Blogs from Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe - page 3

23rd December 2020 Tokyo this morning Venice this evening. I am so enjoying these virtual trips. The Ghosts of Venice Past - Campiello del Remer, Venice, Italy Our guide tonight was Andrea, we wandered through the narrow streets of Venice with it’s 15 centuries of history. As we wandered we listened to the tales about the sinister deeds and tragic ends of the figures who once walked the streets—some of whom are believed to still wander as restless spirits. Here is just one of the tales. In the late 16th century, a nobleman called Loredan fell in love and married the Doge’s niece. He was a horribly jealous man who accused his wife of adultery. He chased her from their home with a sword, and ended up beheading her. As punishment, the Doge ordered Loredan to ... read more

Day 38 : Sunday 13 October 2019 : Venice, Italy Opti Shuttle 9.15am to Venice was the quickest, easiest and best value. Picked up on the corner near our accommodation. Long trip on a mini bus, but very comfortable, good speed with a pit stop at a Roadhouse. You get dropped on the outskirts of Venice and have to walk in because there are no cars in Venice arrive12.15pm. No point wheeling your luggage here, on the back it goes. Up and down stairs, through alleys. We got to the Piazza but couldn’t find the Airbnb after that, fortunately, the guy was waiting for us and we looked lost enough he figured it was us. Awesome little unit, modern and has everything, we love this one, has lots of extras. And there’s a little storeroom/shed underneath ... read more

Now that the cruse ships have sailed away, it's time to explore Venice in a little more depth. After a quick breakfast in the hotel, where we were pleasantly surprised that the eggs were almost cooked, and the bacon was almost crisp, we were ready to head off on a walking tour of Venice. In all fairness to the hotels, evidently eggs and bacon are an American thing, and not really a mainland Europe breakfast. All of the hotels have had scrambled eggs, though they mostly are pretty runny. And the bacon is always undercooked. Anna promised that if we visited Britain, we would be able to get "proper" bacon. The other odd thing, is that with all the wonderful sausage we have seen, breakfast sausage is always hot dogs, regular old American style hot dogs, ... read more

The rain arrived but didn't dampen our enjoyment of Venice. Today we enjoyed indoor adventures. Rather close to our "flat" was the Basilica of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari - a church built by the Franciscan and dedicated in 1492! It is still a church but contains many of Venice's most famous works of art. Went early and almost had it to ourselves. Besides the paintings and sculptures there were some amazing carved pieces and even a 16th century clockworks. Couldn't leave Italy without having pizza - it was complemented with grilled sardines and onions soaked in olive oil and deep fried zucchini blossoms. Ben will appreciate someone else who has eaten in this restaurant. Did some exploring in the rain looking for bookstores and bakeries. Also did some house keeping and laundry as we prepare ... read more

Busy day in Venice - spent 6 hrs walking and 2 on a boat. Roaming through the endless maze of "streets" - some only 3 ft wide- has been delightful. It is easy to get lost, but the fun is in the search. Some highlights: The Rialto bridge is one of the 4 bridges over the Grand Canal and near it is the site of a Saturday morning fish market and the amount and variety was amazing. Everything fresh from the boats. Watched one fellow clean live eels! A Venetian tradition is an Italian version of tapas called cicchetti. Walk-up bars offer small, usually open-faced "sandwiches" with a wide range of toppings beginning late morning and each one is about 1euro. You can also get a very small glass of wine also for a euro - ... read more