some famous writer, whose name escapes me, wrote that in winter venice is like an abandoned theatre. the play is finished but the echos remain. or something like that.
tonight as i walked home from dinner under a partially moonlit sky i felt i was in an abandoned theatre. one where the lavish set is standing, but all the actors have vanished.
a crooked string of lights. another small rapture your heart understands. they’re around every corner.
yesterday i explored the rialto area. climbed the bridge. stood at the top. staring down the grand canal. there is so much to see here. sooner or later you realize that you aren’t going to see it all. and that is alright. being here is enough.
getting drenched in this rich scene. day after day. strolling around. stopping for a cafe latte. a nibble of something. marveling over all the old women in their fur coats.
there are so many baubles and shiny things. so far my purchases have been small. but one of these paintbrushes would be nice. wouldn’t it?
i have so much video to shape into another little venice movie. yesterday i captured a bit of video inside a store. and i have more working-in-the-journal videos coming. joyous work this. you can’t know just how much i’m enjoying putting all of this together. and having such an engaged audience makes it a PLEASURE.
i so love making my coffee, sitting at the little desk in front of the window, and reading your comments each morning.
tonight i met pat & mike. an affable couple from oxford. pat is a class member from TTV. she emailed to let me know she would be here at the same time and we made arrangments to meet at a vaporetto stop then walk to dinner. i enjoyed it very much. they have been coming to venice for many years.
i am off to my warm bed under the eaves to read.
OH!
this is the exact spot where our heroine Katherine fell into the canal in “Summertime”.
My favourite description of Venice is by James Morris, who says that Venice under snow looks like “an old lady who has put on all her diamonds”.
But that was until I started reading YOUR blog of course…..
As usual fabulous photos. The black and white one is stupendous. What a treat that a class member could be there. What a lovely pot of glue and giant brush with handle all tape! Lovely lady…everyone there seems to have sensible shoes. Oh so lovely to share your journey. You must soon be in Christmas Day if you are ahead of us? Well Happy Holidays in the land of fog and joyous moments.
im in awe of your gorilla photography, thank-you girl reporter!
I am so-o-o enjoying your words and photos (and videos, of course). You seem to walk the very calles I would like to walk and zoom in close on the very things that I would take time to notice. Thank you for making my first trip to Venice so wonderful.
Love the misty black and white photo, love the fancy paint brushes, love the Christmas cake, love the fur-coat-lady and her white hair, oh heck, love it all.
Yes, yes, yes, we DO want one of those brushes. We might need that lovely cake, too!
Carry on…
the little crooked string of blue lights is incredibly endearing and lovely, it seems as if Venice specializes in just the right amount of Christmas.
oh my…i love the red paint brush! and is that a fabulous letter opener i see? you have just the knack for showing us the most wonderful places, treasures and moments…thank you for sharing. carry on and keep it coming! ~joy
Atmospheric and splendid. Plus a big glue brush and a pot of glue. What could be better?
Thank you – I am really enjoying your class – it is such a contrast to my balmy holiday in the tropics! The quote was from Alan Blatas and it echoed for me when I was in Venice although I was there in Autumn. Have an amazing Christmas Day.
“In the winter, Venice is like an abandoned theater. The play is finished, but the echoes remain.”
Alan Blatas
No seriously. You just keep topping yourself with these posts! And those pens (next to the brushes) are completely FREAKING ME OUT! So very gorgeous. I’ve decided that you should run away forever and take us with you.
what i love about venice , is at some point everyone has to walk to get somewhere .
a boat will only take you so far . i love the evenings that people are going to the
opera and all walks of life are crossing the bridge. i am really enjoying your trip.
thank you for taking us along .
Another beautiful day in Venice as seen thru your eyes!! Thanks MaryAnn!
Mmmmm… bet that cake tastes mighty delicioso! Almost too pretty to eat — almost but I would eat it anyway! LOL
Enjoying our vacation Mary Ann, what fun! Merry Christmas to you there and keep having fun!
