See, there were these three birds...

...and they pooped on my head in Venice. Yes, I hopped a train this morning and took the two hour ride to lovely Venice. It's like Rome on the water. Tons of people and it was very, very hot today. But wait, back to the three birds. Not all three did their business on my head at the same time but throughout my day from the train station to St. Mark's Square. However, I am certain they all knew each other and targeted only single, American women. At any rate, Venice was way more than I expected it to be. If you imagine quaint little side-alley canals with arched bridges and gondolas floating underneath, then your imagination is spot on. Women in the gondolas hold brightly colored lace umbrellas to shield them from the sun while the gondolier sings something in Italian wearing a black and white striped shirt and a funny little hat you would get at the county fair. You would think it is all staged but it isn't. Las Vegas has it down perfectly. What took my breath away was St. Mark's square. There had to be well over a thousand people and well over that many birds! The view and the church were breathtaking. Okay, tips for the would-be traveler to Venice: go early to avoid crowds. Best time of year to go I learned is May and September. A first class round trip train ticket from Florence is €126.00. A gondola ride is €160.00 for two. A one way water taxi ticket from St. Mark's to train station is €7.50 and this ride has 11 stops and takes over an hour. It takes about two hours to walk from the station to the square, which includes lots of picture taking time. Plan on skinny alleyways packed with people who don't speak English and lots and lots of gelato on every corner! needless to say, I am exhausted but so glad I did this. Now, Shelly shows up from Rome tomorrow and then we are off to the hills for wine tasting and sight seeing, complete with me driving a manual shift little car called a Panda! Ciao from sunny Italy! (PS: My blogging software will not allow me to make paragraphs in case you thought I was just being lazy!)