Day 3
April 5, 2022
After a much needed night of sleep and breakfast at the hotel, we took the water taxi from the island our hotel was located on to the mainland. Once at the mainland, we started the day with a guided tour around Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Cathedral, located in Piazza San Marco. Filled with incredible Gothic architecture and beautiful scenery, our time in Venice started off strong. After the guided tour concluded, we took a boat to a smaller island called Murano to visit a glassblowing workshop. We watched glass masters blow glass so effortlessly and eloquently, and then stopped into their showrooms. Many people bought glass blown gifts and souvenirs to bring home. After that, we took the boat back to mainland Venice, had lunch, stopped by a far-reaching overlook where we could see the entire city of Venice from one balcony, and had our first period of “free time,” where we could explore and get (temporarily) lost in the city in smaller groups. Later that afternoon, the majority of the group, including myself, took a Gondola ride through Venice’s amazing canals. This was definitely a highlight of the trip for me because it was such a unique way to see so much of a city in a short period of time, and it was also just really pretty. That evening, we had some more free time to explore Venice, and eventually reconvened as a group to have another delicious three-course meal.
