Venice and Carnivale - February 24-26, 2006

Here are some pictures from the Carnivale festival in Venice. It's the Venetian Mardi Gras where everyone walks around in costumes. The interesting thing was how authentic and intricate a lot of these costumes were. I didn't see any Walmart Halloween throwaway costumes, it was the real deal. Some must have been either homemade or custom made, the lady with the birdcage on her head comes to mind. I couldn't tell if these people were locals or also tourists but the costumes were really impressive. The only bad side about the Venice trip was the food. Everything was overpriced and the service was terrible. Most restaurants charged a 12% fee on top of the cover charge which is per person. I don't know if it was like this because of Carnivale or if it's always like this. Oh well! It was cool wandering around the streets and narrow alleys and looking for hidden gems. I found a jester's hat for $5 euros so I can't complain.