May 28, 2009  Verona

            Yesterday was our day trip to Venice.  The heat has been most oppressive, so we had expected storms to come through while we were in Venice, but we were relieved at the forecasted drop in temperatures and students were prepared for a wet day.

            However, we were incredibly lucky: it was very windy in Venice, and later the sun came out beautifully.  There were strong storms and hail on the mainland, but we were rain free (except for just a couple of very subtle drops at one point).  It was a wonderful relief and we had a most awesome time.

            It took some time to pick up the reserved vaporetto and bathroom tickets for the group of 15.  (Why it takes 20 minutes to count out 45 pieces of plastic, I do not know.)  However, Alessia and I talked about Italy and the U.S. so the time passed quickly for us.

            Needless to say, the students were ecstatic even on the vaporetto ride down the canal.  I think it was even at this stage that they determined to return on their own in the next three weeks.  It was not a super-crowded touristy day.  I think that Prof. Thomas, Alessia and I had each done our own research for the most accessible streets and bridges in Venice, since Alex is in a wheelchair.  It gave us a new perspective on Venice for sure, but once we knew to get off the earlier vaporetto stop at San Marco, and pass around the streets on the left and then into Piazza San Marco, we were smart enough to repeat that passage later on when Alex, Joel, Alessia and I returned to visit the inside of the Doge’s Palace.

            We thus entered San Marco square from the back.  Some students went off shopping with Prof. Thomas and were thrilled with the masks and glass jewelry that they bought.  Five or six students stayed with me to enter San Marco.  The line was long but went quickly and it was not crowded inside.  In fact, as some students paid to see the golden altar, and others explored for handicapped access to that very altar, I just stood and studied the architecture in a way that I have never been able to do before.  The only thing that was a bit distressing was that just before entry, we were told to stow our large bags and backpacks, “over there” the man waved to my left.  Well, it wasn’t by the exit, and it wasn’t around the church….it took me a while to find the bag drop location down a side street on the north side of San Marco (to the right of the white arch with the blue clock).  When I finally got back to the church, I angled my way in through the exit and then into the church because I wasn’t going to wait in line again!

            This was probably my most rewarding visit to San Marco ever.  Usually one is so shuffled along in lines that you don’t really get a chance to study the Byzantine complexity of the architecture.  There are arches on every level of this Greek cross plan, with some balconies for the choirs of Gabrieli’s Renaissance music.  It was fun to notice which floors had been removed for more light into the church and which passages between levels had been retained.  Some church lights were on when we first entered, and the place glimmered with gold.  But soon thereafter, for whatever reason, the lights went off and did not reappear.  In any case, one could notice the lovely marbles on the lower parts of the walls (although the exterior marble seemed more recently cleaned).  Even the patterns of stone and marble on the floors were extraordinary.

            We met as a group again at 12:50 under the blue clock and wound our way back to the vaporetto.  We got off at the Accademia and followed Theresa as she wound down streets to a recommended ciacetti bar.  When I saw the bridge on the final canal that she was walking down, my heart sunk for Alex.  However, Professor Thomas knew best, and the restaurants with sandwiches or ciacetti (tapas-style) sampler snacks were on our side of the bridge.  In fact, many of us sat on that bridge to eat our delicious lunches.  I don’t even know what little tasty delights were on my five little pieces of bread, but they were wonderful!

            We did actually make it to the Guggenheim in time for our 2:00 reservation, although it took Joel, Alessia and Alex a bit longer to negotiate the bridge.  Apparently, they got two Italians to help.  But in time, when I joined Alex’s group later, Alessia and I would automatically reach for two handles on the chair, and Joel would push from the back, and Alex would do her wheelie, thing, and we got up and down successfully (with some effort on the ladies’ part and a great deal of effort on Joel’s part.)  (The bridge near San Marco, on the way to the first vaporetto stop, did have a good ramp, and I did get a shot of Alex racing down that ramp happy as could be.)

            Alex is wonderful as we mount vaporettos or buses with large steps.  When going down, she just lets go and makes the bump as a jump, happy as can be, with startled looks and dropped jaws all around her.  I hope it doesn’t sound cliché to say that she is inspiring all of us and teaching us enormous lessons in perseverance.

            Because of the lift for one set of stairs at the Guggenheim, Alex could make it to the lower galleries, but I’m afraid we were all a bit daunted by the large staircase going to the main galleries.  It is really too bad that they cannot have a lift there too, but in all honesty, the museum was not advertised as being accessible at all, and I am only thrilled that Alex saw as much of it as she did.

            Many students liked the abstraction of those wonderful works, even if they had not learned about it before.  I am always amazed at the great eye that Peggy Guggenheim had, picking just the right pieces, even by relative unknowns.  I loved the Pollock room in particular, and I only wish they had allowed us to take photos.  My slide (bought decades ago from that very museum) of  Pollock’s Circumcision has changed color so much as to be almost unrecognizable. 

            After the museum, many students followed Prof. Thomas to see a particular mask-maker who was most generous with his time and letting students photograph him.  He is even making a particular mask especially for one student.

            Alex, Joel, Alessia and I went to explore the Doge’s Palace instead.  Joel and Alex loved the rich, highly decorated High Renaissance and Baroque interiors.  They were a bit overdone for us.  Just when we were about to leave, Alessia said “No, I think we are missing something good down this way,” and sure enough there was the huge audience hall.  Joel was quite simply blown away by the size and power of this room, with Veronese’s Apotheois of Venus floating over our heads.

            We all got back to the station in time for the train.  At one stop, it was amusing because Alex’s group was already on vaporetto 2, but on the side that was not very visible from the platform.  Then I heard a voice calling my name.  And sure enough, there was the rest of the group waiting on the platform for the next vaporetto.  And it was good that we were already on our way, since Alex had to be at the train a bit earlier than everyone else for her first class carriage.

            So on the way back to Verona, we were all a bit weary from a day of walking and seeing things, but we were also thankful that it had not rained and that we had had a most marvelous day.  We are lucky that we are situated close enough for day trips to Venice so that we do not have to pay the cost of an overnight.