June 29 - Last Day in Venice

Today we went to the Doge's Palace to tour the dazzling rooms of these earlier rulers of Venice. The lavish decor of the meeting rooms, judges chambers, and administrative offices contrasted with the drab surroundings of the prisons and torture chambers spoke volumes of the cruelty of these early rulers. They did show some compassion in that if you were condemned to die you could chose the mode of execution - either hanging or beheading. I, of course, would have said "Surprise me".

In the evening after dinner everyone went their separate ways to walk around and discover the final treats that Venice had to offer. Fran and I decided to throw caution to the wind and just start walking. You really can't get lost in Venice and I wanted to find the famous La Fenice Opera House (made famous by the book "City of Fallen Angels" by John Berendt and a wonderful read by the way). So we set out just after sunset and started walking through the canyons of Venetian hotels, apartments, and shops in search of the opera house. When walking through Venice you really have to be ready to stop at anything curious. Every block and around every turn there is something new, probably something you've never seen before - an art gallery featuring local paintings, a clothing store with one-of-a-kind silk ties, a toy stoy with objects so unique you won't find anywhere else in the world, and cafe's with heart-stopping aromas that makes your mouth water like a hyena.

On our way to the opera house we were stopped by someone who invited us into this particular church for a free concert presented by an American choir. Since we were flexible with our schedule (you have to be in Venice) we went in a sat down. The church was small with seating about 300 people but the wall decor was breath taking. The alter was this immense detail sculpture of Moses coming down from the mountain with the stone tablets. The figures were so life-like you propelled to the Sinai desert so many centuries ago. And then the musinc started... They started quietly with the Latin choral favorite, Dona Nobis Pacem which means "Give Us Peace". Fran and I were familiar with this song and had song it many times in church and Colorado Repetoire Singers or CRS. Never before had we heard it, though, in a setting such as this in a sanctuary centuries old with acoustics so perfect you became lost in the music. Every note seem to float endlessly as the choir surrounded the congregation and graced us with their perfect harmony and genuine passion. For me they could have ended it there as our vacation was made complete by this near religious experience. But they had more gifts for us including Walking in the Spirit, Down By The Riverside, When The Saints Go Marching In and Haydn's Gloria.

In the end they left us begging for me but, as we later found out, this was their last stop before returning to America. Afterwards, Fran and I introduced ourselves and described the community choir we belong to in Broomfield. The conductor, Chris Bowman, knew our choir, was acquainted with our maestro, Ron Williams, and reminded us that CRS performed one of his arrangements at our last concert called Sanctus. Small World! The choir, named Santa Ynez Valley Chorale & Orchestra, were based out of Santa Barbara, California. They consisted of folks from all walks of life who all shared a common passion for music. The group was an all volunteer choir that rehearsed weekly and performed several times a year. In addition, they put together this European adventure of traveling through various countries and perform in whatever musical venue was available.

By now it was quite late but Fran and I were still energized by the concert so we continued our journey through Venice to find La Fenice. 20 minutes later there it was. A bit off of the beaten tourist path, this area consisted of restaurants with finely dressed patrons, 4-star hotels, expensive looking cocktail lounges, and the center piece of it all - La Fenice opera house. A magnificent structure created only recently and built on the old foundation of the original La Fenice that burned down in 1996.