After lunch, we had the afternoon free, so I went for a wander round by the Friary, by Rialto (where many small shops and market stalls are), and crossed the Rialto bridge over the Grand Canal. From there, a maze of streets, alleys and bridges lead towards St Mark's Square, where I was able to take a few photos. then I walked back towards the Accademie bridge, checking emails on the way. At Accademie, I took a few more photos, before returning to the convent.
Our next engagement was with Peter and Lady Rose, in their home in the world's first ghetto. Lady Rose is a member of the Mountstewart family from Strangford, but has lived in Venice for a long time. Her grandfather was Lord Londonderry, the first Minister of Education in the NI Parliament, and her ancestors include Castlereagh, who was involved in the Irish Act of Union 1800. Her bathroom contains an autographed picture of a famous politician, which I had to be shown! Peter is an authority on Venice, and they talked to us about its history, as well as what its like to live there now.
As we broke into smaller groups, Peter and the principal delved deep into Byzantine history and stayed there... until Alan decided it was time to leave!
It was getting late, so we walked back to the square where we had eaten on the first night, and found another restaurant. Having already eaten pizza today, it had to be spaghetti, of the bolognese variety. And so our second full day comes to an end.
No comments:
Post a Comment