Sunday, October 28, 2012

Aqua alto

Today we delayed our trip across to Venice for a couple of hours to allow for the waters to recede after high tide.  The aqua alto is making itself felt, with high tides expected at 10.00am and even higher tides tomorrow.  Venice is well situated to deal with water.  With her history she has to be.  It is still interesting to see for those not used to it. Many of the buildings, especially the shops, have metal plates that slide across the doorway, working to keep out the worst of the water.  That said, after the tide recedes, the buckets and mops come out as do the rubber squeegees and everyone sets too cleaning up the water and wiping things down. Before long things are back to normal, except for the occasional pump running to drain the most waterlogged places.  The duck boards remain in place and have to be negotiated for the remainder of the day. As for the tourists, most purchase disposable, plastic leggings and slippers which go on over your shoes, choosing to slop around as they walk.  Locals and the tourists in town for more than a day, wear gumboots.  At €15 a pair they are well worth the investment.  I happily wore mine for the rest of the morning jumping in puddles as I found them. After lunch, with a new suitcase in tow we headed home for a few hours.  We ventured out again late afternoon on a mission to buy gifts, and to choose somewhere to have dinner.  Another great day in Venice. 27.10.2012

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