Magnificent Venice and Adriatic Cruise (Part 3)
The last part of our holiday is a beach holiday on the Lido di Venezia.
Lido is Italian for "beach", and many cities have their own "lidi", so the official name for the long, narrow island that separates the lagoon from the sea is Lido di Venezia. A social event there is a film festival at the turn of August-September, when there is a hunt for movie stars: on a stretch of line along the sea between the Des Bains Hotel (where most stars live) and the Excelsior Hotel, where the competition takes place in the Palazzo del Cinema (1937, modest fascist modernism) program . . But Excelsior is perhaps cooler: it was built based on Arab sheikhs and has a neo-Moorish design and even a minaret (on Gran Viale. ) Des Bains: asymmetrical, with majolica and shaped balcony railings. The villas of the early 20th century stand in the lanes on both sides of the Gran Viale, in addition, there are even canals on the Lido, as in "adult" Venice.
By vaporetto number 1 we reached the Santa Maria Elisabetta pier, by the way, on this island there are buses, vehicles, and a very large number of bicycles from two-wheeled to four-wheeled. From the vaporetto pier to the beach (500 m along the main promenade, Gran Viale Santa Maria Elisabetta, or simply Gran Viale), citizens paddle with air mattresses under their arms. Having decided that to go to the hotel by bus A or B, we got on the bus, I already wrote above, we have travel cards that are valid for both vaporetto and buses to Lido and Mestre. Hotel in the Malamocco area, 10-15 minutes from the vaporetto pier. Malamocco (Malamocco) - a district of several streets with a piazza and a reduced copy of the San Marco campanile, until the 9th century was the capital of the islands of the lagoon. All this can be seen from the bus, but Malamocco has its own desert charm, so it's worth taking a walk here. A piece of the lagoon nearby is the gloomy Canal Orfano, which served as a place of execution, it was here at dawn that prisoners were taken out of the Doge's Palace to be drowned. Our Hotel Ca 'Del Moro enjoys a quiet location in Malamocco, one of the most characteristic and oldest areas of Venice's Lido within a sports resort. Equipped with tennis courts, swimming pool, gym and soccer field. Hotel address
Ca' del Moro, Via Malamocco 83 - Venice, Italy 30126
nature, spacious and refined rooms, a bar, a garden, and there is also parking. I really liked the pool, which is ozonized and the blue surface of which beckoned to itself. Knowing that the sea is nearby, I decided to check if it is possible to swim in the sea near the hotel. It turns out you can, but be very careful. The coastline is a heap of huge boulders in order not to wash away the coast. Remembering my climbing skills, I went down to the sea, the coast is shallow, but after making my way back through these blocks, I decided that swimming in the sea was not worth it. As for swimming in the sea, it is necessary either to return to the central beach of Gran Viale, a more acceptable public beach is located on the left (when viewed from the pier) part of the Lido, but the only really clean one is far away, in Alberoni (bus A and B).
The Lido ends at Alberoni, where there is a golf club, a lighthouse, a free beach with dunes, restaurants, a playground and a gay party.
At the northeastern tip of the Lido, at the gates of the Adriatic, stands the fortress of San Nicolò , from where experienced sailors brought ships into the strait at a distance. These places are known mainly for the ceremony of betrothal of the doge to the sea, which for some reason continues to this day (performed by the mayor of the city). The ritual was established in the 12th century and consisted of a journey from San Marco to the gates of the Lido on the Doge's Bucentaur, from where the Doge each time threw a golden ring across the strait into the sea, and then went to mass in the church of San Nicolò . At the San Nicolò pier, this holiday is now taking place, but gold is no longer thrown.
Three days of rest among the beautiful nature flew by unnoticed and we are already at the Marco Polo airport, the main airport of Venice (Treviso began to be reconstructed). Fast and clear check-in, customs and passport control, a flight back to Zhuliany, again we are faced with a Ukrainian mess, suitcases are dumped in a room where, pushing passengers looking for their things. No transfer to train. d. station, which is used by hucksters - taxi drivers. Here we are at home, full of impressions from a wonderful holiday in Italy.
My opinion on vacation By cruise. I was in a fairy tale!! ! Cruises on such ships cannot be compared with bus routes, or with the “seal”, as I call it, relaxing on the beaches of Turkey, Bulgaria and other similar countries, even in five-star hotels. You feel like a welcome guest on the ship, everyone smiles at you, all your questions are resolved quickly and efficiently. If you want a noisy company - please, a disco, blow or win money - Casino, try all the alcohol - bars and restaurants are at your service, if you want to have a quiet time - there is a bar where a musician quietly plays something on the piano for you, even though you will be alone in bar. You will be taught, if you wish, to make bouquets, the basics of ballroom dancing, ice skating. Train in fitness - clubs, run, play basketball, golf, eventually climb a rock - and it's possible. The idea that cruises are for the elite is wrong. Now millionaires have their own yachts, so all cruise companies rely on the middle class, but with a high quality of service. Considering that cruise class ships are quite large and they have stabilizers, those suffering from seasickness should also not be afraid of such a vacation. Moreover, according to the rules of cruises, cruise ships must bypass areas of storms so that storms do not disturb guests.
By Venice. Venice is such a lady that not everyone likes it, especially those who want to take it on a whim. This applies especially to excursions on buses, where the same amount of time is allocated to Venice as to a town in the Czech Republic or Poland. We swept along the Venice Canal, saw San Marco Square, and again got on the bus, because we didn’t have time. So, one person, seeing antiques, is in awe of him, and the other sees junk and junk, not understanding how one can drag himself from this. And yet, Venice should be explored for several days, starting with well-known routes. The language barrier should not be frightening, it seems that in Italy soon Russian will be spoken, in extreme cases, understood, there will be half of Italy. I like to wander in unfamiliar cities wherever my eyes look, and not along well-worn routes; it didn't work in Venice. I recommend arming yourself with maps, guidebooks, take a map of transport lines at the vaporetto pier. Look carefully at the routes, because. you can safely drive off in the wrong direction, get lost among not three pines, but three houses of Venice, you will poke into dead ends, go out onto the wrong channels, especially if it is in the evening. After all, when it gets dark, the Italians slam the shutters of their houses, there are more tourists on the streets than locals, and they, like you, understand the same thing, i. e. nothing. Shopping in Venice did not interest me. I know that souvenirs, groceries, food in pizzerias and cafes in the center are much more expensive than driving a little to the side. I regret that I did not have enough time to visit a number of galleries in Venice to enjoy the masterpieces of the Renaissance artists. I hope that this is not my last meeting with Venice.
