20111202 Charming Venice

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable; if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. - Philippians 4:8

FRI - We were charmed by the sunrise at Venice. After breakfast, we made our way across the small alleys and bridges over canals, following all the confusing sign boards to Rialto.
Getting lost is part of the game here.

The alleys and canals were really charming, just as seen in James Bond's movie and Angelina Jolie's Tourist. We visited the morning market at Ponte Di Rialto, where fish and vegetable sellers transported their stuffs via boats to sell here at the market. Opened from 5am till 1pm, we experienced the busy market in the morning. Scallops, cuttlefish, salmon, sardines, etc.
We had coffee by the cafe along Grand Canal, watching gondole and trahgetta cruising up and down the canal, against the beautiful backdrop of the Rialto Bridge. This is a must do in Venice ... have coffee and watch the world passes by.

Gondole (singular is gondola) are beautifully decorated kayaks where pedaller sings romantically as they pedal their passengers seated into the smaller canals. Trahgetta (singular is trahgetto) are not decorated and passengers stand as the pedaller send them across the Grand Canal, no singing.
We shopped at the market and shops at Rialto. Bargain is a must.

We found a chinese restaurant (Tian Jin Ristorante Cinese) at one of the alleys and we had lunch there.
Night scene at Piazza Di San Marco was lovely. We soaked in the atmosphere before having dinner at a Trattoria Al Leoncini (family-owned ristorante). Look at that pizza, carbonara, and soup, etc. Yummy, but expensive.