2nd visit to Basilica San Marco

My daughter, Jessi, arrived last night and we decided to re-visit the Basilica as the lineups were respectable. The Pala d’Oro, the gold and silver altarpiece is priceless and has nearly 2,000 gems (pearls, emeralds, sapphires, rubies, and other semi-precious stones set in the enamel.

We climbed the steep stairs to enjoy a bird’s eye view of the cathedral as well as, a panoramic view of the canal and plaza.

The Byzantine mosaics both on the exterior and interior of the church are breathtaking. You can get closest to these in the museum which has a Roman and Byzantine collection of sculptures and mosaics.

Our choir sang accapella in this designated area of the church. It was difficult to sing here as there was construction going on and thousands of sightseers paraded passed us talking. It was definitely an unforgettable experience-did I mention it was stiflingly hot as well.