2011 Milan/Venice, Italy Travelog 
December 7, 2011
The train took use from Spiez, Switzerland to Milano Centrale train station. In Italy, I have to get used to some local city names. For example, Milan => Milano; Florence => Firenze; Venice => Venezia; Rome => Roma.. well Pisa is still Pisa. Fortunately, most are still recognizable.

From Milano train station to our BnB is a bad experience. First, it is raining, we were mostly wet from waise down. Secondly, it is already dark and we hardly can spot the road sign to lead us. We ended up relying on old faithful Garmin GPS to navigate us. Even with GPS, it is still hard to find as the accuracy of the position is quite coarse due to poor satellite reception. Once we freshen up, we ate kebab and gelato from a famous street few blocks away as recommended by our host.

On the 2nd day in Milan, we visited the famous Milan Cathedral (Duomo) and Vittorio shopping mall next to it. The shopping mall houses many big brands such as Prada, Louis Vuittion, Gucci, Merz etc. V went into those but luckily came out empty handed.. (she already bought in Paris). In the afternoon, it is again raining, so we took shelter in Castello (Castle). During the night, we headed back to Duomo and dine around there.

When we arrive in Venice, my personal expectation is high as I know Venice will be something different from other places I visited. Venice is a water based city. Sure enough, I soon to learn that even their buses, are water bus. I would like to ride it, but unfortunately, they are on strike today. So no ride for me. With no water buses, there is choice of walk or gondola. V and I decided to walk since we were told it is just 30 mins to St. Marco. (Actually it is more like 1hr at our pace)

Navigating thru the maze of Venice is a challenge and an experience. Fortunately we did not get lost although we might taken some long route in between. Glasses made decorations are plentiful here. It is also cheaper as we walked towards St. Marco. We ended up buying more than we intented, especially V. We managed to get a few shots of St Marco when we arrived. But shortly after that, it rained again. In our mind, well... Italy... seems like we came at the wrong time.

After it gets dark, we again walked all the way back to where we started because our hotel is just next to Saint Lucia train station. Along the way, I managed to take some night scene of Venice. Frankly, I expected better pictures, so a little dissapointed with myself.
  • St. Marco of Venice St Marco Venice Italy Nikon D300s
    St. Marco of Venice
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  • St. Marco of Venice in black and white B&w St Marco Venice Italy Nikon D300s
    St. Marco of Venice in black and white
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  • Beautiful venice mask on display Mask Venice Italy Nikon D300s Tokina At-x 116 Pro Dx (af 11-16mm F/2.8) 11-16mm F/2.8
    Beautiful venice mask on display
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  • Gondola Gondola Venice Italy Nikon D300s Tokina At-x 116 Pro Dx (af 11-16mm F/2.8) 11-16mm F/2.8
    Gondola
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  • Venice at night Venice Italy Nikon D300s Tokina At-x 116 Pro Dx (af 11-16mm F/2.8) 11-16mm F/2.8
    Venice at night
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  • Ferrovia water bus station in Venice Venice Italy Nikon D300s Tokina At-x 116 Pro Dx (af 11-16mm F/2.8) 11-16mm F/2.8
    Ferrovia water bus station in Venice
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  •  Venice Italy Nikon D300s Tokina At-x 116 Pro Dx (af 11-16mm F/2.8) 11-16mm F/2.8
  • One of the many small alley in Venice, it is like a maze Venice Italy Nikon D300s Tokina At-x 116 Pro Dx (af 11-16mm F/2.8) 11-16mm F/2.8
    One of the many small alley in Venice, it is like a maze
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  • Residential in Venice Venice Italy Nikon D300s Tokina At-x 116 Pro Dx (af 11-16mm F/2.8) 11-16mm F/2.8
    Residential in Venice
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