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Venezia

Going on a boat ride to the Venezia, Italia

Venice is a city of small islands, enhanced during the Middle Ages by the dredging of soils to raise the marshy ground above the tides. The resulting canals encouraged the flourishing of a nautical culture which proved central to the economy of the city. Today those canals still provide the means for transport of goods and people within the city.



Here we are at Venezia Tronchetto, an artificial island built to provide parking space for large vehicles like tour buses, etc. It also has a passenger terminal where tourists can take waterbuses (boat) to the city. For those with motion sickness, don't forget to pop that pill before leaving. Water was a bit rough that morning and I was silently praying to not feel any headache or so that can ruin my day tour of Venice. One way trip takes about 15-20 minutes. As to how much it costs? I have no idea, it was already paid for by the travel agency.


Upon arrival we met up with our local guide.

 
When in Venice, expect tons of alleys. There's a possibility to get lost too! Hehe. Keep right to prevent human traffic.


Our first stop is San Giorgio dei Greci, the church of the Greek community in Venice. The exterior was designed by Lombardo, Chiona and Longhena from 1539 to 1548.


The church has a wonderful collection of Orthodox icons. Here's the Iconostasis, an altar screen decorated with 46 icons painted on an amazing golden background. Photo grabbed from In-Venice.com.


Going back to the tour. Check out this group of Chinese tourists enjoying the gondola ride around Venice. I'm not exactly sure how much it costs per pax but it's between €30-100.


That's our group at the grounds of Campo Santa Maria Formosa.


Wanted to have my photo taken with one of the gondolier. Para twinsies! LOL.


O, ha! Sinadya ko talaga mag stripes that day. Hehehe.


Say hello to our tour cooridinator from Rakso Travel, Honey Angeles.


Venice is one big maze of canals and bridges, I am telling you now that it's easy to get lost if you don't have map or a tour guide with you.


Rialto Bridge is one of the famous and oldest (built in 1588) bridges built along Venice's Grand Canal.


St. Mark's Basilica (Basilica di San Marco in Italian) is the most famous of the many churches of Venice and one of the finest examples of Byzantine architecture in the world.


Across the Basilica is Piazza San Marco, generally known as "the Piazza". Personally, I think this could very well be the most beautiful square in the world where people can relax, listen to music, drink coffee or enjoy their gelato.

Overall, I love Venice. ;) It was nice to see the canals and piazza in person and not inside casinos in Las Vegas or Macau. Haha. I wish we could have stayed longer but then we needed to continue our European tour going to Austria. Io aomo, Venezia!

Leaning Tower of Pisa

Piazza del Duomo, Pisa, Italy

Next stop on our Priceless Europe Tour from Rakso Travel is Torre De Pisa (Tower of Pisa) which is accurately referred to simply as the bell tower, or campanile.

After our short stay in Rome, we're back on the tour bus and finally headed to the Province of Pisa. Pisa is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy and roughly 360kms away from Rome. Road trip going to Pisa took more or less around 4 hours and by the time time we got there super gutom na kami. Haha.

A video posted by Czarina Maye Mariano (@czarinamaye) on

While walking on our way to the tower, one of our group mates (I didn't get her name so let's just call her Karla) almost got mugged by three Italian looking ladies (one was even carrying a baby!) which we assume are the so called gypsies. There have been warnings all throughout our trip, and it's to TAKE CARE OF YOUR BELONGINGS. I wasn't exactly sure what happened or how it started (even though I was just 1-2 meters away from her) but according to Karla the ladies started ganging up on her. Luckily she used a sling bag (meaning it's easier to steal a handbag compared to a bodybag) that day plus her father arrived just in time to "rescue" her from harm. Isang sigaw lang ng "HOY!" umalis na kaagad yung mga gypsies.


After that incident with the gypsies, I hurriedly kept all my gadgets and hugged my handbag for dear life. LOL. Here's a photo grabbed from In Africa and Beyond to give you an idea what the place looked like. It's basically a shopping area full of tourists making it one of the best spot for thieves, gypsies, etc.


The Battistero di San Giovanni is Pisa's unusual round baptistry and has one dome piled on top of another, each roofed half in lead, half in tiles, and topped by a gilt bronze statue of John the Baptist. According to LonelyPlanet.com, Pisan scientist Galileo Galilei (the guy who came up with the laws of the pendulum), was baptised in the octagonal font in 1246.


The Leaning Tower of Pisa is one of Italy's signature sights. The tower is eight stories tall and leaning at about a 10 degree angle. That's me making awkward poses just like the other tourists. Hehe.

