Balkan Trip : Venice, Italy

Balkan Trip : Part 2

Venice, Venizia. 30 April.

Trip kali ini touch and go kekdahnya. Hanya sekejapan di satu2 tempat kerana kita travel to 9 countries : 2 Europe countries and 7 Balkans (well most of them in EU pun kekdahnya). Kalau nak free and easy, DON'T take this kind of trip ok. Lessons learned here. Sebab nampak byk country kheennn. Takper, tak nyesal, tersimpan tersimpul 1001 kenangan yg indah belaka, walau letih kejong berjam2 dlm bas, But if you are not sleeping in the bus, which, I rarely can, then you'll enjoy the beautiful scenery from the Alps and jajaran Balkans. Tak boley nak gambarkan keindahannya esp. the Balkans. Wow. Cantik sekali.

Now, selepas dari Milan kami pun naik bas bertolak ke Venice pd petang itu. Melalui country side yang indah dengan kebun vines berjajaran along side the roads.
  

The greeneries and some blooms that we managed to view sepanjang jalan dari Milan ke Venice.

Ah, dah sampai di daerah Venezia, menuju ke San Giuliano Park untuk bermalam di hotel. Dah nampak dah canal or terusan2 sbb dah tak jauh dr Venizia Mestre station. Di canal tu dah kelihatan bot2 kecil parking. 

Dah sampai dahhhh area hotel,  Russott Hotel Venezia , San Giuliano Park. About 6km from centre of Venice. Dah letak beg kita pun nak dinner dulu. Siang agak panjang kan.. dah kui 7-8 pun cerah lagi.

So malam tu kami dinner kt sini, Indian cuisine resto.

Yeahhh... yang kami santap mlm tu.

Ok, posing dulu.. sana sini usung penyodok stick ni uhhh. Nice ambience resto ni. Opkos lah tak rasa syiok mcm kt mamak nun, tp tetap full perut tu, syukran. Kt resto yg kami singgah mmg dia dah siap2 hidang bahagian makanan utk kami utk halal food katanya.

Tempat kami bermalam di Venice, Russott Hotel.

Almost senja, byk betul debu2 lalang bungaan berterbangan time ni. Spring nak masuk summer katakan. Tiada komplen utk accomodation, sume selesa apa adanya coz depa bg hotel 4-5 star almost all the places.

Ok, good morning people. Morning in Venice. Herm, bab breakfast ni je lahhh yg boley di makan pun kan, Tapi jgn risau. Pg2 sblm keluar kami dah siap panaskan, pack2 nasi goreng/nasi lemak/bariyani Brahim's utk bwk bekal berjalan. Kata depa lunch not provided tp selalu tup2 adanya depa bg pack lunch. Makan aje - even dalam bas, sume bwk mcm2 snacks, pastu TA bagi lagi snacks, berenti coffee break lagi ermmmm...

Ahhh,...haghi ni nak pi dlm 'pulau2' buatan Venice ni, TG dah edar siap2 map sbb kami kena explore sendighi.

Venice, the capital of northern Italy’s Veneto region, is built on more than 100 small islands in a lagoon in the Adriatic Sea. It has no roads, just canals – including the Grand Canal thoroughfare – lined with Renaissance and Gothic palaces. 

Untuk ke sana, kami kena naik boat or waterbus or vaporetti  di sekitar Piazzale Roma so bas park sini.

Nak naik bot, lebor sengehnya.

Ateh boat or waterbus.

Ahhhh Venice, Venezia... I'm in love ya! Kota romantic yg historical .. kota festival, kota budaya, kota roman katolik tersirat seribu cerita di sebalik basicila, churches, tower, palace dan monumennya. Menyusuri Basino di San Marco or St Mark's bay, the wheather was gorgeous, slightly cold n.breezy sbb tepi laut tp the sun shone so warmly nice.

Kami sedang menyelusuri Bacino di San Marco, yang menuju ke Canal Grande or Grand Canal.

Brrrr...sejuk betul angin time ni.

Model bedak Cina kotak 4 segi. Kelihatan di belakang saya, Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute. Basilica tu macam cathedral gitew.

"Guarding the entrance to the Grand Canal, this 17th-century domed church was commissioned by Venice’s plague survivors as thanks for their salvation. Baldassare Longhena's uplifting design is an engineering feat that defies simple logic; in fact, the church is said to have mystical curative properties. Titian eluded the plague until age 94, leaving 12 key paintings in the basilica's art-slung sacristy. - kata Google. Aku tak reti nak citer history dia.

