The Doge's Palace in Venice

This morning Steve and I headed out for a walk, while everyone else was waking up and getting ready. We were on the hunt for a nice restaurant with reasonable prices. The further away you get from San Marco Piazza the more likely this seems. We walked through the maze of streets and found some excellent choices about 30 minutes away from our apartment. The best part of this story is, that on the way back Steve and I were disagreeing about which way to go (this is not unusual!) The unusual part was that, this time, I was actually the one who knew which direction to go. I'm only mentioning it here, because I can't remember it happening in recent months as Steve is usually bang on with directions and keeps me from wandering off into the netherlands!

We went back and picked up Mom, Gary and Jessica to head to the Doge's Palace or Palazza Ducale in Italian. Steve and I remembered this as one of our top three things to do in Venice, so knew we had to take Mom, Gary and Jessica to see it. It did not disappoint the second time!

We waited in a short line, and then were security checked before we headed in to get tickets. Regular adult price is 19 Euros, but there are various reduced prices for a multitude of reasons (none of which Steve and I ever get😀 ) The ticket is also good for a few other things including the Correr Museum which is quite nice!

The Doge's Palace is directly between the water and San Marco Basillica. The Gothic Palace's construction started around 1340. Multiple huge fires over 200 years required that various parts be significantly rebuilt. Apparently it was in "great decay" by the 19th century when the Italian government undertook the restoration. What a marvellous job they have done. This is an incredible complex of buildings!

When you enter you come into the interior courtyard directly across from the Doge's chapel and looking at a beautiful huge staircase. We lost Steve for several minutes taking photos there... at one point I wondered if he was coming back!

We were unable to see the Doge's apartments as they were under restoration, but there were more than enough beautiful rooms in the "institutional rooms" to see to keep us happy.

It is quite impressive immediately when you enter and can look down at the courtyard from the terrace area.

Next, you walk up a beautiful huge staircase.

And then you see an enormous door with a keyhole just begging to be looked through! I'm sure it isn't only me who always wants to see in the places we aren't allowed to go...

The painting and architecture in this building are simply stunning. I couldn't help admiring doors, windows, ceilings and walls everywhere we went! At one point Jessica commented that if this were her house she would never get bored. She would just lay on the floor and look up at the paintings forever 😀

I have to agree with her! The ceilings were something else!

Jessica and Steve were also big fans of the armoury. Jessie, was of course, quite interested in the arrows!

We saw some more huge rooms, which we marvelled at while Steve took a bajillion photos.

He did let me take a couple 😀

Next, we were able to cross over the inside of the Bridge of Sighs, where prisoners got their last glimpse of freedom...

... and then we saw the prisons. Pretty sparse accommodations! I'm pretty sure Jess and I were discussing how we were glad we weren't confined in those cells.

After admiring all of the Doge's Palace we made a final stop in the gift shop 😀

At this point, I was STARVING, so we stopped in a little bakery along the way and picked up some delicious pizza. It was kind of like a pizza sandwich with the pizza being between two thin doughy layers.

We headed home for a little rest, and then Mom, Gary and Jessie headed out on a shopping extravaganza! They found an area full of beautiful things to buy on the way to the Rialto bridge. Mom also discovered an excellent place for dinner only about 10 minutes away from our apartment. We opted for this restaurant for dinner, instead of the place that Steve and I had found earlier due to its close proximity and my, Steve and Jessi's tired feet 😀

The restaurant was called Serena and ended up being a terrific choice. It had nice ambience, good service and delicious food! It was a great way to end our day in Venice 🥂