I like the two quotes about Venice. I know I’ll use those. My favorite photo is the black and white deserted one. That’s where I want to walk.
I am having such a wonderful time in Venice with you Mary Ann. You make me feel like I am there with you! And of course I am in spirit. Thank you for all of your time and talent! Merry Christmas.
Seeing,feeling, hearing, in that last pic, a place that has not known the noise of traffic. So lovely.
A Splendid selection of pics tonight!
That cake.
A Big Brush with Big Glue. The business.
And yes those willy-nilly blue lights on the precise symmetry of the building. Oh!
Andandand.
I just posted a bunch of intrepid-hibernation pics+links from overhere, on truly spacious, for your perusal + delight.
Magnifico Monday wishes to you.
xxxj
Now you have me wanting to see Venice alone some day. I didn’t want to before you started reporting. We’ve been there twice but never to linger, once in summer with the tourists and once in autumn with more tourists. Not pleasant and not noteworthy so I never thought I’d want to return. Now I do. but I want to do it alone just like you are doing, taking time to linger, browse in shops, lollygag beside the canal and watch the traffic. To listen to the bells and spoken Italian.
I wondered why you start your days late but then I remember trying to find a restaurant that was open for dinner so we could eat before putting a cranky baby to bed, and I remembered that only tourist traps are open at five or six. Real Italians eat late and stay up later so if one is to report on their activities and antics one must do as in Rome. Maybe I’ll return but meanwhile I’ll enjoy it vicariously through your videos, notes, and journaling. Maybe it’s better that way.
My book isn’t about Venice. (consider that a whispered confession) I’m doing my book on Hong Kong because I have a huge collection of ephemera, photos, and notes from many times there and I want to use this book to document that crazy place. Please don’t kick me out of the corp.
I saw there was a post and video but wanted to wait until tonight when I could savor it. I have a glass of wine and am transporting myself to Venice. Even if I never make a venice journal, the postcards and photos and seeing Venice through your eyes have made the class my very best favorite – and I have taken all of yours!
Oh Mary Ann, this is the best class ever. You make my little Christmas here on the east coast seem wanting somehow. I need to change the way I travel to spend more time in one spot! Thank you for this wonderful gift. Have a merry Christmas.
I just finished watching “Summertime” (and making my journal — which now needs to be foofed up … I am so in love with where you are: the colors! The idea of it being an empty theatre — it was one of my teenaged dreams to own an abandoned theatre and re-open it … it hasn’t happened yet, but maybe one day … *happy sigh* Prego, for all these beautiful images and videos. *sigh*
Mary Ann – you have so inspired me that I am “planning” my own trip in 2014 – my youngest will be gone to college, so I can travel on my own again. I will follow you windy path to Venice. This really has been such a treat!! Buon Natale to my favorite sojourner <3
As I check one more time before I head off to bed, I am delighted to see a new update from our partner in crime – “The girl reporter” as she has a report! You talk about the abandoned theater and when you look closely at your photo’s I can see that abandoned theater set. It is beautiful and so full of details! I am so developing a deep down desire to want to explore those very same “walks” one day. Another day well done there girl reporter!
This continues to be a lovely escape! I skipped a day (not easy to resist peaking for new posts) so that I’ve more to peruse. I poured a cup of cinnamon tea, gathered a few almond cookies, and snuggled into a cozy spot on my sofa to read your adventures on my iPad.
you are inspiring MaryAnn Moss…..i am now thinking that i can absolutely travel to Europe alone. i have traveled all over the US by myself, with narry a problem, but just have not had the gumption to try Europe. NOW i am thinking, hmmmmm, why not?
and Venice in the winter seems a great choice, though i hate to be such a copycat and pick venice. i would imagine that Morocco would also be nice in the winter…..lots to think about,
and Merry Christmas to you in beautiful Italy. this will be such a lovely memory for you.
buy yourself an extravagant present and pretend that Santa brought it!!!
