Icebreaker

My first two meetings with the main part of Venice were not on the best terms. When I arrived, I was tired, stressed, and a little disoriented, and I ran into a bit of trouble. The second time, I was on a mission; I was not there to enjoy myself. Yesterday, though, with the arrival of most of the other American students, I was able to decompress a little, and with their and the professors' help today, I was ready to face the city again. Professor Felluga gave us a mini tour, which helped us get our bearings a little, and it also helped that this time I had no goal in mind except to explore and enjoy myself. The result was a pleasant, stress-free visit and plenty more pictures.

Here is the Rialto Bridge and my proof to you (and also myself, somewhat) that yes, I'm really here in Venice.
No need to visit Pisa; Venice has its own leaning tower.

Here are some streets, canals, and bridges.

Venice is full of statues, monuments, sculptures, and fountains.

And after a long afternoon of wandering, we took the number twenty vaporetto back to our home away from home on San Servolo.

This is a view along one of the outer walls of San Servolo, near the vaporetti stop. The building at the end is where I'm staying. As you can see, it's not next to the wall, it's part of the wall. Thus I have a great view and the peaceful sound of waves lapping against the side... and the not-so-peaceful sound of boats going by. I didn't get much sleep last night; I think there were a lot of Saturday night parties going on. It's been fun to wave at tour groups going by, though.

Speaking of boats going by, I still can't believe that something the size of this cruise ship we watched yesterday can make it through the lagoon. I need to find out how deep that water is.