Amrita Mukherjee
The year was 2019 and our family of three (including one toddler) decided to take a trip to Italy. This was our first trip as a family and we were super excited. Venice was our first stop and we were staying overnight on the mainland and would take the ferry out in the morning.
As we settled in our comfortable hotel beds, I hoped we’d have an adventurous day ahead.
We initially wanted to catch the sunrise at Piazza San Marco, which is the central square of this quaint town. The majestic St. Mark’s Basilica is located here. But of course given the extreme cold (our general laziness and disappointment at having lost our toddler’s stroller at the airport the day before) — we decided to sleep in. As we woke up and stepped out the February cold really bit into our skin.
Not wanting to waste any additional time in the hotel we headed out without having breakfast. There would surely be some good food in the food capital of the world! We headed to the port to catch the vaporetto or the waterbus (which is what the ferries are called).
We walked out in the chilled air and headed to Piazzale Roma from where we would have to get the vaporetto and head to Piazza San Marco through the pretty canals. Upon reaching we saw many groups of people spreading confetti and dressed in Venetian corsets and whatnot. It seemed we had walked onto the sets of a Shakespearean play. Correction — it felt as if we were Muggles on 9 and 3/4.
While we mulled over what was going on, we walked into this small yet busy eatery. We quickly had a breakfast of a simple egg mayo sandwich and it was easily the BEST ever. Risking making an unpopular opinion it was even better that the highly Instagrammed sandwich we would later queue up and have in Florence. This was all buttery goodness and melt in your mouth loveliness. If I ever return to Venice, I would be sure to search for this place and have this sandwich again.
As we stood amid the crowd of revelers we spoke to a few people and realized that quite coincidentally we had landed in Venice during the Mardi Gras Carnival! This was absolutely unplanned and we patted ourselves on our back for orchestrating this amazing coincidence. My husband and I were high on the success of the day already, this was going to be an adventure and experience of a lifetime, people must be planning so much to be here on this day and yet we managed to do it without any such designs. This was such a happy surprise, we wished we had one of these costumes or masks as well. The Mascherari (mask makers) enjoyed the privilege of their own guild in Venice during their own time. The carnival included parades and historical re-enactments. While I was furiously trying to Google what was in store for us, the various excited conversations on the vaporetto gave us much more valuable information. This was generally a two week festival that took place in the end of January or beginning of February. However, the dates might vary and are mostly decided as per the Easter calendar. A lot of people visit the city at the time and it is taken up in the festive spirit, dressed in elaborate masks and performing several medieval traditions. Apparently there was also a masquerade call but that was not on the day we went there. It was the first Saturday of the festival and we would be lucky to witness the parade as well as the acrobatic performances. While the entire city with its winding waterways and quaint bridges would be taken over by the pageant through the day, it was the central plaza which was the heart of the festival. The Carnival tradition of course dates back to the Middle Ages and was abolished sometime in the 1700s only to be brought back in 1979. We were excited to be part of this amazing cultural encounter.
My husband and son looking on at the parade participants
We were most excited to be sharing the vaporetto with these performers and did not lose out any photo opportunity. Once we reached, we realized that a great crowd had gathered as the carnival parade was to begin shortly. We got a little preferential treatment of course, thanks to our two-year-old. We were in the front row looking at this amazing parade, with the most extravagant costumes and such happy infectious vibe. People were so happy — dancing & singing in every lane — all was beautiful with the world that day. Just when we thought nothing could top the excitement, we saw a person suspended on ropes descending from the top of Saint Mark’s Square — it was equal parts breathtaking and exhilarating. Later research informed us that this was called Flight of the Angel and is one of the highlights of the parade. While we always research a place to death before even setting our foot there, this chancing upon a beautiful piece of performance art was a different and singular piece of experience which I will cherish forever. I can remember the feeling of goosebumps as I watched the performer come down — what a wonderful piece to even envisage!
Flight of the Angel
Our itinerary dictated how much time were able to spend at a place and though the vibe of the city that day was glorious and we would have loved to spend some more time, the pre-booked tickets meant we would have to hurry along. Our next stop was Florence and we had a train to catch so after the parade we rushed to look for a lunch place. We found this charming little place where we would enjoy some bruschetta and spaghetti. Even here I could not use any of my well-practised Italian sentences. As soon as we walked in, me complaining of how late we were, our toddler looking for a bathroom and his father trying to be calm, the owner of the restaurant approached us and smiled, “Apnara ki Bangali?” (which is Bengali for “Are you folks Bengali?”)
