Clouds and rain

The first few days, the weather was perfect -- sunny with highs in the 70s and lows in the low 60s. On Friday it turned cloudy and rainy.

Cloudy day over the Grand Canal.

I made it through the first week in class! I can now have a very short conversation with someone and ask (and answer) questions like what is your name, how old are you, where are you from, and what do you do. We've also started working on gender and how it affects adjectives and articles. Grammar stuff.

After class my classmate Jane and I went to San Giorgio Maggiore, a small island very close to the main city. It has a church and a great view of Venice proper and the area.

Church of San Giorgio Maggiore

Inside this church are works like Tintoretto's Last Supper the Fall of Manna.

We also toured the Accademia, a gallery of paintings by Venetian artists like the Bellinis, Carpaccio, Tintoretto, Tiepolo, and Titian. Probably the most impressive on is the Feast in the House of Levi, which is actually another Last Supper depicted as a party.

You can also go to the top of the campanile.

St Mark's Square and Venice from San Giorgio Maggiore.

Last night I ventured into Mestre, which is on the mainland, to try to find some better nightlife. No luck. Guess it's back to Guinness Bar for me!

The forecast calls for clouds and rain all weekend. Looks like I won't be doing any sunbathing this trip.