Our arrival in Venice was fun - we hopped a Vaparreto at the train station and motored down the Grand Canal to our stop. Mary then led us through a maze of streets and alleyways to our quaint hotel. Don't let anyone tell you Venice is flat, though! Well, the city might be, but not the bridges. My legs were pretty stiff from our Dolomites hike, so I was quite a sight hobbling up and down the canal bridges. We had a very fun mask-making demonstration - I wish I could remember the name of the mask maker...he reminded some of us of a character from "Saturday Night Live." I do know the name of his lovely shop, however: Ca' Del Sol.
Italy is full of delicious places to eat, and it's fun to explore options on one's own. We had a terrific group dinner at Trattoria alla Scala before our gondola ride. We had some interesting experiences eating in Venice after that...and made the decision to start consulting the Rick Steves guidebook thereafter. We were never let down! Do take a gondola ride when in Venice...it's lovely, especially at night. We had a wonderful tenor who finished our night with "O Sole Mio." Sigh.