First Impressions

When I initially arrived in Venice, I was completely overwhelmed. It was unfamiliar, it was chaotic, and it was a place that has caused me a lot of anxiety over the past few weeks. I was totally out of my comfort zone and was still concerned about whether or not I had brought everything. Thankfully I had been traveling for about a week and a half before hand in Germany and Austria so jet lag was no longer an issue. As soon as I arrived at the train station, my mom and I began asking around in hopes of finding a place to purchase my vaporetto pass. It took nearly two hours to find the office, to wait in line, and to fill out the completely Italian forms. I then stayed the night in a hotel and headed to the Island of San Servolo the next morning to begin getting situated in my new home.

After all of the logistics of Venice were taken care of, I felt much more relaxed and able to truly take in the city. Before I had arrived on the island, I had already been around town, gone down the Grand Canal, and tried out some gelato. Throughout all of this I felt like I was still preoccupied and overwhelmed. I felt almost as if I was in a haze from so many things. All of this was Saturday, and it wasn’t until Sunday that I felt as though I got my first real taste of Venice. Most of our group went to the main island and went exploring. We walked through the Piazza San Marco, over the Rialto Bridge, and down many alley ways that led us into various areas of Venice. We found the residential areas and other non tourist areas that were so peaceful and more what I imagined the city to be like. It was nearly a night and day difference from the tourist filled areas and these other sections of the city. I was astounded by the number of people, and especially tourists, in this city. It is definitely a different lifestyle than my home in the Midwest. I can’t imagine walking down my street in Indiana and seeing carts of key chains and t-shirts. It will be an interesting adjustment. It amazes me that people are surrounded by that in their everyday life.

My first trips through the city were simply trying not to get lost, taking in all of the colors of the buildings, and stopping to take in the beauty of all of the canals. Now that I have walked around for several hours, I’m starting to take in more of the details. I’m starting to be able to stop and look at the architecture and the carvings in the buildings. Professor Felluga walked with us for a while on Sunday and pointed out a narrative carving on one of the pillars of St. Mark’s Basilica. It was so interesting to see how one tiny pillar could tell a complete story. It makes me so curious to know what each and every one of them says, and what other things I have yet to notice in this incredible place. I look forward to truly being able to focus on the smaller details and to understand more. It is a city that I have just begun to learn about. It has such a rich history and so much of that history is still represented throughout the city today.