nostalgia wednesdays: acqua alta

Just over three years ago, Venice experienced the fourth highest acqua alta in recorded history. The city is accustomed to periodic "high water," but rarely does it rise to the levels it did on December 1, 2008. In some parts of the city, it was nearly five feet high.

My good friends (and fellow housemate) in Venice agreed to go out on an acqua alta adventure with me that day long before we'd heard of the mayor's warnings to residents that we should stay inside. Although we ended up soaked up to our waists (in chilly, probably polluted canal water), we didn't stay out long enough to encounter the five feet depths, which is fortunate, because I'm a mere one inch over five feet tall. 

 

by the time we walked back through the Christmas market later in the morning

the trees had all fallen over and were floating around sadly 

 

this was also closer to the beginning of the period of flooding; later in the morning, 

the temporary sidewalks all floated away 

 

there was a very Titanic-esque vibe going on that day

 

in Saint Mark's Square

 

St. Mark's Basilica and the Ducal Palace

 just around the corner from the house I lived in (that's our neighborhood 

meat and cheese shop owner in the corner there)

I know acqua alta is an awfully odd thing to be nostalgic about, but it was really cool to be a part of something historic in an already history-laden place. And, I just tend to find everything about my time in Italy nostalgia-worthy. Also, my inner eight year old derives a whole lot of joy from splashing around in rain boots. 

Anyways, I'd hoped to have something cooking related for you today, but yesterday afternoon, I gave in to this weird craving I've been having for a McFlurry, which subsequently made my stomach hurt, killing any desire I'd had to cook. And with a terrible night of sleep behind me, and a four nights in a row of plans ahead of me, it's not looking good for a while, unfortunately. I promise to be better next week...