Venice - the mere mention of the name conjures an aura of romance and it's accompanying images of the ecstasy of "love" on a slow gliding gondola along a placid lagoon with a gondolier in his traditional red or blue striped shirt and be-ribboned straw hat noiselessly manning the oars. Ah, la dolce vita! (Ah, the sweet life!) The sense of peace, love and contentment of the beauty of life, nay, of just being alive, comes with such dynamic realism that the heart inevitably throbs with gratitude to God, our Creator.
For centuries, Venice has been called, "The Most Romantic City in the World," but during the Middle Ages, its strategic location at the head of the Adriatic Sea made it a trading center. Today, Venetian glass made in Murano is famous for being skillfully made, colorful and elaborate. The fascinating uniqueness of Venice, an archipelago of 118 islets formed by 177 canals in a shallow lagoon connected by 409 quaint mini-bridges makes it a favorite destination of 18 million tourists a year. The influx of tourists come around two weeks before Ash Wednesday when the "Carnivale " in Venice is celebrated. People wear colorful costumes with fanciful masks in festivities nothing like it in the world. Imagine 50,000 people moving about Venice, the "floating city," daily in motorized water buses called "vaporetta."
Significant buildings are enchantingly attractive with Venetian Gothic architecture combined with Byzantine and Moorish influence. The Doge's Palace typifies this exceedingly beautiful style which occupy a large area right on Piazza San Marco. In
olden times, the mayor or chief executive of Venice was called "doge." The Basilica of St. Mark is so unique and guaranteed to
take one's breath away especially the ceiling of the sanctuary with
intricate designs made with real gold. I cannot relay the exquisite beauty of the basilica in black and white! My vocabulary is dismally inadequate. One has to see it and more importantly "feel" the pervading atmosphere of the place! How true are the words of a sage, "When the heart is full, the tongue is meek."
Venice has been the setting of novels and movies as of James Bond and Indiana Jones. I remember Shakespeare's "The Merchant of
Venice" and its famous lines, "The quality of mercy is not strained.
It blesses him that gives and him that takes." Shakespeare must
have been a Christian! The city has been a tourist spot for years and years. No wonder, the rich and the famous and celebrities of film, art, literature or science come to Venice for relaxation and fun. Many have vacation homes in the city so that demographics show that a great number of natives had left in exchange for the high prices they got for their homes. Within the last five years, the
population had dwindled from 122,000 to 66,000 and prices of goods and commodities had skyrocketed. For example, our breakfast of a cup of coffee or tea with 2 medium-sized croissant each for the eight of us cost 93 euros. Currency exchange rate was $1.50 for 1 euro. What a terribly costly breakfast!
Rome as a venue to strengthen one's faith and Venice as a means to broaden one's perspective in life, made me promise (with God's assurance, of course) to reward every grandchild graduating from high school a visit to these legendary places. And so it was that last summer and this July 2014, I fulfilled my "vow" to my seven grandchildren including 11 year-old Melanie who is only in
5th grade since I would not be around anymore when she finishes her secondary education. I must confess that I enjoyed every
minute of our togetherness - from the visit to the Basilica of St. Peter, the seat of Christianity and the other patriarchal basilicas of St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major and St. Paul Outside the Walls...to...the interesting landmarks of Rome and the magical city of Venice plus the authentic gondola ride with a "singing" gondolier.
At first, I had second thoughts about taking the gondola ride because of the fantastic cost of 80 euros. My brain went reeling, tornado-like to the infinitesimal cost for each one of us! Picture me heaving a sigh of great relief when the gondolier said the 80 euros is for one hour's ride for 5 passengers. My initial shock was further relieved when my daughter, Cielo, promised to pay for one gondola while Diana and Christina, my granddaughters who study and work part-time, offered to give me the ride as a gift. How wonderful to be at the receiving end - sometimes! The slow gliding gondola through the winding lagoon lined with centuried stone houses festooned with ornate windows, porch columns and railings of a bygone era was immensely fascinating. Among the few flower-strewn balconies we passed by was the house of Marco Polo, the world- renowned Venetian explorer who brought much of the knowledge of China and its culture to Italy and to other European countries centuries ago. He was favored by the great Kublai Khan
to teach English to his court and his people for so many years. His book, "Adventures of Marco Polo" inspired many enterprising
young men and "visionaries" of the new and the untried to visit the continent of Asia.
I sat comfortably on the maroon velvet cushioned seat of the gondola enjoying the soft caress of the gentle breeze. I was so
wrapped up with a sense of suspended animation of penultimate
contentment which the French rightfully calls, "sans souci" -without care! I leaned back and let go of whatever tension my muscles harbored and let my arms go limp with complete abandon.
