Acqua Alta

We are basically trapped in our pensione until about 2:30 today due to acqua alta - in other words, flooding.  Simply put Venice is sinking, the water is rising, and most days from late October until end of winter, as the tide rolls in, the areas around the canal flood.  Yesterday was bright and sunny, and while we considered buying rain boots, we just tiptoed through the flooded areas and by about 3:30 the tide had gone out and the flooding abated. 

However, today is a steady rain and the water outside the hotel is already ankle deep.  It is an hour and half until high tide, and I expect the water will be even higher by then.  In retrospect, we should have bought the boots. 

The internet is also down, so I figure it a good time to catch everyone up on our adventures of the past few days even though I have know idea when I will be able to post this. 

On Wednesday evening we negotiated the U-bahn, with suitcases and backpacks and made our way to the Wien Westbahnhof.  (Vienna’s West Train Station).  It was a small station, and, as usual, we had arrived ridiculously early since I always expect to get lost in route to any unfamiliar location.  We bought dinner (pizza for Josh, and a sandwich for me) and found a bench where we could sit and read until we could board our train.  We had booked a sleeping car since we would be traveling all night to get to Venice.  We were very pleasantly surprised by the sleeping car.  We booked a double, but we were placed in a triple.  There were three Murphy style bunk beds, and table with two bags for each of us.  One contained a cup of water, soap and a towel, the other a bottle of water, a bottle of white wine, an apple and a kit-kat bar.  Josh decided he wanted the very tiptop bunk – and settled into his crow’s nest for the journey.  I was happy to have the lowest bunk.  While there is something very comforting and conducive to sleeping much of the time on a train, there were a number jarring stops and starts that prevented me from getting a very sound night of sleep. 

We arrived in Venice about 9:00 AM, bought our vaporetti (water bus) three-day passes, and waiting for the #2 vaporetti to the area of our hotel.  We were herded on to a very crowed vaporetti, which fortunately got much less crowded after the first few stops.  We were riding along comfortably, taking in the views of the canal until Josh got an absolutely alarmed look on his face and said “Sh%#!!!” To which I said “What?” And he answered “I left my passport on the train!” A kind, middle-aged Italian man over heard us and said, “Don’t worry, that happens all the time.  Just go to the police and explain what happened.  You lose your money – that is bad.  You lose your passport?  They replace it.”  I tried to maintain a calm “this will make a great story one day” sort of attitude, but nonetheless felt the blood vessels in my head start to constrict.  We decided to get to the hotel, drop off our luggage and head back to the train station.  Fortunately our room was available, so we left our bags and caught a vaporetti back to the train station.  Once we found the “client assistance” office we explained the situation to the receptionist.  She took a small notebook out of her pocket, looked up a handwritten phone number and made a call.  After explaining the purpose of her call in rapid-fire Italian, she paused – then her face brightened and she winked at us.  I told Josh I thought that was a positive sign.  She then hung up and said his passport was at the Police station next to train #1.  We found the police station, got the passport and then felt a bit giddy with relief.  We decided to explore the neighborhood around the train station, had a little lunch, then, once again, boarded vaporetti #2 in the direction of the hotel.  By now, the city was really waking up, the gondolas were out on the canal and we were able to enjoy the sights along the canal.  I also realized I was completely exhausted, and once we returned to the hotel, welcomed an afternoon nap. 

Late in the afternoon, we set off across the Accademia Bridge and wandered the narrow streets almost all the way to the Rialto bridge area.  We stopped for dinner, and since we were in Italy, stopped for gelato in route back to the hotel.  By early evening the temperature had dropped to the point you could see your breath – and we almost froze walking back to the hotel eating our gelato. 

As per our pattern, I spent the evening reading guidebooks and trying to come up with a plan to make the most of our days in Venice.  This morning we awoke to steady rain and acqua alta.  We decided to have a quiet day at the hotel until after high tide.  The skies are getting a bit brighter, and the rain is letting up but the water is still topping the ankles of those passing by.  High tide is still forty-five minutes from now, so for now, I think we stay warm and dry in our cozy pensione a little longer.