ABC Wednesday—P is for "pretty pink pigeon perch"

. . . in the piazza.  I think Venice has some
 of the most beautiful street lamps
in the world.

[To see more abc posts, go here.]

Weekend Reflections

Here's one of the mirrored doors of Caffè Florian,
in Venice, reflecting the outdoor tables
in the Piazza San Marco.  Florian was the world's first
coffee bar—and Casanova was a regular.

[To see more Weekend Reflections,
visit James's meme.]

ABC Wednesday—V is for "Venice"

Trust me, it is totally worth getting
up at 0-dark-thirty to have
Piazza San Marco all to yourself!
(And there are even fewer pigeons now
that you're not supposed 
to feed them.) 

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Weekend Reflections

The arcades around Piazza San Marco—one 
of my favorite places, especially early 
in the morning when it's just me and the 
sweepers with their twig brooms.

[To see more weekend reflections, visit James's meme.]

Weekend Reflections

If you plan to visit Venice in winter, better
pack your Wellies.  Last time I was there it was
November and I was not prepared for the
daily aqua alta.  This bird managed to find the only
 (semi) dry spot in all of Piazza San Marco.

[To see more Weekend Reflections, visit James's meme.]

ABC Wednesday—Z is for "zodiac"

. . . as seen in the famous timepiece in Piazza San Marco's
clock tower; it displays the time of day, phases of
the moon, and the current sign of the zodiac.

I can't see what tells you the 
time on the 24-hour clock, but can see 
that when I took these pictures
the sun should have been in Libra. 
 I checked and it was (October 2, 2008).

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

You can have Piazza San Marco (almost) to
yourself—if you're willing to stay up late or get
up early.  When I came out from under the Napoleonic
wing on this morning, the only other people in the
piazza were the men of the city cleaning crew.

[To see more monochromes, visit Dragonstar's meme.]

Thursday Challenge—patterns

This pattern set into the pavement of the
Piazza San Marco, in Venice, seems slightly
off-kilter.  I don't know why that is—but you
might not even notice it at all unless
you go up in the campanile and look down.
(They were experiencing some aqua alta  in 
November two years ago.  The circles
in the pattern are drains, but they won't 
do their job until the tide goes out.)

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, go here.]

Thursday Challenge—"cleaning"

In Venice, it's so worth getting up very early
and heading to Piazza San Marco—you can
have the place pretty much to yourself, except
for the colorfully dressed cleaning crew.  They're
out at dawn and busy with hoses and old-fashioned twig 
brooms, spiffing up the piazza before the hordes descend.

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, go here.]

Thursday Challenge — "books"

Look but don't touch. Actually, most of the books
in Venice's Biblioteca Marciana are kept away from
even the gaze of the folks (like me) who just wander into
its main room after visiting the Museo Correr.  In addition
to about a million printed books, the collection includes
thousands of incunabula and manuscripts, some illuminated.


[To see more books, visit the Thursday Photo Challenge.]

shadow Shot Sunday

I guess this would have to be one of my

all-time favorite shadows—shot from the

campanile in Piazza San Marco, of course

(preferably like this, at high noon, when

the bells are ringing and the shadow falls

across the Procuratie Vecchie, which have

been here since the 12th century).

[See more Shadow Shots here.]

the birds

I've mentioned that the city of Venice has (wisely) outlawed

the feeding of pigeons in Piazza San Marco. Yet they still

 live there fat and cozy—mainly thanks to deluded people like 

these folks who actually think it's fun to have these 

birds sit on them and have no idea they could be 

heading back home with a serious case of pigeon lice.

mass at San Marco

Plan to catch a mass Sunday morning at

the basilica. To be honest, it's the best way

to see the church without having to stand

on an interminable line to get in. And it's

fun to try to follow along in Italian.

If the campanile is open (not sure because

they're in the process of shoring it up;

apparently it's begun listing to starboard),

would like to be up there at noon when all

the bells ring. It is loud, but it's beautiful.

Let's go to Venice

If only it were that easy. I read that as of May 1, you're no

longer allowed to feed the pigeons in Piazza San Marco,

and you risk a fine of 50 to 500 euros if you do. Apparently, the

city officials have come to the conclusion that the 40,000

or so pigeons are a health risk and a nuisance. Gee, you think??