It was so relaxing!
"I will sing for you, Mama," said the gondolier which roused me from my reverie. In an instant, his deep baritone voice sang,
"Mamma, son tanto felice, (Mom, I am very happy)
Perche retorno da te, (Because I am returning to you)
La mia canzone ti dice, (My song is telling you)
Che il pui belgiorno per me, (It's the most beautiful day for me)
Significant buildings are enchantingly attractive with Venetian Gothic architecture combined with Byzantine and Moorish influence. The Doge's Palace typifies this exceedingly beautiful style which occupy a large area right on Piazza San Marco. In
olden times, the mayor or chief executive of Venice was called "doge." The Basilica of St. Mark is so unique and guaranteed to
take one's breath away especially the ceiling of the sanctuary with
intricate designs made with real gold. I cannot relay the exquisite beauty of the basilica in black and white! My vocabulary is dismally inadequate. One has to see it and more importantly "feel" the pervading atmosphere of the place! How true are the words of a sage, "When the heart is full, the tongue is meek."
Venice has been the setting of novels and movies as of James Bond and Indiana Jones. I remember Shakespeare's "The Merchant of
Venice" and its famous lines, "The quality of mercy is not strained.
It blesses him that gives and him that takes." Shakespeare must
have been a Christian! The city has been a tourist spot for years and years. No wonder, the rich and the famous and celebrities of film, art, literature or science come to Venice for relaxation and fun. Many have vacation homes in the city so that demographics show that a great number of natives had left in exchange for the high prices they got for their homes. Within the last five years, the
population had dwindled from 122,000 to 66,000 and prices of goods and commodities had skyrocketed. For example, our breakfast of a cup of coffee or tea with 2 medium-sized croissant each for the eight of us cost 93 euros. Currency exchange rate was $1.50 for 1 euro. What a terribly costly breakfast!
Rome as a venue to strengthen one's faith and Venice as a means to broaden one's perspective in life, made me promise (with God's assurance, of course) to reward every grandchild graduating from high school a visit to these legendary places. And so it was that last summer and this July 2014, I fulfilled my "vow" to my seven grandchildren including 11 year-old Melanie who is only in
5th grade since I would not be around anymore when she finishes her secondary education. I must confess that I enjoyed every
minute of our togetherness - from the visit to the Basilica of St. Peter, the seat of Christianity and the other patriarchal basilicas of St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major and St. Paul Outside the Walls...to...the interesting landmarks of Rome and the magical city of Venice plus the authentic gondola ride with a "singing" gondolier.
At first, I had second thoughts about taking the gondola ride because of the fantastic cost of 80 euros. My brain went reeling, tornado-like to the infinitesimal cost for each one of us! Picture me heaving a sigh of great relief when the gondolier said the 80 euros is for one hour's ride for 5 passengers. My initial shock was further relieved when my daughter, Cielo, promised to pay for one gondola while Diana and Christina, my granddaughters who study and work part-time, offered to give me the ride as a gift. How wonderful to be at the receiving end - sometimes! The slow gliding gondola through the winding lagoon lined with centuried stone houses festooned with ornate windows, porch columns and railings of a bygone era was immensely fascinating. Among the few flower-strewn balconies we passed by was the house of Marco Polo, the world- renowned Venetian explorer who brought much of the knowledge of China and its culture to Italy and to other European countries centuries ago. He was favored by the great Kublai Khan
to teach English to his court and his people for so many years. His book, "Adventures of Marco Polo" inspired many enterprising
young men and "visionaries" of the new and the untried to visit the continent of Asia.
I sat comfortably on the maroon velvet cushioned seat of the gondola enjoying the soft caress of the gentle breeze. I was so
wrapped up with a sense of suspended animation of penultimate
contentment which the French rightfully calls, "sans souci" -without care! I leaned back and let go of whatever tension my muscles harbored and let my arms go limp with complete abandon.
It was so relaxing!
"I will sing for you, Mama," said the gondolier which roused me from my reverie. In an instant, his deep baritone voice sang,
"Mamma, son tanto felice, (Mom, I am very happy)
Perche retorno da te, (Because I am returning to you)
La mia canzone ti dice, (My song is telling you)
Che il pui belgiorno per me, (It's the most beautiful day for me)
Mamma, son tanto felice." (Mom, I am very happy)
Ah..ah..ah..h..ZZZ..ZZ..z.z.z...I was off to Dreamland!
.JPG)
Ah..ah..ah..h..ZZZ..ZZ..z.z.z...I was off to Dreamland!
