Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Italy - Day 9 (Venice)

On Day 9, our tour started nearly early enough to see the sunrise over the Grand Canal... Our first stop was at the Accedemia Gallery. We were led on a 2-hour tour through the gallery by a local guide, Elizabeth. Elizabeth, despite having teased me for looking "Japanese" for carrying around my Nikon camera, was great. Her enthusiasm and knowledge of the art made this one of our best museum tours.

The museum was packed with paintings of Venetian artists. The most notable were probably:
Veronese - Feast in the House of Levi
Giorgione - The Tempest
Titian - Presentation of the Virgin

Canal somewhere in Venice between the Accedemia Gallery and the Frari Church....We got to the Frari Church at noon, but being Sunday, it was closed for mass until 1 pm. We passed the time by getting calzones, then going to the Scuola San Rocco. The Scuola is amazing. It's described as "Tintoretto's Sistine Chapel" Like the Sistine Chapel, the interior of the Scuola is completely covered with paintings depicting Christian history. I really like the virtual tour on the Scuola's website. Just click on the link above, select "English", click on "Virtual View" under the drop-down menu for Scuola Grande, then pick the Upper Hall.

Here's Brooke eating her calzone with the Scuola San Rocco in the back left.... Hardcore art lovers come to the Frari Church for its famous pieces of art. While many paintings have been moved from churches to museums for preservation and safe keeping, the Frari Church still holds paintings by Titian, Bellini, Veneziano, and a statue by Donatello. Brooke and I can't actually remember seeing any of these. We only remember how large and open the interior of the church felt.

The Frari Church....Titian's Assumption of the Virgin (inside the Frari Church)....Yet another photo of the Rialto. This was taken on our walk back to St. Mark's Square....Our tickets from the previous day's visit to the Doge's Palace included entry to a few more museums, one of which is the Correr. Maybe it was because we had already overdosed on museums, but the art in the Correr was forgettable. However, the view of St. Mark's Square from their cafe made the visit well worthwhile.... After the museum, we took an elevator ride to the top of the 300-ft tall Campanile. For the sake of my photography, it was unfortunately a hazy day. Otherwise, the sunset view was spectacular..... We had a couple hours to kill before our evening plans, so we spent the late afternoon randomly wandering though the east-side of Venice. Here are a few shots from our walk....We ended our stay in Venice with some distinctly Venetian activities: a Vivaldi Four Seasons concert and a late night trip to the bar for some bellinis....

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