Venice

Our eight hour train ride from Vienna to Venice on Sunday took us through some spectacular scenery. We shared the compartment with a very young couple from Australia and, during the last part, with an Italian lady who was very critical of the U.S. health care system, George Bush, the Iraq war, the ignorant people of Florida etc. Upon learning that Dick had a cold, she reacted in fear of the H1N1 virus and said that everyone coming from the U.S. should be quarantined for 13 days. Welcome to Italy!

The first evening in Venice, we rode the vaporetto the length of the Grand Canal to San Marco. Daylight was fading and the full moon was over San Marco Cathedral. A perfect picture of Venice. Later that evening we had drinks with George and Rita, friends from Roseville, who were completing their Mediterranean cruise. How nice to see good friends from home.

Today (Monday) we toured the Doges' Palace. Thanks to reservations made via the Internet, we walked right to the front of a long line. The rest of the day was spent exploring Venice.

Our hotel charges 3 euros for 15 minutes of access to the Internet so we are minimizing our usage.