Amazing Race : Venice

From Milan, again, we hopped on and off the train(s) to get to Venice. We were informed that the train from Milan was gonna leave at, say, 4pm. No, this time we're not gonna be late again, not gonna run for our life with those bags again, NEVER AGAIN! So we were there at the train station early, hoping that we could save our energy from panicking that the train is gonna leave soon and we're yet to be there blablabla. Wak lu! Datang awal2 only to know that the train leaves at 3.30pm. Nasib baik datang awal! Kalau buat perangai nak Amazing Race macam dekat Interlaken lagi, confirm tertinggal train. Takde maknanya nak save energy from running and panicking! Menyirap adrenaline gua!

So btw, we got the best deal for the train to Venice! Damn cheap! Wonder why? Because the train that we took was something like our Komuter or LRT. Yes, you gotta run for your seat. Btw, we didn't get any seats pun, so we just sat on our baggage ;p for ermmmm, 3 hours like that kot rasanye! Hey who cares, as long as we get to save our money!

the Italian version of komuter

sitting on our baggage! yeay!

By the time we reached Venice, it was already dark. We didn't book the hostel. From Venice train station, you need to take the boat to get to other places. No other cheaper means of transport available. Higher ranges are available though. Unfortunate for us, the hostel was already closed. We had no choice but to check-in the hotel. It was just a 3-star hotel, but it was indeed, luxurious enough for us. Don't talk about the rate. Bukak purse, pejam mata, amek duit, bayar, senyap.

Ini mahal okay. Ini namanye terpaksa okay.

Time nak bayar, semua orang agreed to check-out from the hotel the next morning to check-in the hostel. Tapi bila dah sampai our room, tetiba the guys decided to just stay in that hotel and that they don't mind paying more for the hotel room. I was likeee, OKAYYYYY, great idea, tapi duitkuuuu....okay redha, sebab memang hotel tu layan pun. Maka, that marks the beginning of our luxurious vacation in Venice.

We had the whole day to spend in Venice the next day. But to be honest, one day is not enough to cover the whole Venice. For guys yg tidak romantic enough maybe akan cakap Venice is boring and you need not cover all the places blablabla. But to me, Venice is one of my favourite :D and I am definitely up for a longer stay in Venice!

Gondola ride anyone?

So love Venice

One of the stop. Lupa nama.

Well basically, we spent most of our time at San Marco. The main attraction in San Marco is Piazza San Marco aka St Mark's Square. It is the centre of Venice as it is the focus of many festivals in Venice. Piazza San Marco is the lowest point in Venice and it is the first area to get flooded during Acqua Alta (means high water in Italian). Don't buy your souvenirs here coz it's a bit expensive compared to those in celah-celahan Venice. But I bought few t-shirts for my parents here, haisshhh, Abah and Mak kena sayang kite lebih okayyyy!

Piazza San Marco

St Brasilica

one of the streets in San Marco

We had lunch at one of the Italian (duh!) restaurants in San Marco. Niat untuk berjimat-cermat sudah tinggal kenangan. Time ni, masing-masing berpegang dengan pepatah melayu 'alang alang menyeluk pekasam biar sampai ke pangkal lengan'. So alang2 dah check-in hotel mahal biar semua benda pun mahal! Haaa amek amekkkk! Ada berani lunch tempat mahal? Kitorang berani punyaaaa! (padahal duit dalam pocket tak seberapa!)

And please please please try ice-cream in Venice! Actually, anywhere in Italy! To all ice-cream lovers, it's a must! Jangan kedekut okay ;p

Pizzaaaa~~

makan ice-cream dengan tidak senonohnya

And it's about time for the famous gondola ride!! Riding a gondola in Venice is quite a luxurious activity but heyyy, you're in Venice and you're not gonna miss the gondola ride! It's a Venice thing kottt so to me, it's a must! And instead of taking a short tour (which is of course, cheaper), we took the long tour simply because kami budget kami kaya padahal nanti dekat Rome kami homeless lagi. OK OK save the stories for my next post about Rome!

Well well, the gondola ride allows you to see the hidden parts of Venice which you won't be able to see when you're on the land as the tour takes you to the narrow canals. It's best to have a gondolier who can tell you a little bit about the history of a certain buildings so that your journey isn't all about seeing places but also about gaining some historical knowledge about Venice.

You can actually ask the gondolier to serenade a few songs to add more ambience to your luxurious ride, but you've gotta pay extra for that. Before getting on the gondola, be sure to confirm the length of your journey so that you won't be paying a fortune for a short tour.

The water isn't crystal clear, the view isn't exactly what I've imagined, but Venice is still one of my favourite and there's really no regret for spending so much in Venice. The hotel, the food, the ice-cream, the gondola ride, the souvenirs, everything are expensive but it's okay because Venice is worth going la seriously, and more importantly, worth spending!

I got the best seat! yeay! with kesayangan!

kesayangan juga!

all of us!

the famous Rialto bridge

To cut short, we went to few other attractions in Venice but I need not write all la kan. That night, instead of just maggi, we dined out for some seafood yeay! And yeay, it's good not to think money is a problem right? Just spend 'em all and you'll feel goooood :D

night in Venice

waiting for dinner to be served

Made our way to Pisa and Rome the next day! The time spent in Venice was too short, and I swear I miss Venice already! Baby sayangggg, kite pegi Venice nanti okayyyy?