A magical Mediterranean vacation THIS SECTION COMPLETED 8/9 - Page 19 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
Some nice photos of the beautiful architecture along the Grand Canal! Sorry, to see the state of San Marco. I don't remember it looking this dingy back in 2006, when I was there. Even the Campanile needs a bit of cleaning.
Glad to see you felt similar from seeing the photos.
Quote:
This is actually a great place to visit, but go after 6 pm, when a lot of the tour groups have left. There are some nice cafes (even if expensive, when having a drink outside in the cafe, rather than inside as prices are different) in the square with a full piece band playing at one of them (if you're looking towards the basilica, it would be at one of the cafes on your left). It's very relaxing after sunset, being not that crowded, the band playing and just enjoying the scenery at a cafe after dinner! During the day it's completely different being overrun with the tourists and pigeons!
You'll find out all about the cafés in a second...
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Friday 4 July part eight: oh boy, that is an astronomical cost!
By now, it was about 3:10pm, and we had our tour of the Basilica at 4:00pm. Mark was desperate for food, so we decided to do something wed never done before and enjoy a snack in a café on St. Marks Square. Sure, it was expensive, but heck, what a lovely view, and how nice to just sit there and soak up the atmosphere and the view
I got a strawberry fruit juice, and Mark got a Coke Light, then I got a homemade tiramisu, which was very good
while Mark got focaccia with chicken, Edam and salad
Oh boy, that bread smelt so good! Now while I cant fault what we got, the bill came to something like 35 ($48), which was astronomical! I should also tell you that the drinks cost nearly as much as the food
I took advantage of their restrooms, which had a pretty cool view
then we wandered round St. Marks Square in the shade of the grand buildings here, that are mainly home to cafés and shops, although we noticed a lot of the shops were deserted, with the owners or workers loitering by the doors, looking bored. We looked inside a couple and quickly realised why, as the prices were just insane! I guess people arent prepared to pay those prices
Finally, we made our way over to the Basilica
and our own private entrance for our guided tour. I was so glad Id booked this, as the line to now get into the Basilica snaked through St. Marks Square, and there is no way Id have stood in that.
We were checked in, and given the whisper headset system, and I was asked if I had something to cover my shoulders, as you have to in churches around the Mediterranean, and luckily I had my lightweight cardigan with me, so I put that on, and we settled down to wait for our guide, and took in our wonderful surroundings
We were told there were no photos in here by our guide, and all the time she was talking to us and could see what I was doing, I didnt take any photos, as I didnt want to get her into trouble.
She took into the seating area inside the Basilica and gave us some history to the place. I have to say here she was a bit difficult to understand, as although her English was great, she had a very thick Italian accent, and the emphasis on the words made understanding them a bit tough at times
Once she had given us the introduction, we were taken into the Baptistery. Now here, before our guide arrived, and after she left, I did manage to sneak a couple of photos (as did some others in our group, I hasten to add, so I certainly wasnt alone in being naughty ). She explained about all the murals in here and the stories behind them. One set showcased the life of John the Baptist, and it was a bit like a tour in Disney. You can come in here and see something (Ok, so technically you cant, as this is closed to the public usually, but you know what I mean ) and its like very nice, but the tour gives you the full meaning of it.
From there, we went into the Zen Chapel, which was once the entrance to the Basilica from the shore. Once again, our guide explained about all the mosaics, all of which told different stories
From there, we headed into the Treasure of St. Marks, housed inside a tower, in two rooms representing the only remaining relics of the former Doges Palace. There are a total of 283 pieces, including Byzantine and Islamic art. It was a very small area, so getting a group of 21 of us in there was a bit of a challenge, but we managed, and the artefacts in there were stunning.
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
It looks like they've done something to control the pigeon population, though I can't imagine what! When I was there I wouldn't eat at any of the cafes in the square because there was pigeon poop everywhere. Eeeeeew.
The cafe may have been pricey, but the view from your table was priceless. I have been waiting for the Basilica update to be posted. I'm sure I'm not the only one hear who is glad you sneaked a few photos, too. I've kept turning the laptop to Luke so he can see these. I've got to get him in the mood for a Mediterranean cruise some day.
Good planning ahead for that private tour. The line was way too long!
Sometimes you just have to pony up the cash for some things. It's OK to splurge every once in a while - and this lunch/snack was worth it!
The insides of these historic buildings tell such a different story than their "tourist" outside does. Another thing well worth the cost to enter!
__________________
Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
It looks like they've done something to control the pigeon population, though I can't imagine what! When I was there I wouldn't eat at any of the cafes in the square because there was pigeon poop everywhere. Eeeeeew.
Oh that sounds disgusting. There were still a lot, but they somehow kept away from the cafés. How they did that, I don't know...
The cafe may have been pricey, but the view from your table was priceless. I have been waiting for the Basilica update to be posted. I'm sure I'm not the only one hear who is glad you sneaked a few photos, too. I've kept turning the laptop to Luke so he can see these. I've got to get him in the mood for a Mediterranean cruise some day.
Oh I really hope you guys get to do it - I don't think you'll be disappointed if you do. Be sure to give us lots of notice if you do go for it, as hopefully we can finally meet up.
About This Page: 
PassPorter Guide Author
Sorry, to see the state of San Marco. 
I don't remember it looking this dingy back in 2006, when I was there. Even the Campanile needs a bit of cleaning.
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
I guess people arent prepared to pay those prices
I was so glad Id booked this, as the line to now get into the Basilica snaked through St. Marks Square, and there is no way Id have stood in that. 
Linear Mode
