Claire and the Italians

Bonjour everyone,

I figure since my last travel blog post was about my experience in London (months ago), I should fill you in with my travels after London.

Here we go: VENICE





The Monday after I arrived home from London (with some red itchy spots on my hands, but no big deal, right?) I flew to Venice, Italy with a friend. We took Ryanair which is a low cost way to fly around Europe. It’s literally an airbus where you pick any seat you want and you are allowed only one carryon which cannot weigh more than 1 Chapstick, 3 tootsie rolls, and some pocket lint.

The first day in Venice was quite nice. Beautiful weather, and it really was gorgeous! The canals, the gondolas, the gelato….ohhh the gelato.

 It was great! I would highly recommend passing through. 

Our first day we walked along the labyrinth streets of Venice. Each tunnel we walked through opened up to either a grand plaza, cute shops, and one unique little book store that turned out to be such a wonderful find. It was like a best kept secret of Venice. I wish I could recall the name of the store. It was filled with old books, new books, comic books, and books in every language from all over the world. There were reading nooks and even a small patio with a staircase made of books to look out over the canal.

Definitely stay for a day, but any longer and it all gets a bit redundant. But anyway, those red itchy spots that I noticed after London began to spread...



The next day I was covered in them and was painfully itchy, so we went to a pharmacy to find a cream. All the lady had was some Zirtec which would take a few days to really do anything. Thus, we went to the hospital where hardly anyone speaks any other language except Italian (lots of hand gestures were crucial. Mamma Mia!). I tried speaking French and English to the dermatologist, but it was like explaining the deliciousness of peanut butter to the French….They just. Don’t. Get it.

Eventually, the dermatologist decided I needed blood tests done on my home planet and would then need a dose of steroids to cure the rash. After a minute of mental breakdown I decided I would call my mother, 4 am her time, and simply say “Mom….I’m at a hospital in Venice…” Sorry mom. Next time I’ll open with something that doesn’t sound so life threatening.

The only thing I could do then was to make the decision to fly home to Lille early and see a dermatologist there. So the next day my friend and I headed home. I saw a doctor, got some prescription meds and creams, and was back to normal in about a weeks time. I still have no idea what that was all about, but it sure made for an interesting story I guess?

All rashes and hospital trips aside, I had a wonderful time in such a unique city. On our last night we decided to take the cheap route of traveling by water and take their version of public transportation: Water bus. It was cramped, full of loud Italians, but there was a small area outside in the back where I was able to see the gorgeous architecture all lit up and reflecting off the water. It was like the whole city was glowing. It was a perfect end to a not so perfect trip.

 

Love you all!
Claire