I literally gasped when I saw the black and white shot. Just gorgeous.
Thank you girl reporter you are a bright spot in my day.
I relocated this evening. Lock. Stock. and Barrel. Disappeared into your most remarkable black and white photograph. I have temporarily moved into a small pension around the corner. And the pens! And the paint brushes. Be still my heart. And the colours. And the light. It’s all so beautiful. Thank you so much for bringing the beauty of Venice to me – while it sit cuddled up in my warm bed at 3:00 am, wondering what Girl Reporter is up to at this very moment. If I were there, I would be giving you a huge thank you hug, we would twirl around, throwing our heads back, giggling at the marvelous wonder of it all. There are no words, at least in the English language, to describe the magic you capture in some of your photographs. I sit is awe. Looking forward to your next post, Girl Reporter. Have a wonderful day. xoDonna
Maryann, when you explore the area around La Fenice, look for a hotel by the same name. I stayed there and dined solo (well, me and my journal dined solo) and enjoyed it very much. In the afternoons, I could hear opera singers rehearsing from my hotel window…
Good grief I’m back! Lying in bed with a cup of tea. 8:00am I’ve stepped into another photograph. I have a capability of doing that you know. At the moment sitting on the side of the canal, by the blue and white gondola posts, hypnotized by the Rialto Bridge. Not sure how I get back out of the photo, getting in is easy. xoDonna
How lucky for one of our classmates to actually be in Venice at the same time! And I feel that we are all the lucky ones to be enrolled in this wonderful class!!! For one of the few times I can remember, I am happy and excited to go to class each day! Yes,
Mary Ann, this has been such a lovely adventure, snooping around those corners and over the bridges. If only there was taste-a-vision for the yummy looking nibbles. 🙂
thank you, mary ann, for taking us to this extraordinary locale. you have many talents, but one of my favorites is your ability to find beauty in the everyday.
i too saw a lady in a fur coat (and matching hat) yesterday coming into the restaurant where we were eating breakfast. your picture has inspired me to write an entry in my journal recreating the scene with my words.
I look forward to your next report!
I was so inspired by your posts that I stayed up until 2 AM last night working on my journal from France. Today I am digging out my photos and ephemera from Venice to I can work along with you. Pure joy. I was so moved while reading and remembering that I cried tears of absolute gratitude for having stood on those streets. Thank you is so inadequate for how grateful I feel for all you have done to take us with you. You Mary Ann Moss are a gift. Look closely at your reflection in the next little window. Those tall, beautiful, glistening things behind you are your wings. xoxo
as you begin to put down your thoughts today, know that i and im sure others too, will be lighting candles and thinking of you dearest mam, knowing you are so far away from family at this time. the days are now getting longer which means more hours for photos..yay! cant wait. x j
Well, I think I commented on your ever delightful prose on the wrong post, but oh well. It would be an on-target response to any of your posts, which I look forward to each day. My procrastination tendencies once again proved fatal (well, maybe not FATAL) since I must have missed the postcard deadline (11:45 pm how close can you get?!) but it sounds like they are also a visual treat that I look forward to viewing en masse come January. Something else to look forward to. I am loving that you are having such a good time solo traveling – an appreciative audience to Venice’s foggy and enchanting stage drama. Now I must put Venice on my list, too! Oh dear.
Words cannot express how much this means to me. You see 19 months ago I started on a journey that resulted in 4 surgeries to treat breast cancer in both breasts. So when I made the trip to Italy this year it was with great thanksgiving and happiness. A week in Orvieto, 3 days in Venice and 3 days in Rome. How blessed I am. As of now I am cancer free, recording memories in my book, and enjoying every moment of this journey with you.
I bought one of those paint brushes, it s so lovely. Have a wonderful Christmas.
