David's Diary: Sunday, August 25, 2002

Venice: At the Beach

It is Sunday and sunny and we are ready for something different. Karalee enjoyed her time alone on Dragonsinger last night and so today I take Jocelyn, Kevin, and Allen to the beach. The island of Lido is just to the west of Venice itself and it is a short Vaporetti ride to get us there. We then have to take a bus which carries us away from the center of town.

Bus route on Lido to the beach

We had planned on stopping in the center of the island to do a little site seeing, but without a map we are uncertain when to get off. In the end, we just ride the bus to the end of the line and get off with the rest of the locals. We walk through a beach resort and are soon settled in on the beach.

Allen and Kevin enjoy Lido

There are few tourists about as it is mostly locals that have come to Lido for the day. There are hundreds of dinghies anchored in the shallow water. Venice is one of the few places in the Mediterranean with tides and a few of the dinghies have been left high and dry on the falling tide. The boys play in the sand, Jocelyn goes for a swim, and I have go for a walk to take in the sights before settling down with a book. We finish the afternoon with a cold drink then make our way back to Dragonsinger by bus and Vaporetti. It was great to be with the locals and see a part of Venice far removed from where all of the tourists congregate. After all, that's why we sailed to Venice.