The Variety of Venice

Sunday May 13 started as a wet and windy one in Venice with high wind and rain warnings overnight.  The winds made for an interesting night as the sound of heavy rain, thunder and shutters pounding back and forth on the buildings around us awoke me a few times.

Regardless of the weather we had a great day by kicking it off with Doges Palace.  The Doges were the royal rulers of Venice for many centuries.  No photos were allowed in the palace so I will try to paint what I saw in words.  I must say I have a better appreciation for much of Christian art and it's utilizations then my last trip to Europe.  I have had over a decade to read and study the Bible and am now able to notice and understand the many depictions of Biblical accounts on the walls of the cathedrals and palaces.  We saw a particularly striking image today whilst hanging' with the Doge, it was a painting of Christ Himself coronating the king.  While it is true that God sets up and deposes all kings (Daniel 2) this image seemed to give explicit approval of this king irrespective of how just or unjust his rule may be.  Religion is a powerful force behind any human institution, but in the case of Christianity it's governmental (and church) abuses can be reformed by testing them against what is recorded for us in the Bible.  Tomorrow we will be traveling East and closer to a government system that had no rule against which to reform, namely the atheistic communism of the 20th century.  The toll on humanity wrought by the crusades, witch hunts and slavery (which falsely took refuge under Christ) pale in comparison to Lenin, Stalin and Maos 100 million murders.

After our visit with the Doges we headed off to Murano a nearby island popular for its glass-works.  We saw a local artisan demonstrate his gift.  Amazing, he created this horse in mere minutes.  The kiddos thought that was very neat and bought a few fun items with the travel cash they have been saving all year.

In Venice masks abound.  There are shops that sell very elaborate designs for a few hundred Euro and some with full on costumes for several thousand.  The girls have been enthralled since the moment they laid eyes on these creations.  So, Patti and I being the indulgent parents that we are dropped 250€ on some really sweet masks.  Just kidding, they did however buy themselves masks for 10€.  Now, the trick will be, how do you get them home?  At this point they are nestled in a cereal box and I guess we will see.

We arrived back in Piazza San Marco just in time to see the finish of one of the America's Cup prelim races, that was cool.  You can see the finish boat there it appears to have been a photo finish.

Remember the big old stinky sweater I picked up in Monterosso?  It's a large, but is still a tad small and it still smells after a washing.  It was really cold today, so on it went odor and all.  I have been taking most of my showers at night for one reason or another and have been forgetting to put on my deodorant in the morning.  So, on top of that, I put on this stinky sweater and really start smelling thoroughly European.  I now exude the fragrance that the women in Europe long for and the men revere.

All the pics can be found via the links on the left side of this page.