We wind our way north by train through the mountains. The scenery is breathtaking and other than the multitude of villages and vineyards, I can pretend that we are heading to Jasper from Hinton.  I imagine that this is how the Okanagan must look. However, we are in Europe so this must be the Alps. And we are leaving Italy and heading to Munich, Germany.

Our last full day in Venice was bittersweet. I hadn’t slept well the previous night so was a bit foggy for much of the day – much like the weather. In fact, we did not have a clear sky or even any sun during our time in Venice except for this morning when we walked to the train station. We had a good chuckle over that one.

Anyways, last day in Venice – even though many of you encouraged us to take the gondola ride, in the end we chose to take the boat cruise around the harbour instead. Partly due to the cost and partly because our hearts just weren’t into it. We had walked much of the canal system during the last couple days and other than the romantic idea of it, we just did not see the need to do it. This may be a regret once we get home but for now, we are content with this decision. The Hop On-Hop Off boat cruise gave us a wider perspective of the city and the surrounding islands. There are 118 in all and we saw a few more of the larger ones. We did not disembark at any of them but rather rode the cruise completely around the harbour route. Our tickets were valid for 24 hours so once we hopped off the boat, we gave them to a couple of young girls that were having lunch along the pier. They were really excited to get the tickets and we were happy to be able to Pay It Forward – even if it was with a used ticket.  

We spent another hour or so walking around, poking into a church here and there, looking longingly at the sweets and gelato in the shops, trying on a few more Carnival masks, and generally breathing in our last moments of this amazing and unique city.

We have loved Italy – from Rome, Naples and Pompeii to Florence and Venice, Pisa, Lucca and Assisi – such a beautiful country. A definite must on anyone’s European Vacation list.

We went into a crypt in the basement of some old Church we stumbled upon.  More of a money grab than anything, but it did kind of freak Col out a bit.

View from the boat.

Traveling by train in Europe is the best….