Sunday Homilies : Back to amazing Venice

from Father Kevin Laughery, Troy St. Jerome and St. Jacob St. James Parishes, Diocese of Springfield in Illinois. Note: Comments from this page do not reach me; instead, email: kl@kevinlaughery.com

The Podcasts

As it turned out, the packaging is shinier but the product is the same.  Wednesday-Thursday was my night train ride to Venice.  No internet; no electrical outlet.  I had enough power, however, to finish reading Sinclair Lewis's 1935 novel It Can't Happen Here.  Entertaining, but gruesome.  In the "trains-running-on-time" department, we arrived in Venice just one minute late.

Get ready to laugh.  It took me nearly three hours to get to my hotel.  Take a look at a map and you can appreciate how baffling the job of navigating Venice is.

The Blue Guide says that the best time to observe Venice is early in the morning.  I arrived at 5:30 am and at that hour I had the city to myself.  After finding my hotel, I wandered for a while since I had to wait for my room to be ready.  The view of the Grand Canal from the Rialto bridge is stunning.  And then there's St. Mark's Square, which has to be one of the great public spaces in the world.  

With every passing hour, the streets of Venice become ever more crowded.  I have been taking it easy this afternoon, and when I'm good and hungry I will find a place to eat.  Besides the numerous restaurants, Venice is sort of an endless shopping mall.

Category:general -- posted at: 9:50am CST