Ok, dah sampai di area San Marco piazza or St. Mark's square. We were on our own as tourist guide pakai lepaih je kami meneroka sendiri. Wandering along Plazza San Marco truly appreciate the details n.architecture of ze monumens and buildings. It was a free time to wander in Venice maze of alleys, charming squares and superb art galleries.

Ok, kami merambu2 di area tu dan terus our first place menuju ke tempat org buat glass. Yg famos di sini Murano glass.

Tu dia aihhhh segaknya org yg nak buat glass tu naaa 😊 senyum sikit banggg..

Yg muncung mulut kt belakang tulah yg lead the demo, pastu hang kena pi kedai dia 😜 hak depan ni mmg kheja dia selfie manjang..

oiiii sup sap sup sapppp... dah jadi sekoq stallion wow... i loikeeee skill abam tak mau senyum tu, fantastic! jgn dok ngada nak pegang.. kertas pun tebakaq letak dia ni, hangat hoittt!!

takde jalan keluar lain melainkan kena lalu kedai depa😜 angpa oiiii.... Venezia kan tempat temasya karnival and festival so byk masquerade masks boley jumpa kt sini.

Tu diaa aihhh... baca doa byk2 pun terbeli jugakkkk bak ang..bungkuih la jugak gondola glass hiasan sampai kt umah anak dok main pecah patah paddle gondola tu 😭 *muka dia mcm asben Kak Nita S'wak kann

Okay, lepas tu kita nak pi carik Gondola plakkk sambil merayau2 depan Water front.

Dah nampak dah canal di celah2 bangunan, gamba dulu sutir.

Ha tu dah nampak dah kaki festival, mau gambaq kalu bayaq klu tak no photo no photo! auchhh sorry darl, dah tersnap 😜. Tu nampak org dari manatah makin tinggi haghi makin berbondong2 mai tang ni...

"Piazza San Marco, often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal public square of Venice, Italy, where it is generally known just as la Piazza. Piazza San Marco or St Mark's square is where the most important religious and civil ceremonies have always been held there.  It is Venice on parade, where everyone comes to see and be seen".

At the water front.

Canal Grande, or The Grand Canal

"Is a canal in Venice, Italy. It forms one of the major water-traffic corridors in the city. Public transport is provided by water buses and private water taxis. As well, many tourists explore the canal by gondola".

 So kami nak carik Gondola... nak carik Gondola...nak carik Gondola...

Dahhh... jumpa dah stesennya. Nak masuk Grande Canal naik gondola. Amboiiii sis, dah asah skill posing kekdahnya.

Gondolanya lebey kurang sama pastu yg bawak tu plak pakai seragam sekali pandang aku teringat baju seragam burglar je cam citer kartun. 1 ride is 80 Euro. Kami share berempat.

Our ride and our man, Mr Andrea. Melalui Bacino di San Marco nak masuk ke Grande Canal. Once in a lifetime experience kata orang, kalu gi semata2 nak naik ni idok lahhhh.

The view of Piazza San Marco from the bay.

Dah masuk ke Grande Canal, melalui celah2 bangunan yg diwartakan sbg tapak warisan dan kebudayaan dunia UNESCO. Andrea tak mau nyanyi atau sbb kami tak mau bg tips so kami pun nyanyi sendighi lagu..Alfio Raldo...lalalala lala la lala.. (ikut lagu iklan jam AR😁)

Koya.

Memancor2 cahayanya.

Melalui jambatan2 yg dipanggil Ponte, ada 4 main ponte along the canal, yg menyambungkan district of San Marco dan San Polo.

Banyak selisih ngan Gondola lain tp depa bisa saja adjust pakkk.. ada bau juga air kt canal ini.

Gitchuuu.

Argggg dah keluo canal. Muka Andrea pula memanco riang.

Palazzo Ducale, or Doge's Palace.

Ok, kami merambu plak area San Marco dan ke dalam sket. Palazzo Ducale ni bekas istana yg mengadap the waterfront tp dah di tukar ke muzium.  Pun boley tahan que. Terkenal dengan Gothic confectionnya, is unlikely setting for the political and administrative seat of a great republic, but an exquisitely Venetian one. "Beyond it's dainty colonnades and geometrically patterned facade of white Istrian stone and pale pink Veronese marble lie grand rooms of state, the Doge's private apartments and a large complex of council chambers, courts and prisons". 

Sekitar Palazzo Ducale. Kami lecong ke kanan tu dan jumpa lah Basilica di San Marco. 

