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#iwasthere at the Piazza San Marco , Venice 's principal square, often known in English as St Mark's Square, in 1980.
As a 16-year-old, I signed up immediately when a history teacher announced he would rent a Ford Transit minibus and take a group of students on a #GrandTour from London to Istanbul during the 1980 school summer break.
We were given a choice of Florence or Venice on the trip. I would have liked to have visited both, but the majority opted for Venice.
We split into small groups and made our own way to places of interest. Enduring impressions of the Piazza San Marco are the exquisite architecture and perspective when viewed from St Mark's Basilica , the splendor of the cathedral's exterior, the opulence and majesty of the cathedral’s interior and the best pizza [the real McCoy] at a restaurant on the side of the Square. Hordes of tourists and flocks of pigeons also linger in my memory.
Several months before the trip, I happened to read an article about the restoration and conservation of the bronze Horses of Saint Mark above the entrance to St Mark’s Basilica. At the time, only one was back in place. I have a photo of the western façade minus three horses. Today, I think all have been replaced by replicas, with the originals on display inside the cathedral.
Napoleon supposedly called the Piazza San Marco "the drawing room of Europe."
Sadly, I have not returned to Venice but would like to do so, one day.
PHOTO CAPTION: St Mark’s Basilica, western façade.
PHOTO CAPTION: Piazza San Marco, at night.
More at: https://www.venicewelcome.com/info/monuments_of_venice/saint_mark_s_square.htm
#iwasthere #PiazzaSanMarco #Venice #tangled
As a 16-year-old, I signed up immediately when a history teacher announced he would rent a Ford Transit minibus and take a group of students on a #GrandTour from London to Istanbul during the 1980 school summer break.
We were given a choice of Florence or Venice on the trip. I would have liked to have visited both, but the majority opted for Venice.
We split into small groups and made our own way to places of interest. Enduring impressions of the Piazza San Marco are the exquisite architecture and perspective when viewed from St Mark's Basilica , the splendor of the cathedral's exterior, the opulence and majesty of the cathedral’s interior and the best pizza [the real McCoy] at a restaurant on the side of the Square. Hordes of tourists and flocks of pigeons also linger in my memory.
Several months before the trip, I happened to read an article about the restoration and conservation of the bronze Horses of Saint Mark above the entrance to St Mark’s Basilica. At the time, only one was back in place. I have a photo of the western façade minus three horses. Today, I think all have been replaced by replicas, with the originals on display inside the cathedral.
Napoleon supposedly called the Piazza San Marco "the drawing room of Europe."
Sadly, I have not returned to Venice but would like to do so, one day.
PHOTO CAPTION: St Mark’s Basilica, western façade.
PHOTO CAPTION: Piazza San Marco, at night.
More at: https://www.venicewelcome.com/info/monuments_of_venice/saint_mark_s_square.htm
#iwasthere #PiazzaSanMarco #Venice #tangled
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#iwasthere at the Eiffel Tower , Paris, for the first time in 1980.
As a16-year-old, I signed up immediately when a history master announced he would rent a Ford Transit minibus and take a group of students on a #GrandTour from London to Istanbul during the 1980 school summer break.
Only a few campsites were pre-booked to maintain a schedule; this allowed us to either remain longer in places we liked or continue our journey.
In 1980, I climbed the Tower's staircase but used the elevator/lift when I returned in 1989, and subsequently, for the bicentennial celebrations of the French Revolution (1789) which we had studied in school.
The Eiffel Tower is the most-visited, paid monument in the world. An average of 25,000 people ascend it daily.
PHOTO CAPTION: Eiffel Tower/La Tour Eiffel, from the Champ de Mars .
PHOTO CAPTION: Caricature of Gustave Eiffel comparing the Eiffel tower to the Pyramids , published in Le Temps , February 14, 1887.
More details at https://www.toureiffel.paris/en
#iwasthere #EiffelTower #Paris #France #tangled
As a16-year-old, I signed up immediately when a history master announced he would rent a Ford Transit minibus and take a group of students on a #GrandTour from London to Istanbul during the 1980 school summer break.
Only a few campsites were pre-booked to maintain a schedule; this allowed us to either remain longer in places we liked or continue our journey.
In 1980, I climbed the Tower's staircase but used the elevator/lift when I returned in 1989, and subsequently, for the bicentennial celebrations of the French Revolution (1789) which we had studied in school.
The Eiffel Tower is the most-visited, paid monument in the world. An average of 25,000 people ascend it daily.
PHOTO CAPTION: Eiffel Tower/La Tour Eiffel, from the Champ de Mars .
PHOTO CAPTION: Caricature of Gustave Eiffel comparing the Eiffel tower to the Pyramids , published in Le Temps , February 14, 1887.
More details at https://www.toureiffel.paris/en
#iwasthere #EiffelTower #Paris #France #tangled
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