Basilicas and Vaporettos

We decided to spend our last full day in Venice visiting some of the more touristy attractions that we had missed over the weekend because it was so busy. Monday's in Venice are extremely quiet, it was mostly just locals, and a few tourists here and there.

On the advice of Alessandro (the B&B owner) we decided to skip the Campanile in Piazza san Marco and catch a Vaparetto (water bus) to the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, where you could get a view of Venice in its entirety from the Campanile at the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore, without the ridiculous wait time!

We were up early and headed straight for the Vaparetto stop at the Rialto Bridge to take us to Piazza San Marco. This was the first time we took a Vaporetto ride through the Grand Canal, and we saw some amazing sights. The best way to see Venice really is from the water.

The Rialto Bridge

Peggy Guggenheim Museum

The Church of Santa Maria della Salute (above) was buit in 1630, after a third of Venice's citizens were killed by the plague. The Venetian Senate pleaded to God 'Stop this plague and we'll build a Church in the name of the Virgin Mary', and soon after the plague stopped, so they built the Church at the edge of the Grand Canal.

Dogana di Mare (old Maritime customs house)

Approaching St Marks Campanile and The Doges Palace

St Marks Basilica

Amazing designs at the bottom of St Marks Campanile

We decided to visit St Marks Basilica before heading across to San Giorgio Maggiore. There was almost no line, and it was moving very fast, so we didn't have to wait at all.

The front of St Marks Basilica is absolutely stunning - the artwork is gorgeous. Unfortunately we couldn't take photos inside, but the inside was even more amazing, with tapestries lining the walls.

Walking along the raised platforms on our way into St Marks Basilica. They had all the bridges set up as if it had been flooding, but it hadn't rained at all. So maybe just a precaution?

Though you couldn't take any photos inside St Marks Basilica, which is free to enter, you can pay €5 each to go up to the museum upstairs in the Basilica. There are actually three separate museums inside, but the one right by the entrance is the best, because you get an amazing view out over Piazza San Marco, plus you can get up close to the horse statues on the front of the Basilica.

It was such a nice day, and it was lovely and hot on the viewing deck. We sat outside for a while and just enjoyed the view and the sunshine.

The view over Piazza San Marco

Just some of the stunning artwork on display at St Marks Basilica. This is just the entrance, and I had to sneak a photo before anyone saw me!

The Bridge of Sighs - named for the prisoners who used to walk over this bridge and sigh as they headed for execution

After spending an hour or so at the Basilica, we wandered over to catch the Vaporetto to San Giorgio Maggiore before it closed for the afternoon.

It's only a 5 minute boat ride, and the island is so pretty as you're approaching it. All you can see is the Church and the Campanile.

Approaching the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore

The views over Venice from the Campanile on San Giorgio Maggiore were just amazing. I'm so glad we decided to take the trip out to the island. The view was much better than it would have been from the Campanile in the centre of Venice. Plus there was an elevator, unlike in Florence where we had to walk up over 360 stairs!

Looking out towards Santa Maria della Salute

The view towards Piazza San Marco and the Basilica

We managed to have a wander around the actual Church before it closed. The Church closes for 2 hours every afternoon, so we were glad to have made it in time.

Apparently you weren't supposed to take photos inside... but everyone else was, so I snuck in a few too!

The photos below are of an art installation that is currently on display in the Church. The smoke rises from four pillars surrounded with fans, elevating the smoke and forming a column that ascends into the air and up through the Church's Basilica.

We left the island and took a long Vaporetto ride over towards the Campo del Ghetto Nuovo, the Jewish Ghetto.

The trip took about 40 minutes, it was nice sitting back and coasting through the canals. We saw a lot of the island we hadn't yet seen, since we went around the outside of Venice, rather than through the middle on the Grand Canal.

Accademia Gallery

Ponte Degli Scalzi

The Jewish Ghetto was created in 1516, not technically as a way to persecute Jewish people, but rather The Venetian Republic segregated the Jewish community to placate the Roman Catholic Church, who had forced a lot of Jews to leave several parts of Western Europe at that time. However, while the Jewish people were allowed to leave the Ghetto during the daytime, they did lock the gates at night-time.

Jewish people were given the same rights as other citizens in 1797 when Napoleon's army brought doen the Venetian Republic. Unfortunately this only lasted until the start of World War II, when over 200 Jewish citizens were deported and killed.

So while it does have a rather sordid history, it's a nice place to visit now. It's practically all locals, hardly any tourists go this far into Venice. You can see lots of synagogues built on the tops of houses so that there is nothing between them and God.

Having some yummy Gelato in the Campo del Ghetto Nuovo

We spent our last evening in Venice just wandering around the city before ending up in Piazza San Marco. It was almost completely empty, so we sat down on some of the platforms used in case of Acqua Alta in the square, and listened to some jazz music coming from a nearby restaurant.