All Over Italy: Stop 1, Venice

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Overview

View from Venice's Campinile Photo - Venice, Italy

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Our first impression of Venice was a kind of disney-esque quality. There are signs posting your way to all the major tourist stops, and the whole city seems to cater to tourists. But that impression starts to fade if you step just away from the major tourist attractions - off the route from the Ponte di Rialto to St. Marks' square. Down a quiet little calle, you find a beautiful, old city that's easy to love. The peace of a Sunday walk, the bustle of the market, turning a corner and finding a tiny bridge over a quiet canal. That's not to say that the tourist spots aren't worth seeing. Quite to the contrary! St Mark's square, the Ponte di Rialto, a gondola ride down the Grand canal, these are t...Read More

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Casa Cosmo

Hotel

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We spent two nights in this terrific little hotel. It is located just right in relation to the Ponte Rialto - close enough that we didn't have to lug our backpacks too far from the vaporetto stop, but far enough not to hear the noise. Our room was on the second floor, had a big window that opened up over the calle, an air conditioning unit that did a pretty good job of cooling us down, and the biggest bathroom we've ever had in Europe! Not too bad a space - a queen bed, two nightstands, a freestanding closet, and a desk, with room to walk between them all. Our room was bright and the hotel was clean - including a little terrace on the roof that's open for guests to use. Breakfast was brought t...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on February 13, 2007

Casa Cosmo
Calle di Mezzo 4976
Venice, Italy
+39 (041) 296-0710

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Acqua Pazza

Restaurant

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We had not made reservations, and the waiters seems concerned that they had no space on the patio. As an alternative, they seated us inside, but at a small table just inside the doorway - we thought it was perfect. The portions were huge, and the antipasto should be shared. They brought out complimentary bruschetta as a starter, and we also had an insalata caprese and prosciutto. We shared a bottle of the house wine, which was fine. Our waiter recommended a baked red snapper for two for dinner, stuffed with vegetables and shrimp. He brought the fish to our table for our approval before it went to the kitchen. Very spiny, ugly fellow (the fish, I mean). He was ...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on February 13, 2007

Acqua Pazza
San Marco N.3569
Venice, Italy
+39 (041) 2770688

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Osteria alla Botte

Restaurant | "Osteria alle Botte"

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It took us a few minutes to find this spot, down a small Calle from Campo San Bartolomeo. There is normally a crowd of youngish people out front, as well as inside. We stopped here for cichetti and a spritz. Chichetti is a venetian classic, much like tapas, consisting of small "bites" of items like fried fish patties, vegetables, cheeses, etc. A spritz is another venetian tradition - a cocktail made with Campari, an incredibly bitter liqueur. Delicious. The restaurant was fairly crowded, but the bartenders were friendly, and we grabbed a spot by the window and filled up for about 20 euros, including drinks.

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on February 13, 2007

Osteria alla Botte
Calle de la Bissa
Venice, Italy
+39 (041) 5209775

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St. Mark's Square/Piazza San Marco

Attraction | "Piazza San Marco"

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There are a few sights that you have to see in your life; a few things you must experience. Venice’s Piazza San Marco is one of these. Napoleon was not wrong when he called this square Europe’s most beautiful drawing room. Visit during the day to experience the crowds of people and the famous flocks of pigeons. See the beautiful Torre dell’Orologio, with its blue face and zodiac signs. Visit at night and enjoy an espresso at Cafe Florian, the oldest coffee house in Europe. Kiss your lover while couples nearby dance to the music of the various cafe orchestras. Beyond the beauty of the square itself, three of Venice’s significant tourist stops cluster around the Piazza San Marco: The Duo...Read More

Member Rating 5 out of 5 on February 13, 2007

St. Mark's Square/Piazza San Marco

Venice, Italy 30124

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A Visit to Murano

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On Sunday, we planned a visit to Murano, an island to the north of Venice that is known for its glass production. We woke up early, and walked north to the Fondamente Nuovo in order to catch the number 42 Vaporetto. This walk turned out to be the best experience we had in Venice. It was too early for most tourists, and we had our route mostly to ourselves. The bridges were deserted and the canals were quiet. The people we did see appeared to belong; they weren't tourists like us. We walked through areas that felt more like neighborhoods, and less like tourist destinations. Here, we thought, was the Venice that people fell in love with. This was not crowded, showy St. Mark's square, but rather ...Read More

On Sunday, we planned a visit to Murano, an island to the north of Venice that is known for its glass production.

