Our time in Venice and Florence

Our Topdeck tour eventually took us to the cities of Venice and Florence, Italy. The history was epic with architecture to match.

Venice

The city built on a swamp, that slowly sinks about 2mm a year, has an incredible history as an empire of roaring trade. Now a picturesque city of canals, piles of tourists and Italian culture. In Venice, we had the best pizza of the trip.

Gondola ride — Of course we couldn’t go to Venice without going on a traditional gondola ride. Although it was short and just around the block, it was still epic to cruise on the canals and see the Rialto bridge from the Grand Canal.

The Rialto Bridge is full of wee souvenir shops.

St Mark's Basilica — St Mark’s Basilica. The main square in Venice is bustling and very expensive, so we didn’t linger too long. I did, however stay long enough to scare away a flock of pigeons to save a little girl’s crackers that she’d dropped.

Bridge of Sighs. The bridge that led from the Doge’s Palace to the prison cells. It was the inmates’ last look at the beautiful city of Venice before their imprisonment. Apparently, by the time it was finished, the majority were small time crims serving short sentences, so the walk across the bridge was nowhere near as dramatic.

Masks of Venice, all handmade and intricate. Traditionally worn during Carnival time before the beginning of Lent. Wearing the masks allowed upper and lower classes to party together without knowing each other’s identities. Each mask has a different meaning to differentiate plague doctors, fathers, prostitutes, comedians etc.

Florence

The home of the Renaissance, the Medici family, Dante (the father of the Italian language), Leonardo Di Vinci and Michelangelo. It was a pretty sweet wee city, but very touristy. The buildings were well preserved and felt new, even though they were built during the Renaissance.

Ponte Vecchio, “the Old Bridge” is the only original bridge in Florence as all the other bridges were destroyed during WWII. Now it’s filled with beautiful jewellery shops.

Palazzo Vecchio, the “Old Palace” which is the town hall situated in Piazza della Signoria, a famous square in the middle of Florence.

Sculptures in Piazza della Signoria. The sculptures were larger than life, quite graphic at times depicting old Roman legends of Gods and Godesses.

Replica David statue by Michelangelo — “David” statue, originally by Michelangelo, this one is a replica, the real one was in a museum in Florence. It shows David with his slingshot from the story of David and Goliath. They LOVE this statue in Italy, there are mini figurines, aprons, boxers, key rings, all sorts, it’s crazy.

St Mary's Cathedral

The history of the Venetian empire and the Renaissance in Florence was super interesting and showed that these cities were large and powerful in their heyday, now filled with architectural gems and milestones, sculptures and art throughout time and of course tourists. The tourists didn’t ruin the experience, but it means lines are longer and food is expensive. I’d recommend packing your lunch or walking several blocks back from the main squares and attractions to find food and gelato.

We’ll keep soaking up the knowledge and sights.