon was clear, and the sun was setting, turning the clouds a deep orange against the blue-dark sky. Florence at sunset!
After climbing down, we met Kath and headed to find pizzeria for dinner. Then back for an early night to prepare for the big day tomorrow.
21st of February – Emma’s birthday. An all-day celebration, no doubt.
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