We woke up early, and walked north to the Fondamente Nuovo in order to catch the number 42 Vaporetto. This walk turned out to be the best experience we had in Venice. It was too early for most tourists, and we had our route mostly to ourselves. The bridges were deserted and the canals were quiet. The people we did see appeared to belong; they weren't tourists like us. We walked through areas that felt more like neighborhoods, and less like tourist destinations. Here, we thought, was the Venice that people fell in love with. This was not crowded, showy St. Mark's square, but rather a picturesque window into "real life," framed by peaceful canals, and curtained with laundry airing on lines above us.

Our day continued pleasantly as we bought our tickets and boarded the vaporetto. The first stop on the way to Murano was the cemetery island of San Zaccharia, where everyone disembarking carried bouquets of flowers. We arrived at Murano, and walked for a bit to get our bearings. Unlike Venice proper, where rising property costs and water levels have contributed to the rising average age of residents, Murano seemed vibrant and young. Parents chatting while pushing strollers or working in their yards, a young boy fishing in the canal, neighbors shouting greetings to friends and shopkeepers.

Having determined that yes, we liked Murano, we set off for the important task of finding a piece of glasswork as a souvenir of our trip. Passing a side street, we saw a family with a video camera, and correctly guessed that they had found a glass making demonstration. We enjoyed watching from the doorway, but we were glad that we weren’t the couple that seemed trapped inside by the salesman. We walked through a couple of the large factory stores, and saw some beautiful pieces. In one store, we tried to ask a salesman about how delicate the glass was, because we had heard that Murano glass was extremely strong. He walked off in a huff. We were confused for a while, then realized he must have thought we were trying to purchase broken pieces? How funny. Sorry sir, if we offended you, it was completely unintended!

Eventually we found a small shop called neropaco, where we bought the glass display piece that is now on our bookshelves. We originally walked in because of a sign in the window that said “We do not sell Chinese glass in this shop, and those that do are killing Murano.” Andrea was very helpful, encouraged our attempts at Italian, and even answered our earlier question – he told us that if it fell, the glass would more likely damage the floor instead of the reverse! We had him ship our purchase home for us, where it arrived a few days after we did.

We lunched on Murano, at the Busa alle Torre, in the Campo San Stefano. Our meal was delicious, our waiter was friendly, and the restaurant’s owner was a large, gruff, bearded fellow. Our impression was that he was quite a character, and sat at his table all day, shouting at the waitstaff, chatting with friends who walked through the square, and drinking prosecco. When our coffee arrived, we found that the sugar packets were personalized to include a caricature of him, laughing on one side, scowling on the other: our impression, it appears, had been correct!

Sipping our coffee, the bells in the tower across the canal began to ding-dong, and we realized we had been sitting there for an hour and a half. Ah, il dolce far niente! These are the moments we hope for every time we travel. Read Less

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Shopping in the Rialto Market

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The day we headed out of town, we got up early to visit the Rialto market. We decided to pick up supplies for a picnic on the road. Most of the shops and stands were just opening and setting up. What a great time to do your shopping. I got to shop in Italian... what a fun way to practice! Our first stop was the bakery (which smelled absolutely heavenly), where we purchased some rolls. Then we stopped at the salumi e formaggi stand, where we had them slice us some meats and cheese. You order by weight, and 2 "etti" made us several sandwiches. We ordered: 2 etti formaggio (a swiss), 1 etto cotto (a cooked ham), and 1 etto of a bologna-like loaf that was about a foot across and 2 feet long. Had n...Read More

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