I made good use of a quiet Saturday in Sant’Elena, first catching up on some sleep and helping to get rid of my jet lag. Then, I tried out the cafe downstairs and two buildings over, and found it fine for my weekend coffee purposes. I must come across as a bit dense to Italians, though – both at Pampo’s last night and at the cafe this morning, I was told something obvious in Italian (at the former, “your table is ready,” and at the latter, “here’s your coffee”), but not being quite able to understand what was said, both times I sat there oblivious. I figured it out on the second prodding, but still – another good reason to pick up Italian ASAP.

I sat outside reading for a while, enjoying the fine, sunny weather in the high 20s C. Then, why not, I thought I would go for a walk to familiarize myself with Sant’Elena (it’s my home this summer, after all). I brought my camera along, and took lots of photos (which will be posted once I get access to a fast internet connection). Sant’Elena is more modern than most of Venice, but was constructed in a distinctly Venetian style. Unlike some other parts of the city, the streets here really are wide enough for cars to drive down them, but I’m glad they don’t. I did see a small boy driving an electric toy car earlier, though!

I crossed the bridge to the next island over, where the VMFC stadium is found. That island is also home to the church of Sant’Elena, and as I got nearer, I found some Biennale eventi collaterali posters. These free exhibits are found all over Venice during the Biennale, sometimes in the most obscure places. Sant’Elena falls into this category – it’s a long way for anybody but the most dedicated art fan to walk. Anyway, judging from her enthusiasm, I must have been the first person the girl at the desk saw all day. She gave me a small tour of the exhibit, explaining a few of the items on display. It was all very modern and not much to my liking, but I took some photos so you can judge for yourselves. They’ll be posted soon, too. Anyway, neat that Sant’Elena gets its own Biennale exhibit.

After a break back at the apartment, I set off for the Piazza towards sunset. It was a nice walk, and not too crowded at that hour. The bands were playing, and the warm breeze made it all very pleasant. I even saw a seagull eating the insides of a dead pigeon, later flying off with the carcass in its beak (to devour it elsewhere, presumably).

On the way back, I saw some “garbage boats” (for want of a better word) moored along the quay by the Giardini. Not sure what they’re up to, but it’s probably Biennale-related. [Update: I found information about them here - they're unauthorized participants in the Biennale.] On my way in on Thursday, I noticed them moored along a dock on the island of La Certosa. They seemed to be manned by American hippie-type college students.

I learned one other thing today. Thinking I would be clever and get some fresh air while I slept, I left my shutters open and my windows cracked last night. However, I discovered that, at about 4:30am, when the sky first begins to lighten, the darling neighborhood songbirds made a dreadful cacophony of chirping and singing. It’s cute during the day, but definitely not at 4:30am! Anyway, lesson learned.