At breakfast Annelise advised us to go to the fish market at the Rialto. That was where Bassanio and Shylock had racist interactions in The Merchant of Venice (1954 reading). There were large fruit stalls and icy fish displays along the waterfront; interesting to wander past.
The maps and books told us we should be going into churches and museums and paying entry fees but today we were content to head east on the north bank of the grand canal and come back west on the south bank, using the Rialto and Accademia bridges to cross the canal. We were able to observe the everyday life of the people in Venice. It was garbage day (perhaps every day is). Men (and we did see a woman) with large trolleys walked their set route and picked up plastic bags and cardboard bundles outside the shops and residences. This fellow has stopped for a chat with a woman.
The trolley was taken to the waterfront where a barge used a small crane to swing it out and open the bottom of the trolley so that the rubbish dropped into a larger container that could be offloaded back at the mainland (terra firma).
Stallholders and shop owners were receiving their goods from trolleys and carrying them to their sites.
At the Rialto there were many large barges unloading, but most of the produce would have been brought in at dawn or earlier.
One barge was dedicated to recycled bottles. The city is bustling, but quiet, and the transport system creates many jobs for people and keeps them fit. Presumably it lowers the carbon footprint as well.
We saw the gondoliers paddling their shiny black boats again with their gold fittings, luxurious upholstery and optional musician/singer. Nowhere did we see a price; maybe it fluctuates with demand.
In summary, Venice is a very pleasant city that miraculously accommodates the large influx of tourists that swarm along its narrow lanes and squash onto the ferries every day.
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