On Saturday, I decided that a touristy Venice weekend was in order. With that in mind, I visited the main sights of the central S. Marco Square area - Museo Correr and the Doge's Palace.
The Museo Correr was interesting from an academic and historical standpoint - most of the pieces I saw there were military and naval relics. Venice has an enormous wealth of history in terms of warfare; it remained its own, independent entity for centuries before becoming part of Napoleon Bonaparte's Kingdom in the late 18th century, and a part of Italy in 1866. In that respect, the museum was a great place to visit. However, in terms of the art itself and the layout of the museum, I wasn't a huge fan. The tone was fairly dark and depressing, also very claustrophobic, and I was ready to get back outside into the sunlight after an hour or so surrounded by coats-of-arms, weapons, pieces of old wooden ships and tapestries.
The Doge's Palace, while also very dark, was incredible. The architecture is very intricate and in a few large rooms off the courtyard, there are pieces of columns and statutes that have been preserved after coming off the building.
What I found the most fascinating about the Doge's Palace was the enormous system of governmental halls throughout the building. Walking through the different wings of the palace, you could get lost in the dark maze of rooms (if it weren't for the velvet rope directing the proper path) - it is easy to imagine Venetian governmental officers discussing the fate of the poor souls who had to cross over the Bridge of Sighs into the prisons across the canal.
Sunday was hot and dry, and we went to Lido to sit by the beach. The main strip of Lido leading from the vaporetto stop to the beaches feels almost like a coastal town in California, but with a little more glam and a lot more ice cream. After a few hours sitting in the sun and swimming, we headed back to the city to finish our work and get ready for the week ahead.
As usual, all my photos are in albums to the right! -->
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