Two more days in Venice

The City declared a day of mourning on Saturday because two young men were killed in an industrial accident in one of the port zones of the city. So all the public events were canceled. Some will be rescheduled for Sunday. So the crowds were only moderate with some people dressed up. We continued our walks around the city and museum tours.A view from the top of the Rialto Bridge over the Grand Canal. It is a huge stone arch covered with shops.William wanted to stop and look at the farmer's market. We also looked at all the fish and saw no eels. We did see sardines. Here in Venice they serve them Venetian style, which is slightly picked in onions with slight additional variations such as with pine nuts and raisins.
Venice used to depend on rain water. The squares were tilted to drains which went to large central cisterns. There was some sort of sand filtration, but people then drew their water out of the cistern via a hand pump. The cisterns are about 4-5 feet across and still visible, but locked up. Now water is piped in from the mountains. Those people who do not have a running drinking water system in their rooms can come to public fountains to draw water. In this square you can see a man filling jugs next to a tree. As with many of these paved over cities trees are rare. Dogs go crazy when they see one.Cioccolata calda; We happened into a small cafe that did it right--although I did not know what I would be getting when I ordered a hot chocolate--What I got was a thick rich hot chocolate pudding like thing. Served in a big cup and edible only with a spoon that you could set on the top. Fantastic and way more than I bargained for!I insisted on a gondola ride and got a very nice one. Down the cold shadowy waterways with no one around and then out onto the Grand Canal.




We went to the Peggy Guggenheim Museum to view her collection of modern art. I liked the Miro and the Ernst, but you can have most of the rest. She is buried along with her heaps of small dogs in the garden. I like the modern art statuary. William especially liked this one "The Angel of the City".

Up inside the San Marco Cathedral is the Museum.

The original Bronze horses, cast by lost wax technique around 175 BC, still retain some of their original gilt, but their ruby eyes are long gone.
See William reading about them.

Outside on the balcony you can see from the Grand Canal

To the two moors who strike the hours on the top of the Bell Tower.

William strikes a pose.

The Bronze horses outside are replicas cast in Milan in 1978. The originals were moved indoors to protect them from pollution.

We shared a lunch cafe with gondoliers.

We spent two hours dawdling over a light dinner and watching the parade of people go by.