Paris is an ideal place to become informed, while Venice is a place to think and write

Hey guys!

So I'm so sorry that this is coming out very late, the website crashed and wouldn't let me post anything new but here we are! The last time I wrote to you I was spending my last day in Vienna. Well now I'm going to be filling you in on what I did in Venice (I'm currently in Rome)!

I know a few weeks back I said to you that Paris was the place where you'd sit, have a coffee and write the next best-seller and while I still think that's very much true, I only wrote blog posts for you all to enjoy while I was there and didn't really write for myself. In fact that's something I haven't done in years. That was until I came to Venice. I firmly believe that great writing or art can only come from places of great pain, take for instance Shakespeare his sonnet sequence was about unrequited love, Wordsworth's poetry was written when he felt out of touch with nature and Van Gogh was believed to

have suffered a mental illness but yet is one of the most famous artists of all time. I'm not saying that I'm anywhere near on these guys' level (cause I'm not) but in Venice you can get caught up in the feeling of the place, 'where everything is just beautiful colour and gorgeous buildings that are so peaceful. You can roam around and get lost in the labyrinth.' And that's what I did, I wandered and got lost (a lot) but it helps you think. So I sat down at a little cafe and started writing again - for me. I won't share with you my horrible attempts at poetry and verse but it was good to get back into it again. I'm not going

to lie, travelling on your own can be quite lonely at times, I'd think twice before doing it, but writing really does ease up the feeling. So what I'm trying to say is that if you want to write the next big thing go to Venice, I believe great ideas can be born there but maybe go and proof read it in Paris haha.

Enough about depressing stuff (ha kidding!) let me tell you about the second worst experience of my trip so far. So my first point of call once I got off another horrendous overnight train to Venice was to check in at my hostel. I get there after getting lost (this seems to be becoming a habit) and I can't check in till 2! There's a note on the door saying no ones works there out of the hours of 2pm-6pm! You've got to be kidding me, that was not advertised on the website. I had a whole 6 hours before I could get into a comfy bed. Reluctantly I got the train into central Venice and found the nearest restaurant. The prices for food were okayish but above all coffee was only 1 euro so I was staying put. I ordered spaghetti with tomato sauce (spag bol over there isn't the traditional minced beef version we're used to in the UK). It was absolutely horrible but the old Italian man that served me I thought was so adorable that I couldn't possibly say something. After my meal I just kept ordering a coffee every 30 minutes or so, I was there a good 4 hours, reading and writing and he was more than happy to let me stay there. HOWEVER come to paying up time, the meal was a whole 10 euros more than it should have been. A waitress had given me a small taster of an alcoholic beverage and bread with the meal, I asked if it was complimentary at first and she said yes. What a big fat liar!! I'd been conned! But I swallowed my pride because they let me chill out there so I wasn't going to kick up a fuss and left muttering like a pissed off old woman.

Oh but don't be fooled that wasn't the worst thing oh no no no. I rock up at my hostel at 2pm and no joke it's hell on Earth. So I told you the place was only manned from 2-6 which I thought was odd, but what was stranger was that the bloody room didn't lock! SO anyone, boy or girl could waltz on in and take your stuff or whatever and there's no member of staff for you to tell! No security provisions what so ever! The room is freezing cold and smells of damp just to top it all off. When I asked the woman if there was a way to lock the room she grunted at me and said you don't need to lock the room! Hold on there missy I think you find that I do. I WAS OUT. I looked for the cheapest hostel to go to and it happened to be a place that was offering a single room to yourself, an hour later I was in my new place feeling much safer. It was also just opposite a Maccie Ds and a supermarket = result. Well except for the fact that that was 98 quid more spent that i hadn't factored into my budget but oh well better safe than sorry right!

Now that that was all over, the next day was my first full day in the city and OMG is it stunning. No joke it is a little maze of beautifully aged buildings surrounded by canals and quirky little bridges here and there, some don't even take you anywhere but are just joined off a side of a building! (Maybe that's the secret entrance to the train that takes you to the Italian Wizarding School, J.K I'm on to you!) You won't find many, if any, well known chain shops or companies (well there was a Burger King) on the Venetian Island, but that makes it all the better. There are loads of funky little shops and soo many gift stools it's unreal. I bought a little pendant for myself that is made from Murano Glass which is a type of jewellery that developed out from Venice. It's also got sterling silver coating, so it's a steal at 8 euros but be careful! Shop around if you want to get yourself one, some places will over charge you by mega bucks! Over the 3 full days I was there I really enjoyed my time. However I will say this, you definitely don't need more than two days in this city to see everything. I was there for four days and most of that time I was chilling out at a cafe people watching. Once you go there once for a holiday you'll never need to go back. I know that as much as I loved seeing Venice I wouldn't return unless it was to live there. To me it's definitely more of a dwelling place than a dream set holiday destination.

#italy #venice