The rain let up a bit as we boarded the water taxi, which became pretty crowded given the number of people boarding with us. One more stop before leaving the Grand Canal for more open waters and Murano Island. That was Ferrovia (literally "iron way"), the train station. Unbelievably even more people got on. We were packed in like sardines (or was it anchovies?). Visions of overloaded ferries sinking in third world countries filled my head. But this is Italy! Can't happen here, right? And where are the life jackets stored?
Fortunately after 15 or 20 minutes we arrived at the first of several stops on the island. But for most of us the first opportunity to disembark was the best one. Once off the boat we were literally herded, almost forcibly into a nearby "factory" for a glass blowing demo. This was not even a thinly veiled ruse to get us into the show room where we could purchase the glass products. Our group was at the rear of the crowd during the " demonstration" and could not see well. So we figured we would stick around for the next one in order to get better pictures. Well, the "management" wasn't having any of that and quickly ushered us out of the demo area and into the showroom with promises of further art demos. Never happen, GI.
Once in the show room the pressure was on to buy. A second room, containing obviously more expensive products was isolated with a thick velvet rope. I made the mistake of admiring a piece in that room which looked like a frozen slab cut from a tropical aquarium, complete with seaweed, bubbles, and fish. It was amazingly realistic. Suddenly the rope came down and in we go. Well, it turns out the piece I had admired was on sale! Of course! A mere 1600 Euros (about $2200). I beat it out of that room as quickly and carefully as possible! Ok, so we ended up spending 35 Euros for a Christmas tree ornament. That done we hopped the next vaporetto back to Piazzale Roma and a returning number 7 bus to the hotel. All in all, a lot of buggering around for what we purchased, but, WTF it was an experience!
Back at the hotel we had lunch, loaded the coach and departed for Milano with a stop first in Verona. On the Autostrada, Gianni pulled into an Autogrill, explaining that, as we were nearing Verona he had to purchase a tax stamp for our coach in order to legally enter the city, just as he did when we entered Mestre. For some reason there was a congregation of young (male) police officers at this particular stop and some of the ladies in our group were obviously interested in what was going on. Fortunately we were able to depart without incident.
Arriving in Verona we walked past its coliseum, smaller than the one in Rome, but still the third largest in existence. A large sound and lighting crew was disassembling the set for a recent opera performance. This ancient monument, with its crumbling walls makes a strangely attractive and even romantic setting for theatrical performances.
Behind the coliseum we found ourselves on one of the main shopping streets which was remarkably crowded. Eventually we found what we had come for, Juliet's balcony. Many don't realize that the story of Romeo and Juliet is based in fact and that they lived in medieval Verona. Below the balcony stands a bronze statue of Juliet. Certain parts of her anatomy are more highly polished than others as you can see in these photos.
Two hours later we arrived at the Hotel Nu in Milan. We were running a bit late so after a quick check in we had dinner at the hotel's roof top restaurant. This hotel was beautifully modern with a minimalist flair. The bedrooms may have been designed by Maxwell Smart, given the "dome of silence" above the bed. Hmm, dome of silence over the bed... Once upon a time...
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