Travel: Day 3, Venice Tidal Floods and Farewell

We were warned about potential flooding and we were able to circumnavigate the flood areas yesterday.

This morning was quite another matter.  After breakfast we decided to take a walk to Saint Mark’s Square.  The first surprise was the waterfront was hosting a marathon.  It was quite the scene.  The morning light was ideal.  The wind and waves were spirited.  The marathon was well attended with an enthusiastic audience.

What most observers did not see was San Marco square was slowly flooding from tidal waters.  We soon realized so was much of Venice.

In an attempt to route ourselves around the flooding waters we realized we were slowly but surely running out of high ground.

Add day trippers and thousands of tour groups from newly arrived cruise ships and you can imagine the crowds, confusion and growing angst.

All that said, we managed to find our way back to our hotel, the courtyard also flooded.  In the spirit of ‘when the going gets tough, the tough go to lunch’ and so we did.  Two Aperol Spritz and a large Greek salad, please!

And now we are back at the hotel, planning our departure from Venice and the end of our incredible Italy adventure.

A big thanks to all our friends, old and new, and family for all the comments and good wishes.

Here are a few final pictures.  If time permits we may also send a post with a few “goofy” shots we found funny!

Love to all,

J&J

Humm…no gondolas in service this morning!
A surprise discovery, the famous and hard to find Scala Contarini del Bovolo.
The magnificent St. Marks Square…note the water raising from the drains soon floods the square and beyond.
A beautiful morning with the San Giorgio Maggiore in the distance.
You cannot visit Venice without a view of the Bridge of Sighs.
The canal gates of the Greek Orthodox Church as the flood waters rise.
The courtyard in front of out hotel as the water rises. Note: the yellow building is La Fenice Opera House.

 

6 thoughts on “Travel: Day 3, Venice Tidal Floods and Farewell”

  1. Gentlemen, It was great to have been able to spend time with you again. It is unfortunate that the weather has not been cooperative in your final days of your incredible vacation; nonetheless it is an experience to see what Venice occasionally has to deal with.
    Safe travels home!
    Best, Bob and Denise

  2. How will you get out of your hotel to the airport? Oh my!! I’ve seen pictures of Venice flooded and people walking through the water wearing hip boots. I hope you will get out in time. Xoxo

  3. What hotel are you staying at? You are in the thick of things, the low point of Venice. Need life preservers? Venetians are hardy souls.

  4. OMG – been watching on the news about Venice. Hope you made it out ok. We were so lucky with the weather on our main trip !
    I had a delay in Venice (mechanical issue) therefore arrived late in JFK and missed my connecting flight. Spend the night in NY and arrived in MPLS. a day late.
    But I had a wonderful trip , with beautiful sights and met some lovely people !!

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