The Floodgates Open, Slowly

I can already feel the effects of Venice wearing off, sadly. Or perhaps it's that I'm just not silly with sleepiness right at this moment.

But the visuals and descriptions of Venice are starting to flow through my mind now, so I'm going to try to recapture as much as I can before the workaday world starts again tomorrow, and I lose more of that Venice state of mind, bit by bit.

Instead of a blow-by-blow diary of each day's events, I've decided to re-explore my trip categorically, experientially. It's my hope, through this exercise, to capture as much of the detail as I experienced it.

It's also my hope that this writing will inspire memories in you for those of you who have visited and loved this city, and perhaps you'll share your recollections with me, too. It can be a second trip for both of us.

PS. This painting of the Grand Canal and the Salute, by Claude Monet, captures a view that I enjoyed almost daily by strolling over the wooden arch of the Accademia Bridge into San Marco. This painting was created in 1908 and now resides here in a museum in San Francisco. How lucky! I can see Monet and Venice here in my hometown!