Venice
By Lauren and Leah

            Our long bus trip to Venice started early in the morning.  When we arrived, we had to quickly catch a city bus in order to cross over the Adriatic Sea to Venice.  We were all in awe at the beautiful scenery of the city practically under water and couldn’t wait to start exploring.  Our coaches and teammates went separate ways and shopped till we just about dropped. 

We were all on our way to San Marco Square when we spotted a jolly gondolier as we passed over a bridge.   We called out to him and asked for a ride but revealed the fact that we were only willing to pay 7 euros.  Normally his rides went at a rate of 80 euros per person, but since we were so unbelievably gorgeous, he let us have our deal, plus a kiss on the cheek.  During our 30-minute ride through the spectacular city, each of us got the chance to stand up with the gondolier and steer!  After our experience, we thanked our new friend graciously and then continued on our way to our destination. 

Walking through the city, we spotted several street performers including men and women dressed up in old English costumes, and Charlie Chapman.  After grabbing a slice of pizza and some Fanta, we were only steps away from San Marcos.  As we entered into the large square, we found ourselves ducking and dodging the thousands of pigeons that seemed very close to pooping on our heads.  We were very disappointed to see that many of the street vendors started to close up shop due to siesta (Spanish nap time).  As we continued to stroll along the Adriatic Sea, we had a blast trying on many pairs of sunglasses and playing with other knickknacks. 

Finally the time came to head back to the city bus in order to make our way to our next destination.  After buying many things and meeting many people, our legs and feet were ready for the much needed nap on the bus once again.