Today dawns clear and beautiful. Such a difference from yesterday. We are heading to the Cimiterio today – it’s the only island we’ve not visited and while we really want to go back to San Erasmo, we just don’t have enough time to make it there today.
We were smart yesterday (Ed was smart!) and pre-bought our vaporetto tickets – that way we avoid the huge lines today and hop right o the 4.2 line– which is at the dock when we arrive – without delay.
It takes 1/2 an hour to get all the way around to the Cimiterio, passing through the Grand Canal, and then Cannaregio to finally make our way out into the big lagoon. We pass Fondamente Nove and Hotel Vecilio – our first overnight stay here Venice with the Rageths (and the source of Alice’s name for our GPS). Then on in the direction of Murano for the Cimiterio.
We hop off, along with a number of people, more than we would have thought, and walk into the tranquility that is San Michele Cimiterio. They have a free map available, and good thing – this place is huge. And beautiful and simple breath taking. We walk into a section with graves in front of a beautiful little chapel….
….then on through little lanes filled with crypts….
There are flowers on every grave, plastic, silk and live. There are also these stands with watering cans placed strategically throughout the cemetery.
Moveable stairs (like the ones they use at Home Depot!) are placed around too, so that you can reach the crypts that are at the top of the walls. And everywhere, virtually all the graves have photos of the deceased. It’s really a lovely tribute to the person who has passed. There are even graves with lights – it’s quite an enterprise here.
We spend the better part of an hour just meandering through here. The different sections of the cemetery have different architecture, most old, but there are a few sections they are revitalizing in a new, more modern fashion.
As we wander, we watch all the people here, who are, for the most part, replacing the flowers on the graves. Ed has read that during All Soul’s Days next week, they have scheduled special vaporetti to leave from Fondamente Nove straight to the cemetery every 5 or 10 minutes, 14 hours a day. Wow. We’re thinking that these people are beating the crowds, paying respects now so they don’t have to mess with the hordes who will be here over the weekend.
There are even a couple people we see with bags and bags of flowers. We are guessing they are paid to replace flowers for loved ones who can’t make it to the cemetery. Very interesting!
We make it back on the vaporetto with no time to spare – and snag seats after Fondamente Nove for the 1/2 hour ride back. We hop off at the train station so we can wander around before heading back to the ship. We end up at Brindisi café, the same café we have frequented before for Internet in the past. Up to date with the world, we wander on, passing all the expensive candy and confectionery shops, the leather shops and mask/souvenir shops.
Then onto Rio Nove we go, passing the Olympia hotel, our most recent home with the Rageths in Venezia, and then to a cute little café off the main canal for beer (no sissy beer here), wine and pizza of all things! We were just in the mood….
Then its back to the people mover, back to ship, and a gorgeous sail away.
Bridge of Sighs….
And off into the lagoon – past San Erasmo -
- and past the construction island for the underwater wall they are building to protect Venice from flooding (no pictures, don’t ask why – we just watched from our balcony). Then, into our half and half day at sea before Kotor.
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