We awoke on Monday morning to the worst flooding Venice has seen in 22 years, the water level peaked at about 61" - 40" is considered flood level - turning our relaxing holiday into more of an adventure.After taking pictures from our room and dressing, we headed to breakfast on the ground floor. If you've been to Venice you know that ground floors all have places to put panels in front of windows and doors and keep high water out. The panels in the windows made the dining room a bit surreal. Sitting at the table, looking out the window our eyes were at water level and little waves lapped at the panels in the windows. There was a great deal of activity as the hotel staff worked to keep guests calm and the water at bay. I finally understood why the flooring on the ground floor of the hotel seemed like a solid sheet of plastic. I think that's exactly what is was, some kind of poured composite plastic.
The head housekeeper (a lovely Scottish woman who came to Venice 30 years ago on holiday, fell in love, got married and became a Venetian) assured us that as hard as it was to believe the waters would recede with the tide as quickly as they came. After breakfast she told us where we could go to get some wellies since the waterproof shoes we had brought along were not up to the challenge. Then she fitted Joe with a big trash bag on each leg and taped them up tight. About 30 minutes later he was back with 2 pair of boots - shockingly in our sizes - for a mere €10 each.
We dressed and headed out to see what we might be able to see and do. As we walked along, we had to move slowly and carefully plan our route as the w
ater was lapping at the tops of our boots which came just under the knees. We saw lots of people in waders. At Piazza San Marco people were literally up to their chests in water - we learned later that this is the lowest part of the city.The devastation was incredible. We saw if for days afterwards. Shops that had inventory on the floors; restaurant food and equipment; lots of ground floor residents with all their stuff drying outside; candlelight. It wasn't until we got back to London that we learned much of the city had been without gas, electricity or land line services. Other than no Internet access at the hotel we survived unscathed.
The biggest post-aqua alta challenge was finding places to eat because of the water damage, many eateries were closed. Unlike Rome where your chances of getting a great meal run very high, it's just a matter of what you pay for it; we found finding great food in Venice to be much more difficult. I remember in particular stopping in a little cafe for a late afternoon snack and ordering pizza, it was horrible. Like something made with canned supermarket ingredients and cooked in a toaster oven.
Despite all that was going on, there were still plenty of tourist activities, Venetians being a tough bunch. Our first stop was the Museo Correr, which is the Napoleonic wing of Piazza San Marco, in addition to the collection we had a great second story view of the Piazza. I think whether it's flooded with people or flooded with tourists this makes a great place to get a good view of the Basilica and the Piazza. You can grab an espressro or ice cream at the cafe without having to pay the entrance fee to the museum. The archictecture of the museum itself if worth the visit. Venetian glass chandeliers adorn many rooms. The collection itself is officially the Venetian "civic" museum, but given Venice's rich history the word civic fails to convey the true depth and breadth of this museum.
We then headed to Ca' Rezzonico. I had wanted to go here because our guide book had described it as one of the few Grand Canal homes that was open to the public. At one point the house was owned by poet Robert Browning. Great art, but also great furnishings too. It gives you a real sense of what it was like to live the high life in 18th century Venice.
As prom
ised, the water receded pretty rapidly (most of the photos on this page we taken about 3 hours after high tide). After a rest and refresh in the room, we had dinner at Trattoria alla Fonte Di Marguglio Vincenzo, Castello, 3820 - 30122 Venice. Though very bright, this place was packed with a mix of locals and tourists. We had good pasta and pizza for a reasonable price. Nothing fancy, but good italian food and friendly service.
