What Mark saw

Right I've finally uploaded and formatted some holiday snaps for your delight and delectation. There's only three I've deemed worth putting up here, though I did take a few more. Whilst I like to have a few photos reminisce over, I try not the let the exercise of taking them get in the way of actually experiencing what's about me. I don't quite understand those people who seem to have one eye permanently glued to the eye piece of a video camera for the duration of their holiday.

Before the pics I do have to comment on what an absolute delight it was to simply stroll around Venice. It's a fantastically pedestrian friendly place, and makes a welcome contrast to most anywhere else. Cars are such an omni-present factor in day to day living that their absence almost comes a shock and it takes a while before that nagging feeling at the back of your head that something is missing begins to subside.. I genuinely wish more cities were built around pedestrians rather than motor vehicles. Logistics be damned, I'd want to live there.

One curious consequence of the lack of cars is the large number of dogs to be found roaming around (in the company of their owners of course, and both were usually well behaved). I've never seen so many dogs concentrated in such a small place before. It was impossible to walk for more than a few minutes without encountering a four legged friend of some description. Some streets were a little bit... poopy as a result, but it didn't seem much worse than many streets I've encountered in this country. Amusingly, amidst all the dogs, I only spotted a single cat. It would be quite easy to believe it's the sole feline inhabitant of the city, although on my last day I did see a missing cat poster bearing a strong resemblance the the kitty I saw, so it's possible cats simply have a very short shelf life in Venice.

Anyway, here are the photos. Apologies for the meagre number. Click for larger versions.