The pigeons in San Marco

Piazza San Marco, (aka St Mark's Square), is the central landmark and gathering place of Venice, Italy. The Piazza itself assumed it's present form in the Renaissance. It's been referred to as "the drawing room of Europe."

More trivia:

• It is the only space in Venice that is called "piazza". Everything else is simply a "campo" (field) or "piazzetta".
• It's been the backdrop of many print ads and TV commercials.
• It's one of the lowest points in the city of Venice and is frequently flooded.
• The piazza is surrounded by 1) the Basilica (Cathedral) and 2) the Doge's Palace (King's Palace).

This was hands down the highlight of our trip - watching Astrid run around trying to catch pigeons in San Marco. None of that running after a lone pigeon or two. San Marco has THOUSANDS of pigeons. It was HEAVEN for a toddler (and even more fun for her parents - both Uwe and I were laughing and taking photos and videotaping all the while).

Here are a bunch of photos below.

This guy has food, which is how he's getting the pigeons to sit on his arms. You can buy bags of food from vendors to attract the pigeons. Some people had pigeons sitting on their heads (picture a girl screeching while her boyfriend is taking photos). It was the most ridiculous thing. (Oh and on a side note - there's pigeon poop everywhere too.)Astrid came close to catching a pigeon a couple times - even holding one for a brief second - but they each got away. The "hunt" was more fun to watch anyway. She was so excited. We literally had to sit her down and make her "rest". She was out of breath and exhausted from running and chasing the pigeons all over the plaza, but she didn't want to stop.

While I was running after her, filming her, I crouched down at her level for a brief moment and I asked Astrid if she was having fun and in response she ran by with her mouth wide open making a sound I can only describe as pure toddler excitement. It was so much fun to watch. (Uwe and I still talk about this day and watching Astrid chase the pigeons in San Marco.)Post pigeon chasing.Every photo has a story behind it right? Well here Astrid is with a big smile on her face - and guess what she's holding in her right hand? That's right - a feather! =)