After an hour or so we're back on the road going to Venice, Italy. Trip lasted for 3.5 hours and we arrived at our hotel just in time for dinner.


We stayed at Best Western Hotel Airvenice which is approximately 20 mins. from Venice Marco Polo Airport.


The room was ok and have enough space good for 2 chubby girls like us. Hehe.


According to their website, overnight rate for a double room costs €74.00 and inclusive of breakfast.


I was busy blogging that night that I didn't bothered opening that smell telly.

 

Bathroom is spacious as well and clean too!

 
Only thing I didn't like is the food. Which understandably was supposed to be looking like that specially when you're on a group tour. LOL. I'm not sure if I should blame the hotel or the lightning inside the dining area. Parang ang lungkot nung pagkain, nakakawalang gana. Hehe.

Anyway, I will end the entry for now. Watch out for my next blog where I'll give you a day tour of the city of Venice. Ciao! :)

When in Rome

St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, Italy

After our half day tour of the Vatican, we had free time for lunch. Another travel tip when going to Europe, bring euros instead of US dollars. We struggled to look for banks and other money changers but there were only a few nearby (others charge 5% commission). Some restaurants accept US dollars and credit cards for payment but most of them only accept cash.



 
I don't want to judge or anything but just outside the Vatican I noticed there were hundreds of Africans (according to a reader they're from Sierra Leone, West Africa) selling fake designer handbags and selfie sticks. I bet they're not allowed to sell outside the Vatican.

Anyway.. I remember our tour guide reminding us to take care of our belongings since pickpockets are everywhere in Italy, believe it or not even inside the Sistine Chapel. Kaloka.

 
We had lunch at a nearby restaurant, Filipino kasi yung bar tender. :) A regular meal costs around €10-15 and comes with a drink.


We also had time to buy souvenirs, I bought rosaries for me and my mom. Prices range from €2-100!


Before arriving at our next destination we passed by Piramide di Caio Cestio or Piramide Cestia (in English, the Pyramid of Cestius), it is an ancient pyramid in Rome. The Pyramid of Cestius was founded by Gaius Cestius Epulo; a rich magistrate to serve as their family grave.


Outside the Walls (of the Vatican City) you'll find the Abbazia di San Paolo Fuori Le Mura or The Papal Basilica of St. Paul (which btw isn't part of our original itinerary). This church is off the beaten path but still a tourist destination because it is one of the 4 major basilicas in Rome.


The interior of the church is impressively attractive. See those circles right above the cloisters? These are portraits of all the Pope.


Of course I had to take a photo of the portrait of Pope Francis.


Beneath the tabernacle, you'll find the tomb of St. Paul.


Next stop is the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore (Basilica of St. Mary Major). It is one of the many beautiful churches in Rome that is dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

 
The interior of the church was once again beautiful as expected. The details are exquisite!


Off Topic: Not that I don't like visiting churches but by this time around, my sister and I were sort of bored to death. So here we are sharing our OOTDs. Hehehe.


Our last church for the day is Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano (Basilica of St. John Lateran).

 
The church has a wonderful Baroque interior with artifacts from early centuries BC. The statues of the apostles were extraordinary.


Last stop of our guided tour is the Colosseum. Built in 70 A.D., Rome's Coloseum has been the site of celebrations, sporting events and bloodshed. By the 20th century, a combination of weather, natural disasters, neglect and vandalism had destroyed nearly two-thirds of the original Colosseum, including all of the arena’s marble seats and its decorative elements. Restoration efforts began in the 90s, and have proceeded over the years, as the Colosseum continues to be a leading attraction for tourists from all over the world.


Few meters away from the Colisseum is the Arch of Constantine, erected in the early fourth century to celebrate the victory of Constantine over Emperor Maxentius.

Sadly we missed other highlights of the tour including the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. We weren't exactly sure if it's true but our guide said that the fountain was undergoing major restoration and clean-up.

With regards to The Spanish Steps, our guide wasn't in the mood to bring us there (she's a devout Catholic and would prefer to visit churches, chapels, etc. than go shopping) because all you can see are.. duh, steps! I get the point but according to other tourists, that's the place to be when you want to shop for European brands. Hayyy, I was planning to buy a leather jacket (made in Italy of course) pa naman. :(

Moving on, the tour was ok, had to pay the mandatory tourist guide tip that cost €1.50/pax . It was tiring both physically and mentally (info overload!) but still thankful for the experience.
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