Today we left the hotel at 7:30am to ensure we arrive at the St Marcus Square in Venice at 9:00am. We caught a tram across the bridge to Venice. Then we caught a public boat down the Grande Canal to arrive at St Marco Square. We met our guide, named Antonio, a true Venetian and very proud of the fact. Apparently there are only 55,000 true Venetians left and they are guard their identity very jealously. Our guide took us on a walking tour of the Old City of Venice and explained the history of the Venetian trading empire and the city itself. It was a very enlightening tour, which finished with a demonstration of glass blowing which has a long tradition in Venetia. After the tour concluded we had lunch. Then we went through the Museum and the Venetian Palace of the Doges (The Venetian Kings). The Venetians had a form of aristocratic rulership where the 300 noble families had representatives in the government and they elected the chief noble who was known as the Doge, who once elected had the job for life.

Steve Carroll, Mark Peden, Darren and I caught a public boat to the Lido island, which is the Venice beach and the location of the Venice Film Festival. It was a very different area of Venice, more modern and full of beach-going Venetians and tourists. We visited about three gelato shops and a Pizzeria to solve any hunger problems that were lingering.

We then caught another boat back from Lido and through the Grand Canal again. This time we got off near the Jewish Ghetto.

We walked the short distance from the pontoon on the Grand canal to the Jewish Ghetto. The main gate of the ghetto opens onto the promenade beside the Jewish Ghetto. The word “ghetto” originated in Venice. It refers to the foundry area of the city in which the Jews were later confined. The ghetto celebrated its 500 year anniversary last year so now its 501 years since it was established in 1516. It is a very old area of town. We found the banco rosso which is only remaining Jewish Bank from the early years of the ghetto when the Jews were forced to be pawn brokers and then money lenders. The “red bank” is named after the red door and the red ticket the customers were given and the origin of the term “in the red”.

There are only 300 Jews living in Venice today. We found the Yeshiva in the square of the Jewish Ghetto and spoke to a young American Jew volunteering there. He discussed the history of the ghetto with us. He took us inside the yeshiva and said the “Shema” prayer and wound our arms and head with the phylacteries. It was a very unique experience.

We then walked to the Grande Canal and followed the Promenade back to the tram station and caught the tram across the main bridge back to the mainland and our hotel.

We were tired by the time we got back to the hotel so we called it a night, after visiting the gelato shop around the corner.