Basilica di San Marco 

Basilica di San Marco or The Patriarchal Cathedral Basilica of Saint Mark, is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice. Mmg cantik, fine work of art cathedral ni. Built from Gothic, Byzantine and Italian Gothic architecture.

Sejarah and tale :

"It was founded in the 9th century to house the corpse of St Mark after wily Venetian merchants smuggled it out of Egypt in a barrel of pork fat.  In 828, merchants from Venice stole the body of St. Mark the Evangelist, one of the four Apostles, from Alexandria, Egypt. According to the legend, they snuck them past the (Muslim) guards by hiding them under layers of pork in barrels! While at sea, a storm almost drowned the grave robbers and their precious cargo, it’s said that St. Mark himself appeared to the captain and told him to lower the sails. The ship was saved, and the merchants said they owed their safety to the miracle. 

The entire story is pictured on the 13th-century mosaic above the left door as you enter the basilica.

When the original burnt down in 932 Venice rebuilt the basilica in its own cosmopolitan image, with Byzantine domes, a Greek cross layout and walls clad in marbles from Syria, Egypt and Palestine".

Rasanya boley masuk free without strict restriction such as to cover up. 

Sompek bergambo sutir dua.

Basilica ini juga byk menyimpan treasure from the Crusade era. Dengan tamatnya the 4th crusades in 1204, disusuli dengan penaklukan Constantinople, banyak treasure yang di bawa masuk ke Venice dan diletakkan dlm basilica ini. That includes four bronze horses, icon of the Madonna Nicopeia, enamels of the Golden Altar-piece, relics, crosses, chalices, and patens.



Bergambo penuh koya (dah tua2 pulak teghingin nak bergambo cenggini huh) membelakangi St Mark's campanile (Bell Tower). Tower bah atas dah tertutup dgn lamp post.

"St Mark's campanile (Bell Tower) the famous bell tower of San Marco. Venetians call the "Master of the house",  It is 97 metres high and on top is a golden statue of the Archangel Gabriel. The statue is 3 metres high and has big wings that, when pushed by the wind, make it rotate. For the Venetians, when the angel is facing the Basilica, it is a sign that there will be high water. On the morning of 14 July 1902 the Venetians woke up without their bell tower. A sudden collapse had forever destroyed one of the iconic images of the city. On the evening of the same day, the City Council gathered out of urgency and decided that the bell tower should be reconstructed 'how it was and where it was'."

Infact, tower ni dah survive beberapa kali earthquake. from 1903-1912 was rebuilt with better construction and insiden ia collapse tu dikatakan an embarrassing to the people. 

wow..tak perasan la couple tengah tu... tgh romancing awwww

Around St Mark's basilica and bell tower.

Kami jalan2 lagi sekitar the square and sempat tgk depa beli barang and makan eskrim and dengar live classical music.

Dan penat pi lepak kt taman sat.

Lepak2 kt waterfront. Banyak yg jual souvenior area ni, tp kami beli kt area Piazzale Roma, tempat bas parking. Slightly cheaper ramai Indian or Pakistan or Bangladesh yg juai situ.

 Dah... depa dah siap2 set meja dahhh utk diners

 Makin lama makin ghamai la org

hoitttt eskemmm... tanya depa buleh tak makan? mana yg buleh makan? ok, depa habaq dun wori.

 Sambil tu layan dulu live music.

 Tu dia Dina.. dah dapat eskem dah.

Sekitar waterfront.

Last kopek before heading to waterbus station. Masa tunggu bot kami tu, dan tu jugak nak pi toilet. TG tu garanggg semacam masa dia betul emas you. So kami pun pi toilet. Elok sampai kt jeti, sume dah naik bot. Apa lagik kena tengking la kami 3 org yg lewat dlm 3 minit tu. Kuang ajaq... dia tak kigha dahhh org ramai cemana klu lambat mmg hang kena. oiiitttt pastu dia mai confront nak berdamai ngan kita, kita bagi dia ceramah sebijik. suka ati hang je yekkk. Kami tunggu bot tu bapak lama dlm setengah jam, lewat 3 minit hazabbbbb kena tengking mcm budak2 puiiii

Last but not the least... ini la kemasukan ke WC yg termahal dlm hidup... 1.5 Euro uols... pi toilet mana2 bwk botol air mineral la uols...depa kan mana suka toilet basah, guna wipe tissue kan tak puas musti mau siram juga haha...

Oklah, til next time - Vienna, Austria. See you soon people!