0006: WHETHER THE WEATHER

You would think that for someone who doesn’t like the cold, going to Venice at the top of February should be a big ‘no-no.’ The reality is that when I started thinking of Venice as part of my sabbatical, I was not thinking about weather conditions. 

When I started thinking about the type of sabbatical I wanted to do, the last thing I thought about was the weather.
When I decided that it was a good idea to visit Italy in relation to Commedia dell’arte, I didn’t think about the weather.
When my sabbatical was approved for this infamous sabbatical trip, I didn’t think about the weather either. 
Now that I have to figure the details of the trip, the weather is the first thing that comes to mind. 

Let’s start with the obvious: I HATE COLD WEATHER!!! I lived in Louisville, KY for six years and I have to say that my experiences there, when it came to cold weather, are not fund memories. 

During my first winter I experienced an ice storm, a phenomenon that froze everything outside, let the city without power and gas for a week, and left me wishing I had never come to the area. What kept me hopeful was the fact that I was just starting a new job. 

After the ice storm and the first winter passed, you would think I would get used to cold weather, but no, every time winter came, I regretted living in Louisville, and while no more ice storms came my way, I dreaded the winter months and did not expect happy memories. Once, in a flight, while traveling for work with a group of students, our flight was redirected to a “near by” airpot because the plane couldn’t land at our destination due to icy runways. The nearby airport was about 250 miles away from our original destination. How did the airlines took us to there? By chatter bus, a three-hour chatter bus trip. 

It was also while living in Louisville where I discovered that the concept of a “White Christmas, is purely a romanticized idea. There is nothing exciting about snow days and there is nothing fun about a “White Christmas.” If you live in snow country, you know that it is more of a “Slushy, Dirty, Snow Christmas” instead. The roads, the streets, and the vehicles are just a mess throughout the winter months. So, yes, I very much dislike cold weather.

Google tells me that the average highest temperature in Venice during February is 50 degrees while the lowest is 39 degrees. Um… Cosa farò? (What am I going to do?) I live in sunny California and in the San Francisco Bay and Google says that the average temperature in February is no lower than 46 degrees and no higher than 62 degrees. WHAT?

This means, that overnight, when traveling to Venice, I will be experiencing a -12 degrees difference. I am going to scream the moment I step out of the plane. The good thing is that it doesn’t snow in Venice and unlike in the summer, the humidity is gone. I know it is cloudy and sometimes it rains during February, but the “aqua alta” (high water levels) is no more. There are about 10 hours of sunlight a day during the month and the best thing, February in Venice is Carnival month, which is the main reason why I will put up with about 39 degrees temperatures during the nights and about 50 degree temperatures during the day. All for the love of art!!! 

I mean, look at me! I’m very excited!!!