Mary Ann,
It is Christmas Eve afternoon and we are loading up the car to go and spend the evening with our son and his family, have a wonderful dinner, end with Mass and I find myself thinking of you in your sweet haven in Venice enjoying all that yummy Christmas bread. I just wanted to take a moment and wish you PEACE and again express my gratitude to you once more for sharing parts of your life with us. I know that we have never met but I do cherish the moments we are together via your blog or your classes. Blessings to you my “virtual” friend and a very wonderful holiday in Venice.
Hugs,
Catherine
This reminds me of a book I meant to recommend: The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke. It’s about a tribe of orphans living in an abandoned cinema in Venice. Check it out! As my own “Ticket to…” journal starts to take shape I’m delighted to armchair travel with you.
This ticket to Venice was just what I needed this Christmas. Grazie e Buon Natale, Mary Ann!
Buon Natale! So glad you are there showing us Venice in December. I was there in October with its blue skies and cool sunny days now to see it a little quieter, a little muted has been wonderful.
Merry Christmas, Mary Ann!
Merry Christmas MAM! This class was tops on my Christmas list, so Santa been very very gud to me. Hope all your Christmas wishes come true. TTFN
Just back from Christmas Eve mass and looking at the beautiful water of Venice. I can hardly get past that first photo. I just want to be there. It looks so peaceful. I know that there are busy people there but they aren’t in that photo and it is now my get-away spot.
I will be going to Venice this spring but with a group. Fortunately we will have free time and I plan to photograph and gather little things and maybe draw some and even watercolor a little. I wish that we were staying there longer but we go on to Florence and Rome. I am enjoying this trip so much; I know I will enjoy the real one more having made this one with you.
=) the most astonishing thing I discovered, yesterdays postale actually beeing stamped on 24/12-12, how do you do it =) Have a good time MAM, you make me want to travel, and well, I do have a journal, so who knows =)
I love our trip so far. I especially like your black and white photo of the canals, with that light misty fog look. Now I have been hooked on a photo that makes me want to go to Venice, kind of like your photo which inspired your trip. Have a Merry Christmas and enjoy your reading.
I love the thought of the abandoned theatre. In the trips we take, and which I will take when I start traveling alone, we choose the off season. For different reasons. My reason is so that the pace is slower. I love drama as much as any artist may, but not among people. The drama of an abandoned theatre! fabulous.
Now, one question: you say you will be returning to Venice, which, why wouldn’t you?! When you do visit places a second time, do you try for those areas you didn’t have time to see the first time? When I travel with my brother, he is very set in seeing the things he liked the first time. And I have had to drag him to new things (for me it was all new, so what did I know), and he discovers he loves them also. I would always be torn between going to the same lovely places that made the visit repeatable, and going to those places I didn’t have time to see the first time.
I have to go now. Sorry to keep it so short… hee
Please tell me where the pens and brushes were. My nieces and I are going to Venice in May and I want to go there!
I am loving the shots of the women in the fur coats. They harken back to another time – elegant, opulant, refined. Wouldn’t you just love to follow one of them home and see where they live. Kidding!!! There are stories there – they set my mind to spinning.
roxie, those were at a little shop ON the rialto bridge on the side. youll see it. but youll also see them EVERYWHERE.
Oh, I would dearly love to get one of those pens with the nibs on the glass base. Just astonishing!
Aloha, Kate
I would treasure one of those paint brushes! Here I think I am so unique, but you are seeing, doing and buying exactly what I would! Thanks for taking us along.
Wow! Every time I come back to read your posts I am swept away! I’m not planning a trip to Venice soon (but it’s going onto my wish list). I am headed to Puerto Vallarta in February and I’m hoping to take some inspiration from you with me. I love your photos. I love your posts–the lyrical, beautiful words and phrases you use. I love the class. Thank you! (sigh) It’s all too beautiful.
I am watching your workshop in June of 2013 but I was in Venice in Feb. 2012. I was constantly amazed at the gorgeous fur coats! I am from Chicago but I have NEVER seen fur coats like I did in Venice!