On our last evening in Venice, we decided to make a farewell visit to the Rialto Bridge before retiring for the night. The Rialto Bridge is one of our favorite landmarks in the city, even if it does get a little breezy and chilly in the evening. When we got there the bridge was alive with people and musicians. The most entertaining group was a German-style oompah band complete with an accordion, tubas and lederhosen . Although not quite as romantic as the cello that was there on a previous night, the band’s music and high-energy performance did give us a humorous and lasting memory. After one final look at the beautiful Grand Canal, a promise to return, and an embrace - it was off to bed, missing Venice already.

Favorite Animal Statue -- Venice The are four bronze horses above the entrance to St. Mark's Basilica. I really enjoyed getting up close to them and seeing the expression on their faces. How lifelike they looked. Their history is also exciting – the originals, which are just inside St Marks, have really traveled around as spoils of war. They went from Rome to Constantinople in 1204, then to Venice, on to Paris with Napoleon, and then back to Venice. The stories they could tell, if only they could talk.

I wasn’t sure what to expect on the bus ride from Venice to Florence, but the bus was very modern and comfortable with two seats for each of us to stretch out on. We had another interesting cultural experience at lunch time. We stopped at an Autogrill. What an adventure? Once you entered the building, you found yourself in a labyrinth that encouraged travel in one direction, forward. By the time you got to the exit, the pathway had passed by virtually everything the Autogrill had for sale.

The cafeteria was clean and inviting and there was a wide selection of tasty entrees. We decided on mozzarella di buffa and prosciutto di parma. The rest of the Autogrill had everything that a traveler might need or want, and the quality of the merchandise was surprisingly good. I could have spent hours there shopping and eating, but alas, we had a schedule to adhere to.

Karin and Susanna put the time on the bus to good use. They used it to teach us about anything and everything we wanted to know about Italy. Most of the questions were about modern Italian society. The time went by very quickly and soon we were in Florence.