Buonasera, 

After a long day of travel and touring through Cividale and Wine Country with the group on Saturday; spending Sunday on the beach sounded heavenly. But, there are beaches back home and to make the most of our eight weeks a trip to Venice for our free day became the plan.

The specifics for traveling to Venice were agreed on late the night before and the group met at the bus station at 9:30 Sunday morning. This excursion was different than previous trips because we were on our own; no schedule or definite plans were set. For me, just getting to Venice with out the help of an outside source was cool in itself. 

After arriving we wandered through the streets and back alleys of Venice.  Some of the views looked like paintings in the sky, the beauty was unreal. I was struck by the simple beauty of the canals and and in awe of the grandiose architecture of St Marks square. 

                                     

The return trip to Grado did not go as smoothly. We (miraculously) found our way back to the train station, rushed to purchase tickets, and sprinted to the platform. After being caught in a closing train door, getting off at the wrong stop, and running to catch another train we were finally en route back home. 

During this day trip I leaned a lot about: the public transportation system of Italy (how hard it can be to catch a train), the architecture of Venice, how to navigate and city, and even got to practice my Italian along the way! Today made me realize I am going to gain experience not only in Italian this summer, but also in life. 

Ciao for now, 

Elise