We spent some obscene amount of time at the lunch. I was getting paranoid as we had to head back, get the vaporetto, go to the hotel, pick our luggage and get to the train station. But my husband is a calm sea at these moments, making me feel like I am hyperventilating for no reason whatsoever, so I decided that being so uptight especially when I am on a vacation doesn’t bode well, and even I relaxed a bit.
When we were finally done and we got out, we probably had just around 15-20 minutes to spare till we could get to the waterbus port. It was rather touch-and-go and I could see that my husband had his game face on as he confidently keyed in our destination on Maps and started walking. Very fast. I could hardly keep up with a toddler in tow, but we tried. It is important to point out that between the two of us we just had one functioning phone which had offline Maps as the sleepy Venice airport had zero shops selling any local SIM cards and it was a Sunday. People just don’t do anything in Italy on Sundays. A good thing to remember for any tourist planning to go there — get your SIM cards beforehand or just activate an international roaming. Nowadays there are so many options, I am sure it won’t be tough, but we had made the mistake of relying on the airport and were now stuck with only one phone.
My husband was striding ahead and we were lagging behind. The streets were still full of revelers from the Carnival who were increasingly appearing annoying to me as I lugged a kid along the cobbled stone walkways, which was completely deterring my speed. For all the narrow canals and lanes that we were crossing, it did not seem like we were anywhere near a waterbus port. All the lanes looked the same and it felt like we were just going around in circles. After a point it was just a maze which we could not crack.
It was pointless to ask my husband anything now because he was definitely not within earshot. Also, he has this personal principle of not asking for directions from human beings but rely on a piece of code. Even after numerous escapades where Maps has totally misled us into absolute jungles claiming they were the most happening restaurant, my husband would not agree!
After struggling for around 10 minutes he suddenly stops, his shoulders slouched and he looks at me and says, “I think we are lost.” This was not good, he the one between the two of us who never gives up, he cannot give up.
In my head I am screaming, but outwardly I boost him, “If any one can get us out it’s you.” I can gloat with my “I told you so” later, right now I really needed to not miss my train to Florence.
Suddenly he is inspired and sprinting full speed ahead and we lose sight of him completely this time. I have a two-year-old propped on my lap (because he can’t walk anymore and for good reason), I have no phone and I am just standing at a crossroad.
Providence smiles and I spot a policeman and I have made up my mind that I will just go and ask him for directions, enough of following the dumb phone. (Maybe I can use my Italian?) The policeman is quite fluent in English and explains the mistake right away. We realize that we were to go to Piazza Roma (the waterbus stop) and instead we had been going towards Venezia Piazza Roma (the bus stop) — yes, those are the names of two distinct places! I think this was a prank played by the ancients who named places in Venice — this is Comedy of Errors stuff!
At the same time I eventually spot my husband returning, huffing and puffing. He has also realized we are at a land bus stop instead of the water one. No time for blaming, so we get up on the first bus leaving. It does not drop us directly in front of Hilton, where we were staying, but the driver assures us that the stop is just behind the hotel. We have to make a short walk (again!). We realize upon getting off that this might be a graveyard we are walking through, and I am wondering will the adventure ever end. Once we reach the hotel and get our luggage, it is quite clear that we had missed the bus to the train station, but the nice staff understand our plight and arrange for a cab which gets us there on time.
Oh, what a day! But why Venice, why do you have to trick us so? When in Venice be very, very careful of the words you use, they need to be exact.
The Merchant of Venice, Act IV
Portia: “The words expressly are ‘a pound of flesh’ — take then thy bond, take thou thy pound of flesh; but, in cutting it, if thou shed one drop of Christian blood…”
Amrita grew up in Calcutta and currently lives in Bangalore where she works as a Human Resource manager in her day job and writes in her free time. She writes about a variety of things and enjoys exploring different genres. X: @ForeverAmusing; Insta & Threads: @am.amritamukherjee
Photos by Amtrita Mukherjee
